Church of The Holy Spirit

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, February 1, 2009

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Prophetic Word
Feb 1-09

If the classified section of the newspaper or an online Web site for the unemployed were to advertise "Prophet wanted," how many job-seekers do you think would apply? Given what we know about prophets from our encounters with them in the scriptures, it is probably reasonable to assume that the applicants would be very few. Prophets are those whom God has called to speak the truth. Although they are graced with the very authority of God, prophets are, for the most part, unpopular because the truth that they are charged to speak is not always easy to hear or accept. God is encountered in that truth, and those who are unaccustomed to the harsh, bright light of truth or to its cutting edge will inevitably limp away from that encounter wounded.

Israel had such an encounter with God on Sinai, and, as we hear proclaimed in today's first reading from Deuteronomy, they decided they needed someone to "run interference." To fulfill that mission, God appointed Moses and promised that the ministry of prophecy would continue as God would raise up for each generation men and women to speak the truth with authority. When Jesus made his first public appearances after his baptism by John, his contemporaries recognized that God's promise was being fulfilled in their sight. In awe of his manner and message, those who heard Jesus understood that he was unlike those teachers whose words had lost their potency. They preached one thing but lived otherwise, and their mixed message fell on disinterested, disillusioned ears.

But Jesus, as Mark points out very strikingly, was so imbued with the truth and goodness of God that even the demons took notice. Demons were regarded by Jesus and his contemporaries as the source of all maladies, physical and spiritual, and they figure importantly throughout the Gospels as the foes of goodness. Foes or not, there is no little irony in the fact that the demons repeatedly recognize and acclaim Jesus for who he is: God's Holy One and prophet. As one who followed Jesus most faithfully, Paul was also recognized as God's prophet and preacher of truth. This truth, which has been preserved in his letters, continues to teach and to challenge. Like Paul, and like Moses and Jesus, contemporary believers are to be faithful to God so as to be authentic prophets who preached by God's truth with authority.

Yet we also see that challenges and risks are inherent to the ministry of the preacher. Preaching can be a "dangerous occupation" that asks us to lay our hearts and our lives on the line. When hard questions are asked, like "Where was God on 9/11?" or "Shouldn't the church offer sanctuary to undocumented workers?" hard answers must be forthcoming. Preaching for God with authority can take us in directions we had not planned and involve us in projects we had not envisioned. Such preaching can force even the most private person into the public arena because truthfulness and faithfulness to God demand a 100-percent investment of self so that words can be translated into works.

Prophetic preaching is also fraught with danger because it opens the door to the holy, and the Holy one has the power to make our poor words come alive. Some may ignore our words; others may refute them. Still others may find in them a life-changing invitation. We, for our part, are compelled to speak. But before we utter a sound, we must fling open the windows for the light of God's Spirit and set ajar the doors for God's Holy Breath (God Breathes: The Spirit in the World, Michael Glazier Books, Wilmington, Del.: 1988). In this way, prophetic preachers can cultivate a harmony with the Spirit who speaks in them.

To the degree that we see ourselves as prophets, we also need to keep in mind that our job is not to manipulate or coerce our listeners into seeing things "our way," but to nudge them gently, to offer them a means of seeing things "God's way." Because the Spirit also breathes wherever and in whomever the Spirit will, those who speak for God with authority should also be ready to listen to the voices of their listeners. Through this mutual listening and learning, the authoritative word of truth will be proclaimed. Hearing and heeding that word is the next step.

We pray for all of our beloved dead, especially

Friday, Feb. 6

St. Paul Miki

8:30 a.m. - † Margaret Park

. . . may live again in the presence of the God of limitless love . . . for all who have gone before us and for those who are living in the shadow of grief. . . . We pray . . . .

For the sick, especially for all those who have asked for our prayers . . . for healing for the sick . . . for courage for those in pain . . . for those in hospitals, nursing homes or confined to their homes by illness or infirmity . . . for those who feel forgotten . . . for all care-givers . . . We pray, . . . .

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, February 8, 2009

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Call to Discipleship – Once More!
Feb 8-09

In today's Gospel, Jesus' open embrace to all who needed him is obvious. Fresh from healing the demoniac in the synagogue, Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law and then allowed all those who came to him, seeking relief from whatever ailed them, to set his agenda. He could have claimed to be too busy or too stressed; he could have wanted a more organized or institutionalized way of dealing with others.

However, he who had come to be all things to all people fuelled himself with prayer and went about doing good. In that deserted place where he quieted himself and communed with God, Jesus found the strength to adjust his attitude so that he was absolutely other-centred. Given to God completely, he was able to give himself to others. In his accessibility and availability, Jesus' contemporary followers continue to find the attitude that should be their own.

Today's Gospel, part of what Mark presented as a typical day in the ministry of Jesus, follows Jesus out of the synagogue in Capernaum and into the home of Peter. There, Jesus would manifest his authority over evil in a private manner as well as in a very public way. From his healing of Peter's mother-in-law to his curing of the many with "the whole town gathered at the door" (v.33), every word and work of Jesus revealed the goodness of God acting with power within him to defeat the power of evil.

Each action of Jesus also holds a lesson in discipleship that continues to teach his followers. Simon's mother-in-law, once healed of her fever by Jesus, began to wait on him and those who travelled with him. She offers a model of the quality of service that Jesus would later recommend to his own, a quality that he himself embodied (8:35; 9:35; 10:43-45). Her action contrasts with that of her son-in-law, Simon, who called Jesus' attention to the crowds clamouring for more healings (v. 37) but did nothing himself to help.

This is the first of several incidents in the Marcan Gospel where a woman will offer a right response to Jesus (the poor widow, 12:40-41; the woman with the ointment, 14:3-9; the women at the cross, 15:40-41; the women at the tomb, 16:1). These feminine responses will contrast sharply with the repeated and growing misunderstanding and insensitivity of Jesus' male disciples. However, the point is not to compare genders, but to realize that models of discipleship and preachers and teachers of the Good News need not be male even in a male-dominated ancient Near Eastern world. There is something to learn from all of Jesus' followers, be they male or female.

Continuing to teach by example, the Marcan Jesus withdrew early the next morning to pray. Unwilling to leave him alone, Simon and the others went after him. Their actions allow all of us to see that even the first disciples misunderstood Jesus' mission. Their desire for more wonders is implied in the statement: "Everyone is looking for you." In between the lines, readers can almost hear a little frustration on their part that Jesus seemed to be wasting time in that deserted place when he could be amazing more and more people with his miracles. Jesus' response to his disciples is weighty indeed.

Despite the excitement caused by his healings, and even though these demonstrated his divinely endowed power, they do not fully reveal Jesus for who he is. That revelation will come later, on the cross. For now, Jesus intends to be about the business of preaching. "For this purpose I have come," he affirms (v.38). This mission will be revealed on several occasions throughout Mark's Gospel, as we see that the miracles of Jesus will be secondary to his message: "Repent and believe in the Gospel."

This message will be echoed in just a few weeks on Ash Wednesday during the distribution of ashes. All of us are called to "Turn away from sin and follow the Gospel." Paul understood the preaching of the Good News as foremost. This is echoed in today's second reading: "Woe to me if I do not preach it!" This is the call sent forth to all disciples and it is one that challenges us to pray, to act and to follow the Lord of all.

We pray for all of our beloved dead, especially

Thursday, Feb. 12

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Diniz and Nelson Raposo

. . . may live again in the presence of the God of limitless love . . . for all who have gone before us and for those who are living in the shadow of grief. . . . We pray . . . .

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, February 15, 2009

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Who Are The Outcasts Today?
Feb 15-09

Few stories are as moving as those that follow a person through a tunnel of tragedy and watch them emerge, wounded but well and wiser, on the other side. When recovering addicts or alcoholics relate their downward spiral into drugs and drink and then tell of that moment when they hit bottom and decided to turn their lives around, who is not impressed with their struggle? Who doesn't rejoice with them in their triumph?

When hardened criminals see the error of their ways and reform their lives, their stories uplift and inspire us. Who hasn't been moved by the struggle of another person who has fought hard to withstand the effects of a grave illness, and, after enduring the necessary treatment, celebrates his survival? Parents whose children have finally emerged from years of rebellion or delinquency are happy to share the good news of family healing and reconciliation. Spouses, children and parents of soldiers whose time spent on the battlefield has brought endless worry are only too happy to receive the phone call or the e-mail that announces their safe return home.

All these instances of survival, reconciliation, healing and new life are experiences of the Good News of salvation that begs to be shared and shouted with joy to others. In today's Gospel, a former leper who was cured by Jesus spreads the report of what Jesus did for him. His was good news of healing and restoration to life. How could he not go public with his joy? Those who encounter Jesus and who are touched by his life-giving, life-changing power cannot be silent. On the contrary, that encounter and their experience of healing and restoration automatically require that the healed ones become the heralds of good news.

Today, the experience of that leper from long ago challenges each of us to reflect on what Jesus has done in our lives. What difference has the presence of the risen Lord made, and how has our relationship with him affected us? For most of us, the experience will probably not involve being cured of the leprosy that is Hansen's disease. Nevertheless, there are countless ways in which we have been touched by Jesus and untold instances of "leprosy" from which we have been healed. As we think upon these things and on the many different experiences of healing, restoration, reconciliation and new life we have known, we cannot help but be grateful.

But today's Gospel requires more from us than quiet and comfortable gratitude; today, we are urged to give grateful voice to our experience and to proclaim how the Good News of salvation has been revealed to us and within us. When the Good News becomes our news to experience and our news to tell, then we become an intimately involved in the message. This was the experience of the leper who came to Jesus and knelt before him and asked for healing. Made whole and clean and holy, his very being became a part of the witness that would reveal Jesus to others. With whom will you share the experience of Jesus? How will you go public with your story? When will you and I become living words in the ongoing conversation that is the Gospel of our salvation?

But who are the lepers and the unwanted of the 21st century? They are the AIDS patients, the undocumented workers, the inconvenient pregnancies, the poor who beg, the homeless who harry us, the great mass of suffering humanity whose overwhelming struggles weigh us down. Our "lepers" are legion, it seems, and for that reason, it is good for us to turn to Jesus to learn, once again, the compassion with which we are to care for those special ones of God.

Jesus did not observe the customary practice of shunning the leper; he allowed the man to approach him and to speak to him. Then, in complete disregard for the rules regarding ritual purity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched the leper. Aware of the law that required the leper to be alone and alienated from the community, Jesus sent the healed man to the priests for inspection. Their action would offer legal approbation for what Jesus had done and would enable the man to be restored to the community.

Jesus' interaction with the leper communicated the love and caring of God to him when the rest of the human community had failed him. Jesus' touch brought healing, and with it, the affirmation that for Jesus' followers, there can be no one to whom we will not speak, no one we will not touch – whenever and wherever they may approach us.

That all our beloved dead, especially

TUESDAY, Feb. 17

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Jack Williams

THURSDAY, Feb. 19

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Samuel Johns

FRIDAY, Feb. 20

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Judith D'Costa

. . . may live again in the presence of the God of limitless love . . . for all who have gone before us and for those who are living in the shadow of grief. . . . We pray . . . .

For the special intentions we offer in the silence of our hearts . . . in thanksgiving for all that our God has done for us, especially on Wednesday February 18th on behalf of the Laurio Family . . . We pray . . . .

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, February 22, 2009

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Healing of the Paralytic
Feb 22-09

Told with great drama and much detail, this lively and compelling Gospel narrative invites readers to imagine themselves in the place of the paralytic. Straining to hear Jesus, wanting to see him, we find ourselves borne on the strength of good friends toward Capernaum. Still supported by caring and creative friends, we are lowered through the roof into Jesus' presence, and there we sit, listening to that most startling revelation: This Jesus who can heal can also forgive sins. He is indeed the Son of Man with the power to do both. To that end, and with the paralytic, we ask to be made both whole and holy.

Jesus' contemporaries were quick to make the connection between sin and illness. Despite correctives from the Hebrew scriptures, it was generally believed that sickness was God's punishment for sin. While Jesus did not attribute the paralytic's physical condition to sin, he did acknowledge that all human beings are sinners before God, and for that reason he initiated the healing encounter by forgiving the man's sins. Those present were immediately offended by what they regarded as a blasphemous act.

According to the Hebrew scriptures, only God can forgive. Moreover, the process of forgiveness would require a confession or admission of sin and repentance or a change of heart followed by a sacrificial offering. In this encounter, there is no formula being followed, it is only Jesus loving the sinner and forgiving sin.

Jesus' special role in incarnating the love and forgiveness of God was further emphasized by the fact that he addressed the paralytic literally as "my son." Mark furthers the association of Jesus with God by indicating that Jesus "knew in his mind what they were thinking to themselves" (v. 8). Witnesses throughout the Hebrew scriptures have attested that only God reads the thoughts of the innermost human heart.

At this point in the narrative, Mark sounds a Christological drum roll. Jesus, who has acknowledged a paralytic as a son and forgiven his sins . . . Jesus, who knows the human heart intimately . . . will now act in his full capacity as Son of Man and affirm his God-given authority by healing the paralytic.

In this action, the mission of Jesus is revealed as one of salvation for both body and spirit; in this action Jesus is revealed as "saviour" and "healer." There is no little significance in the fact that the faith Jesus saw and acknowledged prompted this wondrous action of healing and forgiving (v. 5).

From the text, we cannot know whether the "faith" Mark mentions was that of the paralytic or his friends, or both. From our life experience and our encounter with our healing and forgiving God, we can know that faith, even a little faith, can go far in helping to share and ease the burdens of this life.

Can Jesus see your faith? Can he see mine? Can he do wonders in our midst because of our faith . . . or not?

That all our beloved dead, especially

TUESDAY, Feb. 24
Weekday
8:30 a.m. - † Bill Vooght

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 25
Ash Wednesday
8:30 a.m. 7:00 p.m.

THURSDAY, Feb. 26
Weekday
8:30 a.m. - † Yvette Langevin

FRIDAY, Feb. 27
Weekday
8:30 a.m. - † Mary Waychison

. . . may live again in the presence of the God of limitless love . . . for all who have gone before us and for those who are living in the shadow of grief. . . . We pray . . . .