Preferring Nothing to Christ

Matthew 11:25-30

Today we celebrate the feast of St Catherine of Siena. You’ll see her depicted wearing the habit of a nun, but she was in fact a Third Order Dominican. She’s of particular note for her fearless resolve and ability to speak truth to power, and especially to Popes. The Church has recognized her as a Doctor of the Church. She stands alongside Therese of Lisieux, Teresa of Avila and Hildegard of Bingen. All four women are recognized for their holiness, depth of insight and contribution to Catholic teaching and thought.

There’s one thing which unites these women and that’s the intimacy of their relationship with God. Our Gospel text today speaks too of intimacy. The Father chooses to make himself known not to the learned and the clever but to ‘mere children.’ What is required here is an open heart and an ability to be in the moment. This is what we mean by being contemplative. We are each born with this capacity. It’s not the preserve of Religious or even of mystics.

From an open heart flows the desire to collaborate with and work for the things of God. All four Doctors of the Church did this in a unique way. Each of the women suffered in some way as they drew closer to God. They held fast and were able to respond to the invitation:

‘Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls.’

Recognising someone as a Doctor of the Church is the Church’s most formal way of acknowledging the power of God at work in a person’s life. This is for the few. There are, however, so many women who have given us light for our paths by their depth of insight and quiet holiness.

Thank God for those women who have walked with you along the way and shown you the face of Christ.

John 3:31-36

Today we move from the story of Nicodemus meeting Jesus by night to the scene of John the Baptist in the Judean countryside. Nicodemus is set before us as a figure who seeks clarity in his confusion. John the Baptist is a figure of absolute certainty. I can sometimes be unnerved by John the Baptist’s certainty. Nicodemus has had formal training in the understanding of Torah. John the Baptist’s background is much less certain. Both men have had their consciences stirred by Jesus. The Gospel text today echoes the themes of Nicodemus’ conversation with Jesus.

‘He who comes from above is above all others: he who is born of earth is earthly himself and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven bears witness to the things he has seen and heard, even if his testimony is not accepted; though all who do accept his testimony are attesting the truthfulness of God, since he whom God has sent speaks God’s own words: God gives him the Spirit without reserve.’

When you hear this read there is a sharp contrast between what is ‘earthly’ and what is ‘heavenly’. We are used to this contrast and perhaps accept it quite readily in the context of the Liturgy. In our day to day lives the distinction is much less clear. The point that is being made is that Jesus is ‘from above’ and if we want to identify closely with the Messiah, we too must be ‘born from above’. While the choice to be ‘born from above’ was made for us at Baptism, it is our daily choices that open up for us eternal life in the here and now:

‘Anyone who believes in the Son has eternal life, but anyone who refuses to believe in the Son will never see life: and the anger of God stays on him.’

These are strong words.

How can you choose eternal life today?

John 3:16-21

‘The Son of Man must be lifted up
as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.
Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost
but may have eternal life.’

We’ve met this text already in the Fourth Week of Lent. The second half of the quotation is probably one of the most well known in Scripture and its meaning is clear. The first half of the quote however is rather obscure. It refers to a story recorded in Numbers where the people were being bitten by snakes, Moses fashions a bronze serpent, holds it up and whoever looks upon it lives. Whatever we might think of the likelihood of this happening, the point the evangelist is making is about healing and our need of it. Jesus is presented as the one who brings healing through suffering and glory. The Jesus of this gospel is in control, goes resolutely to his death and then is ‘lifted up’ on the cross. His weakest physical moment is the moment of his triumph.

From our vantage point of Eastertide we might hear this text a little differently. The tone of our liturgy, the décor in our churches and signs of spring in our gardens can all shed a ray of light and hope on these words. During Lent we’ve been shown the cost of discipleship and now in Eastertide we are invited to live this with Joy. We will never be able to side step suffering, but in the light of Easter we know it can be transformed.

Where have you seen this transformation in your own life?

John 3:7-13

From Monday to Wednesday of this week the Gospel texts come from the encounter between Nicodemus and Jesus in Chapter 3 of John’s Gospel. When we enter the world of John’s Gospel we enter a special world. There are broad themes of life, light, love and glory, there are words and images that signify particular ideas and rhetorical devices which can guide the reader.

In Monday’s section John 3:1-8 we learn that Nicodemus ‘came to Jesus by night’. Darkness and night symbolize untruth and lack of knowledge. Nicodemus is confused and he is seeking. Jesus is speaking of the Kingdom of God and of how entry into it requires becoming a child of God. Nicodemus is firmly fixed in the earthly realm and can’t understand what Jesus says.

Today we hear:

‘You must be born from above.
The wind blows wherever it pleases;
you hear its sound,
but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going.
That is how it is with all who are born of the Spirit.’

Jesus honours Nicodemus’ questions but with each reply he adds another level of theological depth. Nicodemus is being challenged to recognize Jesus as the new teacher. There is in built confusion as the word ‘above’ can also mean ‘anew’ and ‘again’.

From our vantage point of Eastertide when we hear this passage the themes of new birth and the Spirit are perhaps uppermost in our thoughts. There’s no confusion for us. We might also hear the passage with some baptismal resonance. While we might not share Nicodemus’ confusion, we can share in his desire to seek Jesus out and to ask the questions closest to his heart.

Imagine yourself going to Jesus by night. What would you most like to ask him?

Mark 16:15-20

When we celebrate the feast of St Mark the Evangelist we celebrate the gifts of a storyteller. What we read on the printed page had its origins in an oral culture. The early Church preserved in writing the memories and stories which shaped their identity. If you were a well-to-do host in Graeco-Roman society you might pay a ‘gospeller’ to come and perform a Gospel for your guests.

Hearing a Gospel performed in one sitting has a big appeal for me. Mark’s brisk style would lend itself to this very well. Some of Mark’s favourite phrases are ‘immediately’ and ‘at once’. Jesus is a man of action. Through the actions and words of Jesus Mark announces that a new era has dawned. This is the era of Good News.

As a Christian community we still tell and retell our story. It is in the telling and retelling that we begin to learn who we are.

Bring to mind the significant stories in your life. Thank God for those who have been storytellers in your life.

Second Sunday of Easter

John 20:19-31

There’s nothing worse than being with a group of people who are talking about an experience that you haven’t had. There’s only so far that you can go in trying to understand what they are saying and feeling. It’s easy for me to understand how Thomas might be feeling when the disciples say that Jesus has risen and that they have seen him. I feel I have a lot in common with Thomas. I am more at home with things that are enfleshed and concrete than theories and abstractions. It has always struck me that Jesus says to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here; look, here are my hands. Give me your hand; put it into my side. Doubt no longer but believe.’ this is as much a challenge as it is a comfort. Thomas now has the choice to live in the light of the resurrected Christ or to walk away and find a different path.

I love these lines from Godhead Here in Hiding and they always come to mind when I hear today’s Gospel.

I am not like Thomas, wounds I cannot see,
But I plainly call thee Lord and God as he:
This faith each day deeper be my holding of,
Daily make me harder hope and dearer love.

Whether we need concrete assurance or are happy to take things on trust, the invitation is the same: live in the light of the resurrection.

Let’s pray that as Eastertide folds we can find ways to ‘harder hope and dearer love.’

Easter Saturday

Mark 16:9-15

Writing these few words didn’t come easily to me today. After the intimacy of Mary’s encounter at the tomb with Jesus and then the breakfast on the seashore, today’s Gospel text feel abrupt. It reads as a recap of themes we’ve heard during the week: refusal of the disciples to believe, the journey of the two disciples and Jesus making himself known ‘at table.’ The first hearers of this Gospel will have been challenged by the theme of disbelief in these verses. Faith in the resurrection wasn’t as solid as we might imagine. Those first hearers had their commitment tested.

‘And he said to them, ‘Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation.’

This last verse of today’s text echoes the beginning of Mark’s Gospel; ‘Repent and believe the Good News.’ Things have come full circle. To believe in the Good News means to believe in the resurrection. Implicit in this believe is a call evangelise in word and deed. We are to be Christ’s resurrected life for the world.

How can you live the resurrection today?

Easter Friday

John 21:1-14

Just after my A levels I was able to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Our visit to the Sea of Tiberias stands out for me as a time of grace. In what was a fairly packed itinerary, there was suddenly time to sit and watch the water. It was a relief after the noise and heat of Jerusalem.

When the disciples decide to go fishing they are going back to the thing that they know best. They’ll either catch something or they won’t. I imagine that there was a certain relief in knowing this. But this turns out to be no ordinary fishing trip. First of all, the disciples take fishing advice from a stranger and then he cooks for them.

With his invitation of breakfast Jesus has made another space for intimacy with his closest followers. I like to imagine that they linger over this breakfast and perhaps watch as the morning light catches the water. There is such healing in doing something normal with friends.

Picture yourself in this scene. What do you notice? How do you feel?

Luke 24:35-48

This Gospel passage gives the impression that Jesus just appears among his disciples. They are startled and Jesus reassures them with his greeting of ‘Peace be with you.’ Understandably they think he is a ghost and he reassures them again: ‘Touch me and see for yourselves.’

If I imagine myself among the disciples I think I probably would have held back a little and waited to see if one of the other disciples did actually move forward and touch him. This is an intimate moment. Jesus doesn’t say, ‘Don’t get too close. This is my glorified body. Be careful.’ No, he wants his disciples to be close enough to touch him.

I’ve often been asked about death and resurrection and what happens when we die. My answer is always the same: Jesus is our model. He appears in flesh and blood. His body still bears the scars of his death. He can eat. He can cook.

Imagine Jesus saying to you; ‘Touch me and see for yourself.’

How do you respond?

Easter Wednesday

Luke 24:13-35

Luke paints the picture of the disciples at the end of an emotional journey where crucifixion has dashed their hopes. As they walk they talk to each other. There is a sense in which the journey is a time of healing as the disciples verbalise the experiences of the past days. A stranger joins them. Rather than intimidating, the presence of the stranger deepens the process as, for his benefit, they re-tell the story. With each step of the journey they are in fact moving closer towards Christ. We might imagine that their pace quickens as they talk about the things that they hold most dear.

‘Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?’

This is one of my favourite lines from the story. The disciples have felt at the core of their being the power of God’s word. I would love to swap places with them and hear Jesus explain the Scriptures.

Are there verses of Scripture which make your heart burn within you?