As the Church celebrates World Day of Prayer for Vocations, the scriptures offer us the image of Jesus, the Good Shepherd. How to translate this into words for today's world, that's the challenge. There are so many other interests vying for our attention that often the voice of faith can be drowned or ignored. Yet, this is the only voice that can truly satisfy.
Ah, by the way, I've noticed that the parish website, where I normally store the podcast versions of these reflections is currently out of service. I promise to keep the recordings though, and to make them available as soon as we find a way to make it happen.
Here's this week's offering:
That you may have life
This week in Southern Spain there were two earthquakes. People there are still scrambling to tend to the wounded, to bury the dead and to bring order back to their lives. In Pakistan this week, there was a suicide bombing. People in that country too are still scrambling to put the pieces back together again, even as some are wondering why they have to pay the price for someone else's actions. The human instinct to fight for life is perhaps the strongest innate part of the human spirit.
All of us want to live life, and to live it to the full. What makes this life interesting though is that we all define the particulars of living life to the full in different ways. For the majority of human beings on this planet, fighting for life is defined in physical tangible terms: it means finding enough food so that we and our families will not go to bed hungry ... but what about those who have never known what it's like to be hungry. What kind of fight do such fortunates have to be prepared for? Sociologists tell us that if our basic needs for food and shelter are taken care of, the next order of need is for friendship and acceptance. That's why teenagers and many adults in our society define our lives based on how we are perceived by others. Many people make fortunes based on our need to be accepted by others because if we're seeking peer support, we can become convinced that this too will bring us the fullness of life, but the gift of life that Jesus offers is bigger than this.
I came that you may have life, and have it abundantly. On more than one occasion, Pope John Paul II urged young people not to settle for second best, not to be content with the things that promise instant gratification, but rather to turn to Jesus who alone has the power to satisfy every hunger. Jesus' words in today's gospel call out to all of us with this same promise. This promise is one we can count on. It begins with a personal relationship with Jesus, like any personal relationship, built on faith and trust.
Today, the Church observes the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. Each one of us, by virtue of our baptism has been given a vocation to grow in our relationship with Jesus. From the time he first called the disciples on the seashore to this day, Jesus continues to invite all is disciples to enter into this relationship. In a society that seems to be changing at such a rapid pace that no one seems capable of keeping up with all the latest technological advances, Jesus calls us to come, to sit at his feet and to listen. To those who find it increasingly difficult to trust because they have experienced one too many broken promises, Jesus calls us to receive the gift of his body and blood, food that he provides in abundance. To those who have grown jaded in their relationships and find it impossible to trust, Jesus calls us to us and tells us that he is willing to wait for us, until the time that we are willing to allow him to heal us of our skepticism.
Each one of us has a vocation to be a disciple. If we accept it, we have to be ready to look beyond the transient promises that our world offers. We have to be ready to look to the only one who can truly give us the answers that will satisfy. From the first apostles he met and called, to today's disciples who are still being called, Jesus invites us to believe that he came to this earth so that we could have life in abundance, to believe that he died for us, in order to take away sin that can separate us from the love of God, to believe that he has indeed risen from the dead and still calls to find life in him, life in abundance.
Ah, by the way, I've noticed that the parish website, where I normally store the podcast versions of these reflections is currently out of service. I promise to keep the recordings though, and to make them available as soon as we find a way to make it happen.
Here's this week's offering:
That you may have life
All of us want to live life, and to live it to the full. What makes this life interesting though is that we all define the particulars of living life to the full in different ways. For the majority of human beings on this planet, fighting for life is defined in physical tangible terms: it means finding enough food so that we and our families will not go to bed hungry ... but what about those who have never known what it's like to be hungry. What kind of fight do such fortunates have to be prepared for? Sociologists tell us that if our basic needs for food and shelter are taken care of, the next order of need is for friendship and acceptance. That's why teenagers and many adults in our society define our lives based on how we are perceived by others. Many people make fortunes based on our need to be accepted by others because if we're seeking peer support, we can become convinced that this too will bring us the fullness of life, but the gift of life that Jesus offers is bigger than this.
I came that you may have life, and have it abundantly. On more than one occasion, Pope John Paul II urged young people not to settle for second best, not to be content with the things that promise instant gratification, but rather to turn to Jesus who alone has the power to satisfy every hunger. Jesus' words in today's gospel call out to all of us with this same promise. This promise is one we can count on. It begins with a personal relationship with Jesus, like any personal relationship, built on faith and trust.
Today, the Church observes the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. Each one of us, by virtue of our baptism has been given a vocation to grow in our relationship with Jesus. From the time he first called the disciples on the seashore to this day, Jesus continues to invite all is disciples to enter into this relationship. In a society that seems to be changing at such a rapid pace that no one seems capable of keeping up with all the latest technological advances, Jesus calls us to come, to sit at his feet and to listen. To those who find it increasingly difficult to trust because they have experienced one too many broken promises, Jesus calls us to receive the gift of his body and blood, food that he provides in abundance. To those who have grown jaded in their relationships and find it impossible to trust, Jesus calls us to us and tells us that he is willing to wait for us, until the time that we are willing to allow him to heal us of our skepticism.
Each one of us has a vocation to be a disciple. If we accept it, we have to be ready to look beyond the transient promises that our world offers. We have to be ready to look to the only one who can truly give us the answers that will satisfy. From the first apostles he met and called, to today's disciples who are still being called, Jesus invites us to believe that he came to this earth so that we could have life in abundance, to believe that he died for us, in order to take away sin that can separate us from the love of God, to believe that he has indeed risen from the dead and still calls to find life in him, life in abundance.
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