Love guides us all!

 We have become very familiar with the passage from St Paul to the Corinthians in which he talks about the power of love. At the heart of his reflection is the knowledge to be fully known. He goes through the attributes of love being always patient and kind, never jealous, never boastful or conceited, never rude or selfish, which does not take offense or become resentful, doesn't take pleasure in other people's sins but delights in the truth. There is a reliance on building relationships of trust, hope, and endurance. The essence is to seek the good of the other not just our own good.

We can often become imperfect in this call to love for many reasons but sometimes it is the profound reflection that I am not God! There can be a belief that the world is centered on me and what I need rather than who I am called to become and what I have to give. We can seek to consume not only goods but also experiences that will make us feel good. Yet at the heart of the matter, we have been loved into being by an ever-creative God. It is this discovery that can shift our focus on what is good for ourselves and others.

Our prayer, for now, could reflect the words of Pedro Arrupe's prayer:

Nothing is more practical than

finding God, than

falling in Love

in a quite absolute, final way.

What you are in love with,

what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.

It will decide

what will get you out of bed in the morning,

what you do with your evenings,

how you spend your weekends,

what you read, whom you know,

what breaks your heart,

and what amazes you with joy and gratitude.

Fall in Love, stay in love,

and it will decide everything.

(https://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-prayer/prayers-by-st-ignatius-and-others/fall-in-love/)

Listen, Learn, Lead

 At the heart of our lives, the hope is that God will help us to discover our calling in life. That we are not people who have been randomly selected to be born in our current times. There is a desire inbuilt within each of us to discover what is sacred in life which is the foundation of who we are. To discover a joy that overflows from within us that allows us to grow in wisdom. To be people who discern where our hearts direct our attention and how we are enlightened to live that Good News in our current time.

Especially as we hear of many parts of our community under pressure as a result of the effects of the virus on people's lives we are called to be people who don't just react to our circumstances but seek to discover how to reflect on what can happen differently. Rather than seeking to notice the tensions which can drive us apart into further isolation, there is a need to develop a healthy interdependence that recognizes the dignity of every human life. We are called to be people who are at the service of each other which emphasizes our need to cooperate for the common good. 

The Gospel this weekend proclaims how we are called to restore right relationships with each other which are proclaimed in the practice of the jubilee year. This is not just to center solely on who we are but on God's desire for the whole of creation: to be Good News for the poor, to see clearly, to unbind people who are bound by the concerns of the world, and to free those who are captive to their fears. If the pandemic has taught us anything it is that our lives are interconnected and that we have sought a deeper sense of communion which is not founded on external things but on an inner resilience of purpose. This reshaping of priorities is not based on what we consume but who we are called to become. 

Who is essential?

 Over many months of the pandemic, there has been much emphasis placed on who is an essential worker and the contribution they make to the life of our community. This has once again emerged as we start to experience fresh demands on our health care workers, the difficulty in ensuring that goods are distributed and that people are able to maintain the daily necessities in order to live. It is important that we acknowledge the important work that these people provide for the good of the community. Yet at the heart of life, all people should be considered essential not because of what they do but because of who they are. I believe it is important to recognize the contribution of each person in building a community. 

The importance of these considerations is that people are gifted by God for the good of the whole community. This has been brought into sharp focus during the last week when people start to notice how a person's value is determined by the perceived contribution they make to society rather than their fundamental worth. Thus we see debates focussing on whether a tennis player should enter the country rather than the more serious questions of the length of detention of those refugees who briefly shared the limelight. The question of how rapid antigen tests are distributed and whether they should be freely available to all people. Also, the response is necessary to ensure that society functions well for the good of all especially the most marginalized. 

It is possible that we can become focused on what we lack to live full and productive lives. Much as in the story of the wedding at Cana we can believe that we are running out of time and resources to sustain life. We start to celebrate small victories rather than the person who can transform water into wine! Sometimes it is even possible to believe that our best years are behind us. Yet in the midst of our daily need and the ordinary events of life that we are called to celebrate we become people who are prayerfully aware of a deeper need. It is important that we can recognize that in being attentive to the needs of daily life that we become aware of how God is creatively present. This is not by being distant from our need but by allowing us to be instruments of God's grace by entering into the mystery of those transforming moments. By allowing God to meet us in the ordinary events of life with thanksgiving. 

This is especially important when we can become aware of the tensions which strain our friendship with God and with each other. When we notice what is not working well rather than discovering how we all have a part to play for the good of the whole. Rather than focussing on scarcity, we are called to notice God's abundant grace which meets us in real-time. This may be the moment in our own history when God calls us to see our prayer drawing us closer together in the time of our greatest need. In this, we discover who is essential and how we are called to live for the good of all not just for ourselves.

Is baptism just a passport for heaven?

 It is good to dust off our passports from time if only to remember the times when we could travel. Often when we request a passport it allows us to recognize our identity of being a citizen of a particular country. In the front of the Australian passport, it has the following words, "The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, being the representative in Australia of Her Majesty Queen of Elizabeth the Second, requests all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer, an Australian Citizen, to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford him or her every assistance and protection of which he or she may stand in need." This allows us to notice the person who governs our life, our need to travel freely and to be provided with the assistance that we need. 

Yet sometimes we can rely more on the rights that the passport provides rather than responsibilities it engages us with. The passport while an important document does not fully express who we are called to be when we travel. Similarly, baptism is not something that happens to us in the distant past but rather an entry into a living relationship with the person of Jesus Christ in the midst of His community the Church. This is not just an insurance policy that guarantees our entrance into heaven but rather an invitation to live in communion with God. It is a visible reminder of an inner life that can transform us and our world.

So how do we live out our baptism in daily life? I believe each person is called into a living relationship with Jesus Christ for their own good and the good of the whole community. This means that we are not only gifted with Holy Spirit to deepen that relationship but each of us is gifted to build up a community of faith that witnesses that relationship in our world. We are not just called to be Christian in name only but rather people who proclaim His life through our own. As a Church community, what do we need from each other to make us effective witnesses? Where do I find myself coming most alive with the joy of being prayerfully aware of His life in my own? How will I find unity between who I am called to be and how I live my life?

I believe this is the challenge of our time. Sacraments are not things that just get done but rather a doorway into a deeper and more personal expression of how we are called to be present to God with our lives. As we enter into this New Year may we discover where God is prompting us to abide prayerfully with others and with ourselves? Allowing the Good News to form us in being present to a world in great need of discovering the truth of what it means to be a citizen of heaven.

Called and Gifted

 As we enter into a New Year it is often to consider how we might what we would like to change in our lives. After the last year, our life seems to have been shaped by events beyond our control. This has not only been the effects of the pandemic but also the responses that have been adopted to help us live with the virus. This has not only been examining the effects of lockdowns but also how we seek to prevent the spread of the infection to others in our families, the places we work and in the community, we mix with. There has been a healthy caution which has been adopted not only by being vaccinated but also in seeking ways in which we can be tested to prevent the spread of the virus. Yet in many cases, we have had to respond to the rapid spread of the virus and its ability to disrupt our normal activities. As we look to the new year what do we need to see differently?

I believe this is at the heart of the Ephiphany where we recognize wise men seeking to use their human talent in seeking God. They set out from what was familiar and their understanding of where you find power and control. They understood kingship in a way that affected the political and social circumstances in which they lived. They sought someone who could guide them to make the best use of the gifts they had been entrusted. I believe this may be at the heart of how we make resolutions not just for ourselves but for the glory of God in the community we live. How do we seek to love God with all our heart, mind, and soul and love our neighbour as ourselves? It helps us to see our lives in the broader context where our gifts allow us to come before God with open hands and open hearts.

This allows us to approach the year by seeing that each of us can make a difference for the common good. We no longer see our lives solely in the terms of what we can achieve but rather in how we are called to be present. It allows us to be shaped by the desire which grows within us of being wholesome and of service. This practical wholeness allows us to discover a spirituality that is present to our current circumstances with faith, hope, and love. As you seek to consider how this year might be different seek to discover each day what brings you life for the good of God, the good of yourself, and the good of the whole community. Notice the things that trip you up and then make a resolution each day to discover who you are called to become.