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Reflections for Apr. 6-12, 2020
Monday, April 6, 2020 - Holy Week
We are entering the holiest week of the year, a week that is sacred and set apart from all others. The stories of this week remind me Jesus was both human and divine. Jesus experienced fear and dread in Gethsemane, betrayal by friends, disappointment at apostles who slept when he needed comfort, thirst and death. These feelings mirror what I am experiencing in this current crisis, especially fear, dread, wanting human contact, thirsting for Eucharist. And how did Jesus prepare for all of this? He began Holy Thursday by giving himself completely to us in the form of bread and wine and modeling for us what that means by washing the feet of his apostles. Then he went into the garden for a night of prayer. After a tortuous death, the divinity of Jesus is revealed in the Resurrection. It’s as if the Resurrection HAD to happen so that we would understand the enormity of the giving of self Jesus had just undertaken. And now I must give of myself in ways that I could not have imagined a few short weeks ago. I must give up that quick trip to the store, hugging a daughter or a grandchild and worse: I must give up being with my community and receiving Eucharist itself. I am in the tomb with Jesus, but I know what that means: Resurrection. So I try to pray as he did during the worst week of his life: not my will but Thine be done.
Jane Haproff
Tuesday, April 7, 2020 – Holiness
When I was a child I wanted to be holy. So when my oldest sister asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up I replied “the Pope”. She laughed and said I’d never be Pope. I explained that I would try my hardest to be holy. She replied that wouldn’t work because I was a girl. I couldn’t understand this. I was so shocked I actually tripped, fell and bumped my head. I thought being Pope was the holiest thing one could be and that was the source of my aspiration. To be denied this chance at holiness was unthinkable. So I set my sights differently…I would be a saint because this was possible for anyone. I began to read the lives of some of the saints and found them scary and in some cases off-putting. St. Catherine of Siena is said to have been carried up the stairs by an angel when she was doing her daily chore of dusting. But no angel helped me with my chores! I feared being decapitated, burned, or tortured in any form so I began to think sainthood was not possible for me either. As an adult I realized that this desire for a holy identity was childish and ego driven, and that real holiness means setting aside one’s ego and just doing what needs to be done in, for and with Christ. And that seems harder at times than some of the torture I fear. Be with me Lord, you are all I need.
Jane Haproff
Wednesday, April 8, 2020 – Trust
A few weeks ago we received a frightening medical diagnosis for one of our sons. He would learn the following week what this meant. As I flooded heaven with prayers for him, I felt a deep trust and peacefulness that whatever the outcome, it would be for the best. I felt enough trust that I didn’t dictate to God what the outcome should be. Then we learned that the diagnosis was faulty and there was no immediate need for concern. Phew! I felt enormous gratitude, but as I began to express that in prayer, I found myself thanking God first for the gift of peace and trust he had blessed me with all that week and then thanking Him for his faithfulness and care of our son. Then I turned my full prayer attention back to the needs of our other children during this time of social distancing, lost wages and homeschooling. After having had this remarkable response to entrusting our son to the mercy of God with no strings attached, I found I could not quite trust Him with the needs of my other children. I needed to explain to Him what that care would look like. In the first case the outcome was what I wanted, but I was willing to see God at work in any scenario, so why not in the second case? I feel like I got a tiny glimpse of the holiness that I crave when I was able to abandon my needs to God’s care. It was truly peaceful. But I now also know that I have a long way to go…
Jane Haproff
Thursday, April 9, 2020 – Service and Eucharist
This Holy Thursday I found myself dreading the loss of celebrating it with the community. As I thought about this, I reflected on the Last Supper as a meal that Jesus shared with a small group of disciples. Remarkable things occurred at this meal where Jesus, who St. John tells us was “fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power”, got up and washed the feet of his still uncomprehending friends. Earlier in John’s gospel a woman named Mary washes Jesus’ feet with her tears as a sign of humility and respect. And now he does it for his apostles. Fully aware of his power, Jesus humbles himself before his friends showing them great respect and then asks them, and us all, to do the same.
Later Acts describes the early Church after Pentecost: “…they met in their houses for the breaking of the bread”; again Eucharist as a meal, this time in the homes of believers who “shared their food gladly and generously.” So while I mourn the loss of our beautiful community liturgy, I remember that in the early Church Eucharist was a meal in a home where bread and wine were blessed and became the Body and Blood of Christ and where sharing and service were signs of His real presence.
Lord help us all to experience your presence in our desire to share and serve wherever we can in these troubling days…let us be the sign of your presence as we hunger for you.
Jane Haproff
Friday, April 10, 2020 – Brokenness
We had a crucifix hanging on the wall of our home in Kenya. It was really quite a nice crucifix and we brought it home with us where it has hung in our hallway ever since. Two years ago we had some work done on our bathroom. The workers were very careful to lay plastic tarps over all the floors affected and to clean up each day. Sometime during their several days with us we noticed that the corpus, the body of Jesus, was hanging crooked on the cross. A small piece of his ceramic hand had broken off, probably as workers moved something into the bathroom and no one had noticed it. It most certainly got swept away and put in the trash. We still have the crucifix, but Jesus hangs crooked on it, a powerful sign of brokenness: the brokenness of his body in the crucifixion and how we are all broken and fractured by sin. There he hangs broken and helpless to make the world what the Father must have dreamt it would be at creation. And now, here we all are in a world broken by unseen enemies: virus, sin, hopelessness, fear and despair. But the story doesn’t end there. We know this as we await the Resurrection and say “Come, Lord Jesus” to heal a broken world.
Jane Haproff
Saturday, April 11,2020
Here I am in the tomb with Jesus. Some might feel as if they have descended into hell with him, while others refer to this as a desert experience. In any case we are all waiting, waiting, waiting for good news, healing, redemption. As I reflect on the Paschal mysteries I wonder if this isn’t all old news: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again. While Christ died at a place and time in recorded history, isn’t it true that he sometimes dies over and over again in our lives when we despair? And isn’t he arisen again and again when we experience hope fulfilled? And don’t we all anxiously await his coming over and over again into our lives through reconciliation and Eucharist? That many of us are unable to receive Eucharist right now can sometimes feel like an absence of God in this world, God who is in the tomb. Yet I believe… I believe in a God who loved us all so much that he became one of us, took sin unto himself and therefore with himself into the grave, and then rose from the muck and mire of sin and death to embody hope, and victory over it all. He showed me that I too can die to sin and fear and rise with him. So I wait for the story to repeat itself once more: Christ will rise and Christ will come again.
Jane Haproff
Sunday, April 12, 2020 – Alleluia
How to talk about resurrection in a world that needs it so badly. How is it possible to sing Alleluia right now? On a cold, gloomy morning I went out to sit on our patio. In the quiet I became aware of birds singing all around me. There were shrieks, crows, finches, wrens, mocking birds and even turkeys. I felt the presence of God in that small, peaceful moment. However I can’t shake this deep feeling of the hugeness, of the immensity of the times in which we live and of its relation to the Easter message. God, the almighty, the transcendent, became one of us to show us how to live and was killed for it. Yet a violent torturous death wasn’t the end for Him. God is love, and such self-giving love could not be destroyed. When we love selflessly we bring Jesus alive and into the world, it is another resurrection.
Italians stood at their windows singing during the worst of their crisis, New Yorkers stand on their balconies every night at seven applauding health care workers, medical professionals all over the country are coming out of retirement to serve while facing possible death themselves. Restaurateurs in several states are feeding those without food for free, small business owners took out loans to keep their workers on payroll even before the stimulus package, Russia and China have sent us some medical supplies that we were lacking, Russia and China!
All of these expressions of sharing hope and trust and goodness are cause to shout Alleluia!! Jesus is here!
Jane Haproff
Reflections for Mar. 30-Apr. 5, 2020
Monday, March 30, 2020 - Privacy
In my civics class a few weeks ago we were talking about privacy and how the government can track what anyone of us is doing. This can happen whether we like it or not. It reminded me about how God is with us. God knows every single one of our thoughts, actions, and words before we even do it. Sometimes I try to hide things from God. Sometimes I will avoid bringing something up in prayer because I feel ashamed of what I did. I don’t accept that God will love me regardless of my choices. But God doesn’t want me to just feel ashamed for anything I have done, he wants me to admit it and learn from it. He will be there with me every step of the way and help me to form a better relationship with him. Anything I try to hide, God already knows.
1 John 3:20 “For whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.”
Carly Krause
Tuesday, March 31, 2020 - Letting Go
“When you get what you want, that’s Gods direction, when you don’t get what you want, that’s Gods protection.”
Recently, I have had people unexpectedly leave my life without any warning. I was confused at first and I kept asking God why they had to leave. God heard conversations that I didn’t hear and was present in situations where I wasn’t. God was protecting me from a greater hurt that was avoided because he stepped in. I am still confused sometimes as to why some people leave, but I know that God closed some doors because he has a better door waiting for me just down the hall. Sometimes I think that the reason God allows some people to leave my life is because I pray for positive people in my life and they were not it.
Philippians 3:12; "but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
Carly Krause
Wednesday, April 1, 2020 - Good News
I have realized that every time I watch the news for a period of time or stay super updated on things going on in the world, my mood changes. I become sad and I don’t have the motivation to do anything because I am filled with negative emotions. Most of the time the news only shows the bad things going on and rarely touches on the positive side of things. I realize that this is the same with other things in my life. When I focus on my faith and personal growth, I become happier and express a more positive energy. But if I turn away from my faith and get caught up in life, then I become anxious and sad. It can be difficult and take a little more effort to focus on the positive because this world likes to point out the negative in everything. Where I put my focus is going to affect how I am feeling.
Mark 1:15 "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!"
Carly Krause
Thursday, April 2, 2020 - Life Changes
As a senior in high school the corona virus has hit hard. I had plans to enjoy prom, senior privileges, graduation and late night memories with close friends before college. All of that has been taken away so fast without warning. I had no clue that one ordinary day could be my last day as a senior. Life can change in the blink of an eye with no warning and it wasn’t part of my plan. My plan had me finishing senior year and enjoying the all those memories but that wasn’t Gods plan. Everything in life can change in a split second whether I like it or not. I have learned to expect the unexpected when it comes to God. His plan is far greater than mine and way more fulfilling then I could ever imagine. All of this creates uncertainty within me but I always remember that God has my back throughout anything that this world wants to throw at me.
Deuteronomy 3:16 “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
Carly Krause
Friday , April 3, 2020 - Growing
The past couple of months I have been so busy and caught up in life that I had no time to sit and rest until I was forced to stay at home. I have realized that growth only happens when you are resting. Yes, I grow during the busy times in life but I’m always so worried about what’s next that I don’t see how far I’ve come. I feel as if I am just going through the motions of life and I’m not making any progress. It’s like when you workout, your muscles are creating rips and tears but they aren’t growing during the workout. It isn’t until you sit and rest that the muscle starts to grow. Those rips and tears make me strong but if I keep going with no rest, I won’t grow. I need to rest and turn to God to hear his voice in the times when I need guidance. If I continue to keep going and lean on my own understanding, I won’t grow. I need to sit back, rest, and lean on God to prepare my strength.
Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Carly Krause
Saturday , April 4, 2020 - Community
I often found myself complaining at school that I wanted to go home. Now that I’m stuck at home, I want to be back in school. When I complain about my situation, I am not being appreciative of what God has given me. The community of people I surround myself with on a daily basis is one of his greatest gifts to me. I miss the sense of community at church, school, and with the world. I took for granted a simple handshake or a hug. I didn’t know what life would be like without seeing anyone other than my family on a daily basis. Relationships with people are very important. We need community in our lives. But if I don’t have a friendship with God, then human community won’t get me very far. There is nothing more I could find within human community, than I would find with God. If you aren’t experiencing community with God then what are you hoping to find with people?
Romans 12:4-5“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.”
Carly Krause
Sunday, April 5, 2020 - Who to Trust
What if I trusted Jesus more then I trust my fear? I go through scary times in my life where I could either choose to trust God or trust my fear. Scary times can be uncertain times where I feel weak. When I am weak, the devil tries to tempt me and pull me away from God. The devil is fearful. If I trust my fear, I will be filled with anxiety and temptations that God did not intend for me to take on. Looking back every single time I turned to fear, I had no peace in my life, I was worried all the time, and I could not see God. Trusting my fear will only bring me away from God. If I trust God, I will have absolutely nothing to worry about because he is in control of everything. He will only bring me peace because it is all I’m his hands. God does not need me to help him out, he just needs me to trust him.
Psalm 28:7
"The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him."
Carly Krause
Reflections for Mar. 23-29, 2020
Monday, March 23, 2020 -A Powerful Body
The tag line for a diabetes medication commercial is: ”My body is truly powerful”. This line reminded me of a phrase I often hear that I am part of the Body of Christ. Is the Body of Christ truly powerful? I know it can be.
Sister Joan Chittister writes about the two roles of Christ. Christ was a healer of hearts, minds, and bodies. The role of healer is a role with which I am very familiar and very comfortable. I think most Catholics are comfortable with this role. During the year I open my checkbook, my schedule, sometimes my home to those Christ specifically calls us to heal: the sick, the hungry, the naked and the homeless. This is not always easy. It also does not cause me to stand apart. I am not risking ridicule, disrespect, or loss of friends or family.
Sister Joan explains that Christ’s other role was that of prophet. He confronted and challenged the people and leaders whose actions made it more necessary that He heal. He risked loss of family, friends, disciples and finally His life. Christ still calls me to defend and protect those in our society who do not have a voice of their own because of the sins of others. These are the sins of greed, desire for power, selfishness, and narcissism. If I am to be part of the Body of Christ that is truly powerful, I pray for the strength to be both healer and prophet.
Ray Frink
Tuesday, March 24,2020 - Erasing My Life
My wife and I still use paper calendars. We use them for scheduling and as a concrete way of spending time together reviewing our life together. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, I recently erased a significant number of activities from my calendar and have altered my routine, as recommended for health safety. I erased memorial services, parties, volunteer work, exercise classes, and faith related activities. Initially, erasing was routine. Then erasing became emotionally uncomfortable. Now erasing is difficult to do. I was erasing my life.
I struggled with erasing until I placed this action in the context of Lent. As a child, I would give up things for Lent. As an adult, I think of Lent as an opportunity to add good habits, while releasing bad ones from my routine. In both situations, I am erasing something in the hope of adding something better. Nothing can be accomplished until I remove whatever was destructive, wasteful, or undesired. Only then can I add better habits that draw me closer to God, that enhance the ways I can love my neighbor and release those parts of my life that are anchored to what I want to leave behind.
Not attending services, canceling activities, avoiding large crowds, and sanitizing are ways I can preserve my health for the future. Until that time arrives, I will continue my Lenten practice of prayer, reflection, and interior renewal and be ready for when I can be a full participant in the Body of Christ.
Ray Frink
Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - Date Palms
We sing many rousing songs at Liturgy. One refrain begins “Our God is an Awesome God, He reigns from heaven above with wisdom, power, and love.” God reminded me of His awesomeness when I thought about our suffering world and I heard a report about date palms.
A physician combined her interest in ancient medicinal herbs with the finding by archeologists of date palm seeds dating over 2000 years old. The type of date palm tree common in Israel when Jesus walked the earth disappeared long ago. The dates we eat now are different. When the ancient seeds were planted in good soil and watered, the seeds germinated. This doctor has grown a date of the type that Jesus and his followers ate. The power, durability, and resilience of nature again reveal to me the presence of God.
Every day we are bombarded with messages of division, greed, the lust for power, and the justification of hate. We feel like love, compassion, courage, and kindness are buried and long forgotten. They are not. Like the date palm seed growing now after laying dormant for 2000 years, Jesus’ call to love God and neighbor are still true and still viable. With the wisdom, power, and love of Jesus I can posses the durability and resilience that nature has shown. I can grow if I have let my gifts lay dormant. With wisdom, power, and love, the Church can replant the ancient seeds and restore what we thought was lost long ago. Our God is an Awesome God.
Ray Frink
Thursday, March 26, 2020 – Hand Over Hand
When I receive the Eucharist, I do so in the recommended manner: open hands, left palm over right for placement of the host. I pick up the Eucharist with my right hand. I looked down at my hands at Mass recently and wondered why my right hand looked incomplete. I realized that my left hand wears my wedding ring. There is no ring on my right. This observation brought me to realize that my hands reflect my faith. My faith is joined to the community of my family and friends through marriage. My faith is also individual as reflected in my unadorned right hand. Both are needed to receive Christ and carry Him into the world.
I am moderately ambidextrous, just as my faith should be. During my career, I removed my wedding ring for surgeries and deliveries. The impression of my ring was still there. In my work, even without the physical presence of my ring I was linked to my faith because a lasting impression was made on my finger. Joining myself to my wife through and with my faith leaves a lasting impression. I am also an individual believer. I pray with my community and I pray in private. I act in unison with the Body of Christ and I act in Christ’s name when no one who knows me can see. My hands carry Christ at the Eucharist and into the world. I hope these hands have many more tasks to accomplish.
Ray Frink
Friday, March 27, 2020 – Purpose
My wife and I met at and were leaders in the activities at a Newman Center. Newman Centers are Catholic ministries at non-Catholic universities, named in honor of a convert from Anglican priest to Catholicism, Cardinal Saint John Henry Newman, and based on his writings. Cardinal Newman wrote: “God has created me to do Him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have a mission-I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. Somehow I am necessary for His purposes.”
I read this prayer at a moment when I needed to hear it. You may have experienced God-moments like this: the convergence of thought, emotion, and circumstance where God’s word gets through the noise of my world and I hear it. These words mean something at every stage of life. As a child I needed to hear them as I struggled to find my identity, my way, my worth. As an adult, it is so scarily easy to forget that God’s purpose is the best purpose. God gives us our task and worth, not measured in accolades, titles, or possessions. As an older adult, the purpose and worth again becomes less clear. Cardinal Newman answers: “Therefore I will trust Him. Whatever, wherever, I am, I can never be thrown away. …He does nothing in vain; He may prolong my life, He may shorten it; He knows what He is about.”
Ray Frink
Saturday, March 28, 2020 – Seeking Advice
Early in my medical career, good advice I received was to always be willing to ask for help; know when I am about to push the envelope of my skills. There were times when I sought the help of my partners and times when I was called upon to provide the guidance and skill. St. Ignatius said: “It is the part of a truly prudent man to put no trust in his own prudence, especially in regard to his own concerns, of which a man whose mind is disturbed can hardly be a good judge.” That was St Ignatius’ way of advising me to trust those who know me best, to trust God when it comes to matters to which I am too close.
After seeking the advice of those who know me well, I often act on a favorite passage of mine, Mark 1:35, “Rising very early before dawn, Jesus arose and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed”. Both the meaning and imagery of this resonate with me. I cannot say I have always done this. I can say that when I have, even if I did not find an answer either in my prayers or to my prayers, I found peace. The act of prayer carries its own relief when important questions of life arise. Whether on my bicycle, looking out to the sea, or simply going into the garden or garage, I find a deserted place. I encourage you to do the same.
Ray Frink
Sunday, March 29, 2020 - Resurrection Day
Desmond T. Doss won the Congressional Medal of Honor (the Army’s highest honor) while refusing to bear arms during World War II for religious reasons. He was an Army medic and a Christian. His most celebrated act of bravery, during the battle for Okinawa, is depicted in the semi-biographical film, ‘Hacksaw Ridge’. Doss rescues 75 wounded soldiers, often under fire and in darkness, who would have been killed or captured. Doss repeatedly prays to God for the strength to bring one more man to safety. Doss chooses to do this from a long-standing desire to serve, grown from his faith. For each man Doss saves, the rescue is a resurrection experience for them. The new life Desmond Doss brought was a physical one. His acts of bravery brought hope and inspiration to the men with whom he served. Jesus calls me to bring hope of resurrection and inspiration to others with courage and kindness just as he promises my own resurrection. In John 11:1-45, the raising of Lazarus brings both physical renewal to Lazarus and hope to Jesus’ followers.
Offering hope is one of many ways I can serve. My acts of service do not need to be as profound as Doss’. I can bring hope everyday in simple and active ways. I know that if I am to fully embrace Jesus’ words, actions, instructions, and demonstrations of love, I need to believe that there is more life after my physical body passes away.
Ray Frink
Reflections for Mar. 16-22, 2020
Monday, March 16, 2020 – MYOB
A familiar gospel passage reading begins with the phrase, “Be merciful, as your Father is merciful. Do not judge and you will not be judged.” As I read the rest of the passage, I need to remember that only God knows what is in a person’s heart; only God knows that person’s life situation, motivation, and mental capacity to do the absolutely right thing. I might think I know enough to pass judgment on a person, and even to condemn him, but I really don’t know his whole story. Jesus tells me, in essence, to mind my own business; look within my own sinful heart, and be grateful that God is willing to have mercy on me and to forgive me. The very least I can do is to give another person the benefit of the doubt and let God treat him as He chooses.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Tuesday, March 17, 2020 - “Just Do What I Tell You”
Oh, those scribes and Pharisees! If ever there was an example of the saying, “Do as I say, not as I do,” the scribes and Pharisees embodied it. They told everyone else how to act, and then did just the opposite themselves. The way Jesus describes them in today’s Gospel, they were apparently bossy slackers, show-offs, and attention seekers.
In the Baptism Preparation classes I teach to parents and godparents, I make a point of emphasizing that they are the first teachers of Christianity to their children. Young children will imitate the behavior they see in their parents. Parents might say, “Forgive one another,” but if parents have an argument and then refuse to speak to one another for days, the children will hear their admonition to forgive, but the louder lesson is, “stay angry and refuse to speak” after an argument. We parents and grandparents often don’t realize the life lessons we enact for children. Lord, please help me to live your Word and example.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Wednesday, March 18, 2020 - Aw, C’mon Mom!
“The Jewish mother” is a cultural stereotype we all know and chuckle about. She doesn’t hesitate to tell her grown children what to do and how to raise her grandchildren. Clearly, she doesn’t act this way just to be in control; she truly loves her children and wants only the best for them.
In the case of the mother of Zebedee’s sons, she didn’t see anything wrong with telling Jesus to “command that these two sons of mine” sit at His right and left in His kingdom. Chutzpah, right? She did not know what was in store for Jesus, and that He had just taken the twelve aside and forewarned them. Even her sons said they could “drink from that chalice.” Naturally the other ten disciples grumbled at their attempt to be “first in line” in the kingdom.
Sometimes we parents don’t know what we’re really asking for; we can’t see the consequences of our insistence to have our own way. I pray that I will never try to tell God what I think my loved ones deserve. Only our Heavenly Father can see the whole picture.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Thursday, March 19, 2020 - Please Warn My Brothers
“. . . neither will they be persuaded
If someone should rise from the dead.”
Today’s Gospel is the parable of the rich man who refused to help Lazarus. The irony of the last two lines takes my breath away! That is exactly what has happened in the last two thousand years. So often we regret that we had not behaved differently when we’re forced to suffer the consequences of our actions. Even though we have been forewarned in this Gospel, we still fail to do all that we could for those less fortunate than ourselves.
While this is not an excuse, I think we’re somewhat sheltered from reality here in Rocklin. We see far fewer homeless/needy people here than are evident in larger cities like Sacramento and Oakland, where we see them in shopping areas, parks, and makeshift camps at the roadside.
Those parishioners who volunteer with “The Gathering Inn,” “What would Jesus Do?” and Saint Vincent de Paul see dozens of people every week who come to receive much-needed aid.
I pray that I will be more conscious of and more generous to my brothers and sisters who are down on their luck.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Friday, March 20, 2020 - “Therefore, I Say to You,
The Kingdom of God will be taken away from you
And given to a people that will produce its fruit.”
Although I believe the Kingdom of God in this parable refers to our life with Our Father in the hereafter, I am immediately struck by the reality that we’re ruining this paradise God gave us to live in. Cutting and burning forests; polluting air, soil, and water; wasting the food we grow; and powering our lives in such inefficient, rapacious ways will, I fear, be our ruin. The physical attributes of earth are not the only creations we fail to treat respectfully. God created humans to populate the earth, and we’ve been mistreating and killing one another since Cain and Abel. We just cannot work with one another to “produce the fruit” that love and cooperation would yield.
I will not give up hope of obtaining God’s Kingdom, but I must be conscious daily of working to produce the kind of fruit that God wants from me: respectful care for the earth; compassion and kindness toward all His children.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Saturday, March 21,2020 - The Prodigally Loving Father
If you have read Henri Nouwen’s 1994 masterpiece The Return of the Prodigal Son, you know the power of his soul searching interpretation of probably the best-known parable in Christianity. He was inspired by standing before Rembrandt’s powerfully moving painting of the same name. Nouwen pondered his own spiritual journey in terms of the parable. But that statement doesn’t begin to describe the book. In it, Nouwen leads us to “experience” the feelings of each of the three characters. If you’ve ever felt entitled and ungrateful ~ then anguished and repentant, you can see yourself in the younger son. If you’ve ever been worried sick about your child, then overjoyed at his safe return, you see yourself in the compassionate father. If you’ve ever felt unappreciated despite your loyal obedience, and resentful of the reward given to the scalawag, you know how the older son feels.
I need to be brave enough to return to say I’m sorry; to be big enough to reconcile and forgive; to be generous enough to drop my self-righteous resentment and join the celebration. Help me, Lord, to learn to love as You do.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Sunday, March 22,2020 - Going Out of Our Way
One reason that Jews shunned Samaritans is that the Samaritans had intermarried with non-Jews over generations and followed a religion that was a hybrid of Jewish beliefs and pagan superstitions. They were, therefore “unclean,” and Jews avoided walking into their territory. Jesus did not need to cross through Samaria; He chose to do so. The second irregularity is that a Jewish man never talked to a woman ~ even his own wife or daughter ~ in public. Why would Jesus break two “rules” of the Jewish code of behavior? The remainder of the story gives us the answer as it unfolds. Jesus astounds the woman with his intimate knowledge of her life. She says she knows the Messiah is coming and will explain everything; Jesus says,”I am He.
When she brings the townspeople to see and hear “the Christ,” they believe as well. Jesus even spends two days with them, thus giving an example of how to display love and concern for “outsiders” by walking among them, talking with them, and hearing their stories. Our parish gives all of us many opportunities to do the same.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Reflections for Mar. 16-22, 2020
Monday, March 23, 2020 -A Powerful Body
The tag line for a diabetes medication commercial is: ”My body is truly powerful”. This line reminded me of a phrase I often hear that I am part of the Body of Christ. Is the Body of Christ truly powerful? I know it can be.
Sister Joan Chittister writes about the two roles of Christ. Christ was a healer of hearts, minds, and bodies. The role of healer is a role with which I am very familiar and very comfortable. I think most Catholics are comfortable with this role. During the year I open my checkbook, my schedule, sometimes my home to those Christ specifically calls us to heal: the sick, the hungry, the naked and the homeless. This is not always easy. It also does not cause me to stand apart. I am not risking ridicule, disrespect, or loss of friends or family.
Sister Joan explains that Christ’s other role was that of prophet. He confronted and challenged the people and leaders whose actions made it more necessary that He heal. He risked loss of family, friends, disciples and finally His life. Christ still calls me to defend and protect those in our society who do not have a voice of their own because of the sins of others. These are the sins of greed, desire for power, selfishness, and narcissism. If I am to be part of the Body of Christ that is truly powerful, I pray for the strength to be both healer and prophet.
Ray Frink
Tuesday, March 24,2020 - Erasing My Life
My wife and I still use paper calendars. We use them for scheduling and as a concrete way of spending time together reviewing our life together. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, I recently erased a significant number of activities from my calendar and have altered my routine, as recommended for health safety. I erased memorial services, parties, volunteer work, exercise classes, and faith related activities. Initially, erasing was routine. Then erasing became emotionally uncomfortable. Now erasing is difficult to do. I was erasing my life.
I struggled with erasing until I placed this action in the context of Lent. As a child, I would give up things for Lent. As an adult, I think of Lent as an opportunity to add good habits, while releasing bad ones from my routine. In both situations, I am erasing something in the hope of adding something better. Nothing can be accomplished until I remove whatever was destructive, wasteful, or undesired. Only then can I add better habits that draw me closer to God, that enhance the ways I can love my neighbor and release those parts of my life that are anchored to what I want to leave behind.
Not attending services, canceling activities, avoiding large crowds, and sanitizing are ways I can preserve my health for the future. Until that time arrives, I will continue my Lenten practice of prayer, reflection, and interior renewal and be ready for when I can be a full participant in the Body of Christ.
Ray Frink
Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - Date Palms
We sing many rousing songs at Liturgy. One refrain begins “Our God is an Awesome God, He reigns from heaven above with wisdom, power, and love.” God reminded me of His awesomeness when I thought about our suffering world and I heard a report about date palms.
A physician combined her interest in ancient medicinal herbs with the finding by archeologists of date palm seeds dating over 2000 years old. The type of date palm tree common in Israel when Jesus walked the earth disappeared long ago. The dates we eat now are different. When the ancient seeds were planted in good soil and watered, the seeds germinated. This doctor has grown a date of the type that Jesus and his followers ate. The power, durability, and resilience of nature again reveal to me the presence of God.
Every day we are bombarded with messages of division, greed, the lust for power, and the justification of hate. We feel like love, compassion, courage, and kindness are buried and long forgotten. They are not. Like the date palm seed growing now after laying dormant for 2000 years, Jesus’ call to love God and neighbor are still true and still viable. With the wisdom, power, and love of Jesus I can posses the durability and resilience that nature has shown. I can grow if I have let my gifts lay dormant. With wisdom, power, and love, the Church can replant the ancient seeds and restore what we thought was lost long ago. Our God is an Awesome God.
Ray Frink
Thursday, March 26, 2020 – Hand Over Hand
When I receive the Eucharist, I do so in the recommended manner: open hands, left palm over right for placement of the host. I pick up the Eucharist with my right hand. I looked down at my hands at Mass recently and wondered why my right hand looked incomplete. I realized that my left hand wears my wedding ring. There is no ring on my right. This observation brought me to realize that my hands reflect my faith. My faith is joined to the community of my family and friends through marriage. My faith is also individual as reflected in my unadorned right hand. Both are needed to receive Christ and carry Him into the world.
I am moderately ambidextrous, just as my faith should be. During my career, I removed my wedding ring for surgeries and deliveries. The impression of my ring was still there. In my work, even without the physical presence of my ring I was linked to my faith because a lasting impression was made on my finger. Joining myself to my wife through and with my faith leaves a lasting impression. I am also an individual believer. I pray with my community and I pray in private. I act in unison with the Body of Christ and I act in Christ’s name when no one who knows me can see. My hands carry Christ at the Eucharist and into the world. I hope these hands have many more tasks to accomplish.
Ray Frink
Friday, March 27, 2020 – Purpose
My wife and I met at and were leaders in the activities at a Newman Center. Newman Centers are Catholic ministries at non-Catholic universities, named in honor of a convert from Anglican priest to Catholicism, Cardinal Saint John Henry Newman, and based on his writings. Cardinal Newman wrote: “God has created me to do Him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have a mission-I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. Somehow I am necessary for His purposes.”
I read this prayer at a moment when I needed to hear it. You may have experienced God-moments like this: the convergence of thought, emotion, and circumstance where God’s word gets through the noise of my world and I hear it. These words mean something at every stage of life. As a child I needed to hear them as I struggled to find my identity, my way, my worth. As an adult, it is so scarily easy to forget that God’s purpose is the best purpose. God gives us our task and worth, not measured in accolades, titles, or possessions. As an older adult, the purpose and worth again becomes less clear. Cardinal Newman answers: “Therefore I will trust Him. Whatever, wherever, I am, I can never be thrown away. …He does nothing in vain; He may prolong my life, He may shorten it; He knows what He is about.”
Ray Frink
Saturday, March 28, 2020 – Seeking Advice
Early in my medical career, good advice I received was to always be willing to ask for help; know when I am about to push the envelope of my skills. There were times when I sought the help of my partners and times when I was called upon to provide the guidance and skill. St. Ignatius said: “It is the part of a truly prudent man to put no trust in his own prudence, especially in regard to his own concerns, of which a man whose mind is disturbed can hardly be a good judge.” That was St Ignatius’ way of advising me to trust those who know me best, to trust God when it comes to matters to which I am too close.
After seeking the advice of those who know me well, I often act on a favorite passage of mine, Mark 1:35, “Rising very early before dawn, Jesus arose and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed”. Both the meaning and imagery of this resonate with me. I cannot say I have always done this. I can say that when I have, even if I did not find an answer either in my prayers or to my prayers, I found peace. The act of prayer carries its own relief when important questions of life arise. Whether on my bicycle, looking out to the sea, or simply going into the garden or garage, I find a deserted place. I encourage you to do the same.
Ray Frink
Sunday, March 29, 2020 - Resurrection Day
Desmond T. Doss won the Congressional Medal of Honor (the Army’s highest honor) while refusing to bear arms during World War II for religious reasons. He was an Army medic and a Christian. His most celebrated act of bravery, during the battle for Okinawa, is depicted in the semi-biographical film, ‘Hacksaw Ridge’. Doss rescues 75 wounded soldiers, often under fire and in darkness, who would have been killed or captured. Doss repeatedly prays to God for the strength to bring one more man to safety. Doss chooses to do this from a long-standing desire to serve, grown from his faith. For each man Doss saves, the rescue is a resurrection experience for them. The new life Desmond Doss brought was a physical one. His acts of bravery brought hope and inspiration to the men with whom he served. Jesus calls me to bring hope of resurrection and inspiration to others with courage and kindness just as he promises my own resurrection. In John 11:1-45, the raising of Lazarus brings both physical renewal to Lazarus and hope to Jesus’ followers.
Offering hope is one of many ways I can serve. My acts of service do not need to be as profound as Doss’. I can bring hope everyday in simple and active ways. I know that if I am to fully embrace Jesus’ words, actions, instructions, and demonstrations of love, I need to believe that there is more life after my physical body passes away.
Ray Frink
Monday, March 23, 2020 -A Powerful Body
The tag line for a diabetes medication commercial is: ”My body is truly powerful”. This line reminded me of a phrase I often hear that I am part of the Body of Christ. Is the Body of Christ truly powerful? I know it can be.
Sister Joan Chittister writes about the two roles of Christ. Christ was a healer of hearts, minds, and bodies. The role of healer is a role with which I am very familiar and very comfortable. I think most Catholics are comfortable with this role. During the year I open my checkbook, my schedule, sometimes my home to those Christ specifically calls us to heal: the sick, the hungry, the naked and the homeless. This is not always easy. It also does not cause me to stand apart. I am not risking ridicule, disrespect, or loss of friends or family.
Sister Joan explains that Christ’s other role was that of prophet. He confronted and challenged the people and leaders whose actions made it more necessary that He heal. He risked loss of family, friends, disciples and finally His life. Christ still calls me to defend and protect those in our society who do not have a voice of their own because of the sins of others. These are the sins of greed, desire for power, selfishness, and narcissism. If I am to be part of the Body of Christ that is truly powerful, I pray for the strength to be both healer and prophet.
Ray Frink
Tuesday, March 24,2020 - Erasing My Life
My wife and I still use paper calendars. We use them for scheduling and as a concrete way of spending time together reviewing our life together. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, I recently erased a significant number of activities from my calendar and have altered my routine, as recommended for health safety. I erased memorial services, parties, volunteer work, exercise classes, and faith related activities. Initially, erasing was routine. Then erasing became emotionally uncomfortable. Now erasing is difficult to do. I was erasing my life.
I struggled with erasing until I placed this action in the context of Lent. As a child, I would give up things for Lent. As an adult, I think of Lent as an opportunity to add good habits, while releasing bad ones from my routine. In both situations, I am erasing something in the hope of adding something better. Nothing can be accomplished until I remove whatever was destructive, wasteful, or undesired. Only then can I add better habits that draw me closer to God, that enhance the ways I can love my neighbor and release those parts of my life that are anchored to what I want to leave behind.
Not attending services, canceling activities, avoiding large crowds, and sanitizing are ways I can preserve my health for the future. Until that time arrives, I will continue my Lenten practice of prayer, reflection, and interior renewal and be ready for when I can be a full participant in the Body of Christ.
Ray Frink
Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - Date Palms
We sing many rousing songs at Liturgy. One refrain begins “Our God is an Awesome God, He reigns from heaven above with wisdom, power, and love.” God reminded me of His awesomeness when I thought about our suffering world and I heard a report about date palms.
A physician combined her interest in ancient medicinal herbs with the finding by archeologists of date palm seeds dating over 2000 years old. The type of date palm tree common in Israel when Jesus walked the earth disappeared long ago. The dates we eat now are different. When the ancient seeds were planted in good soil and watered, the seeds germinated. This doctor has grown a date of the type that Jesus and his followers ate. The power, durability, and resilience of nature again reveal to me the presence of God.
Every day we are bombarded with messages of division, greed, the lust for power, and the justification of hate. We feel like love, compassion, courage, and kindness are buried and long forgotten. They are not. Like the date palm seed growing now after laying dormant for 2000 years, Jesus’ call to love God and neighbor are still true and still viable. With the wisdom, power, and love of Jesus I can posses the durability and resilience that nature has shown. I can grow if I have let my gifts lay dormant. With wisdom, power, and love, the Church can replant the ancient seeds and restore what we thought was lost long ago. Our God is an Awesome God.
Ray Frink
Thursday, March 26, 2020 – Hand Over Hand
When I receive the Eucharist, I do so in the recommended manner: open hands, left palm over right for placement of the host. I pick up the Eucharist with my right hand. I looked down at my hands at Mass recently and wondered why my right hand looked incomplete. I realized that my left hand wears my wedding ring. There is no ring on my right. This observation brought me to realize that my hands reflect my faith. My faith is joined to the community of my family and friends through marriage. My faith is also individual as reflected in my unadorned right hand. Both are needed to receive Christ and carry Him into the world.
I am moderately ambidextrous, just as my faith should be. During my career, I removed my wedding ring for surgeries and deliveries. The impression of my ring was still there. In my work, even without the physical presence of my ring I was linked to my faith because a lasting impression was made on my finger. Joining myself to my wife through and with my faith leaves a lasting impression. I am also an individual believer. I pray with my community and I pray in private. I act in unison with the Body of Christ and I act in Christ’s name when no one who knows me can see. My hands carry Christ at the Eucharist and into the world. I hope these hands have many more tasks to accomplish.
Ray Frink
Friday, March 27, 2020 – Purpose
My wife and I met at and were leaders in the activities at a Newman Center. Newman Centers are Catholic ministries at non-Catholic universities, named in honor of a convert from Anglican priest to Catholicism, Cardinal Saint John Henry Newman, and based on his writings. Cardinal Newman wrote: “God has created me to do Him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have a mission-I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. Somehow I am necessary for His purposes.”
I read this prayer at a moment when I needed to hear it. You may have experienced God-moments like this: the convergence of thought, emotion, and circumstance where God’s word gets through the noise of my world and I hear it. These words mean something at every stage of life. As a child I needed to hear them as I struggled to find my identity, my way, my worth. As an adult, it is so scarily easy to forget that God’s purpose is the best purpose. God gives us our task and worth, not measured in accolades, titles, or possessions. As an older adult, the purpose and worth again becomes less clear. Cardinal Newman answers: “Therefore I will trust Him. Whatever, wherever, I am, I can never be thrown away. …He does nothing in vain; He may prolong my life, He may shorten it; He knows what He is about.”
Ray Frink
Saturday, March 28, 2020 – Seeking Advice
Early in my medical career, good advice I received was to always be willing to ask for help; know when I am about to push the envelope of my skills. There were times when I sought the help of my partners and times when I was called upon to provide the guidance and skill. St. Ignatius said: “It is the part of a truly prudent man to put no trust in his own prudence, especially in regard to his own concerns, of which a man whose mind is disturbed can hardly be a good judge.” That was St Ignatius’ way of advising me to trust those who know me best, to trust God when it comes to matters to which I am too close.
After seeking the advice of those who know me well, I often act on a favorite passage of mine, Mark 1:35, “Rising very early before dawn, Jesus arose and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed”. Both the meaning and imagery of this resonate with me. I cannot say I have always done this. I can say that when I have, even if I did not find an answer either in my prayers or to my prayers, I found peace. The act of prayer carries its own relief when important questions of life arise. Whether on my bicycle, looking out to the sea, or simply going into the garden or garage, I find a deserted place. I encourage you to do the same.
Ray Frink
Sunday, March 29, 2020 - Resurrection Day
Desmond T. Doss won the Congressional Medal of Honor (the Army’s highest honor) while refusing to bear arms during World War II for religious reasons. He was an Army medic and a Christian. His most celebrated act of bravery, during the battle for Okinawa, is depicted in the semi-biographical film, ‘Hacksaw Ridge’. Doss rescues 75 wounded soldiers, often under fire and in darkness, who would have been killed or captured. Doss repeatedly prays to God for the strength to bring one more man to safety. Doss chooses to do this from a long-standing desire to serve, grown from his faith. For each man Doss saves, the rescue is a resurrection experience for them. The new life Desmond Doss brought was a physical one. His acts of bravery brought hope and inspiration to the men with whom he served. Jesus calls me to bring hope of resurrection and inspiration to others with courage and kindness just as he promises my own resurrection. In John 11:1-45, the raising of Lazarus brings both physical renewal to Lazarus and hope to Jesus’ followers.
Offering hope is one of many ways I can serve. My acts of service do not need to be as profound as Doss’. I can bring hope everyday in simple and active ways. I know that if I am to fully embrace Jesus’ words, actions, instructions, and demonstrations of love, I need to believe that there is more life after my physical body passes away.
Ray Frink
Reflections for Mar. 9-15, 2020
Monday, March 9, 2020 - Spring Forward
I am one of those people who don’t like the time change. I don’t care for the adjustment of clocks and the way it messes with my morning light. But alas it is not a policy I am willing to fight. Instead, I am trying to embrace how this change that I strongly dislike might be a challenge from God to make the best of what is. So how can I greet this change with joy?
I will be able to start my runs in darkness and witness the sun rising over the canyon. The evenings will have longer light so that my children can spend extended time outdoors. And in just a few months, the days will be so long that there will be light from the time I wake until the time I sleep!
It is lovely that Daylight Savings Time begins during Lent—it propels us into the season of spring and reminds us to look forward to the Light ahead! But the true Light that is coming is not the longer days, it is the promise of the Resurrection of our Lord.
Dear God, let us spring forward to be closer to you and your Son, the greatest Light.
Erin Gallawa
Tuesday, March 10, 2020 - Crochet
My great-grandmother and my grandpa’s wife both crocheted. My house has many lovely afghans that were gifted to us by these talented women. When I was about 9, one of them tried to teach me how to crochet. I was terrible at it, but I still have the horrid brown item that I first made. Is it a small blanket? Is it a wide scarf? Is it an oversized potholder? I have no idea.
Recently I decided to try crochet again. I was surprised at how easily my hands remembered how to hook and pull. I did have to spend some time on YouTube for a reminder on how to properly make the stitches, but the movement of the hands felt natural, even three decades later.
We have seen so many mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, daughters and sons who have left the church. I know how it has made families suffer and hearts ache. But as I sat on my couch one evening, falling back into the familiar practice of crochet, I realized that we can always come back to the gifts we received as children. The practice of our returning Catholics may not be perfect, but it will be familiar, and they will be called home.
May we pray for those who have left the Church, that they will find their way to God and community.
Erin Gallawa
Wednesday, March 11, 2020 - Passport
When we got the mail last week there were two, unblemished, newly issued passports in the mailbox for my girls. They were so excited about the fact that it meant there were trips in our future. I was 20 when I secured my first passport; I remember all the empty pages, thinking of the adventures that lie ahead, not knowing exactly where that passport would take me. I always find it sad when a passport expires. You say goodbye to the stamps that mark the movement of travel, that remind us of the places we’ve been and the memories we made there. But there is something exciting about starting anew, a fresh start to the journeys ahead.
The stamp that is most often found on my pages is “Barajas”—the name of the Madrid airport. It can be found in every passport book I’ve ever had. As I await the arrival of my new passport, I can’t help but wonder—will the name of “Barajas” once again grace the pages of my travel?
Our God gives us blank pages upon which to stamp our journey. The pages are marked with the people, places and experiences that make us his unique creations. But there are people and places that always call us home to Him—those are the stamps that appear most often on our pages.
How has God marked the pages of your journey?
Erin Gallawa
Thursday, March 12, 2020 - Walk home
On Ash Wednesday I arrived late for the liturgy and so I snuck into a back row, far from my preferred spot in the front. As I left my row and slowly approached the altar to receive my ashes, I was suddenly emotional at my approach to the front. I wondered how many times I have walked down that aisle to receive God’s grace? I came down that aisle to meet my husband in the Sacrament of Marriage and I carried my children down the aisle to be baptized. I have approached the altar to speak God’s word from the ambo and I have traveled the aisle to receive the Body of Christ in the Eucharist.
The center aisle of the Church is the path that takes me home to where the Word of God and the Body of Christ are offered.
I hope that moment will stay with me so that I always see the aisle in a different way. The aisle is the same road I have traveled hundreds (thousands?) of times—a road home. It is a familiar path that I will continue to walk until God brings me to my final home.
Erin Gallawa
Friday, Marcy 13, 2020 - Bridge
The Communion song at Mass last weekend was “We Are One Body.” I was excited because I love that song! As Communion began, I sang along as I always do—verse one, refrain, verse two, refrain. Then the bridge started.
“I am the Way, the Truth, the Life, I am the Final Sacrifice.”
I stopped singing. There was a lump in my throat, tears in my eyes and the words wouldn’t come out of my mouth. There are a few songs that make me emotional, but I had forgotten about this one. I don’t even know why it is that it moves me.
In music, the bridge is a distinct section that musically or lyrically contrasts the verses and refrains. It can offer a change of pace or keep a song from sounding repetitive. The bridge in this song is certainly a change of pace and offers a distinct point of view from the rest of the lyrics. As I composed myself in preparation to receive the Eucharist, I reflected on what bridge God is calling me too. Where in the familiarity of my life is he asking me to stand in contrast? What about the regularity of my life is he asking me to disrupt?
Perhaps as we venture through this part of Lent, we may reflect on what bridges God is calling us to; how is He asking you break from your norms? Where are you called to stand out?
Erin Gallawa
Saturday, March 14, 2020 - Soda
I love the sneaky ways that middle schoolers try to throw me off track in class. Last week an 8th grader interrupted me to say that she had given up soda and said how hard it had been over the weekend to resist. “How does this even help me get closer to Jesus?”
What a great question! By now you have already committed (or not) to some sort of fast this year. But maybe you haven’t yet connected how to make that fast have spiritual payoff. I challenged this young woman to two things: 1) Every time she faced the temptation, she should consider Jesus’ temptations and sacrifices; this could bring her closer to Christ. 2) Every time she was given an opportunity to fast from soda, she could pray. This active reminder to prayer would also enhance her Lenten experience.
I have no way of knowing whether she will use those opportunities to grow closer to Christ during this Lenten season, but it was a good reminder for me that our fasting, our prayer and our almsgiving doesn’t have to look special to be significant. Our journey this Lent is exactly that—a journey. Each day we can take a step closer to God through intention in every choice, the way we offer our sacrifice to God and how we choose to pray on the journey. May the continuation of your Lenten journey bring you closer to Christ.
Erin Gallawa
Sunday, March 15, 2020 - Return to the Desert
As Lent approached this year, I found myself disappointed that I had arrived at Ash Wednesday again still in need of so much repentance. Every year I have high hopes for a transformative Lent—an experience that will create real change in my life as a Christian. But every time I return to this season, I feel the weight of my sin and realized that I am right back where I started. I could allow this to be a burden, but I instead I will choose to find the joy in my return to the desert. Each year I am gifted with a chance to renew my commitment to the church, to follow Christ, to grow in my relationship with God.
This Lent I have chosen my intentions in the hope that I will grow in some small way. I have hope that my prayer life will grow, my commitment to serving as Christ will have greater impact and that my fasting will create meaningful change. I hope that I will arrive in the desert next Lent a little changed, a bit transformed.
May your Lent be full of intention and small transformation.
Erin Gallawa
Reflections for Mar. 16-22, 2020
Monday, March 16, 2020 – MYOB
A familiar gospel reading begins with the phrase, “Be merciful, as your Father is merciful. Do not judge and you will not be judged.” As I read the rest of the passage, I need to remember that only God knows what is in a person’s heart; only God knows that person’s life situation, motivation, and mental capacity to do the absolutely right thing. I might think I know enough to pass judgment on a person, and even to condemn him, but I really don’t know his whole story. Jesus tells me, in essence, to mind my own business; look within my own sinful heart, and be grateful that God is willing to have mercy on me and to forgive me. The very least I can do is to give another person the benefit of the doubt and let God treat him as He chooses.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Tuesday, March 17, 2020 - “Just Do What I Tell You”
Oh, those scribes and Pharisees! If ever there was an example of the saying, “Do as I say, not as I do,” the scribes and Pharisees embodied it. They told everyone else how to act, and then did just the opposite themselves. The way Jesus describes them in the Gospel, they were apparently bossy slackers, show-offs, and attention seekers.
In the Baptism Preparation classes I teach to parents and godparents, I make a point of emphasizing that they are the first teachers of Christianity to their children. Young children will imitate the behavior they see in their parents. Parents might say, “Forgive one another,” but if parents have an argument and then refuse to speak to one another for days, the children will hear their admonition to forgive, but the louder lesson is, “stay angry and refuse to speak” after an argument. We parents and grandparents often don’t realize the life lessons we enact for children. Lord, please help me to live your Word and example.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Wednesday, March 18, 2020 - Aw, C’mon Mom!
“The Jewish mother” is a cultural stereotype we all know and chuckle about. She doesn’t hesitate to tell her grown children what to do and how to raise her grandchildren. Clearly, she doesn’t act this way just to be in control; she truly loves her children and wants only the best for them.
In the case of the mother of Zebedee’s sons, she didn’t see anything wrong with telling Jesus to “command that these two sons of mine” sit at His right and left in His kingdom. Chutzpah, right? She did not know what was in store for Jesus, and that He had just taken the twelve aside and forewarned them. Even her sons said they could “drink from that chalice.” Naturally the other ten disciples grumbled at their attempt to be “first in line” in the kingdom.
Sometimes we parents don’t know what we’re really asking for; we can’t see the consequences of our insistence to have our own way. I pray that I will never try to tell God what I think my loved ones deserve. Only our Heavenly Father can see the whole picture.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Thursday, March 19, 2020 - Please Warn My Brothers
“. . . neither will they be persuaded
If someone should rise from the dead.”
Our gospels tell a parable of the rich man who refused to help Lazarus. The irony of the last two lines takes my breath away! That is exactly what has happened in the last two thousand years. So often we regret that we had not behaved differently when we’re forced to suffer the consequences of our actions. Even though we have been forewarned in this Gospel, we still fail to do all that we could for those less fortunate than ourselves.
While this is not an excuse, I think we’re somewhat sheltered from reality here in Rocklin. We see far fewer homeless/needy people here than are evident in larger cities like Sacramento and Oakland, where we see them in shopping areas, parks, and makeshift camps at the roadside.
Those parishioners who volunteer with “The Gathering Inn,” “What would Jesus Do?” and Saint Vincent de Paul see dozens of people every week who come to receive much-needed aid.
I pray that I will be more conscious of and more generous to my brothers and sisters who are down on their luck.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Friday, March 20, 2020 - “Therefore, I Say to You,
The Kingdom of God will be taken away from you
And given to a people that will produce its fruit.”
Although I believe the Kingdom of God in this parable refers to our life with Our Father in the hereafter, I am immediately struck by the reality that we’re ruining this paradise God gave us to live in. Cutting and burning forests; polluting air, soil, and water; wasting the food we grow; and powering our lives in such inefficient, rapacious ways will, I fear, be our ruin. The physical attributes of earth are not the only creations we fail to treat respectfully. God created humans to populate the earth, and we’ve been mistreating and killing one another since Cain and Abel. We just cannot work with one another to “produce the fruit” that love and cooperation would yield.
I will not give up hope of obtaining God’s Kingdom, but I must be conscious daily of working to produce the kind of fruit that God wants from me: respectful care for the earth; compassion and kindness toward all His children.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Saturday, March 21,2020 - The Prodigally Loving Father
If you have read Henri Nouwen’s 1994 masterpiece The Return of the Prodigal Son, you know the power of his soul searching interpretation of probably the best-known parable in Christianity. He was inspired by standing before Rembrandt’s powerfully moving painting of the same name. Nouwen pondered his own spiritual journey in terms of the parable. But that statement doesn’t begin to describe the book. In it, Nouwen leads us to “experience” the feelings of each of the three characters. If you’ve ever felt entitled and ungrateful ~ then anguished and repentant, you can see yourself in the younger son. If you’ve ever been worried sick about your child, then overjoyed at his safe return, you see yourself in the compassionate father. If you’ve ever felt unappreciated despite your loyal obedience, and resentful of the reward given to the scalawag, you know how the older son feels.
I need to be brave enough to return to say I’m sorry; to be big enough to reconcile and forgive; to be generous enough to drop my self-righteous resentment and join the celebration. Help me, Lord, to learn to love as You do.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Sunday, March 22,2020 - Going Out of Our Way
One reason that Jews shunned Samaritans is that the Samaritans had intermarried with non-Jews over generations and followed a religion that was a hybrid of Jewish beliefs and pagan superstitions. They were, therefore “unclean,” and Jews avoided walking into their territory. Jesus did not need to cross through Samaria; He chose to do so. The second irregularity is that a Jewish man never talked to a woman ~ even his own wife or daughter ~ in public. Why would Jesus break two “rules” of the Jewish code of behavior? The remainder of the story gives us the answer as it unfolds. Jesus astounds the woman with his intimate knowledge of her life. She says she knows the Messiah is coming and will explain everything; Jesus says,”I am He.
When she brings the townspeople to see and hear “the Christ,” they believe as well. Jesus even spends two days with them, thus giving an example of how to display love and concern for “outsiders” by walking among them, talking with them, and hearing their stories. Our parish gives all of us many opportunities to do the same.
BARBARA STRICKLIN
Reflections for Mar. 2-8, 2020
Monday, March 2, 2020 – Lent, Journey and Judgment
Lent is a time for inner reflection. Just as Jesus went into the desert to prepare for His journey, we also prepare to begin or renew our journey with the Lord. In today’s reading Jesus tells his disciples the story of his second coming. Jesus will come in His glory and all will stand before Him. They are separated into two groups, the sheep and the goats and they are judged not on what they have accomplished for themselves but what they have done for others. He tells them when you help the least of his, you help him and when you ignore the least of his, you ignore him. This is one of the hardest readings for me because I really do not know what group I will be put into. At any time in my life I could be put into either group. There are the times I have clothed the naked, fed the hungry, quenched the thirsty, cared for the ill, welcomed the stranger and comforted the imprisoned. But there are the times I have ignored them because it was inconvenient at that time. As I reflect this Lent, I pray that I keep my eyes open to the needs of others and take the time help others when needed.
Kurt Peterson
Tuesday, March 3, 2020 - The Only Prayer
Prayer is a one of the most intimate acts we can do with God and Jesus tells
his disciples this in Mt 6: 7-15. He tells them not to babble but teaches them really the only prayer we need, the “Our Father”. It is the perfect prayer in its simplicity and completeness. We first acknowledge God’s holiness and confirm that we are willing participants of His plan for the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. Then we ask for our daily needs. Not something in the future but just for that day and to forgive us for hurting others as we give forgiveness for the hurts we have received. Lastly we ask God to help us not to be tempted to sin and to be delivered from the temptation. What else could I ask for in a prayer? It is perfect but we must fully understand its implication, so Jesus ends his discussion to the disciples with this warning: if you forgive men their transgressions then your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions. Jesus is telling me that my actions determine my eternal fate. God grants me only what I am willing to grant to others. The next time I am harboring a hurt, I need to think about what that is doing to my eternal soul.
Kurt Peterson
Wednesday, March 4, 2020 - The Gospel According to ….
Every Sunday we hear the lector begin the Gospel reading, “The Gospel according to…”. Whether it is Mark, Matthew, Luke or John, each book tells the story of Jesus from their perspective. It is not the Gospel of John but the Gospel according to John. It is from John’s perspective. It is how John understood what Jesus taught and what he is called to do. Each of the gospels is speaking to a different group and coming from a different vantage point but the overall message is the same. Jesus came to reunite us with God and show us how we are to love one another. As Christians we are called to spread the Good News to all the nations, MK 16:15. We are to live our lives according to our faith. Everything we do and say is to be formed by how we see God working in our lives. So we go forth to live the Gospel according to our perspective. The four gospels are the ones we gain our understanding from but it is the gospel according to each of us that shows the world that we are Christians. So today from waking to when I return to sleep I will be living the Gospel according to Kurt. I pray that my Gospel is pleasing to Him.
Kurt Peterson
Thursday March 5, 2020-Liberty
There is a period on the Jewish calendar called “the counting of the omer”, the 49 days between Passover and Pentecost. It is customary to make a special blessing each day. This season celebrates the escape of the Hebrews from Egypt in the Exodus (Passover) to the revelation of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai; it is the journey from liberation to the constitution of Liberty. The Bible teaches us that freedom takes time and the true freedom to be ourselves, as God intended, is achieved through following God’s laws. Moses’ words are still relevant today, “These commandments that I give you today must be in your heart. Teach them diligently to your children and talk about them when you sit at home or walk on the way, when you lie down and when you rise” Deuteronomy 6:6-7. Lent is a time for us to reflect on those words of Moses to keep the commandments in our hearts. Freedom is a journey, not a sudden achievement. I pray that I am prepared for the journey to freedom with Jesus.
Kurt Peterson
Friday, March 6, 2020 - Children
A couple of weeks ago at RCIA we talked about the parable of the prodigal son and it got me thinking about being a parent. Everything in our life is finite except being a parent. Once you are a parent you are one forever and you will never stop being concerned with your children’s welfare. The parable of the prodigal son is a perfect example. The son came to his father saying he could not wait any longer to leave, so he wanted his inheritance now. What a hurtful thing to hear that your child can’t wait for you to die. The father gave him his portion and the son left to squander it all. Hitting rock bottom the son remembered how kind his father was even to his servants so he decided to return if only to be a servant to his father. As the son heads back Luke 15:20 says, “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him”. Think about those words, a long way off. This means to me that the father was constantly looking in the distance to see if his son would return. If I was daily watching for my child not knowing if they would ever return and then saw their distant image that would fill me with compassion too. As a parent you allow your grown children to make their own decisions good or bad. And when they chose the wrong path you are waiting to accept your child back. If someone as imperfect as I will embrace my child on their return, how much more will God embrace me when I turn back to him after I have sinned. God is always watching for his lost children and when he sees them He will do like the parable says “And he ran..”.
Kurt Peterson
Saturday. March 7, 2020 -I Am Sorry
In a recent episode of “This is Us” one of the characters talks about how as a kid just saying I am sorry was enough, but is so much harder now as an adult. That is such a true statement. It was so much easier as a child to be forgiven but as an adult the type of hurt one can cause is so much greater and deeper than that of a child so just saying sorry is not always enough. It may take a long time for the person we hurt to forgive us and sometimes we find the person hardest to forgive is our self. That is why the Sacrament of Reconciliation is so important to us as Catholics. When we confess our sins and say we are sorry, God, through the priest, forgives us. That sin that we confessed is no more. Though the sin is no more, the affects of that sin may still be there and that is the other part of reconciliation: penance. We are obligated to show how contrite we are through prayer, restitution or some other type of act to the person we harmed. Even though there is a chance that person may never forgive us God forgives us and we are to live anew.
Kurt Peterson
Sunday, March 8, 2020 - I Will Keep Playing
Psalm 150 is the last psalm in the Book of Psalms. If you are not familiar with it here are the verses:
Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power.
Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.
Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp.
Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs.
Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high-sounding cymbals.
Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.
Every element of that psalm is our music ministry here at SS Peter-Paul. We praise the Lord in his sanctuary when we gather for mass. Our songs are filled with praise of His mighty acts and we praise him for his greatness. Also every instrument listed there is in our ministry. You may not be familiar with a couple of these, the psaltery is an ancient string instrument related to our guitars today and the timbrel is a hand drum. Combine the timbrel and cymbals and you have the drum set. At the end of any 5:15 mass the young children come up to dance during the recessional. So the next time you are at mass remember we are living Psalm 150. Praise ye the Lord!
Kurt Peterson