Sacrifice and Transfiguration: Homily for the 2nd Sunday in Lent

Gen 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18

Rom 8:31b-34

Mk 9:2-10

 

We adore Thee oh Christ and we bless Thee

Because by Thy Holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.

 

The first reading from Genesis described Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac.  Unfortunately, the passage was discontinuous. The details of the journey to the intended place of sacrifice were skipped over. That Isaac carried on his own back the wood for the sacrifice was omitted.  Isaac's confusion was left out. We are left with two things: Abraham's obedience and the confirmation of God's promise that he would be the father of a great nation. This is a rich narrative.  Relevant details should not be left out. The parallels between Isaac carrying the wood on which he was to be sacrificed and Jesus carrying the wood on which He was sacrificed are obvious. Isaac's confusion was mirrored by Jesus' confusion in Gethsemane.  

 

To those with the mindset common to Freudian psychiatrists or those hostile to faith, the narrative is disturbing.  God asks a man to sacrifice his only son.  The man prepares to carry out the sacrifice without question.  Many people whine, whimper, and emote about this narrative along the lines of "I could never believe in a God who could be so cruel, sadistic, irrational, or . . . ." (fill in the blank with a favorite pejorative).  There is no sadism here. There is no cruelty in the narrative. There is only faith. 

 

The Jewish Study Bible describes this narrative, which it calls Abraham's last and greatest test, as "A magnificent story, that is one of the gems of biblical narrative."  It also notes a translation problem. "There is no good English equivalent for the Hebrew 'hineni' that is translated as 'Here I am.'  Hineni indicates readiness, alertness, attentiveness, receptivity, and responsiveness to instructions.  It indicates unquestioning obedience to the will of God.  This describes Abraham.

 

In the second reading from Paul's Letter to the Romans we heard that, God "did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all."  God asked Abraham to give him all, to give him everything, to give him his only son, to give him his future, and the existence of a people yet to come into existence.  Once Abraham demonstrated his obedience God returned everything to him.  Because of Jesus' obedience everything was returned to us. 

 

 

One of the first prayers a Jesuit novice learns when he enters is the Suscipe of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It begins, 

 

"Take Lord, and receive,

all my liberty, my memory my understanding, my entire will, 

all I have and call my own."  

 

Take all.  Not that which I am willing to give.  Not that which is left over.  Not that which is easy.  Take all.  That is what Abraham was willing to give.  That is what God the Father gave us.  All.

 

Jesus' Transfiguration points us towards and draws us into a mystery that is beyond historical reconstruction. The Transfiguration is beyond scientific explanation and geographic specificity.  None of these factors matter.  When, how, and where are unnecessary distractions to the deeper meaning of the narrative.  It is sufficient that Jesus was transfigured in front of three of the apostles.  

 

Imagine the scene. 

Moses and Elijah, the Law and the Prophets, standing with Jesus.  

Put yourself into that scene.

Where are you standing? 

What are you seeing?  

What are you feeling? 

What are you thinking?

How are you acting? 

 

The apostles were confused and frightened.  As he became more anxious Peter began to speak without thinking of what he was saying.  Despite today's vogue for apostle bashing none of us would have acted any better.  Most likely, we would have acted worse and pulled out an Ancient Near East smart phone, snapped pictures, texted to the rest of the apostles, and tried to get a selfie with Moses. 

 

As the tension increased the voice of God the Father declared, "This is my beloved Son."

 

This is the beloved Son who was like us in all things but sin. This is the beloved Son who took on the human condition to redeem us from our sins and save us from death. This is the beloved son, God incarnate, who, like Isaac, carried the wood for the sacrifice on his own back. This is the beloved son, who, like Abraham, acted in perfect obedience to the will of the Father.  

 

Then, the apostles, and by extension, each one of us, received a mission from the Father: "Listen to him."  Listen to his teaching, the teaching of His words and the teaching of His actions.  As we listen to Jesus words and imitate his actions, as we take His teaching to heart, and allow that teaching to transform us, we move that much closer to experiencing the glory of His Transfiguration in our own lives and transforming ours. 

 

We adore Thee oh Christ and we bless Thee

Because by Thy Holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.

_________________________________________________________

Both photos were taken at Horseneck Beach near Westport, MA, a town on the border of Rhode Island.  Until some changes in parish structure I periodically went down there to cover Masses for the weekend.  If decent weather I would try to hit the beach with camera for a bit before Mass.  

 + Fr. Jack, SJ, MD

 

Temptations in the Desert: Homily for the First Sunday in Lent

Gn 9:8-15

Ps 25:4-9

1 Pt 3:18-22

Mk 1:12-15

 

We adore Thee O Christ and we bless Thee, 

because  by Thy Holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.

 

No matter which cycle of Sunday readings is proclaimed, Matthew, Luke or, as is true this year, Mark, the first Sunday of Lent is always about Jesus' temptations during forty days in the desert. The challenge with Mark's version compared with Matthew and Luke is that he gives no details about those temptations.  There is no dialog between Jesus and Satan.  Mark simply notes: "The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan." Bare bones and succinct to say the least.  At a recent conference Jesuit Fr. Michael Simone described Mark's writing as "Hemingwayesque" Short sentences.  Short words.  Concise.  Minimal detail. However, Mark's brief statement is an important reminder that Jesus was like us in all things but sin, that he too was presented with desires, with temptations, with tests, and challenges just as we are.  Unlike us, he did not succumb to those temptations or fail those tests. 

 

The first reading from Leviticus describes God's covenant with Noah in which He promised that flood waters would never cover the whole earth again. While most people are familiar with the deluge, the ark, the rainbow, and so on, most of us are unfamiliar with anything beyond that.  This is particularly true of the ancient covenant with Noah and the commandments God gave to him. 

 

The Talmud is a collection of commentaries on the first five books of  the Hebrew scripture known as Torah. In the commentary on these verses from Torah The Jewish Study Bible cites the Talmud's exposition on the covenant with Noah through which God  laid down seven commandments, known as the "Noahide covenant," which all in Israel, even non-Jews, were to obey. 

 

The Seven Laws of Noah forbid:

The worship of idols,

Cursing God or blasphemy, 

Intentionally shedding human blood through murder.

 

The commandments forbid

Adultery, bestiality, or sexual perversion, 

Prohibit stealing or robbery

Ban eating the flesh torn from a living animal that is not properly slaughtered first.

 

The final commandment to Noah is the demand to establish courts of justice. 

There was no demand for non-Jews to convert but those who observed these commandments, living by the terms of this covenant, would be considered righteous gentiles who met with God's approval. 

 

With the exception of eating meat cut from animals that were not properly slaughtered and establishing courts of law, the seven commandments resemble the Decalogue, the Ten Commandments given to Moses.  The modern world, especially the U.S., would do well to take notice that blasphemy, the worship of false gods, sexual perversion in all its forms, and the shedding of human blood, including the killing children in the womb, have been forbidden for many thousands of years rather than being, as some would put it, inventions of the Catholic Church. 

 

We hear in the second reading how God waited patiently for Noah to build the ark so that Noah and his family, a total of eight persons, and thus all of mankind, were saved through water.  The second reading taken from the First Letter of Peter links this saving water to baptism.

 

Water is a powerful symbol for the Church. It is a symbol of life and salvation in both the Old Testament and the New. Thus we read about the water on which floated the basket holding the infant Moses, the water that was parted as the Israelites fled Egypt, the water of the Jordan with which John baptized Jesus, the water mixed with blood that flowed from Jesus' side at the crucifixion, and the water of baptism.  Water is more necessary to human life than food.  We can live for many days without food.  We can only live a few days without water.  

 

Physicians spend much time in med school learning--and even more time in the hospital worrying--about fluids and fluid balance for good reason. Water is crucial to the moment-to-moment normal functioning of the body.  Vitamins, even those specially concocted for women, children, old men, and even pet owners, 

the hype for free radical scavengers, organic locally grown food, whole grains, 

and all the other food fetishes, fads, and foolishness advertised today are irrelevant compared with the need for water.  It need not be water specially fortified with vitamins, minerals, electrolytes, and other forms of nonsense.  The body is well-equipped to manage those things on its own, as it has since the beginning.  It must simply be water.  All the rest emerges from the fevered minds of advertising majors.

 

As important as it is physiologically, water is even more crucial to our spiritual lives and the salvation of our souls.   The water of baptism is the only way through which anyone can enter into the life of Christ. Only after having received the saving waters of baptism in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit--and no other formula--can we partake fully of the sacraments.  Without baptism there is no spiritual life or light of Christ.  Without baptism there is no partaking of the Eucharistic banquet, the true and real Body and Blood of Our Lord.  Without the water of baptism there is nothing but a void. 

Without baptism there is only a void like the one that existed before God said let there be light at the beginning of creation.  The light of Christ is visible only to those who have received the waters of baptism.  It will never be otherwise. 

 

Ashes were imposed on Wednesday with one of two formulae.

The first was a reminder of our common mortality. "Remember, thou art dust and to dust thou shalt return."  The second gave us a rule for living, "Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospels".

 

As we move from this first Sunday of Lent toward the joy of Easter we are called to meditate on the meaning of one and to live according to the dictates of the other. 

 

We adore Thee O Christ and we bless Thee, 

because  by Thy Holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.

_________________________________________________________________

Two experimental photos.  The red is a collection of ice on a bush next to the house.  Used a red laser pen from the side while shooting a 1/2 second exposure.  

A first attempt at zoom burst photography.  this was a 13 second shot during which I zoomed out from 40 mm to 12 mm.  Need some work to learn more about how to do it but it was a first. 

The Jesuit motto in the rotunda of Gasson Hall at BC

One of the windows in Gasson.

 +Fr. Jack SJ, MD

Homily for Ash Wednesday

17 February 2021

Joel 2:12-18

Ps 51

2 Cor 5:20-6:2

Mt 6:1-6; 16-18

 

We mark the beginning of our 40-day procession through Lent with the imposition of ashes on our foreheads.  While Lent is described as penitential this holy season is more than just penitential.  It is, or should be, transformational as well. 

The Church cannot determine what that transformation will be as it is unique to every individual.  At best she can only point out ways of being open to that transformation through fasting, penance, prayer and reflection.

 

The first reading from Joel puts today into context.  Joel calls for an assembly and decrees a fast in the setting of a liturgy.  Blow the trumpets.  Gather the people.  Everyone is invited from the youngest to the eldest. The same is true of the Eucharistic banquet. The young and the very old are invited along with all those in between if they choose to accept the invitation and if they are properly prepared and disposed.   Thus we gather to listen to the word of God. We gather to receive the ashes that simultaneously remind us of our mortality and call us to undergo a change of heart so as to live more closely in accord with the Gospel.  We come together to receive the true Body and Blood of Christ whose passion, death, and resurrection we will recall and celebrate at the end of these forty days. 

 

Lent is not just a season of “give ups,” of abstaining from the usual suspects: smoking, chocolate, desert, meat, beer, and so on.  It is a time to take on: taking on time to meditate on the Gospel, taking on time for spiritual reading, taking on time for additional prayer or adoration  It need not be a lot of time.  Fifteen minutes is enough for most of us.  Lent is a time to heed the advice of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, foundress of the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary,  “We cannot always offer God great things but at each instant we can offer little things with great love.”  Offering those little things with great love may be a more difficult mortification than giving up desert and beer for the next forty days, if not for life.

 

The second reading in today’s Office of Readings is a letter from St. Clement, pope, to the Corinthians. It lays out a road map for Lent. “We should be humble in mind, putting aside all arrogance, pride and foolish anger. . . . Recall what the Lord Jesus said when he taught gentleness and forbearance.  Be merciful, so that you may have mercy shown to you.  Forgive, so that you may be forgiven.  As you treat others, so you will be treated . . .” Lent is a time to challenge ourselves to be more fully what we want to be but may not know how to become.  If that process of becoming involves quitting smoking, so be it.  If it involves spending extra time in prayer or contemplation, so be it.  Ideally we will move through lent in a combination of penance and prayer, contrition and contemplation. 

 

There are two formulae for the imposition of ashes. The first reminds us of our common mortality: “Remember, thou art dust and to dust thou shalt return.”

The second is advice for living: “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospels.”  At the beginning of this holy season of Lent, we are called to meditate on the first and to live according to the second. 

 

_____________________________________________________

Ashes awaiting imposition at Campion Center in Weston, MA.

 

 

 

 

Leprosy and Covid: Homily for the 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lv 13:1-2, 44-46

1 Cor 10:31-11:1

Mk 1:40-45

When reading scripture, be it Hebrew or Catholic, it is important to go beneath the text to discover its meaning. This is particularly important when the word 'leprosy' appears. Without some understanding of how the people of the Ancient Near East defined and viewed leprosy we are stuck because neither the concept nor the diagnosis of leprosy in ancient times had anything to do with the bacterial illness leprosy that is now known as Hansen's Disease. Significantly, Hansen's is rare and difficult to contract. There were only 185 new cases in the U.S. in 2018, eighty-nine percent of which occurred in seven states. None of those states was in New England but watch out for Florida. Hansen's is a very slowly progressing disease and is curable though the treatment with a combination of antibiotics requires one to two years.

Leprosy--from the Greek meaning scales of a fish--is the unfortunate translation of the Hebrew word 'tzara'at,' a term applied to discolorations of the skin, hair, and beard. It was a catch-all term for a scaly eruption of the skin with pale discoloration, a discoloration that would stand out on swarthy Middle Eastern skin. But, tzara'at could also be applied to clothing and buildings; we would call it mold today. Jewish commentators note that today vitiligo, a loss of skin pigmentation, and psoriasis would be considered tzara'at. Chapters 13 and 14 of Leviticus are dedicated solely to considering the diagnosis of tzara'at and the criteria for declaring it cured.

Leviticus understood tzara'at as a gradual erosion of the skin that allowed the life-force to ooze from the body. This was a sign that death, or what we would call the 'death process', had begun to consume the body. The seeping out of the life force caused ritual impurity in those who came close to it, thus the quarantine and shunning. The afflicted was looked upon as potentially dead, analogous it seems, to the way anyone with a positive covid test is understood today. And, like the leper who was compelled to call out unclean, there is a complete lack of respect for personal privacy as headlines name the names of prominent people who were covid positive.

Was it really necessary for anyone outside of his family to know that 91 year-old Bobby Bowden, former head football coach at Florida State, was infected and hospitalized in October? It appears that HIPPA has been suspended for the duration. He recovered. But Newsweek published an article noting that following his recovery he commented to the press that he was happy to have recovered from covid so he could vote . . . for Trump. Apparently that was the equivalent of declaring himself a sinner The bashing and bullying began almost immediately upon the release of his statement. As Newsweek reported, "Though there were many who defended the coach, there were those who spewed venom for political reasons."

U.S. society today is pathetic.

The individual afflicted with tzara'at was shunned, isolated, and barred from social contact lest he come into contact with the healthy as described in the first reading. Similarly with covid (or for holding political views deemed "Not Our Kind Dear") the shunning, ruptured relationships, and cruelty have been remarkable. The venom spewed through social media on the part of both democrats and republicans was crude, rude, sexually abhorrent, and, worst of all, mostly unoriginal, finding eternal life online only because someone pushed the share or forward button on a computer without thinking or reflection. Life would be more pleasant today were society to pay closer attention to the second reading in which Paul wrote, "whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. Avoid giving offense" to anyone. Not a bad idea.

The reading from Leviticus began with vv 1-2 and then jumped to vv 44 to 46. Be grateful for that jump. The deleted verses are what amounts to a picture-free dermatology textbook for the priests who examined a lesion thought to be "tzara’at" It was up to them to pronounce those lesions as being either leprous or non-leprous. The priests also reexamined an individual after a period of quarantine to determine if the lesion had been healed. Thus, we heard Jesus' instruction to the man to present himself to the priests and make the usual offerings.

Because the germ theory of disease was thousands of years in the future tzara'at was understood as the outward sign of interior uncleanness attributed to sin, even when, as in the case of Job, the individual had not sinned. Some commentators suggest that tzara'at was seen as a physical manifestation of a spiritual malaise, evidence of sin, and a warning the individual to mend his ways.

Moderns profess to believe in science, though that belief seems to apply only if the version of science in which he or she believes fits with his or her social preconceptions. Declarations of unclean shouted at the individual rather than by the individual suggest that many see covid as less a viral illness and more or a moral failing, particularly if one is walking alone in a park without wearing a mask.

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

Human nature and its inherent intolerance has not changed. It is unlikely that it will.

The gospel ends with an example of what is called the Markan Secret, in which Jesus warns his followers or the beneficiaries of miracles to remain silent about Him and thus silent about His Messianic mission. There is a lot of speculation as to why Jesus demands this secrecy. That is another homily for a different liturgical season.

The important point of this gospel is in the action of Jesus healing a man of a disease that marked him as a sinner in the minds of all who saw him. Jesus' action reunited him with his family, community, the temple, and, most importantly, made his very self whole again. The politicization of covid that has had partisans hurling epithets and accusations of unclean (and worse) at each other has done and will continue to do long-lasting damage to the fabric of what used to be called civilized society.

May God have mercy on our souls and heal us of the internal lesions of tzara'at.

________________________________________________________

Would love go be back in Ljubjana as I was four years ago for the carnival parade, similar to Mardi Gras, and to eat krof, the donuts (without holes) that are eaten in vast amounts.

Never eat krof while wearing clerical black clothes unless they are destined for the washer immeidately afterwards.

+Fr Jack, SJ, MD

Job, Suffering, Miracles, and Pandemic: Homily for the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

Jb 7:1-4, 6-7

Ps 147

1 Cor 9:16-19,22-23

Mk 1:29-39

 

Paying someone a compliment by saying he or she has the patience of Job is a complete misunderstanding; not of the person who exhibits the virtue of patience, but of Job. Job was in turn, angry, mournful, frustrated, and increasingly annoyed when his friends insisted on explaining his suffering and the reasons for it to him.   None of the moods Job exhibited toward his friends or his angry demands for an answer from God to explain his suffering, fit with the definition of patience as: the ability to wait for a long time without becoming annoyed or remaining calm and not becoming upset when faced with problems or difficult people.  

 

Job lost the lifestyle to which he had become accustomed.  His children were killed in an accident, his assets were destroyed, and he was afflicted with physical discomfort and illness. His wife failed to understand him and asked "Are you still holding to your innocence?  Curse God and die."  His response, "You speak as foolish women do . . . " suggests that there might be a need for couples therapy.  Job did not deserve what happened to him and, by the end of the book, was still not certain why or how or what happened.  So it is for us today.  

 

The world did not deserve covid. It did not deserve the Spanish flu a century ago or the bubonic plague, also known as The Black Death, in the mid-14th century.  That pandemic is estimated to have killed 30 to 60% of the population of Europe.  Similar to covid today, bubonic plague arrived in Europe from somewhere else, in this case on ships traveling from Eurasia where it was also a scourge. It was economically devastating, and lasted well-beyond anyone's tolerance or patience, in this case between five to seven years.  

 

"Curse God and die."  As covid has dragged on and on and on, as designer facemasks have become a fashion accessory, too many have cursed God, too many have decided they are through believing, are through with the Church, and anything else.  Alas, if they choose to turn to science there will be no greater consolation.  Things are a mess as basic scientists, physicians, and researchers have made statements, retracted them, revised them, retracted them yet again and, behind closed doors, are at each others' throats. The self-appointed oracles who know little of scientific method, even less of medicine, and nothing of immunology (a science that was still in its infancy in the early 1970s) screech, scream, and cavil.  Much of their thinking, particularly in assigning blame to various personages for the occurrence or spread of the disease, fulfills the criteria for delusional.  

 

No vaccine is going to be the magic bullet bringing an end to all the suffering.  It will not be an amulet conferring protection from all illness any more than the "plastic Jesus ridin' on the dashboard of my car" protects the careless or drunk driver when it rains or freezes.  

 

As it was for Job in this particular narrative some of the suffering is just beginning.  Unemployment, economic devastation, an increase in the incidences of alcoholism, drug use, spousal physical and emotional abuse, dashed plans and desires are not going to vanish after a few needle jabs.  People pray for a miracle akin to the healing of Peter's mother-in-law but it doesn't come.  

 

Miracles are funny things.  We want them, pray for them, and most of the time don't recognize them because they do not follow the script we submitted to God.  The word miracle does not appear anywhere in scripture.  The closest thing to it in the Bible is the equivalent of 'wonder' (thaumasia.) But, we have become demanding of miracles as part of human nature.  We hear the following in the words of 'The Grand Inquisitor' in Dostoevsky's magnificent novel, The Brother Karamazov:  “. . . man seeks not so much God as the miraculous.  And as man cannot bear to be without the miraculous, he will create new miracles of his own for himself and will worship deeds of sorcery and witchcraft.”

 

Father Stanley Marrow, the late Jesuit scripture scholar, wrote the following about miracles:  “The difficulty with . . . miracles, even with the greatest of them, is that our appetite for them is insatiable.  The recipient of the favor. . .  keeps coming back for more.  We are forever . . . testing to see if God is still there,  (We are forever testing) to see whether our prayers are ‘getting through.”

 

It sometimes seems that the miracles that were not granted, the cures that did not happen, the pleas that we feel were not heard, are the reasons people leave the church, or worse, declare God a fraud, unloving, or dead.

 

The healing of Peter's mother-in-law, may seem insignificant.  However, the problem is one of modern perception.  We live in a society in which a low-grade fever calls forth the response, "take two aspirin and call me in the morning."  But, in the Ancient Near East fever frequently signaled that death was near.  Oftentimes it was.  Even in early 20th century here in the U.S., fever after childbirth was a terrifying symptom before the discovery of antibiotics.  Fever was understood in the Ancient Near East as a partial form of death or a 'little death.'  

 

The Church cannot exist without Jesus' miracles any more than it can exist without His teaching.  They are warp and woof of the same cloth.  Sign and word.  Teaching and deed. 

 

Just as Jesus' parables were meant to illuminate the faith, the healing miracles strengthened that faith. We will hear the narratives of the healing miracles in the coming weeks.  We may witness miracles in our lives or the lives of those we love.  

 

Or maybe not. 

 

The language and meaning of miracle may be unintelligible to the proud, the non-religious, the atheist, or the science worshipping pseudo-sophisticates.  But the language, the meaning, and the fact of miracles remains loud and clear to those who are willing to look and listen in faith. 

_____________________________________________

Photos taken a bit over a year ago while wandering along Charles Street in Boston.  I was giving a retreat at Regina Cleri, the retirement home for archdiocesan priests.  Had the opportunity to stay at the house that is located just behind Mass General Hospital.  One of the nights was not too cold and very clear.  Wandered for a few hours with the camera.  A goal for this spring is to spend more time doing more night and low-light photography.  

These hanging in a shop.  It was early November but the Christmas decorating was in full swing.  On the plus side:  no Santa Clauses.

A small painting in a gallery window.  

Glass photographs beautifully in any kind of light but particularly in this kind of setting.  Took many night shots through drinking glasses while in Slovenia.  

 + Fr. Jack, SJ, MD