Mark 12: 18-27 He is not God of the Dead, but the Living

It is easy to get caught-up in today's Gospel in the passage about the woman and her multiple husbands who die leaving her childless, and the Sadducees asking, whose wife is she?  Perhaps we have all wondered about heaven and the way it is portrayed, wondering the same thing.

Jesus cautions us to not become misled: that we know the scriptures and we know the power of God.  "Our God is not God of the Dead, but the Living."  May we take comfort in that.  Wherever we go and have breath, our God is with us.  Jesus tells us elsewhere, "I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord; whoever believes in me will never die." 

If we live in Christ, in the Way, which is the path to eternal life, we shall never have to die.  How difficult is it?  When we focus on the temporal world, like wondering whose wife the woman will be when she gets to heaven, that is focusing on the world around us.  We are given St. Paul as an example to us to live in Christ, to be fully alive and focused on the next world.  This does not mean that he lived in the next world only, no, but that he was grounded in the next and it helped him get through the tough times in this world when he was persecuted, had to travel, worked long days, had to give talks in front of strangers, had to mediate in disagreements between friends, had disagreements with the administration of the church, etc.  He kept his focus on our living God, encouraging us all to do the same.  He wrote:

"For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame
the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.
For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice
but rather of power and love and self-control.
So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord,
nor of me, a prisoner for his sake;
but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel
with the strength that comes from God."

"He saved us and called us to a holy life,
not according to our works
but according to his own design
and the grace bestowed on us in Christ Jesus before time began,
but now made manifest
through the appearance of our savior Christ Jesus,
who destroyed death and brought life and immortality
to light through the Gospel.."(2 Tim 1:6-12)

Mark 9: 38-40 He drives out demons in your name

Do you recall Charles Colton's famous quote, "Imitation is the greatest form of flattery"?  In today's Gospel the Apostles are appalled that someone who was not in their eyes 'authorized' is driving out demons in Jesus' name. 

It calls to mind an image of one who is trying to become Christ-like, and therefore has radically changed their life to be as much as they can like Him.  It is what we are all called to strive to do.  It is difficult, but Jesus reminds us, that these people who do this, who try to imitate him, they cannot be against him:  if they were against him, they would not be trying to imitate him.  How do we start to try to imitate Christ, and why should we?

St. Paul says, "Put off the old man who is corrupted according to the desire of error, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind: and put on the new man, who according to God is created in justice and holiness of truth." (Eph 4:22-24)  As Dietrich von Hildebrand explains we must desire to be this new man or woman in Christ.  It has been interesting speaking with young adults recently who attest how easy it is to become complacent in their faith and with the things of life, that they are suddenly realizing that they need to keep challenging themselves to grow spiritually and to become better people--this challenging the way they think, pushing themselves to help others by taking their own selves out of their comfort zones, by working to be more forgiving and compassionate, these are the ways to put on their new selves, to live in imitation of Christ, to be Christ-like. 

Mark 16:15-20 Feast of St. Mark

As Author of the 2^nd Gospel, he sas sometimes called John, or John Mark.  His mother, Mary, owned a house in Jerusalem.  Some scholars believe that was the place where the dinner of Holy Thursday took place, when Christ initiated the Blessed Sacrament and the Holy Spirit descended upon them.  It was this house where Mark lived that was described in Acts of the Apostles that the Christians assembled during the persecutions of Herod Agrippa.  It was to his house that Peter came when he was miraculously released from prison.

It is believed that Peter himself baptized Mark, whom he referred to as his spiritual son.  Mark was Paul’s companion when Paul went to Antioch and Perga on Paul’s first missionary voyage. It is believed that Mark was the cousin of Barnabas, with whom he travelled to Cypress to preach while Paul and Silas went on Paul’s 2^nd missionary journey.  When Paul was imprisoned in Rome, it was Mark, Paul writes in the letter to the Colossians, who was his companion and comfort.  In letters from Peter, he tacked into them a hello from Mark to the Jewish Christians in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia.  Mark was that well known throughout the area.

In Christian literature and art, St. Mark is often depicted as a lion, or esp. a winged lion, also the symbol of the city of Venice.  In his Gospels, Mark aimed to show the divinity of Christ in a way similar to how Peter argued.  Today we read from the Gospel of Mark.  We hear the gloriousness of Christ:

"In my name they will drive out demons,
they will speak new languages.
They will pick up serpents with their hands,
and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them.
They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

"The Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them,
was taken up into heaven
and took his seat at the right hand of God.
But they went forth and preached everywhere,
while the Lord worked with them
and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.

Mark encourages us to faith as strong and powerful as a lion.  Truly he tells us, Jesus is the Christ, God made manifest. Praise be to God, Alleluia!

John 13:16-20 Jesus Christ, You Are the Faithful Witness

Although this is how the truth of something is today in our world ascertained for the courts by attorneys seeking the truth, it is not unlike today’s story of St. Paul seeking the truth and presenting it to those assembled at the temple.  Paul had formerly been a Pharisee, which meant that he was an expert in the law, and knew how to draw truth out of statements and testimonies to present to the people for their edification.  In today’s story he calls forth the great leaders of the Jewish people and their prophets, especially John the Baptist who was still in recent memory, to give testimony that “God, according to his promise, has brought to Israel a savior, Jesus.”  The truth of Christ has spread to all the known world, and Paul, the apostle whom Christ personally called after the others, gives testimony to this Truth.

In today’s Gospel Jesus promises to show us the truth that he is “I Am” through events that would fulfill the scripture about him.  He is leading us to know that he is not only the Way to salvation, but the Truth.  He is unified with the Father in this.  He assures us that those of us who accept him, accept our Father in Heaven for he says, “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”  We are not to try to corrupt the Truth, for the Truth cannot be corrupted.  Christ Jesus is the faithful witness to that.  We are each called to share in that communion as witnesses today throughout words and our actions, which mark us as Christians, and our fidelity to the Truth.

Mark 4:21-25 Invisible Becomes Visible

(From my reflections)

In my childhood church there were large stained glass windows lining the walls of our vaulted church ceiling.  As students we were encouraged by our school principal to attend daily mass since the church was right next door.  I remember the early morning sunlight streaming through the images of saints down to all of us sitting in the pews.  I used to sit and wonder about the saints pictured in the glass like St. Vincent de Paul holding a child and helping the poor, St. John Vianney preaching to the children, St. Claire distributing food to the poor.  I only knew them from what they did in the images.  Some I didn’t even know their names.  They taught me what it was to be a saint.  In reflection a saint is a person whom God’s light shines through.  Today’s reading reminds me of that.  Our God has given us his light and there is no way to hide that.  Jesus asks us, “Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lampstand?”  The light shines through us in what we do, how we treat others, and in what we say.

Imagine that God’s love is so great.  In today's Gospel we are told, “The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you, and still more will be given to you.”  There is a universal understanding of the idea, “The more you give the more you will receive.”  It is the law of cause and effect.  We begin to learn this when we are young.  When a child shares with their sibling, aren’t they often rewarded to encourage them to share?  It continues throughout life.  Children usually expect the material, it is easily understood and tangible.  As we mature, we begin to understand that the teaching is applied to those things that we cannot see, they apply to the spiritual realm.  How many of us when we were younger did good things because we thought it would help us get to heaven some day?  In that hope of trading good deeds for a chance at heaven, there is still a part of us that remains selfish.  It is as if we are holding our love ransom.  But Jesus calls us deeper into a more intimate relationship, and calls us to be vessels of heavenly light that we may bear the Light before all nations.  God’s grace is so abundant in these who love Him that His light shines through us.  We are to be placed on a lampstand where the life of grace shines forth from within us. 

To paraphrase St. Thomas Aquinas tells us, Christ in the present gives us the gift of grace reserving for immeasurable glory in the life to come.  We read in John (10:10) “I have come, so that they may have life,” this is the present life of grace.  We are a just people who lives from faith, which allows us to live in God's grace more deeply, so that we may also receive as His children a life of glory in the future through love. “We know that we are transferred from death to life, because we love our brothers and sisters, so let us live through good works.” (1John 3:14)

We are called to be like the saints in the stained glass windows, allowing God’s light to shine through us in our thoughts, words, and deeds.  For, “Light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth. (St. Paul to the Ephesians 5:9)

Mark 16: 15-18 Go Out to All the World

In today's Gospel we hear Jesus tell the eleven, "Go into the whole world  and proclaim the Gospel to every creature."  Several Christian sects do this very well.  Frequently we identify Jehovah's Witnesses in groups canvassing neighborhoods, or Mormons on their mission wearing their slacks and pressed white shirts usually on bicycles, both sects knocking on doors to spread the Good News.

What about Catholics?  In our Creed we affirm that we are "One, holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church."  This means that we as Catholics are likewise being sent out into the world to bring the world into communion with God.  Christ was sent by God.  He tells us "As the Father has sent me, so I send you." (John 20:21)  He gave us the Holy Spirit to be with us and help us as we are sent out to spread that Good News.  As Catholics we are not confined to knocking on doors.  Instead we are reminded that the Good News is a path, a way of life we are to follow.  Let every action and word, though seemingly unimportant, be made part of your apostolic mission so that your very life becomes a living example of the Good News lived and example to others.  Saint Paul was a living example of how to do this.  Today we celebrate his conversion experience.  Let him be our guide in sharing the good news by our very lives. 

Luke 1:26-38 Feast of the Immaculate Conception

St. Luke knew Mary, Jesus' mother. Today's Gospel reading is an intimate look backward at her life.  Through God's Divine Mercy the Angel Gabriel came to Mary.  "Don't be afraid," he says,  "Hail, full of grace!"  Her soul was spotless and not stained by original sin at her immaculate conception, because the Grace of God was with her, purifying her, allowing her to become the future Theotokos. She is the new Eve, foretold in Genesis 3:15.  Unlike Eve, Mary is greater, for she is holy through her participation in God's plan of salvation for mankind. 

The Angel Gabriel explains that she will have a son "called holy."  We are all adopted sons and daughters of God like Adam and Eve.  Just as Mary is the new Eve, Jesus is the new Adam. Mary's child, is different and set apart because he is holy. He is the "Son of God."  The Angel offers her a sign that he is telling the truth.  He tells her that Elizabeth, her cousin, is expecting a baby, so she can check the veracity of his statements as a sign from God.  (Infant mortality was high and so people didn't celebrate the birth of a child, instead they threw an enormous party when the child turned one-year-old.  Mary wouldn't know that Elizabeth was expecting and specifically in her sixth month.)  Mary is obedient and gives praise to God.  We are called to do the same this Advent season as we prepare the coming of the Lord, Our Savior, in this Year of Divine Mercy.