Thoughts on solitude

 

The Careful Balance

From: Spiritual Formation: Following the Movements of the Spirit

Somewhere we know that without a lonely place, our lives are in danger. Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning; that without listening, speaking no longer heals; that without distance, closeness cannot cure. Somewhere we know that without a solitary place, our actions quickly become empty gestures. The careful balance between silence and words, withdrawal and involvement, distance and closeness, solitude and community forms the basis of the spiritual life and should therefore be the subject of our most personal attention.

Reflection Question: Where can you find your solitary place? If you can't find one easily, how can you make one for yourself?

… for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. - Philippians 2: 13

Henri Nouwen (1932–1996) was a priest, professor, and spiritual writer. He authored over 40 books on the spiritual life and spent his final years at L'Arche Daybreak, a community for people with intellectual disabilities. Drawing from his own journey of vulnerability and faith, he invites seekers into deeper intimacy with God, themselves, and others.

More Books by Henri Nouwen

Thoughts on the Blessed Virgin Mary

 

Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Matthew 1:1–16, 18–23

Friends, today we celebrate the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And our Gospel declares that she will be the mother of Jesus, who would be “God with us.” Mary is a rich and multivalent symbolic figure in all of the Gospels. In Luke’s infancy narrative, she emerges as the spokesperson for ancient Israel, speaking, in her Magnificat, in the words and cadences of Hannah. In Matthew’s Christmas account, she is compelled to go into exile in Egypt and is then called back to her home, recapitulating thereby the journey of Israel from slavery to freedom. She is thus the symbolic embodiment of faithful and patient Israel, longing for deliverance.  In John’s Gospel, she is, above all, mother—the physical mother of Jesus and, through him, the mother of all who would come to new life in him. As mother of the Lord, she is, once again, Israel, that entire series of events and system of ideas from which Jesus emerged and in terms of which he alone becomes intelligible. Hans Urs von Balthasar commented in the same vein that Mary effectively awakened the messianic consciousness of Jesus through her recounting of the story of Israel to her son.  Bishop Robert Barron

Thoughts on summer

 Summer

For many people, summer has a lot of different parameters as far as when it begins and when it ends. For children, summer begins when school lets out for the year.  When I was a kid, that meant sometime in June, but now it means late May.  This past school year, my children were done for the year on May 23rd!  For people who work for a living, Memorial Day weekend kind of marks the beginning of summer, a time when the temperatures are warmer and the local swimming pools open up.  Of course, if you go by the calendar, the official beginning of summer is on June 21st with the summer solstice.  If the weather doesn't cooperate, most anyone else will have to admit that by July 4th, Independence Day weekend, we are definitely into summer.  For a few, summer doesn't begin until you take your vacation from work and go on a trip out of town. 

People who have children in school will most likely agree that what we think of as summer, the time off between when school ends and when it begins, has definitely moved from a Memorial Day to Labor Day time period to a late May to early to mid August time period as schools nation wide have adjusted their schedules over the last 20 years or so.  For many folks, once the calendar flips over to August, vacations are over and you are buying back to school supplies and thinking about school starting again.  But really, summer is only about half over because it doesn't really end until Sept 21st. So when is summer to you?  I guess it really doesn't matter, unless you make calendars.  Enjoy the warm weather and time off of work.  Slow down and enjoy the enjoyment!

Scott

Thoughts on judgements

 

23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

In celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession), it is not uncommon for individuals to list among their sins that they have been “judgmental.” Sometimes I am left wondering if they have truly committed a sin.

Human beings have a right to make judgments. We have a right to have opinions, even negative ones! But, how do we exercise that right in a way that is consistent with our desire and commitment to act morally, to act as Jesus did? Of course, as Christians the answer to that question is crucial because the fact is that although we have a right to have (negative) opinions/judgments, we cannot exercise that right in such a way that we denigrate someone else or dismiss them as simply evil. They may do evil things, in our judgment, and may have qualities and attitudes which we might reasonably consider to be obnoxious. We may also perceive that they make decisions which are self-serving, insensitive, foolish or even cruel. All of that may be true, in our judgment, BUT we do not as Christians have the right to use our own opinions, judgments and words as weapons to destroy someone else. Jesus himself could be quite critical at times of the behaviors and attitudes of others, but he did not equate what they did with who they were as a son or daughter of God.

So, what guidelines should apply to the Christian exercise of judging? First, of course, our opinions must be, as best we can determine, true and accurate. We do not have permission to lie or gossip! Also, we must bring a certain humility to our opinions. Others have the right to make judgments, and often those are inconsistent with our own. We should not assume that our opinions and judgments contain total and absolute truth. There’s one more criterion, and for me at least, it’s the toughest one. Even when I am certain that my opinion is accurate, and even when I am being careful to separate the behavior from the person, I must keep in mind the most basic of Christian principles… My words and actions should be motivated by love. If I cannot sincerely say that the sharing of my opinions will serve the cause of helping a person or the world be better, the most loving option is usually to keep my judgments to myself – my mouth shut!

Fr. Frank Reale, S.J.

Thoughts on Evangelization

 

Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Luke 4:38–44

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus declares his mission: “I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent.” And he continues to pursue his mission among us in our efforts to do the work of evangelization. Do we need evangelization? The statistics couldn’t be clearer. Did you know that the fastest-growing category in polls of religious affiliation is “none”? And did you know that there are far more nones than Catholics in this country? So, Catholics cannot avoid the demand of evangelization, proclaiming the faith. Vatican II couldn’t be clearer on this score, seeing the Church itself as nothing but a vehicle for evangelization: It’s not so much the case that the Church has a mission, but rather that a mission has the Church. St. Paul VI and St. John Paul II made this idea central to their teaching. In fact, John Paul famously called for a new evangelization. Bringing people to Christ is not one work among many; rather, it is the central work of the Church, that around which everything else that we do revolves. Bishop Robert Barron

Thoughts on our Spirit

 

Sending Our Spirit of Love

From: Finding My Way Home: Pathways to Life and the Spirit

After a very short visit to earth the time comes for each of us to pass from this world to the next. We have been sent into the world as God's beloved children, and in our passages and losses we learn to love each other as spouse, parent, brother, or sister. We support one another through the passages of life, and together we grow in love. Finally we ourselves are called to exodus, and we leave the world for full communion with God. It is possible for us, like Jesus, to send our spirit of love to our friends when we leave them. Our spirit, the love we leave behind, is deeply in God's Spirit. It is our greatest gift to those we love.

Reflection Question: How might the love you share with others become a lasting gift that continues to live in them—even through times of change, loss, and separation?

Your father's blessings are greater than the blessings of the ancient mountains, than the bounty of the age-old hills. - Genesis 49: 26

Henri Nouwen (1932–1996) was a priest, professor, and spiritual writer. He authored over 40 books on the spiritual life and spent his final years at L'Arche Daybreak, a community for people with intellectual disabilities. Drawing from his own journey of vulnerability and faith, he invites seekers into deeper intimacy with God, themselves, and others.

More Books by Henri Nouwen

Explore the Daily Meditations

Thoughts on the loss of a pet dog - Part 2

 

The next morning I woke up around 6 am and walked out of our bedroom and looked down the hall at Lola's empty dog bed where she normally slept at night.  She wasn't there.  No, I didn't dream that Lola got hit by a car, it was real.  Too real.  I got dressed and fixed some coffee and went to the front room where I normally went in the mornings to check e-mail and social media sites.  Lola wasn't on the chair looking out the window.  It seemed like everything I did made me think about Lola.  Why did this happen? She was supposed to be with us for 5 or 10 more years!  I went around to the back of the house and looked at the blanket covering Lola's dead body.  I pulled it back and knelt down beside her and petted her still body.  She was such a good dog I thought. I wasn't ready for this.  I got up and decided to go for a walk like Lola and I normally would in the morning.  At the end of the street I ran into one of my neighbors who was walking her dogs and she said, "Hey where's your partner?"  I told her what had happened last night and I broke down crying.  She was shocked at the news and gave me a hug.  She said that she would pray for me and my family for our loss.  I continued on my walk and went on one of our normal routes.  I would look at the spots that Lola liked to stop at and sniff around.  It was a hard walk full of memories.  After I got home I decided to prepare a grave in our backyard so we could bury Lola.  We had done this with two of our cats that we had lost over the years.  This time I had to dig a much bigger hole.  The ground was hard and rocky but I got the grave started.  I told my wife that I would probably need one of our boys to help finish digging.  Later in the day, I took my wife and two daughters on another walk to show them one of Lola's favorite routes.  It seemed so odd not having Lola walking with us. After our walk we all tried to do some of our normal weekend activities but it was hard not to constantly think about Lola being missing.  We sent a group text out to the family to let them know that we would like everyone to come home for dinner that evening.  After dinner, my oldest son helped me finish digging the grave for Lola and then we gathered the family outside in the backyard for a little graveside service for Lola.  Everyone looked at the grave in disbelief.  This was so sad.  Lola was such a big part of our family.  We covered Lola in her blanket with dirt.  This was her final resting place.  We decided to order a marker to place on the grave in remembrance of her.  We didn't do it for the cats, but we needed to do it for Lola.  She was special. The next week was very hard to get through.  Every day was filled with memories of Lola and we discussed what Lola was missing or what she might be doing if she was still with us.  We looked through pictures on our phones to find pictures of Lola to share and place in an online photo album. I knew this was going to be hard, but I wasn't prepared for how hard it was going to be.  Lola was a dog, but she was a member of our family.  I was not prepared for the amount of loss, grief and emptiness that I was feeling over Lola.  This will take some time...