3 Things St.Martha Teaches Lukewarm Catholics

Today being the memorial of St.Martha, the gospel reading at Mass gives us one of two famous Martha scenes.

St.Martha

Luke 10:38-42 gives us the kitchen scene, where Martha the busybody whines about not getting any help from Mary who sits at Jesus' feet. The Lord Jesus tells her:

"Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her."

The other gospel reading (depending on which one your parish priest chose for Mass today) is John 11:19-27 where Martha displays the blossoming of her faith when Jesus arrives four days after Lazarus has died. Instead of getting mad at his lateness, Martha displays the strength of her belief in Christ when she says:

"Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world."

What happened in between, you might ask? What caused the change?

Martha Listened to the Lord's Advice for Her

First off, she listened to what Jesus told her. She didn't just let it go in one ear and out the other.

If your boss tells you you're doing something wrong, you'd immediately work to correct it right? Well, in the kitchen scene, Martha was scolded by her Lord for being anxious about many things. Did she sit on that info and postpone acting on it? I'd venture to say she took it as a wake up call to stop being overly busy with all the things of the world (cooking, eating) and start prioritizing the things of God (praying, learning) and being closer to the Lord. But she'd never have re-evaluated her outlook had she not listened intently to what Jesus was telling her.

Martha Prioritized "BE" Before "DO"

You can tell she loves being busy -- cooking, feeding, serving. But after Jesus' words, she obviously realized there was a need for her to first BE a faithful, faith-filled follower of the Lord and not simply concentrate on DOING the work.

Too many of us are busy doing the Lord's work when our hearts are not purified, when we remain in mortal sin, when we shun the confessional and the sacraments. By doing so, we do the work relying on our own strength and our own flesh instead of being a pure, faithful follower who relies on God's grace. We DO instead of BE. No wonder we get so stressed out and ineffective at our ministries.

Martha Believed Christ had the Power to Raise the Dead

Her brother had died four days before. Jesus arrived late. She told him that had he been there, Lazarus may not have died. But note: she didn't wail, she didn't whine or wallow in self pity. She wasn't even angry or bitter. She merely stated a fact that her faith led her to believe -- if Jesus asked God to revive Lazarus, it would be done.

"But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you."

What faith! What strong convictions! And yet, as Christians and Catholics, do we have the strength of Martha's beliefs and love for God? How many of us live our lives only half-believing in the Lord's power to work miracles? We do not have because we do not ask. And sometimes even if we ask, we don't believe it will be given. (See James 1:6 "But he should ask in faith, not doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed about by the wind.")



St.Martha, pray for us!
That we may first BE faith-filled followers of Jesus before we DO all the works that fill our days.
That we listen closely to what the Lord is calling us to do.
That we may rely wholly on the Lord's strength and power to do His work.
Amen!


RELATED POSTS:
Martha Was Too Busy To Hear The Need

Christians Today Should Bring Forth the Precious Without the Vile

Today's first reading at Mass contains a poignant verse from Jeremiah 15:19 (NAB)

Thus the LORD answered me: If you repent, so that I restore you, in my presence you shall stand; If you bring forth the precious without the vile, you shall be my mouthpiece. Then it shall be they who turn to you, and you shall not turn to them;

Jeremiah. Photo of a mosaic by Sacred Destinations on Flickr.

I was struck by the wording: Precious versus vile. Pure versus disgusting. Repentant sinner versus proud, audacious sinner.

Once again, the reality of being used as an instrument by the Lord hit me. God was telling Jeremiah to clean up his act -- to repent and stay pure -- so that the prophet could become effective in his ministry.

It's the same challenge given to Christians today. Turn to Him! Turn away from the vile!

Why? He can't use someone who hasn't turned away from sin, or someone who hasn't been restored into a loving relationship with his creator, or someone who decidedly chooses to abandon the Lord's presence because of sin.

He can only use someone who chooses the precious, the pure, the holy over the vile at any given moment. Someone who makes a conscious decision to eschew the vulgarity of the modern world in favor of the holiness of God's word and His sacraments.

Someone who chooses NOT to use curse words and instead chooses to praise God through good times and trials, just like Job.

Someone who chooses NOT to watch lewd television shows and instead chooses to read the word of God.

Someone who chooses to pray for those in need, to do acts of charity, to forebear insults, to accept persecution with joy, to fast from pride.

May we learn to revile the vulgarity around us and instead cling to the Lord for our sustenance and power so that, like Jeremiah, we may work to bring about God's kingdom.


RELATED POSTS:
5 Reasons Why I Go to Daily Mass
Are we usable instruments in the hand of God?

5 Ways to Prepare for Sunday Mass

I recently blogged about how sad it is to see people at Mass devoid of all enthusiasm and life. I thought about it some more and noted down five things you can do to prepare yourself for the Eucharist which is "source and summit" of all we do, and which deserves attentive preparation (cf. Lumen Gentium, 11).

1. Read the readings ahead of time.
Subscribe to the Sunday Mass readings and reflections email from Good News Ministries. Terry Modica provides both a daily email and a weekly email option, which have been blessings to me for years now. The daily email contains the list of Mass readings for the day as well as a reflection on them. Knowing and reading the readings beforehand prepares you for what you will hear.

If you want a simple listing of the readings, the entire Liturgical calendar is laid out over at the Prepare For Mass blog.

And the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has a calendar on the left side of its page with the Mass Readings for the Day. The calendar tells you what readings are on which day:

2. Bring your Bible!
I find it very useful to bring a Bible (or your very own Missal) with the readings already bookmarked beforehand. This is useful as reading material before the Mass begins and also for when you have a hard time comprehending the speech of a lector or celebrant. Note that it is better to listen attentively to the readings during the Liturgy of the Word, than read them. Although there are also those one-in-a-million emergencies where a lector or celebrant can't seem to find the reading in the book and may need to borrow your missal (it's actually happened to me before).

3. Abstain from food and unnecessary speech.
Accompany the Eucharistic fast (no food an hour before Mass begins, in order to receive Holy Communion) with a peaceful, quiet attitude. Avoid frenzy and distractions for a period of time before the Mass begins. Silence and stillness opens your heart up to God's voice.

4. Prepare your clothes, transportation and other temporal things.
Have your attire planned out beforehand to avoid rushing and fretting over what to wear. Leave for church well ahead of the time that Mass starts -- this assures you of a good seat, ample parking (or time to commute), and enough time for you to settle down at your pew.

5. Purify yourself: receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation!
Receiving the sacrament of reconciliation allows you to repair the relationship with God that you've harmed due to mortal sin. There is no better preparation to receive Christ through the Blessed Eucharist than confessing your sins and coming clean with the Lord. After all, as adopted children of God, we are called to be holy as He is holy.

There are also more tips to preparing for the Mass at Catholic Answers forums.

Everything Old is New and Delightful

After an overlong hiatus, I'm back. In the interim, I've discovered the joys and pains of fatherhood with our first baby boy, Zion -- now 7 months old -- who never ceases to amaze me.

One of his favorite toys is a cow that, when pressed, sings "Jingle Bells" in a series of enthusiastic moos and bovine grunts. I let the song play whenever I'm feeding Zion because it helps distract him from his boredom at being seated for the stretch of time it takes to finish his rice cereal. The thing is: it doesn't matter how many times he's heard the cow moo, no matter when I press the cow's head, Zion looks up and smiles with all the boyish joy he can muster. He's probably heard it several hundred times by now. And yet, once it starts making its joyful sound, the experience is new for my son every time.

I wonder why we Catholics can't have that same attitude whenever we go to Mass. It's the most magnificent thing in the world to be able to worship God through the Eucharistic celebration, and yet every week I see at least two people (sometimes more) who look like they'd rather be somewhere else. Their faces are dour, sour, sad, often ambivalent. You can almost hear what they're thinking: "Here we go again."  Or maybe "I've heard that homily before." And yet we say we are the Church of the living God?  More like the living dead.

What we have is so precious and so beautiful, this faith of ours, and we take it for granted. We think of the Sunday Mass as a weekly duty that can be easily over and done with in an hour, instead of preparing for it with an expectant heart and fully participating in it with joy and thanksgiving.

We should all take lessons from Zion, who at 7 months, can enjoy the same old thing like new every time, because he finds beauty and happiness and value in it. 

Who am I to You?

"Jesus double." Art by Sy Parrish on Flickr.

In today's scripture readings, Jesus poses this question to his apostles: "Who do you say I am?" which could be reworded as "Who am I to you, anyway?"

That same question was posed to the people at the 7AM morning mass at my parish, and there was a surprising number of people ready with heartfelt answers: He is my Lord and savior. He is my salvation. He is king, though I don't know what king means in this day and age. He is my friend who cares for me. He is the Lord whom I follow.

All of them, sincere answers. Each of them, a homily waiting to unfold.

I would venture to add that the readings taken together posit something more, and carry a warning as well as a hope.

He is almighty and powerful.

In the first reading (Gen 9:1 to 13), He is the Lord of the covenant -- the one who wiped out man's evil from the world with a great flood, and the same one who promised Noah and his descendants that He would never do so again.

He is holy and merciful.

In the Responsorial Psalm taken from Psalm 102, He is the Lord who looks down from heaven upon the earth, the one who regards the prayer of the destitute, hears the groaning of prisoners and releases those doomed to die.

He is Messiah and Lord.

And finally in the Gospel of Mark 8:27-33, Peter speaks for us when he says that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, the Lord whom we follow. And yet, a few moments later, concerned about Jesus revelation that He would suffer and die, Peter goes on to rebuke Jesus.

Rebuke is a strong word, one that means to criticize and censure angrily. And I imagine the all-too-human Peter disagreeing with Jesus, asking why this has to be so, wondering if there were a way to protect Jesus from death and suffering.

Jesus turns around and rebukes Peter in return, calling the apostle "Satan," one of the most vehement declarations from the mouth of the Lord. And why? Because if indeed He was Lord, then Peter had to trust in the divine plan, had to submit his human will to the divine will of God.

Therein lies our challenge as Catholics and Christians.

If we say He is Lord of our lives, the leader whom we follow, the almighty who cared enough to save us from sin... then do we relinquish control to Him? Do we trust in Him when the chips are down and trials surround us? Do we follow Him completely despite not understanding how we could be suffering so?

If we don't trust Him then we impose our own selfish wills on our lives and, like Peter, begin to think as humans do instead of as God does. We become "Satan" because we oppose God by going our own way and trusting our own strengths and schemes.

If indeed He is Lord to us, then His wishes are our commands. And His wish is for us to know Him, to love Him and to follow Him... even as He leads us through the dark valleys.

We are priests with a small "P"

From today's Good News Reflections:

Thus, Jesus our High Priest is present with us at every Catholic Mass in the Word, in the Eucharist, and in the priest through whom Jesus preaches the Word and through whom Jesus changes the bread and wine into the Eucharist.

When we — the common priests and the ministerial priests — eat his body and drink his blood, we are united to Christ's sacrifice and the salvation that it gives us. Thus united to Jesus, we all become Christ's body on earth for the continuation of his ministry. Are we continuing his ministry well?

May we then be holy priests, holy vessels, holy tabernacles Christ, who through our actions and our speech continuously lead people to Christ and glorify His name through our lives.

Confession, Kinda Like Extraction of Spiritual Tooth Decay

Reposted from Saturday, January 17th, 2009

I’m writing this in front of a computer with an ice pack tied to my head. I call it my hands-free redtooth device, put in place to reduce the swelling I’m experiencing from having two molars extracted. This is my physical body telling me it’s been brutalized.

My two upper 3rd molars were not being used for anything. They had no counterparts beneath them on which to grind on, and instead they were simply collecting dirt in pockets of food. In time, those molars would have slipped out anyway. My dentist advised me to get rid of them, thereby reducing any dirt collection areas they were hiding.

“104/365: I love the dentist.” Flickr photo by Betsssssy.

Miraculously, she extracted them in 5 minutes, painlessly. The injection was painless because her hands were steady. And the tooth extraction itself? She didn’t need forceps. Just one tool which looked a chisel, and 2 minutes per tooth. Wow. After all those painful extractions of my youth, this one was a miracle.

Until I got home, and the anesthesia wore off, and I was in pain that shot out like lightning bolts, from head to toe. Got the ice pack, filled it to the brim and lay down without eating. Slept it off. And now, a day later, it’s acting up again. So I administer the ice pack, and stick to the soft foods.

* * *

Just this Monday, I went to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It was just after the 7 AM Mass at our parish. I sat down with my pastor and parish priest and confessed my sins to God, through the priest (who is Our Lord’s stand-in), and he reminded me that loving is accepting without expectation (or, that I must “Love without counting,” as I’ve blogged about before). Harboring bitterness or expectations is not healthy, he told me. So, love without asking for anything in return. I sat in prayer before the tabernacle housing the ultimate expression of loving unconditionally.

I know I am forgiven because I believe that when Jesus instituted His church on earth, He gave the apostles the authority to bind and loose (Matthew 16:19), which is the authority to forgive sins and reconcile sinners with the church.

“confession.” Flickr photo by jovike.

Like my molar extraction, the pain hit me afterwards in the form of temptation. In my past year at my job, I’ve never felt more irritable than this week. And it’s been a struggle fighting it. It’s been tough going. But through God’s grace, things have been more than fine. Things have been taken care of. Prayer helps, and the daily reading of Scripture and the Catechism enriches me.

But see, I’m better off without the molars, just as I’m better off without the sins. And even if the physical body aches (molars) and is buffeted with temptation (spirit), I know in the end, that this is good for me. And this is how it should be.

Answering God’s Invitation to the Banquet

Reposted from Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Today’s Gospel reading gives us a lot to think about in the realm of invitations and feasts. At Mass this morning, our priest asked us to share our experiences as guests or hosts — what happens when someone you invite doesn’t make it? Or how do you feel when you’re singled out, asked to come to a meal that is special?

I shared about how I have two former officemates who I invited to my wedding in 2000. They never made it. They never tried to contact me either to tell me they couldn’t go or that they had no transportation to get to the church. They simply didn’t show up. Possibly, they felt they would be just one more person in a crowd. I wanted to share our blessed union with them– a day unlike any other — and they didn’t go.

Eucharist. Flickr photo by shioshvili.

To this day, it’s a running joke during those rare times when we get to communicate, that they didn’t come to my wedding and thus get no free favors from me. But the truth is, at the time, it felt … insulting. Almost like, hey, we have more important things to do. Because really, what it boils down to is priorities. If you refuse an invitation, you’re saying something else is more important, is more of a priority.

Which is pretty much what the three characters in today’s Gospel reading (Lk 14:15-24) did: they told the host that they had more important things to do than attend a great dinner. One was concerned about the field he’d just bought (material possessions), one was concerned with oxen he’d just purchased (livelihood, career), and the last was concerned that he’d just been married (relationships). These three were saying “Master, this concern of mine is what’s keeping me from your dinner. Sorry, I’m out.”

How sad the Father must feel when we refuse His invitation. Because it’s a free dinner He calls us to share in. One where all we need to bring is a humble and contrite heart. One where we are called to join our large, celestial family of Heaven-dwelling and Earth-bound saints in the praise and worship of the eternal Bread of Life, who is Jesus. Jesus present in our brethren gathered around the table. Jesus in the Word of Sacred Scripture. Jesus come down to Earth in the Blessed Eucharist.

Maybe it’s time we stop letting our obsession with material possessions hinder us from “tasting and seeing that the Lord is good.” Maybe it’s time we stop making our careers and livelihoods the central focus of our energies instead of following the Will of God for our lives. Maybe it’s time we stop making relationships and other people as our excuse for not getting to Mass or church or synagogue or chapel, for not fostering our relationship with Him.

Maybe it’s time we heed the call.

Donut Birthday & Morning Mass

Reposted from Sunday, October 19th, 2008

I was walking to Mass last Wednesday morning in the dim morning light. Rosary nearly through, the clock exactly at 7 AM. I rounded the corner at the local donut shop and saw a sight I don’t normally see that early in the day. A group of people were gathered around a table, patrons and donut shop crew alike, singing "Happy Birthday" to someone. A birthday party at 7 AM in the morning! As the birthday song died down, someone — probably the celebrant — brought out a harmonica and started blowing a tune I did not recognize.

I was out of earshot a few seconds later, smiling from ear to ear. I was heading towards my own morning party, my own daily celebration of life and love and sacrifice. I was heading towards the 7 AM Mass which had started already, and which would commemorate Christ’s death and suffering, but even more, would bring Christ present to us physically, in the form of the Blessed Eucharist.

“Dark Church.” Photo by Wiros on Flickr.

Upon arriving, I switched on the electronic keyboard in the daily chapel ready to sing my own version of a celebratory song — the Alleluia before the Gospel.

Praise God for every daily blessing. Praise God for morning parties and for the overflowing blessings — all of which are reasons to celebrate joyfully, with praise and thanksgiving.

Philippians 4:4 reminds us: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!”

God Sends Me a Black Cat in the Organ

Reposted from Monday, August 25th, 2008

You can sum up my entire life in this sentence: God likes sending me black cats in the organ.

I arrived late for Mass this morning because I couldn’t seem to find the donations flyer I got in the mail for a convent of Benedictine nuns. Apparently, someone’s been throwing out my mail for me. This brought up irritation and a hint of bitterness which made me mad but also guilty. How do you worship the Lord with weight like that in your heart? So, en route to church, trusting in the Lord to deliver me from evil thoughts and irritation, I brought out the rosary and prayed the second half of the Glorious Mysteries since I was unable to finish the night before. Reflecting on Christ’s resurrection then ascension brings things back into perspective to tell you the truth. And by the end, the Lord lifted it from my heart.

“Metaphor the Dusty Cat,” photo by acid42 on Flickr.

I positioned myself at the aged electronic organ, despite my lateness, powering it up. And by the time the Agnus Dei came around I was ready to play. Except the volume pedal seemed stuck. It was at full volume and didn’t want to move. I took a look at it and there seemed to be some black foam blocking its path? So I jammed my foot on the pedal hoping to force it to move, and as it did…

A black cat came running out of the hole housing the pedal, racing for the nearest exit. I uttered an “Oh!” which was thankfully drowned out by people greeting each other with a sign of peace.

Looks like the church has a resident feline organist.

The organ worked okay after that. I just realized that some of the noise problems the organ displays, may be due to the cat scratching or biting down on the wires. Who would’ve known?

Thus says the Lord: “Stop taking your bitter pills, Lionel, and laugh. See? I sent you a black cat to lift your spirits. Now try to be more positive.”

Five Reasons Why I Go To Daily Mass

Reposted from Saturday, June 21st, 2008

1. Receiving Christ in the Blessed Eucharist gives me the strength to fight selfish pride and sin.
I’m not saying I’m a saint. The truth is far far away from that. Ask my wife. But I do know that pride and my ego are the two constant demons I must battle. I want my pleasure, my sleep, my comfort, my free time to do what I want. It’s a constant struggle to kill these impulses especially when they impede on other priorities and other relationships. And I already know I cannot win alone. I wasn’t made perfect. I was made weak and frail and egotistical so that I can acknowledge that any good that happens is from God.

Because it takes supernatural strength to combat ego. And I get that strength from my Lord as He is present in the Eucharist. The sanctifying grace that pours through me when I receive the consecrated host allows me to stop before uttering a word of anger, or engaging in a selfish sin. And truly, those days when I fail, the days when my weak flesh regains control, are the days when I fail to receive communion, or decide not to show up at the morning mass.

The back of the cross at Saint Joachim’s. My photo.

2. Praising God first thing in the morning is the most important thing on my daily calendar.
First things first, as they say. And since I’ve been blessed to live a mere walking distance away from my parish, I take it as a privilege and a gift that I can make God the first thing in my day literally by worshipping Him in His temple. Add to that the fact that God asks for the first fruits of your harvest, the first tenth of all your blessings. Going to Mass is offering the first part of my day to the Lord who is the source of all my blessing.

3. The Mass is my ongoing spiritual formation.
The beautiful thing about the Mass is that is so drenched in scripture. And attending it every weekday allows me to soak in God’s Word. Since I play the organ as well and get to pick the songs each day, it means I am forced to read each day’s readings ahead of time so that the music fits the liturgy. Add to this the enriching homilies put forth by the trio of SVD priests who pastor our parish, and you get a full Catholic education in Christ, stewardship, the sacraments, the saints, and evangelization 260 days a year. Growing in the Lord a day at a time.

4. The Mass heals.
Every Mass is a healing experience. It heals wounds caused by our sinful nature, it heals our relationship with God and one another, bringing us closer to our Lord, giving us opportunities to draw near and receive Him not only in the Word, but also in the Blessed Eucharist.

Back in my first two years of high school, I used to curse quite foully. Every other word was dirty and spiteful, and it was affecting me, tainting my mood, keeping me in a constant state of anger and impatience. I started going to the daily mass in third year and after a while, without my noticing, the foul vocabulary died away. In fact it only came to my attention when my classmates started wondering why I wasn’t cursing anymore. These days I pray for healing of a different kind. And I have faith that the Lord will grant it to me as long as I stay faithful to Him.

5. I meet my creator, my friend and my love.
As Saint Augustine says: my heart is restless until it rests in You. I find shelter in the wings of the Lord. Every morning, I find it at His temple. During the day, I find it in silent prayer wherever I am. I yearn for Him every morning knowing my day is incomplete without worship, finding no other solace but His Word and His sacraments. And in surrendering to His love, in accepting the daily challenge to get up early and meet Him in the Eucharist, I find ever more joy.

Fasting Before Communion

Reposted from Thursday, October 25th, 2007

ParishWorld.net has a wonderful article on the traditional one-hour fast before receiving Holy Communion. In the article, Fr.William Saunders reminds us that fasting is an exercise of humility, hope and love — essential virtues in preparing to receive the Holy Eucharist.

In Sacred Scripture, fasting was a physical preparation for a spiritual encounter — for entering into the presence of God. Moses fasted 40 days before receiving the 10 commandments, Jesus fasted 40 days before his public ministry began. Fasting in general is a way to mortify the flesh (to remind ourselves that our bodies are not in charge) so that we can more fully hunger for Christ and His holiness and His presence in our bodies as we take Him in the form of the host.

Jesus said in the beatitudes, “Blest are they who hunger and thirst for holiness; they shall have their fill” (Mt 5:6).

It’s a beautiful tradition if you ask me. One in which we prepare our bodies, which are temples of the Holy Spirit, to receive the Lord of all.