Daily Thoughts - 01/03/2015

Daily Thoughts: Today we celebrate the feast of The Most Holy Name of Jesus and our scriptures, especially our Gospel, once again focus us on our relationship with Jesus. What might we take always from the celebration of this feast and our scriptures today?

For me the focus today is on the Name of Jesus. I have always found a name to be important. I am very proud to be named after my father and I think one of my sadness's of life is that I never had the chance to continue the tradition and name a son, Paul Raymond. I also struggle with names, especially remembering the names of people that I have met. I am in awe of people who can and do remember names. Names identify people, names honor people, names define people and place people in the context of history and life.

I have always wondered why over the centuries Jesus' name became such a focal point of disrespect. Often when I lead young people in an examination of conscience before the Sacrament of Reconciliation I will talk about how our words often hurt. I ask those present this, "How would we like it if every time something went wrong, every time someone got angry, every time someone expressed anger, they would use our name?" The answer is always a universal, "I would not like it at all!" Yet, isn't that what we do with Jesus, with God? Why is that? What causes us to say "God dammit!" or "Jesus Christ!" with anger and disrespect?

As I said yesterday if we know ourselves we have a better chance of knowing God. If we respect ourselves we have a much better chance of respecting God and others! I am sure all of us value our name. It is important to us to be respected for who we are. It is important for us to be known by our name. It is important for our name not to be disrespected. Likewise it is important for God, for Jesus to be respected too! As we live this day let's make a conscious effort to honor, respect and cherish The Name of Jesus! When we use it let us use it to grace life with hope and love – not fill it with anger!

Every morning and evening I begin prayer in the Passionist tradition by praying, "At the name of Jesus every knee must bend in heaven, on earth and under the earth and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, the Father." It keeps me focused; perhaps it can for you too!

Have a great Saturday everyone!

Daily Prayer: Eternal God, we pray this day that at the name of your loving Son Jesus every knee must bend in heaven, on earth and under the earth and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of you our God, and Father. Help us always to honor your names and in speaking them bring your grace, hope, love and not anger to our world! In the name of Jesus we continue to pray for families in grief; for little ones whose lives were too short; for teachers, administrators and responders who put others first; for a community that must find a way to live; for all of us who seek a world of lasting peace! That one day we will all be called God's children...Amen!

A Runner's Thoughts: If you run in the cold today think of it as not an obstacle but as an energy, a grace enlivening you and sending you forward!

Daily Blessing: Saturday blessings to all! The clouds are beginning to roll in and the rain will be arriving sometime soon. It seems these will be the last few days of moderate temperatures and then the cold will descend on us so regardless of the rain we should enjoy the warmth.

I will be heading into Manhattan again this afternoon for the 5 pm Saturday evening mass at St. Malachy’s. If you are in the area come and join us as we celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany! I will also be celebrating the 10 am mass at St. John and St. Mary’s Parish in Chappaqua tomorrow.

Many blessings on this first Saturday of the New Year and may you find God in all that you encounter today. As my prayer of blessing today I am going to adapt an old Irish Blessing. May God bless all of us today and always – May the deep peace of the running wave be with us.  May the deep peace of the cold and flowing air be with us.  May the deep peace of the quiet earth be with us.  May the deep peace of the bright snow be with us. May the deep peace of the warming sun be with us. May the deep peace of the shining stars be with us.  And may the deep peace of the Son of Peace be with us. Have a great Saturday and weekend everyone! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 01/02/2015

Daily Thoughts: Our readings today focus on Christology, who Christ is for us. The saints we celebrate today St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen have a smile on their faces as they spent a lot of time talking, writing and defining Christology – the humanness of Christ and the divinity of Christ, or perhaps said differently the mystery of Christ. Who exactly is Christ in our life? How have we come to know him?

For me one of the interesting aspects of our readings is not so much the presentation of Christology, who Christ is but it is the reality of coming to know Christ for ourselves. John the Baptist shows us the way; to know Christ we have to know ourselves, know who we are and who we are not. John knows himself and in knowing who he is, he is able to know Christ. John the Evangelist in the first reading tells his community to remember who they are and in doing so they will remember and know Christ. It is an age old process, it is the foundation of our journey of faith – to know ourselves is to know God!

Perhaps in these early days of the New Year it might be good to pause and do a little self-reflection, not in a narcissistic way, but in an honest way. Who are we? What do we value? What do we believe? What are our struggles? What are our faults and failings? What are our joys and hopes? As we once again come to recognize and know ourselves, we will once again come to recognize and know our God!

Have a great Friday everyone and may you find hope, joy, peace and love in the Passion of Christ today and always!

Daily Prayer: O God, grant us the humility of knowing ourselves as we truly are and thus coming to know you better. Help us to see your presence in our daily lives so that your gift of hope remains alive within us and may we past your hope on to those whom we meet today. We continue though out this Christmas Season to pray for families in grief and for all of us who seek a world of lasting peace! And that we may truly see the saving power of you our God today and always...Amen!

A Runner's Thoughts: “For me, as for so many runners, there really are no finish lines. Runs end; running doesn't.” (Dean Karnazes). So today, run with the purpose of becoming a friend of God and you will never run alone!

Daily Blessing: Friday blessings to all! I hope this finds you well and enjoying this first Friday of the New Year. It seem like a crazy week with the holiday yesterday and today being Friday the doorway into another weekend. In a way the last two weeks have seemed like one long weekend!  

My thoughts and prayers go out to the Mario Cuomo family. Former Governor Mario Cuomo died yesterday my prayer is that he has found peace with God and that his family will find peace. Governor Cuomo was a great speaker and a truthful and honest man. His presence will be missed!

Today, I pray for God’s blessing upon all of us that God’s blessing will help us navigate through the struggles, disappointments and sadness of life. That it will help us find the joy, the grace, the wonderfulness and the gift of God’s presence this day wherever we travel to, in whomever we meet, in whatever we need to do and most importantly within ourselves so that we will never give up! Loving God, bless us this day with the wisdom, the understanding, the knowledge, the courage, the good judgment, the reverence and the wonder and awe to trust in and have faith that you are alive within us, that you love us and that you will never leave us alone in the midst of the perils of life. Amen – Blessings to all, be safe, be warm! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul

New Year's Day Thoughts - 01/01/2015

Daily Thoughts: All throughout Advent and now into the Christmas season we have been reminded of the story of Mary, a simple woman, blessed, graced by God who when confronted with an opportunity to make a difference in the world did, not just once but over and over again. At every turn of life Mary took the opportunity not just to live through but to make a difference, not to waste time but to bring about the loving presence of God. She did it as the Mother of God, she did it as wife to Joseph, she it as mother to the beloved disciple and she does it as Mother of the Church for us today.

Perhaps today is a good day to think about the gift that all mothers give and through the intersession of Mary ask God to bless, protect all mothers… Here are a few thoughts from others about mothers...

 “When you look into your mother’s eyes, you know that is the purest love you can find on this earth.” (Mitch Albom)

“Parents rarely let go of their children, so children let go of them. They move on. They move away. The moments that used to define them - a mother's approval, a father's nod - are covered by moments of their own accomplishments. It is not until much later, as the skin sags and the heart weakens, that children understand; their stories, and all their accomplishments, sit atop the stories of their mothers and fathers, stones upon stones, beneath the waters of their lives.” (Mitch Albom)

“The truth is, when our mothers held us, rocked us, stroked our heads -none of us ever got enough of that. We all yearn in some way to return to those days when we were completely taken care of - unconditional love, unconditional attention. Most of us didn't get enough.” (Mitch Albom)

“There's a story behind everything…but behind all your stories is always your mother's story…because hers is where yours begins.” (Mitch Albom)

“I don't know what it is about food your mother makes for you, especially when it's something that anyone can make - pancakes, meat loaf, tuna salad - but it carries a certain taste of memory.” (Mitch Albom)

“Being a mother is an attitude, not a biological relation.” (Robert A. Heinlein)

“When I find myself in times of trouble, mother Mary comes to me,

speaking words of wisdom, let it be.

And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me,

speaking words of wisdom, let it be.

Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be.

Whisper words of wisdom, let it be. (Paul McCartney)

"My soul magnifies the Lord,

And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Mary, mother of Jesus)

“In a child's eyes, a mother is a goddess. She can be glorious or terrible, benevolent or filled with wrath, but she commands love either way. I am convinced that this is the greatest power in the universe.”  ( N.K. Jemisin)

“Mothers and their children are in a category all their own. There's no bond so strong in the entire world. No love so instantaneous and forgiving.”  (Gail Tsukiyama)

Happy Feast Day to all mothers, especially to expectant mothers! May we also remember all mothers who have passed from us. Happy New Year everyone and have a blessed and joyous 2015. Have a great first day of 2015!

Daily Prayer: O God of wonder and mystery, author of all life, enliven us with your grace to see each moment in life as an opportunity, an opportunity to have faith, to hope, to love and make a difference. Bless us with the spirit of Mary, whom we celebrate this day as the Mother of Christ that we might always respond to life with hope alive in our hearts!  As we have been we continue though out this Christmas Season to pray for families in grief; for little ones whose lives were too short; for teachers, administrators and responders who put others first; for firefighters who risk their lives; for a community that must find a way to live; for all of us who seek a world of lasting peace! May you always bless us in your mercy...Amen!

A Runner's Thoughts: Happy New Year runners, may the wind always be at your back and may you run each day with purpose, meaning and the presence of God!

Daily Blessing: New Year's blessings to all! I hope your celebration last night was fun and safe. I saw the ball drop in Times Square, the shoe drop in Key West, the guitar drop in Memphis and the fleur-de-lis drop in New Orleans. Sorry Mountain Time and Pacific Time I did not wait for whatever you drop! I did all of this from the comfort of our TV room here in Pelham and I did it alone as everyone else was away.

My blessing prayer today comes from the first reading at today’s mass the Book of Numbers - As we enter this New Year may God bless us and keep us. May God’s face shine upon us and may God be gracious to us and bless us. May God look upon us kindly and give us peace!

May all our hopes, dreams and plans for the New Year find blessing and life in God's grace. May 2015 be a year of faith, of joy, of hope, of peace and of much love for all! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 12/31/2014

Daily Thoughts: This last day of the year we are treated to the mysticism of St. John. The profoundly familiar opening of his Gospel, "In the beginning was the Word..." It is not an opening story like in Matthew, Mark and Luke, it is a mystical reflection on God, creation and Jesus' entrance into the world. It is a reminder of where we have come from and the profound love of God we journey towards.

In the first reading John in his letter speak to a community, a church, under persecution, struggling with the reality of life in a world made up of many different realities.  Things appear to be coming to an end, but John reminds the community about what they know, what they have been taught, and about the relationship with God that they have entered into, so that no matter what happens they will remain faithful.

These readings speak to our realities this last day of the year. Things are coming to an end, perhaps not in the way John envisioned them but a calendar year is coming to an end. Over the past year we have seen many struggles, many signs that point to loss, tragedy, the absence of God and a hopelessness. However, John reminds us, as he did his own community, about what we know because we are friends of God. John reminds us of a new beginning, of by whom we have been created and the hope that needs to remain alive in our hearts.

We can encounter "fiscal cliffs," tragic losses, challenges to our faith, natural disasters but we know the love of God, we know that the Light shines in the darkness of life, we know that that world often does not know God, but we do and we will live in the Light and bring it to the world today and always.

Some things to ponder as we prepare to welcome a New Year…

“For last year's words belong to last year's language. And next year's words await another voice.” (T.S. Eliot)

“Keeping a journal has taught me that there is not so much new in your life as you sometimes think. When you re-read your journal you find out that your latest discovery is something you already found out five years ago. Still, it is true that one penetrates deeper and deeper into the same ideas and the same experiences.”  (Thomas Merton)

“The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul and a new nose; new feet, a new backbone, new ears, and new eyes. Unless a particular man made New Year resolutions, he would make no resolutions. Unless a man starts afresh about things, he will certainly do nothing effective.” (G.K. Chesterton)

“Faith is why I'm here today and faith is why I made it through.” (Jonathan Anthony Burkett)

“If you want to identify me, ask me not where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I am living for, in detail, ask me what I think is keeping me from living fully for the thing I want to live for.” (Thomas Merton)

“Being a Christian is less about cautiously avoiding sin than about courageously and actively doing God's will.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

“Do not forget that the value and interest of life is not so much to do conspicuous things...as to do ordinary things with the perception of their enormous value.”  (Fr. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, SJ)

“As long as we continue to live as if we are what we do, what we have, and what other people think about us, we will remain filled with judgments, opinions, evaluations, and condemnations. We will remain addicted to putting people and things in their "right" place.”  (Fr. Henri J.M. Nouwen)

“Faith is not for overcoming obstacles; it is for experiencing them—all the way through!”  (Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM)

Whoever you are, you are human. Wherever you are, you live in the world, which is just waiting for you to notice the holiness in it.” (Barbara Brown Taylor)

According to the Talmud, every blade of grass has its own angel bending over it, whispering, “Grow, grow.”  (Barbara Brown Taylor)

If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough.”  (Meister Eckhart)

Have a great December 31st everyone and a Happy 2015!

Daily Prayer: I thought Thomas Merton’s prayer would be a good end of the year prayer for all of us today –

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. (Thomas Merton - Thoughts in Solitude)

Runner’s Thoughts: Run with the wind today into a New Year blessed by God!

Daily Blessing: Greetings family and friends, on this last day of 2014. I begin this day thankful for the year that has passed but happy and excited to bring in a New Year. I pray all of you are where you need and want to be and that you will get a chance to celebrate with family and/or friends tonight. If you need to travel please travel safe. If you are going to be out and about at, around or after midnight, please be safe!

I offer a simple blessing on this last day of 2014 -  O Loving God, hear our prayers today as we pray in thanksgiving for the year that has just past and with hope for the year we are about to begin. Bless us with the grace if wisdom that we have gathered over this last year and help us during the coming year to soften the hearts of all so that we may always know your friendship. Grant peace and prosperity to your people bless each of today and always with your love. Amen! May all of us encounter peace, hope and many new dreams in 2015. See you next year! Peace in Christ’s Passion...Fr. Paul