Month: January 2020

Heard and Answered

Confidence was the first word that jumped out at me in today’s first reading. However, I found myself lacking in confidence as I struggled to come up with an engaging introduction to this blog post. This lack of confidence felt unusual since I majored in journalism in college and have always considered myself to be a strong writer. So I stopped and quickly assessed – where do I feel confident in other areas of my life and my work? How about youth ministry, since that’s my chosen career? It depends on the day and what’s coming up on the schedule. Work-life balance? Getting better and maintaining friendships? I have good intentions but sometimes struggle on the follow-through. Writing? Heck yeah. That’s my jam. 

Then it hit me. Can I say I truly have confidence in my spiritual life? Am I certain that the Lord will help me move from times of desolation to consolation, whenever they may happen? Do I know He will bestow grace and blessings? Have I turned to Him in prayer, trusting that my request will be heard and answered in accordance with His will? Some things better than others. Here is why today’s first reading spoke to me in particular and why I hope it speaks to you too. 

John, the apostle, tells his readers that we “have this confidence in him,” not that we will have confidence in the future, but this confidence is for right here and right now! John continues his point by explaining just what we should have confidence in – that God will hear us when we ask anything of Him. Therefore, if we know for certain that He hears us, we can also know that He will answer our requests, all according to His will. 

This small point should give us so much comfort! How many times have we stopped ourselves on the cusp of prayer, questioning whether or not God will hear and answer us? John has given us the very answer to our oft-asked question, written down in Scripture. However, there is one important thing to remember – even though God always answers our prayers, sometimes the answer isn’t the one we expected. In our wounded humanity, we think we know what is best for ourselves, but our plan and our vision doesn’t always line up with what God has in mind. God will always answer our prayers according to His will for the good of our life lived for Him and the work of building the kingdom of God. 

You might be wondering how it is possible that we can have this confidence in turning to God with our needs and petitions. I wish to draw your attention to the first line of the footnote for 1 John 5:14-21 that says, “As children of God we have confidence in prayer because of our intimate relationship with him.” Because our identity is that we are sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father, we can always turn to Him with whatever is on our minds and hearts and will “how much more your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him.” (Mt 7:11)

Keeping all this in mind, the next time you turn to the Lord in prayer, have confidence that it will be heard and answered, no matter how big or small your request might be.

Contact the author

Erin is a Cleveland native and graduate of the Franciscan University of Steubenville. Following graduation, she began volunteering in youth ministry at her home parish of Holy Family Church. Her first “big girl” job was in collegiate sports information where, after a busy two years in the profession on top of serving the youth, she took a leap of faith and followed the Lord’s call to full-time youth ministry at St. Peter Church. She still hopes to use her communication arts degree as a freelance writer and statistician, though. You can catch her on the Clarence & Peter Podcast on YouTube as well as follow her on Twitter @erinmadden2016.

Saturday after Epiphany

Reading 1 1 Jn 5:14-21

Beloved:
We have this confidence in him
that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
And if we know that he hears us in regard to whatever we ask,
we know that what we have asked him for is ours.
If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly,
he should pray to God and he will give him life.
This is only for those whose sin is not deadly.
There is such a thing as deadly sin,
about which I do not say that you should pray.
All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly.

We know that anyone begotten by God does not sin;
but the one begotten by God he protects,
and the Evil One cannot touch him.
We know that we belong to God,
and the whole world is under the power of the Evil One.
We also know that the Son of God has come
and has given us discernment to know the one who is true.
And we are in the one who is true,
in his Son Jesus Christ.
He is the true God and eternal life.
Children, be on your guard against idols.

Responsorial Psalm 149:1-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b

R.    (see 4a)  The Lord takes delight in his people.
or:
R.    Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song
of praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in their maker,
let the children of Zion rejoice in their king.
R.    The Lord takes delight in his people.
or:
R.    Alleluia.
Let them praise his name in the festive dance,
let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp.
For the LORD loves his people,
and he adorns the lowly with victory.
R.    The Lord takes delight in his people.
or:
R.    Alleluia.
Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy upon their couches;
Let the high praises of God be in their throats.
This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia.
R.    The Lord takes delight in his people.
or:
R.    Alleluia.

Alleluia Mt 4:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The people who sit in darkness have seen a great light,
on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death
light has arisen.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Jn 3:22-30

Jesus and his disciples went into the region of Judea,
where he spent some time with them baptizing.
John was also baptizing in Aenon near Salim,
because there was an abundance of water there,
and people came to be baptized,
for John had not yet been imprisoned.
Now a dispute arose between the disciples of John and a Jew
about ceremonial washings.
So they came to John and said to him,
“Rabbi, the one who was with you across the Jordan,
to whom you testified,
here he is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.”
John answered and said,
“No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven.
You yourselves can testify that I said that I am not the Christ,
but that I was sent before him.
The one who has the bride is the bridegroom;
the best man, who stands and listens for him,
rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice.
So this joy of mine has been made complete.
He must increase; I must decrease.”

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

We Are All Lepers

Have you ever experienced a physical issue that you wanted to conceal or minimize? A swollen eye? A skin rash? Even a blackened fingernail might keep our hands in our pockets.

You know your own hands very well. Look at them and imagine your fingers bent in unnatural positions, several of them missing, mysteriously “eaten away.” You would probably want to hide them from others. What if your face were suffering the same mysterious infection? It is likely that others would look away from you or avoid you.

This is a glimpse into the plight of lepers. Through no fault of their own, lepers have been infected with bacteria that disfigures them completely, causing damage to the organs, eyes, limbs, and nerves. Because of the fear of contaminating others, lepers were considered unclean and were not allowed to be in contact with others. Because of their disfigurement, they were terrible to look at and covered themselves even from their own eyes. They were separated socially, psychologically, spiritually, and emotionally from others, forced to live on the outer edge of society and rely on charity, which they received from a distance. They could not be with their families or pray with the community. They were cast aside to watch their disease progressively erode their physical selves.

Who could be in worse shape in the ancient world than a leper?
And yet, we are all lepers, in a sense, because leprosy can be seen as a biblical analogy for sin. Leprosy is to the body what sin is to the soul. Sin disfigures and eats away at our souls, separating us from all that is good and true and beautiful and from one another. Sin drives a wedge in our relationship with God, with other people, and with our own best selves. Sin is the terrible spiritual disease that keeps us from being able to fulfill our true potential in Christ and to live in full communion with God and other people.

That’s the bad news. But the Gospel is Good News, and today’s Gospel proclaims the good news that if we, like the leper, bow down before the Lord, acknowledging that He alone has the power to cure us, and confidently ask to be healed, we can be free. Jesus will not hesitate or draw back; He will touch us with His grace. He says to the leper and to us: “I do will it.” This is why he has come to us!

Unlike the leper, we don’t have to wait for the Master to pass by. We have access to Him 24/7. It is up to us to open ourselves to the healing mercy and grace of Christ through prayer and through the Church in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

During these last few days of Christmastime, let us ask for the grace to open ourselves fully to the infinite mercy Christ came to unleash on the world, and confidently ask Him to set us free.

Contact the author

Kathryn Mulderink, MA, is married to Robert, Station Manager for Holy Family Radio. Together they have seven children (including newly ordained Father Rob and seminarian Luke ;-), and two grandchildren. She is a Secular Discalced Carmelite and has published five books and many articles. Over the last 25 years, she has worked as a teacher, headmistress, catechist, Pastoral Associate, and DRE. Currently, she serves the Church as a writer and voice talent for Catholic Radio, by publishing and speaking, and by collaborating with the diocesan Office of Catechesis, various parishes, and other ministries to lead others to encounter Christ and engage their faith. Her website is https://www.kathryntherese.com/.

Friday after Epiphany

Reading 1 1 Jn 5:5-13

Beloved:
Who indeed is the victor over the world
but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

This is the one who came through water and Blood, Jesus Christ,
not by water alone, but by water and Blood.
The Spirit is the one who testifies,
and the Spirit is truth.
So there are three who testify,
the Spirit, the water, and the Blood,
and the three are of one accord.
If we accept human testimony,
the testimony of God is surely greater.
Now the testimony of God is this,
that he has testified on behalf of his Son.
Whoever believes in the Son of God
has this testimony within himself.
Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar
by not believing the testimony God has given about his Son.
And this is the testimony:
God gave us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son.
Whoever possesses the Son has life;
whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life.

I write these things to you so that you may know
that you have eternal life,
you who believe in the name of the Son of God.

Responsorial Psalm 147:12-13, 14-15, 19-20

R.    (12a)  Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
or:
R.    Alleluia.
Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
R.    Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
or:
R.    Alleluia.
He has granted peace in your borders;
with the best of wheat he fills you.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
R.    Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
or:
R.    Alleluia.
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them. Alleluia.
R.    Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
or:
R.    Alleluia.

Alleluia Mt 4:23

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus proclaimed the Gospel of the Kingdom
and cured every disease among the people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 5:12-16

It happened that there was a man full of leprosy in one of the towns where Jesus was;
and when he saw Jesus,
he fell prostrate, pleaded with him, and said,
“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.”
Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said,
“I do will it.  Be made clean.”
And the leprosy left him immediately.
Then he ordered him not to tell anyone, but
“Go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing
what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.”
The report about him spread all the more,
and great crowds assembled to listen to him
and to be cured of their ailments,
but he would withdraw to deserted places to pray.

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

The Glory of Heaven

“Faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward of faith is to see what you believe.” -St. Augustine of Hippo

Today’s readings are glorious! They share with us the good news of salvation and instill within us a beautiful hope of that which is to come. In the first reading from 1 John, we hear what we must do in order to love God fully. Then, we hear what our reward will be if we truly love God and sincerely believe in Him. John reminds us that when we follow the commandments, we are able to love others and be witnesses of the goodness of God through our actions. It is in following God’s commandments and loving one another that the faith will be victorious: “The victory that conquers the world is our faith.” This victory of which John speaks is eternal life with God in Heaven; it is God’s desire for each and every one of us. And, through John, He is telling mankind exactly how to conquer the world: with love.

In the Gospel today, Jesus literally brings the Good News to the people of God. The passage that Jesus reads from Isaiah tells us what He was sent into the world to do and what we, in turn, are called to continue doing in Christ’s name. Christ also makes clear who He is and what His mission is: “Today, this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” Not everyone who heard Jesus’ proclamation accepted Him as Lord. In fact, many rejected Him. I think my favorite thing about this Gospel is that it occurs in Nazareth–in the place where Jesus grew up–thereby showing us that we, too, should begin at home. Faith begins at home, with the family, with the people we are surrounded by on a daily basis. Christ shows us the importance of evangelizing at home and living the Gospel through action, regardless of the possibility of rejection.

As we enter into the new calendar year, may we remember the Good News of Salvation and invite others to share in the Good News as well.

Contact the author

Dakota currently lives in Denver, CO and teaches English Language Development and Spanish to high schoolers. She is married to the love of her life, Ralph. In her spare time, she reads, goes to breweries, and watches baseball. Dakota’s favorite saints are St. John Paul II (how could it not be?) and St. José Luis Sánchez del Río. She is passionate about her faith and considers herself blessed at any opportunity to share that faith with others. Check out more of her writing at https://dakotaleonard16.blogspot.com.