Cup o' Joe

The Gospel of Luke, Chapter 18, verses 35-43Jesus walks through Jericho and encounters a blind man sitting by the side of the road.  Through persistence, the blind man is brought before Jesus.  And it is in this encounter that Jesus asks The Question.  It's a question we must answer as well.Today is a mini-pod - something I'm going to be trying out.  Let me know what you think! ([email protected])

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 17, verses 26-37Jesus continues his discussion regarding the coming of the Son of Man with His disciples.  And while that can certainly point to the Second Coming, it doesn't have to.  The Son of Man comes today and we are invited out of our routines to see and make a decision.  Here.  Today.  Now.  We also celebrate the life and death of St. Josaphat, a man who died in search of unity.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 17, verses 20-25The Pharisees are giving Jesus a hard time, asking exactly when the Kingdom of God will come.  He replies to them that they have it all wrong.  The Kingdom of God is already among them.  And us.  But if that is true, where exactly do we see it?  Our world is torn with violence and division.  Where does God reside?  I use two pop culture references to answer the question.We also celebrate St. Martin of Tours on this Veterans day and we look at the juxtaposition and talk about struggling with life lived in the gray...

The Gospel of Luke, Chapter 17, verses 11-19On this Feast of St. Leo the Great, we hear the wonderful story of the 10 lepers who were cleansed, and only one returned to give thanks to God...a Samaritan.  So today, we focus not only on faith and trusting God to be with us on the journey; we focus not only on our salvation resting on the fact that all is gift and rendering that as gratitude; but we also focus on what is it like to be an outsider.  How does it feel not to be seen?  

The Gospel of John, Chapter 2, verses 13-22Today we celebrate the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica - in other words we celebrate the dedication of a building.  But it is much more than that.  We celebrate an event.  We celebrate a turning.  And, like most crossroads, there are blessings and perils down that road.  This gift brought similar choices.  And it has produced some of the most holy and beautiful people this world has ever known.  It has shaped lives and continents.  But it has also fallen victim of its shadow side.  And this crossroads?  It lies before us as well.  How will we choose?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 17, verses 1-6Jesus is not afraid of a little hyperbole in today's teaching, so why stop at one example?  Instead He uses three.  Millstones, Multiple Daily Forgiveness and Mulberry Trees being recklessly uprooted and thrown into the sea.  But when we can move beyond the exaggeration, there is much for us to ponder within this beautiful passage.  

The Gospel of Luke, Chapter 16, verses 1-8Today Jesus, in speaking to his disciples (i.e. you and I), tells a parable with which I have always struggled.  Not because I don't like it.  But because I'm not certain of where Jesus is inviting us.  And so, I take it in two different directions - and invite you to take it wherever the Spirit may move within you.  Effectively, Jesus tells a parable of a dishonest steward who is commended for being shrewd.  So what are we to make of that?Well, for one thing - a This is Spinal Tap reference (the movie whose title I can't recall during the pod)!  Can't go wrong there.  Thankfully it wasn't "S*** Sandwich!"

The Gospel of Luke, Chapter 15, verses 1-10We enter into one of the greatest chapters in all of Scripture today, with Jesus giving us two parables addressed to the self-righteous in His midst.  Those to whom He is speaking have a tendency to divide the world in two - those in and those out.  The righteous and the non-righteous.  Jesus sees no such divide.  He sees people in need of God's grace.  How about us?  How do we see the world?  These parables challenge us today every bit as much as those Pharisees and scribes 2,000 years ago.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 14, verses 25-33Although we celebrate the feast of St. Martin de Porres today, we are back in the Gospel of Luke.  And today, Jesus is challenging the large crowd following Him that to live a life of discipleship is not an easy task.  It's not for large crowds or the faint of heart.  It takes strength to put at the center that which needs to be at the center.  And all this other stuff?  We don't need it.  Renounce it.  All we need to do is be who God made us to be - and at the very center of that is God.Thanks to Karen Hennings for being a guest on the podcast today!

The Gospel of John, Chapter 6, verses 37-40Today, my friends, we celebrate another feast day - a decidedly Catholic one: The Feast of All Souls.  And so on today's pod, we talk about Purgatory.  And in talking about Purgatory, we discuss it not in a punitive way, but as the hope-filled doctrine that it is.  It is so good.  I also use an analogy from the recent past to invite us to continue forward in hope.  Today's readings are too good to miss.  

Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 5, verses 1-12aMy friends, we celebrate a Holy Day within our Church today - the Feast of All Saints.  And this day celebrates not only those canonized and held before us as examples, it celebrates all those holy women and men within our families, communities and lives.  And it reminds us of our own call to sanctity and how we are invited to live that in community.  All you holy men and women, pray for us!

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 14, verses 1-6Jesus had to get tired of being set up by his enemies, didn't He?  If He did, He sure doesn't show it in today's Gospel.  Instead, He uses it as a teaching tool to try to bring them beyond, over and past where they are stuck.  But they refuse to engage.  Yet none of that stops Him from doing the right and the good thing...even knowing that this right and good act leads Him closer to death.  Love, my friends, is not sentimental.  There is nothing sentimental about dying so that another may live.  

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 6, verses 12-16Today we celebrate the feast of Ss. Simon and Jude, two of the forgotten apostles of Jesus.  What do we know about them?  Two things: Their names and the fact that they said yes when called.  That seems a small amount to attain discipleship, but we sometimes forget that discipleship isn't earned with an impressive resume.  It's given as an act of grace.  Our lives are then lived as a response to that grace.  Simon and Jude did, even thought I couldn't tell you one thing they did.  What about you and I?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 13, verses 22-30Jesus gives us another hard Gospel today.  Not just hard to understand (although it is that, too!).  No, today is a hard truth.  He's telling us that it is decision time.  Stop standing with a foot in both camps.  Get out of the doorway.  Decide which side of the door you will stand on.  And what people, habits and things will you bring with you?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 13, verses 18-21Today, Jesus uses two images to help describe the Kingdom of God to us: a mustard seed and yeast.  But here's my question to you - how would you describe the Kingdom of God?  What imagery would you use and what is it you are wanting to convey?Today's Gospel is a great Gospel of hope.  The end is determined.  It's just the time of growth we await...

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 13, verses 10-17This is so good, brothers and sisters.  Jesus performs a healing of a woman bent over for 18 years.  But the real battle happening here is not between sickness and health, but rather what the law is truly about.  Is it about freedom, dignity and life?  Or is it about power and control?  You know where Jesus is going to land, but it also speaks to what is going on today and which side we will choose.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 12, verses 54-59On this Feast of St. John Paul II, Jesus invites the people to learn how to read the signs of the times to the degree that they are able to read the meteorological signs all around them.  Well, you know that they are us.  That same challenge lies at our door.  Are you able to read the signs of the times?  And are you able to see where they might lead?  And beyond seeing, are we able to impart a new vision for those around us?  We are baptized priest, prophet and king.  Jesus's challenge invites us to step into that prophetic role.We also look at the life and legacy of St. John Paul II.  St. John Paul, pray for us!

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 12, verses 49-53Jesus continues to bring hard truths to the people.  What does He have to say to us today?  That He came for division and that if we allow ourselves to be filled with the fire and passion of the Holy Spirit, expect kickback.  Gird your loins, my friends...

The Gospel of Luke, Chapter 12, verses 39-48Jesus, through Luke, continues to speak to those who may be growing weary of waiting for the return of The Master and uses two more images - one quite stark and in-your-face - about our need to be prepared.  He also holds us accountable for the knowledge we hold.  The question is - what will we do with it?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 12, verses 35-38Jesus invites us to be ready, for we know not the hour of His coming.  So what, exactly, do we need to put up on our refrigerator?  Guess you have to listen to find out ;)

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 10, verses 1-9Today we celebrate the Gospel of Luke and his "yes" to Christ - and how it changed the world and continues to do so.  We also focus on who God is within Luke's Gospel, mainly that God is mercy and forgiveness itself and doesn't limit who He will call in order to pass this word along, including even calling us.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 12, verses 1-7Jesus continues the theme he had been speaking of with the Pharisees around the dinner table, only this time warning His disciples to be wary of hypocrisy.  All that is hidden will be revealed.  He then goes into what could be a scary place, so I attempt to understand it before landing it on one of Jesus's most beautiful thoughts regarding God's great love for us.  And today is a feast celebrating a great woman (Capital G, capital W) - St. Teresa of Avila

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 11, verses 47-54Jesus finishes up his dinner with the Scribes and Pharisees, but not before he names a present reality to them - that they honor the prophets that previous generations have killed.  And in so doing, perpetuate the cycle.  I would love to say that was something that was only present to that specific generation 2,000 years ago.  But unfortunately, I think it is something we carry within our human condition.  How can we, as individuals and as communities of faith, begin to break out of this cycle?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 11, verses 42-46Jesus continues (courageously, I might add!) to hold a mirror up to the Pharisees gathered around the table, naming the truth that lies within them.  If only that truth and mirror applied to those hearing His words 2,000 years ago - but they continue to resonate through the years and speak to the Pharisee within all of us.  But even so, they continue to be good news for us because they shake us out of habits we need to lose...

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 11, verses 37-41Jesus finishes speaking to the crowd and has dinner at the home of a Pharisee.  But he quickly comes under fire for not keeping the precepts of the Law.  Some hospitality, right? Jesus then reprimands the Pharisees - and speaks to us over the ages - about the need for the inside and the outside to match.  At stake?  Freedom.  

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 11, verses 29-32Jesus continues to talk to the crowd, but this time with a warning.  It is not enough to hear the Word of God.  If we don't act on it, we are fooling ourselves.  Jesus uses Jonah, the people of Nineveh and the Queen of the South to invite us into the story.  What did they do that He is inviting and urging us to do?We also celebrate the Feast of St. Pope John XXIII today.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 11, verses 15-26We have a tough Gospel today, where Jesus is accused of driving out demons by the "prince of demons" Beelzebul.  And so instead, Jesus invites the people to think about true power and who holds it (and, consequently, who does not).But if we choose not to give ourselves over to this Power, our condition in the end may actually turn out worse than before.  

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 11, verses 5-13On this feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, Jesus continues to teach us about prayer.  And He uses imagery that any of us who have friends or children can understand.  How shall we pray?  Directly.  Persistently.  And most of all, trust that our God knows what we need and desires to meet us in the middle of that need.  That's really good news!

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 11, verses 1-4The disciples ask Jesus to teach them to pray, as John has taught his disciples.  So we talk today about what, exactly, prayer is and how can we do it without ceasing, as Paul invites us.  We also break down the framework of the Lord's Prayer and invite all to begin to put this prayer into their own words.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 10, verses 38-42Jesus enters Bethany and comes to the home of Martha and Mary.  And in the two of them, we see two love languages lived out - one well, and one poorly.  Both languages are equally valid and beautiful ways to say "I love you" to someone, but one loses their intent and the other holds tight.  I don't know about you, but there are days you can call me Martha, and there are days you can call me Mary.  I suspect that is true of all of us...

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 10, verses 25-37I know, the title of this episode sounds like the beginning of a joke.  Instead, I invited two of my daughters, Molly and Bridget, to join me in talking about one of Jesus's greatest stories - the Good Samaritan.  How do we carry those around us and, just as importantly, how do we allow ourselves to be carried?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 10, verses 13-16We continue through this Season of Feasts (TM, Joe), celebrating the Memorial of St. Therese of Lisieux (the Little Flower, Doctor of the Church).  What a wonderful example of humility she is and a great reminder to simply embrace how and who God made us to be.  In our Gospel today, Jesus chastises the cities in His area who are rejecting His message, not because they don't see His works or hear His powerful words, but because they aren't able to recognize God within Him.  Why?  Because they are looking for the wrong things.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 10, verses 1-12In this Season of Feasts (TM Joe), we celebrate another today: the Feast of St. Jerome.  Who was Jerome and what did he do?  He was a brilliant man who made the Scriptures accessible to the masses.  What a great vocation.  In our Gospel today, Jesus invites us to do the same.  We have to get out and prepare the way for His coming.  The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand and God needs our assistance to make it real.  And to do so, we need to go out and be planters and translators.  

Gospel of John, Chapter 1, verses 47-51On this Feast of the Archangels, yes - I blatantly ripped off the title of an old Alabama song from the 1990's.  I just couldn't stop singing it in my head throughout the whole podcast.  Pray for me.But on this feast, we look not only at the three archangels, but more importantly what they tell us about who God is and where God is.  We also focus on the Scripture reading and Jesus's saying to Nathaniel that he will see heaven opened and angels of the Lord ascending and descending on the Son of Man.  What, exactly, does that mean? 

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 9, verses 51-56The title of this pod comes directly from our Gospel reading today.  Jesus resolutely determines to walk straight ahead in His mission, even though he knows not only where it leads but what lies ahead for him.  Are we as resolute in our journey?  Do we walk directly or do we tend to meander and take tangential routes?  We also get a lesson in God's magnanimity regarding who He chooses to call as well as a lesson in retribution.  

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 9, verses 46-50We hear a familiar Gospel today (having just heard the same one in Mark the last two weekends).  Jesus invites us to be like children.  But what is it about children that God is inviting us to be like?  I share my thoughts on that as well as how our family is much, much bigger than we may imagine.  And how that is such good news.We also celebrate the Feast of St. Vincent de Paul today and talk a bit about his life and what challenge that lays at our feet today.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 9, verses 18-22Following directly from King Herod's hearing of who people say Jesus is yesterday, today Jesus hears what the crowds are saying about Him.  Courageous question.  Often we are the last to know what others think of us.  But then He asks His closest friends - who do you say that I am?  That answer is unique to us all - because it reflects our own encounter with Christ.  But it also shows us the path of who we are and how we are invited to carry Christ into the world. 

Gospel of Luke, chapter 9, verses 7-9We change our focus today from Jesus to Herod and ask the question, just who was this man?  Interestingly enough, that was the same question that Herod was asking about Jesus.  But the problem with Herod arises not from his question, but from his lack of follow through and his vulnerability to those around him.  Because of his need for their approval, he continued to fall short on his quest.  Do we have Herod's desire to see Jesus?  Or are there fatal flaws within us that keep distance between us as well?We also celebrate the feast of St. Padre Pio

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 9, verses 1-6In what appears to be a very ordinary Gospel, Jesus sends His disciples out on mission.  Heal the sick.  Cast out demons.  Proclaim the Kingdom of God.  But which comes first?  And how can we do such a thing?  Only with the power and authority that the disciples (and you and !!) have been given.  

Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 9, verses 9-13We celebrate the Feast of St. Matthew today, and so (appropriately enough) we hear the story of the Call of Matthew in our Gospel today.  Was Matthew doing anything extraordinary that attracted the attention of Jesus that day?  No.  He was going about his normal, day-in day-out routine.  And Christ broke into it and changed his life forever.  That's the deal, my friends.  Christ passes by, sees us, knows us and calls us into a life with Him.  We see how Matthew responded.  But what about us?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 8, verses 16-18At each of our baptism's, we were given a candle and invited to keep that light burning brightly.  But in today's Gospel, Jesus sees something else.  He sees people taking that light and hiding it under vessels and beds.  Why would we do such a thing?  What causes us to do so and how do we begin to burn more brightly?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 8, verses 1-3Today's Gospel is a simple one that merely talks of Jesus moving from town to town, preaching the Good News of the Kingdom of God.  Ordinary stuff...the place where most of our lives are lived.  So how do we bring Christ into the ordinary?  And who are those people we carry with us on this journey, seen and unseen?

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 7, verses 36-50Whilst we continue to celebrate more feast days (Cornelius & Cyprian: that makes three in a row for those of you counting!), we are back to Luke's Gospel today.  And within it, we hear a marvelous story of a dinner party, an unwelcomed guest and extravagant love.  More importantly, we see the effects of forgiveness and what that gives birth to.

Gospel of John, Chapter 19, verses 25-27We celebrate (if one can use that word) another feast day today: the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows.  And we see Mary standing by the foot of the Cross, helpless, suffering, unable in any way to assist her beloved child.  Have you ever pondered why on earth we set aside a feast day to honor this reality?  Or have statues and pieta's in our churches depicting it?  Because it's our human condition.  And we all play the role of Mary at some point within our life...

Gospel of John, Chapter 3, verses 13-17We celebrate the Feast of the Triumph (or Exaltation) of the Cross today - and really, this is about as good as it gets.  Do you want to know what love looks like?  Gaze at the cross.  Our God, after being asked by us how much he loved us, held out his arms and said "This much!" - and died.  What more do we need?  Let that sink in from our heads down to our hearts.  

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 7, Verses 1-10On this day that we celebrate the Feast of St. John Chrysostom (the Golden Throated one), we hear a Gospel that challenges those of us who live in divided worlds: those who have people who are worthy and those who are not.  People who are ok to visit and help, and those others to whom we may turn a blind eye.  Jesus is summoned to the home of a Roman Centurion - a man of such faith we echo his words every time we dare come to Communion.

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 6, verses 39-42Jesus speaks to us of blind people leading other blind people - and the danger that awaits them if that action persists.  My friends, we become like that which we take in.  We begin to see and become disciples of whatever teacher we allow into our hearts and minds...and that can be a very dangerous or a very good thing.  It all depends on the one teaching us, right?  Today's pod speaks a bit about conscience formation as well as the virtue of humility as we approach others whose lens may be as dirty as our own.

The Feast of St. Peter Claver:  Gospel of Luke, Chapter 6, verses 27-38Who among us doesn't desire to be an icon of Christ?  But are we willing to put our hand to the plow and not look back?  Are we willing to dive deep within ourselves and live in a different way than those around us?  Are we willing to transform our pains and anger instead of transmitting them?  Today's Gospel is not for the weak of heart.  It reminds us how high the bar is set for those who wish to follow Christ.  

The Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary:  Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 1, verses 18-23Alas, we did not go through the genealogy of Jesus - but if you'd like to do that on your own, just open up to Matthew, chapter 1 and go to town.  Instead, we talk about who Mary is and why she is so important in our own individual lives and within the life of the Church.  She is mentor, companion, example and mother to us.  And today, we celebrate her birthday.  

Gospel of Luke, Chapter 6, verses 12-19Jesus spends the evening in prayer, and immediately following takes action by selecting who his inner circle would be.  It was those 12 that helped shape the early Church and played a key role in passing that faith down to you and I.  But Jesus does more than just select.  He trusts what He hears from God, even when it challenges Him.  And he doesn't stand above those to whom he is teaching.  Instead, he stands beside them.