Daily Thoughts: After hearing
the readings for today mass I might ask the question, "What do you most
fear?" In answering this question one might come up with many examples of
things that might cause us to fear. You might fear the future because of the state
of the world at this time and all the violence that seems to take place.
Perhaps you fear the future of our Church because of all the things that have
happened over the last 15 or 20 years. Maybe if you are a priest and a
religious like me you are afraid of the future of religious life and
priesthood. There are many things to fear. However, the question is what do we
fear most at this moment in our life? As I said this question is based on the
readings today, they both deal with fear. In the first reading, (1 John
4:11-18), John talks about perfect love casting out fear and in the Gospel,
(Mark 6:45-52), Jesus tells the disciples to have courage and not fear. Yet
fear always seems to be a part of life.
I know for myself, fear has always
raised its ugly head. I remember my mother talking about the time in her life just
before I was born, when she was carrying me. She said that was a time when she struggled
with fear. Mom, my father and my sister had just move back to the Pittsburgh
area into a new home. It was in a new subdivision about 15 miles outside of
Pittsburgh, only a few homes were built and there were very few people in the
neighborhood. She had no phone for a while, no car and spent a good portion of
the day lone with my sister who was about 5 years old. Mother always said it
was a fearful time in her life. I have often wondered if, I the baby in her
womb was affected by that time of fear in her life, because once I came into
the world it seemed I was afraid of everything including my own shadow!
However, the question I asked at the
beginning of this reflection gives me cause to pause and think, "What am I
most afraid of?" There are many things I am afraid of but I have come,
over the last few years, to realize that I am most afraid of love, not being
loved, not finding love. I think it is because I realize that with love fear
would not be a problem, yet fear is a problem for me. I think it is because I
struggle with love.
Both Jesus and John tell us that today,
if we love, if we allow ourselves to be loved, especially by God then fear will
never hurt us, because love casts out fear. With love there is no room for fear
without love fear takes up all the room!
No matter what life throws at us, no
matter what changes take place in religious life, the church, culture, society,
no matter what we lose or struggle with in life, if we let love in, if we value
the presence of love, if we let ourselves love and be loved fear has no chance,
no room!
Have a great Wednesday everyone!
Daily Prayer: O God, giver of
all good gifts, pour into our hearts the brilliant light of your perfect love
so that we may see, feel, embrace and welcome the gift of love into our lives
as it comes to us from you and others. Loving God, give us strength and helps
us to have hearts that are open so that we will always be ready and willing to
love and be loved. Grant us a lasting peace made possible by your love which
casts out all fear. Amen!
Runner's Thoughts: Run without fear
today, breathe, run and permit the spirit of God's loving presence to be in
each stride you take!
Daily Blessing: Happy Hump Day
everyone! We might say it is also Hump Day for the weather. While it is
certainly still cold things seem to be slowly warming up around the nation. May the warmth continue to come and may things
get back to a more normal routine for everyone.
I need to make my blessing short today
as I am off in a few moments to the funeral of a long time retreatant from our
Riverdale retreat center. So very simply I pray for God’s blessings today on
all of us. May we all have a day blessed and graced without fear because it is
touch by much love! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul
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