Daily Thoughts: “They will not leave a stone upon another
within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.” (Luke
19:44) Jesus looking over the city of Jerusalem looking ahead to its time of
destruction at the hands of the Romans. A city that did not recognize the
presence of God at the most crucial time of its history. Yet, it is not the
city, the stone, wood and mortar that fails to recognize the presence of God it
is its’ people!
Jesus has walked Jerusalem’s streets. He has prayed at its’
temple. Jesus has healed, forgiven and celebrated the gift of God’s love within
Jerusalem’s walls, yet the people of Jerusalem failed to recognize his visit,
his presence. It is a sad moment for Jesus, it is a sad moment for us.
The last three days we have encountered stories of great
faith from the Books of Maccabees. People responding to the presence of God in
their lives against logic, conventional wisdom and self-preservation. They have
made their choices based on a faith and trust in the presence of God in their
lives. They have thought of others more than themselves.
I wonder if we could look upon Jesus today as he sits not
just looking at Jerusalem but at all the cities of the world might he be
thinking and feeling the same thing. Might he be crying as he looks upon us and
saying one day one stone will not lay upon another in our world because we are
missing our time of visitation.
We honor as heroic many who go charging into battle but
rarely if ever do we honor as heroic those who go charging into peace. I truly
believe God is in our midst however we seem to spent a great deal of time
thinking only of ourselves and because of our self-centeredness, our
selfishness we just might be missing our time of visitation.
Let us look around today not out of fear and self-centeredness
but let us look around for the saving power of God in our midst.
Have a great Thursday everyone!
Daily Prayer:
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will,
All I have and call my own.
You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.
Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
that is enough for me.
(Suscipe - St.
Ignatius of Loyola)
A Runner’s Thoughts: “When I run, I'm just a person among
people. A runner among runners. And we all experience the same challenge of get
up and go - regardless of ability.” (Sally
Bergesen) So to in the spiritual life… We are people among people. People
of faith among people of faith. And we all experience the same challenge to be
faith filled each day!
Daily Blessing: Thursday greetings and blessings to all. I hour
Thursday has started off well. It is a rainy gray day here in Germantown, New
York yet the Great River still looks majestic as always. I hope that if you are
running through the raindrops that it is a gentle rain not a soaking one.
We are beginning our last full day of retreat and there will
be a few more sisters involved today as the Avila community is using this
retreat day as a day of recollection so all the sisters in the house not making
the retreat will be attending mass and my talk this afternoon. Please continue
to keep the sisters in your prayers and if you can afford an extra prayer for
the preacher it would be greatly appreciated!
For my blessing prayer today I draw upon my Irish roots… May
the blessing of God's soft rain be on you, falling gently on your head,
refreshing your soul with the sweetness of little flowers newly blooming. May
the strength of the winds of Heaven bless you, carrying the rain to wash your
spirit clean sparkling after in the sunlight. May the blessing of God's earth
be on you, and as you walk the roads, may you always have a kind word for those
you meet. Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul
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