Month: October 2024

It might help to briefly summarize the Book of Job, since the book is so condensed in the readings we hear this week. After Job is afflicted, losing everything and everyone he loves most, losing bodily health and physical comfort, he is visited by three of his friends. They come to comfort him, but after sitting with him in silence for days, they chastise him. They see only guilt when God allows a man to be afflicted. The reading today comes after multiple rounds of discourse, in which Job’s friends repeat the idea that Job must have sinned, otherwise he wouldn’t be so afflicted.

Job knows that he is blameless. He intelligently summarizes his friends’ arguments and points out that he is known for being upright. Job’s repeated refrain is this: “I know that God is good and just, and that He has the right to do whatever He wants. But I have not sinned, and I don’t understand why He is letting me be afflicted. Let me state my case to Him, and let Him listen to me.”

It is in this context that Job says the words in our reading: “But as for me, I know that my Vindicator lives, and that he will at last stand forth upon the dust” (Job 19:25). Job does not say this after hearing good news. He says this at the lowest point of his life, without family and berated by friends. There is no reason for him to believe that things will get better. Yet, he still trusts God. He does not necessarily believe that his fortunes will be restored. But he trusts that God has a reason for His actions. He trusts that if God would hear him out and explain Himself to him, the answer would be sufficient. Even in excruciating pain, Job knows that God is good.

The seventy-two disciples in today’s Gospel have to practice a different sort of trust in God. Jesus sends them out “like lambs among wolves” — not good prospects for safety (Luke 10:3). Yet, He tells them to cure the sick, and also to raise the dead, cleanse lepers, and drive out demons (see Matt 10:8). How are they supposed to do this as lambs among wolves? Jesus does not say. But He expects them to work these miracles. As Job had to trust God in the midst of the most difficult experiences of his life, the seventy-two had to trust that Jesus could work miracles through them. And He did, as they report when they return.

These faithful disciples of Our Lord cause us to look within ourselves: Do you really trust God? Do you believe that He knows what He is doing and that it is good, even if His actions seem unreasonable? Do you believe that He can work miracles in you, even in the midst of danger and uncertainty? Do you trust Him, even when there appears to be no reason why you should?

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Puede resultar útil resumir brevemente el Libro de Job, ya que el libro está muy condensado en las lecturas que escuchamos esta semana. Después de que Job se ve afligido, perdiendo todo y a todos los que más amaba, perdiendo la salud corporal y la comodidad física, lo visitan tres amigos suyos. Vienen a consolarlo, pero después de sentarse con él en silencio durante días, lo castigan. Solo ven culpa cuando Dios permite que un hombre sea afligido. La lectura de hoy viene después de múltiples rondas de discursos, en los que los amigos de Job repiten la idea de que Job debe haber pecado, de lo contrario no estaría tan afligido.

Job sabe que es inocente. Resume inteligentemente los argumentos de sus amigos y señala que es conocido por ser recto. El estribillo repetido de Job es este: “Sé que Dios es bueno y justo, y que tiene derecho a hacer lo que quiera. Pero yo no he pecado, y no entiendo por qué permite que yo sea afligido. Déjame exponerle mi caso, y que me escuche”.

Es en este contexto que Job dice las palabras de la lectura de hoy: “Yo sé bien que mi defensor está vivo y que al final se levantará a favor del humillado” (Job 19,25). Job no dice esto después de escuchar buenas noticias. Lo dice en el punto más bajo de su vida, sin familia y reprendido por sus amigos. No hay razón para que crea que las cosas mejorarán. Sin embargo, todavía confía en Dios. No cree necesariamente que su fortuna será restaurada. Pero confía en que Dios tiene una razón para sus acciones. Confía en que si Dios lo escuchara y se explicara, Su respuesta sería suficiente. Incluso en medio de un dolor insoportable, Job sabe que Dios es bueno.

Los setenta y dos discípulos en el Evangelio de hoy tienen que practicar un tipo diferente de confianza en Dios. Jesús los envía “como corderos en medio de lobos”; no con buenas perspectivas de seguridad (Lucas 10,3). Sin embargo, les dice que curen a los enfermos, que también resuciten a los muertos, que limpien a los leprosos y que expulsen a los demonios (ver Mateo 10,8). ¿Cómo se supone que deben hacer esto como corderos en medio de lobos? Jesús no lo dice. Pero espera que hagan estos milagros. Así como Job tuvo que confiar en Dios en medio de las experiencias más difíciles de su vida, los setenta y dos tuvieron que confiar en que Jesús podía obrar milagros a través de ellos. Y lo hizo, como cuentan cuando regresan.

Estos fieles discípulos de Nuestro Señor nos hacen mirar adentro de nosotros mismos: ¿Realmente confías en Dios? ¿Crees que Él sabe lo que está haciendo y que es bueno, incluso si sus acciones parecen irrazonables? ¿Crees que Él puede obrar milagros en ti, incluso en medio del peligro y la incertidumbre? ¿Confías en Él, incluso cuando parece que no hay razón para que lo hagas?

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Now that I have two little boys I am often thinking about all the times in Scripture that children are depicted as the height of sanctity. On one hand, this doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. I see my two year old climbing on top of our table and getting close to jumping off and immediately think to myself, “Why are we supposed to be more like children?”

But on the other hand, it is really easy to see how Christ calls us to be more like children in today’s Gospel. They have such a beautiful innocence, they are humble because they rely on their parents for almost everything, they are more loving than anyone, and they have a contagious joy that fills the home.

There are certainly difficult moments when raising children, especially two that are under two, but the beautiful moments far outweigh the difficult ones and they even give the difficult ones purpose. When I watch my two year old laugh out loud at the wonder of bubbles or my two month old smile when he figures out his voice for the first time, I am in love.

I have to imagine that this is a small glimpse of the way God sees us all. We are all so small and insignificant compared to the glory of God, however, he chooses to love us unconditionally. We are completely dependent on God and he chooses to love us and protect us and keep us in his care. Sometimes we do things that don’t make sense. God loves us through those moments too. Like a good father guiding his children through life, God is with us.

I think perhaps today’s Gospel is meant to be read as a love letter from a father to his children. He is not so much asking us to go back to a time where we weren’t as aware of things or didn’t have knowledge of the truth, but rather, he is asking us to trust. Like the child who trusts his parents completely, God wants the same trust and humility from us so he can take care of us.

This is perhaps why the Catechism in paragraph 142 states, “By faith, man completely submits his intellect and his will to God. With his whole being man gives his assent to God the revealer. Sacred Scripture calls this human response to God, the author of revelation, the obedience of faith.”

God wants all of us. He wants us to trust him with everything that we are. This becomes difficult if we think we can do it all on our own and become our own god. But if we have the humility of a child and trust in our loving father, then God is able to love us the way that he desires, with pure, full, unconditional love.

From all of us here at Diocesan, God bless!

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Ahora que tengo dos hijos pequeños, a menudo pienso en todas las veces en las Escrituras donde se describe a los niños como la cumbre de la santidad. Por un lado, esto no tiene mucho sentido. Veo a mi hijo de dos años trepándose en la mesa a punto de saltar y de inmediato pienso: “¿Por qué se supone que debemos ser más como niños?”

Pero, por otro lado, es muy fácil ver cómo Cristo nos llama a ser más como niños en el Evangelio de hoy. Tienen una inocencia tan hermosa, son humildes porque confían en sus padres para casi todo, son más cariñosos que nadie y tienen una alegría contagiosa que llena el hogar.

Sin duda, hay momentos difíciles cuando se crían los hijos, especialmente dos que tienen menos de dos años, pero los momentos hermosos superan bastante a los difíciles e incluso les dan un propósito a los difíciles. Cuando veo a mi hijo de dos años reír a carcajadas ante la maravilla de las burbujas o a mi hijo de dos meses sonreír cuando descubre su voz por primera vez, quedo enamorado.

Tengo que imaginar que esto es un pequeño vistazo de la forma en que Dios nos ve a todos. Todos somos tan pequeños e insignificantes comparados con la gloria de Dios, sin embargo, Él elige amarnos incondicionalmente. Somos completamente dependientes de Dios y Él elige amarnos, protegernos y mantenernos bajo su cuidado. A veces hacemos cosas que no tienen sentido. Dios nos ama también en esos momentos. Como buen padre que guía a sus hijos a lo largo de la vida, Dios está con nosotros.

Creo que tal vez el Evangelio de hoy debe leerse como una carta de amor de un padre a sus hijos. No nos está pidiendo tanto que volvamos a un tiempo en el que no éramos tan conscientes de las cosas o no teníamos conocimiento de la verdad, sino que nos está pidiendo que confiemos. Como el niño que confía completamente en sus padres, Dios quiere la misma confianza y humildad de nosotros para poder cuidar de nosotros.

Tal vez por eso el Catecismo, en el párrafo 143, afirma: “Por la fe, el hombre somete completamente su inteligencia y su voluntad a Dios. Con todo su ser, el hombre da su asentimiento a Dios que revela. La sagrada Escritura llama ‘obediencia de la fe’ a esta respuesta del hombre a Dios que revela.”

Dios nos quiere a todos. Quiere que le confiemos todo lo que somos. Esto se vuelve difícil si pensamos que podemos hacerlo todo por nosotros mismos y convertirnos en nuestro propio dios. Pero si tenemos la humildad de un niño y confiamos en nuestro padre amoroso, entonces Dios es capaz de amarnos como él desea, con un amor puro, pleno e incondicional.

De parte de todos nosotros aquí en Diocesan, ¡Dios los bendiga!

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Do you ever feel like you are not welcome? You are not alone in that feeling. Jesus was not welcome in many places. And often, when he went to places where he was welcome, the people who did not welcome him complained. It was a classic “you can’t make everyone happy” situation. Always though, Jesus responds well. Of course, he does, he is Jesus.

Our response, when we are unwelcome, may not always be quite like that of Jesus. And that is okay, we are a work in progress on our way to holiness. Many times, in Scripture he reminds his apostles to shake the dust off, leave the place, and not to stay where they are unwelcome but go where they are welcomed.

I think there are two things we can learn from Jesus about not being welcome. First, you cannot force yourself on other people. And often, when others are not interested in you or your ideas, it may be out of their discomfort or pain rather than your message. The time for you to connect may be later. Jesus simply moved on without punishment or revenge when the Samaritan village was unwelcoming. His rebuke was for James and John who wanted to rain down fire on those who were not interested in Jesus, but Jesus did not allow it. And in my mind, I see Jesus praying for that town. Isn’t that a better response than revenge or anger? 

The other point we can learn from Jesus is how to welcome others. When new people move into our neighborhood or a family joins our parish, what do we do? If a stranger appears, do we welcome or judge? Extend invitations, reach out to others, and allow them to join in at their own pace. We cannot force others to participate, we can only invite them with a welcoming attitude.

And while it may hurt when people rebuff our good intentions, be like Jesus and pray for them, waiting patiently until they come to you in their way at their own time. As you go through your day, consider how you can be more welcoming to others in the different areas of your life.

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¿Alguna vez has sentido que no eres bienvenido? No estás solo en ese sentimiento. Jesús no era bienvenido en muchos lugares. Y a menudo, cuando iba a lugares donde era bienvenido, las personas que no lo recibían bien se quejaban. Era una situación clásica de “no puedes hacer feliz a todos”. Sin embargo, Jesús siempre responde bien. Por supuesto que responde bien, es Jesús.