You load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers

 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him.  So He went in and sat down to eat.  When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.  Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.  Foolish ones!  Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?  But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.

"But woe to you Pharisees!  For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Woe to you Pharisees!  For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them."

Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also."  And He said, "Woe to you also, lawyers!  For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.  Woe to you!  For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.   In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs. Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation.  Woe to you lawyers!  For you have taken away the key of knowledge.  You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered."  

- Luke 11:37-52

In yesterday's reading, a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But Jesus said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"   Jesus taught the crowds, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."

  And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him.  So He went in and sat down to eat.  When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.  Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.  Foolish ones!  Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?  But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you."  My study bible teaches us, "Washing the hands before eating was an important religious ritual for the Pharisees.  They are concerned about outward cleanliness; Jesus says internal purity is more important."  It also notes, "Deeds of love toward people, such as giving alms, purify the inward man.  External things like food and clothing cannot defile one who is inwardly pure."  It's important to understand that the root of the word for alms in the Greek is one that means "mercy."  The idea of almsgiving should really portray the practice of compassion.  And in the Greek, this verse more literally translates that one should give of things which are "within."  We're reminded of the words of the psalmist:  "You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering.  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,  a broken and a contrite heart—these, O God, You will not despise"  (Ps. 51:16-17).   So the focus is on that inside of the cup, what is inside of us -- and how we can practice mercy and compassion through our own internal giving; that is, from the heart.  Thereby the practice of purity - a clean heart - makes all things clean. 

"But woe to you Pharisees!  For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Woe to you Pharisees!  For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them."    My study bible introduces the following verses with this note:  "After their testy attacks against Him, Jesus pronounces a series of denunciations against the Pharisees and scribes."  Here in these particular verses, we find the condemnation of religious practice for show, including tithing - which is in principle is a form of giving to the community.  But what is left undone?  What of the compassion in the heart?  A true practice of kindness?  Yes, tithing is good, but what is left undone? Jesus asks.  The rest of the accusations point out the hypocrisy:  to love the best seats in the synagogue and special greetings in the marketplaces, all forms of honor given for their places in the religious establishment.  But the next phrase takes us to something else He's taught a disciple:  "Let the dead bury their own dead."  What is it to be spiritually dead?  Here, Jesus links it with the failure to understand what inner purity of the heart is, and its rootedness in mercy and justice.

 Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also."  And He said, "Woe to you also, lawyers!  For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.  Woe to you!  For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.   In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs. Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation.  Woe to you lawyers!  For you have taken away the key of knowledge.  You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered."    A lawyer here is an expert in the Mosaic Law.  So how do these practice the hypocrisy Jesus condemns?  They load men with burdens hard to bear -- but the last thing they will do is practice compassion for them, "even with one of their fingers."  Furthermore, they build the tombs of the prophets, those who warn of practices that avoid the true repentance of the heart, mercy and justice.  It is easy to follow an outward law, while the inside of the cup goes unnoticed and ignored.  The Holy Spirit, Christ Himself, works through prophets and apostles to teach people to turn back, come back to the justice and mercy and love of God.  But a heart focused on the outward appearance, of place in others' eyes only, cannot - it implies - also heed the work of the Spirit and of Christ Himself in their midst.  So these lawyers by their practice and hence teaching take away the key of knowledge - the preparation of the heart for the work of the Spirit; they fail to enter themselves, and hinder others from entering by their example and teaching.

Let's get to the bottom line here:  what is it to clean the inside of the cup?  What is it to practice an internal purity of the heart, to make room for the work of Christ and the Spirit, the work of mercy and justice?  We have many beautiful practices in all of the churches, things designed to help us to know and to worship God, and to love one another.  But when we fail to uphold and honor that work in ourselves, when anything becomes just for show, or appearance, we run the danger of becoming what Jesus reserves His scathing criticism for:  a hypocrite.  Hypocrite, in its original meaning in the Greek, is "actor."  That is, in the ancient plays, one who wears a mask, and plays a part, gives an image.  But what about the inside of the cup?  The place where we really meet God?  Jesus seems to say that if we are truly integrated and participating in God's love with the heart then whatever we give from the heart makes everything clean.  We think of images of Christ touching the ritually unclean to heal -- those possessed with demons, who need cleansing from leprosy, His honoring of the woman with the twelve years bloodflow as she touched the hem of His garment and was healed by her faith.  All of these actions give us at once the image of what it is to reach out from the heart with love and compassion, to do what we can to lift the burdens of others.  Jesus is not tearing down the law, but He's giving us evidence of how hypocrisy works, how we may lose the power of the Spirit and He Himself at work within us and among us -- or worse, actively work against it.  So what does it mean to clean the inside of the cup in order to fill it with God's love?  To give of the heart? 

No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light

 And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"

And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.

"No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."

- Luke 11:27-36

In yesterday's reading, Jesus cast out a mute demon; all marveled when the mute spoke.  But some said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  Others, testing Him, sought from Him a sign from heaven.  But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.  If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?  Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub.  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they will be your judges.  But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.  When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first."

 And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"  Again, we get a statement about family relations here.  Luke gives us other kinds of presentation of family relationships, and the surpassing status or value to the relations of the Kingdom (of course, whole families, in the Gospels, are also faithful together).  We've recently been given the story of two sisters, Martha and Mary, and the kind of "tug of war" between household sisterly duties and Mary's sitting listening to Christ's word at His feet.  Jesus has told two would-be disciples, "Let the dead bury the dead," and "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."  And in chapter 8, Jesus has said, "My mother and brothers are those who hear the will of God and do it."  If we look at His statement today, there's an inference about loyalty and love; in the fidelity of a nurturing mother, we can read the fidelity of the believer He described, one who hears the word of God and keeps it.  My study bible emphasizes the theme of blessing:  "God's blessing falls not upon those who have prominent family connections, but upon those who hear the word of God and keep it.  Jesus is stating a principle, not denigrating His mother:  she both heard God's word and kept it, and thus became the most blessed of women."

And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here."  My study bible says, "The sign of Jonah is the preaching of Jonah under which the Ninevites repented.  [See Jonah 3.]  By contrast, this evil generation did not repent under Jesus' preaching, which is far greater than Jonah."  It adds that in Matthew, the sign of Jonah is also Jonah's three day sojourn in the belly of the great fish, a picture of Christ's death and Resurrection.  The Queen of the South is the Queen of Sheba who came to listen to the wisdom of Solomon. We're again in the territory here of what has true value, what is of surpassing value to all else, and we are asked to discern that value and make choices.

"No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."  My study bible notes, "Spiritual sight is compared to physical sight:  if the eyes of both body and soul are healthy, a person is full of light."  We go back to the earlier verses in today's reading, and see the emphasis on discerning what is truly good, what gives things value, what wisdom there is, recognizing something precious and that gives value to our lives and relationships, vivifies our choices.  Illumination is always an important theme linked to Christ as the true light. 

The theme for today is wisdom, preaching, warning.  What is the true light?  What is it which gives us and our lives light?  How do we make choices that invest our lives with meaning and with wisdom?  Jesus' emphasis here extends from what is truly blessed, what gives us blessings.  As such, we can see in Jesus' light that which illumines the whole body, gives something to our whole lives, and helps us not to walk in darkness.  I believe the emphasis here is on what we value, and how we choose what we are going to love in our lives.  There is also a tie to the theme of repentance or personal change -- the word for repentance means "change of mind" in the Greek.  We have the analogy to the people of Nineveh in their response to Jonah the prophet.  In some sense, Christ asks us to transcend our worldly ties through the light of this illumination, just as the Queen of the South came to hear Solomon and find for herself, through hard questions, just how great was Solomon's wisdom.  So we are asked to be discerning enough to find what is a true blessing in life, what truly gives our lives light, what truly determines how we are related to one another and to the world.  To seek this light is to add value to our lives, blessings, and light; it vivifies everything, and it helps us to transcend our own limitations of sight.  Elsewhere Jesus speaks of the plank in our own eye that keeps us from seeing clearly; it is this light that is meant to help us to see and to remove that plank.  So how do you value this light?  How do you allow it to shine within you so that the whole body is full of light, as on a lampstand? 

He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters

 And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute.  So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; and the multitudes marveled.  But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  Others, testing Him, sought from Him a sign from heaven.  But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.  If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?  Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub.  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they will be your judges.  But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first."

- Luke 11:14-26

In Saturday's reading, Jesus was praying, and when He finished, He was asked by one of His disciples, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples." He taught them, "When you pray, say:  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.  Your kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us day by day our daily bread.  And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.  And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."  He told them, "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have noting to set before him'; and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'?  I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence, he will rise and give him as many as he needs.  So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?  Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"

 And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute.  So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; and the multitudes marveled.  But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  Others, testing Him, sought from Him a sign from heaven.  My study bible notes that Beelzebub was a pagan god, derided by Jews as "The Lord of the Flies."  Here, it says, it is used as a direct reference to Satan.  A sign from heaven, it notes, "would be a spectacular miracle validating Jesus' authority.  Jesus refused to do such a sign in His temptations in the wilderness by the devil, and He declines here as well."  So we get a sense now, that perhaps because of His success, Jesus is running into opposition and denial.

But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls."  We note that He knows their thoughts.  If is often said in the Gospels that Jesus understands the heart, reads into people what their thoughts are.  It is a part of His divine insight -- and He addresses those thoughts.  Here is the famous statement that tells us about the way to understand this paradigm:  what is the nature of this kingdom, this house, this name in which Jesus acts?  Should a dynasty or kingdom be divided against itself, it will fall.

"If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?  Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub."  The obvious inference to accusations that Jesus' power to cast out demons is really an act of Beelzebub is that somehow Satan's kingdom is divided against itself.  Why would the power of demons to oppress (and occupy) human beings be rebuked by Satan?  How then would his kingdom stand?  Let's remember that in yesterday's reading, Jesus taught His disciples how to pray for God's kingdom to come into the world, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  So Christ gives us a picture here, of two kingdoms in a war for hearts and minds. 

"And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they will be your judges."  My study bible notes that exorcisms were part of the tradition of the Jews.  Jesus here refers to Jewish exorcisms.

"But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils."  The finger of God is traditionally understood to mean the Holy Spirit. Again we have reference to the ways that kingdoms work:  a strong man guards his own goods, unless a stronger one comes, takes away his defenses, and divides his spoils.

"He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters."  My study bible has a helpful note pointing out the seeming contradiction between the statement here and the statement in a recent reading: "He who is not against us is on our side."  It notes that "the unique action of gathering or scattering is the issue:  each person does one or the other."  And there is another powerful difference:  the ones Jesus referred to earlier (in chapter 9) were also working in His name.  It is also a strong statement regarding His more powerful kingdom:  a bold statement that He is the one to follow, and that He is here to assert this power.  To "gather" here is synagon in the Greek, the root of the word synagogue.

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first."  My study bible says, "Those who have been cleansed are here warned not to be careless.  Dry places, deserts, were thought to be the abode of demons."  It's a kind of warning about the power of exorcism:  someone can be healed, but the awareness or watchfulness of each one of us isn't something that others can do for us.  There's an indication that our own constant vigilance is always asked of us.  It's implied that the "strong man" will keep trying, perhaps with more unity to compensate for his inferiority to the stronger.  The work of this kingdom is a daily, even moment to moment awareness, and it is voluntary on the part of each one of us.  In a modern example, we may consider the work of sobriety and serenity for anyone in recovery, or having the experience of a Twelve-Step program. There's never a time when awareness or vigilance is something that's not needed.  The same applies to any of us struggling through personal problems that may require tough choices, and Christ rests upon our shoulders His statements about our responsibility for seeking discernment as His disciples.  Everyday issues of parenting, being a friend or colleague, spouse or even citizen, ask of us continually to seek how best to do that, in His name.

Today's statements about kingdoms, and gathering and scattering, give us an image of a kind of spiritual war, something that's been called "unseen warfare."  But I want to focus on the power of the image in its implication of how precious each one of us is.  Somehow there is this great spiritual battle going on, between two kingdoms - the strong man oppresses, and the stronger man comes to liberate.  But this is a battle for who we are, our own identities, our hearts and minds, what we think, what we believe, how we choose.  It gives us a sense of who we really are, how much more precious we may be than we may know about ourselves.  Therefore the message is that we should never give ourselves away lightly, to anyone or anything, without an awareness of who and what we trust.  The verses in the second paragraph emphasize our constant need for watchfulness, awareness, alertness.  We don't give away our hearts and minds for anyone to come along and tell us what we must follow, how we must think or believe or choose.  We must consider who we are, how valuable we are to the One who comes to liberate, how important every choice really is.  The message seems to be implied that even should we be liberated by the stronger man, the importance in ourselves and our own vigilance can't be underestimated.  We're still responsible for our choices.  So, as Jesus taught in Saturday's reading:  "I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."  We continue to seek and ask and knock.  We must know what we are about; ours is not to passively follow but to remain alert, to know what we are about, to ask and seek and knock so that we know this Kingdom and what it asks of us, how we participate in it, and how we make choices for it.  We seek our own discernment:  to be wise as serpents and gentle as doves.  Let us be aware how essential our choices really are; let us never sell ourselves short.  Persistence was the theme in Saturday's teaching on prayer.  Today that persistence is extended to our own alertness, and awareness of how important our choices really are.

Our Father in heaven

 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples."  So He said to them, "When you pray, say:

"Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us day by day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
For we also forgive everyone
who is indebted to us.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one."

And He said to them, "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have noting to set before him'; and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'?  I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence, he will rise and give him as many as he needs.  So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?  Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"

- Luke 11:1-13

 In yesterday's reading, Jesus came to the village of Martha, Mary and Lazarus.  Luke's gospel tells us that Martha welcomed Him into her house.  Her sister Mary sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word.  But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?  Therefore tell her to help me."  And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.  But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."

 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples."  The disciple looks to the example; Jesus has been praying.  I think it's interesting that Jesus is asked in some part "as John also taught his disciples."  We know that many of Jesus' first disciples were previously disciples of John the Baptist.  My study bible says that the request Lord, teach us to pray expresses a universal spiritual need.  It adds that Matthew' record of the Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6:9-13) has a slightly stronger liturgical flavor.

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  My study bible says, "Our Father signifies (1) the unique privilege of being children of God by the grace of adoption, and (2) the unity of Christians who commonly call God 'Our' Father.  God's name is hallowed when we praise and glorify Him by righteous words and deeds.  God's kingdom and will are closely related:  we pray they may be actualized on earth as they are in heaven, where God's reign is gloriously manifest."   First of all, God is "our Father."  Next comes the understanding that He is King, we are part of a Kingdom and even part of His name (as in anything set with a royal seal) by adoption.  Christ the only-begotten has come here to bring this Kingdom into our midst; it breaks in among us, and we are to be Kingdom-bearers by adoption.

"Give us day by day our daily bread."  My study bible notes, "Daily (Gr. epiousios) can also mean the 'essential' bread which many Church Fathers understood as (1) the truth of God's Word for daily sustenance, or (2) the sacramental bread of the Eucharist, Christ Himself."  This word, epiousios is a word unique to the Gospels, and not found in other literature of its time.   Another sense of this word is "super-substantial" (as Jerome revised Matthew's version of the prayer in the Vulgate).  Ousia is essence or substance.  Epi is a prefix that means "on" or "atop."  It can also imply "future" which gives us a sense, in the context, of the bread of the coming Kingdom.  St. John Chrysostom has written:  "Mark, I pray thee, how even in things that are bodily, that which is spiritual abounds."  While we pray for daily sustenance, in our prayer is also the prayer of the coming Kingdom, that which we need to also "incarnate" this Kingdom as has the Father in the Son by the Holy Spirit.

"And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."  Here is another emphasis on the Kingdom, on God's leadership and mediation of this Kingdom.  My study bible says, "Willingness to forgive everyone is a prerequisite to being forgiven by God.  To be indebted means to have committed a sin against another.  Although God tests us, He does not lead us into temptation.  Deliverance from the evil one (rather than from evil in the abstract) is the classic patristic understanding of this petition."  To forgive is to give up the "debt" to God - we don't seek our own revenge.  This doesn't, to my mind, necessarily mean reconciliation or coming back for more abuse, but it does mean that God is the ultimate mediator of justice and judgment.  We turn in prayer for discernment for how we relate to others, even those who are in some sense "indebted" to us - who have a mark on the "debtor" side of the books!  We also ask for the same forgiveness for our own debts.  Temptation is closely linked:  harmful acts of any kind are temptation to behavior that takes us away from God's peace, and they are seen as linked to the work of the evil one.  That is, the enemy of this coming Kingdom that we are here to help bear into the world.

And He said to them, "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have noting to set before him'; and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'?  I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence, he will rise and give him as many as he needs."  My study bible says here:  "Jesus praises persistence even if it seems inopportune and bothersome.  Persistence in prayer helps us to focus our attention on God."  Again, there is the emphasis of reliance on God, the head of this Kingdom, for what we need in life.  But there is more to it, as my study bible notes.  Persistence is key here.  God wants His children to come to Him, as often as possible.  When we remember God in our daily lives, however that is done, we are doing just that.

"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."  My study bible says, "We ask in prayer, seek through study, and knock through righteous living."  It seems to be in the grand cosmic scheme of things that we, as adopted children of this kingdom, are to continually be returning to the King for all the things we need.  God wants dialogue with us!  We are, as in the parable of the Good Samaritan, to take the initiative, make the petition, and to continually be persistent in acting on our desires for this kingdom.  St. Paul tells us to "pray without ceasing."

"If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?  Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"  My study bible says, "Evil is used here in the general sense of all human beings being weak and sinful.  If Jesus promises to give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him, how is it that we ask?  The [Eastern] Church, since the early days, has provided this prayer:  'O heavenly King, O Comforter, the Spirit of truth, who are in all places and fill all things, the Treasure of good things, and Giver of life, come and abide in us, cleanse us from every stain and save our souls, O Good One.' "  In the context of the prayer, it is clear here what we ask for.  Think of Mary's listening to the word of Jesus in yesterday's reading, and how Jesus quoted from Scripture in response to the "evil one" when He was tempted earlier in Luke's Gospel:  "It is written: 'Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.' "

 In the image of the "daily" (epiousion) bread that we need "day by day," we find many echoes of the Gospels and sayings of Jesus.  There is first of all the Incarnation itself, God made man, in which human and divine natures are merged as one.  In the Eucharist, we have an image of the Incarnation, bread and wine given to us as body and blood -- the Kingdom manifest in our midst of which we also partake and in which we participate as children ourselves, in His name.  Christ is the Word, His "bread" is every word that proceeds from the mouth of God -- just as in yesterday's reading, Mary's good portion was the word she heard at Jesus' feet.  In the prayer for the coming Kingdom, we pray to participate in that Kingdom and to be bearers of that Kingdom in the world, even as it "breaks in" through the Incarnation of Christ the Word in Jesus.  There is no separation between what we consider our food and our lives as bearers in or workers for this Kingdom.  Can we get a sense of how this works in our lives, and how we need this kind of daily bread of the coming Kingdom, each day of our lives?

One thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her

Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.  And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word.  But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?  Therefore tell her to help me."  And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.  But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."

- Luke 10:38-42

 In yesterday's reading, Jesus was tested by a lawyer, who stood up and asked, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"  He said to him, "What is written in the law?  What is your reading of it?"  So he answered and said, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.' "  And He said to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live."   But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"  Then Jesus answered and said:  "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a certain priest came down that road.  And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.  But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was.  And when he saw him, he had compassion.  So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.'  So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?"  And he said, "He who showed mercy on him."  Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."  See The Parable of the Good Samaritan.

Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.  And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word.   Martha and Mary are the sisters of Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead.   This is Bethany, and this family are very close to Jesus; John's gospel speaks of their great love.

But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?  Therefore tell her to help me."   Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus, form some of the most interesting characters in the Gospels.  As sisters, we're given (especially in this story) their differences in personality.  This story also gives highlights to the events, for example, in the raising of Lazarus, where the sisters fulfill different duties -- Martha the one responsible for hospitality and greeting Jesus when He comes to them, while Mary is formally mourning in the house with those who've come to mourn with them.  Here, Martha's persona is exemplified for us in her complaint to Jesus; she's the one who's welcomed Him and is now "distracted" with much serving.  Mary is sitting with the other disciples, listening to Jesus talk. 

And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.  But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."  Martha's life is made up of many household concerns; she's preoccupied and anxious.  In choosing the "good part" Mary has chosen a "portion" for herself, like taking a particular serving of a dish at a meal, and Jesus declares it will not be taken away from her.  Mary has made a good choice for herself.

I think there are several ways we can look at this story.  First of all it's about women, and the concerns of women.  Luke's focus gives us an idea of the women who also make up the support of this ministry, and Jesus' inner circle of loving friends.  But, of course, it's not just women who are preoccupied with affairs of the home, the household, hospitality, etc.  It's not just women who are anxious about what there is to do and to keep up and to prepare.  Jesus' words give us the impression that Martha's mind is filled and distracted with these things:  she's troubled and also anxious.  Now there's a picture of modern life, in my opinion.  We're no strangers to anxiety, distraction, and panic (which is what Jesus' words express about Martha in the Greek).  Yes, the text seems to say, we will always be anxious about many things we're concerned with in our lives.  But there is another portion available to us.  There's something which our anxiety and concerns shouldn't obscure  -- and for those who choose this good portion in life, it shouldn't be taken away from them.  Mary sits listening to every word from Christ.  It's a kind of example or parallel to the great commandments we read in yesterday's reading:  "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind," and "your neighbor as yourself."  It's an illustration of the "good part" that Mary has put first.  I think it's important that we see that Jesus isn't necessarily putting down Martha, nor her concerns -- but He is defending Mary, and He won't allow her sister to take that good portion away from her.  Despite all the social demands of hospitality, the pressures of serving with which Martha is distracted and anxious, Mary's good part still won't be taken away from her.  This particular value trumps all else.  It's an act of love and devotion to what comes first, the good portion.  Mary's act, we can see, may seem selfish and self-centered in a certain context.  But in another context, it's a great act of love for what is truly good.  It is, in fact, the one thing necessary, the great need under these circumstances.  Let us be wise enough to practice the discernment of the love of what is truly good, to embrace the grace that may sit before us and value it as our true necessity. Let us not be so lost in our good works that we neglect the one thing needed, the good portion.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

 And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"  He said to him, "What is written in the law?  What is your reading of it?"  So he answered and said, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.' "  And He said to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live." 

But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"  Then Jesus answered and said:  "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a certain priest came down that road.  And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.  But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was.  And when he saw him, he had compassion.  So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.'  So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?"  And he said, "He who showed mercy on him."  Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

- Luke 10:25-37

Yesterday, we read that the seventy apostles returned with joy from their first mission.  They told Jesus, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name."  Jesus told them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.   Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven."   In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  He said to His disciples, ""Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it."

  And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"  He said to him, "What is written in the law?  What is your reading of it?"  So he answered and said, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.' "  And He said to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live."   My study bible calls the lawyer's question about inheriting eternal life "a momentous question for every person.  The answer of Jesus is to love God above all else, and to love one's neighbor."  The two commandments of the law cited by the lawyer, and approved by Jesus, form what Jesus calls elsewhere "the greatest commandments" and "the whole of the Law and the Prophets."   We get a sense of the order of these commandments as well.

But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"  The lawyers goes further in his questioning, and it is an essential question.  Luke tells us the man, however, wanted to justify himself.  But a question opens the door, and Jesus gives His own answer.

Then Jesus answered and said:  "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a certain priest came down that road.  And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.  Those who should be examples are the ones who pass by.  A Levite is an official helper in the temple.  There are possible inferences here; some suggest it's possible they're avoiding defilement with a dead body.

But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was.  And when he saw him, he had compassion.  So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.'  So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?"  And he said, "He who showed mercy on him."  Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."  We have to understand about the terrible enmity between Samaritans and Jews at this time to get a sense of the parable;  Jesus' telling of this parable obliterates "normal" considerations of what a neighbor might be.  The Samaritans, for example, while embracing various aspects of Jewish faith, disagreed on the location of the temple (see the story of the Samaritan woman, as told in John's Gospel).  Most of the time, those whom we consider our "neighbor" might be someone whose relationship with us is something we're given:  they live next door, they belong to our church, our group, an extended social organization of some type, someone who is literally nearby (in the Greek).  But here, what makes a neighbor in Jesus' story is something quite different, and the lawyer replies, grasping the condition:  "He who showed mercy on him."  That is, "neighbor" is made by initiative and action, and the lawyer is told to "go and do likewise."

My study bible points out several things I think we should know about this parable.  First of all, it's found only in Luke.  It says that the Parable of the Good Samaritan "illustrates Jesus' teaching of who our neighbor is:  anyone in immediate need, even a supposed enemy.  Symbolically, the Good Samaritan is Christ Himself, the wounded man is humanity set upon by demons, and the inn is the Church.  Love for neighbor proves our love for God."  It adds that the Samaritan, "a presumed enemy of Jews, is highlighted as the good neighbor because of his loving actions toward the wounded Jew ignored by fellow Jews."  In the language of the Gospel, the original Greek, it's important that we pay attention:  the word for "mercy" is eleos -- as it remains in liturgical worship, the basis for the phrase Kyrie eleison ("Lord have mercy").  But eleos is alike in sound to the word for olive oil, the basis for all healing balm in the ancient world (as readers of this blog have often been told).  We note that the Samaritan bound up the hurt man's wounds with oil and wine -- yes, it's the same root, for olive oil.  Hence, the oil of anointing becomes an oil of healing in allegories in the Church and of Christ Himself.  So, one conclusion is to ask ourselves, how do we become Christ-like?  Jesus has many parables and sayings in which He teaches us to take the initiative.  In Matthew 5:41, for example, a part of the Sermon on the Mount, He teaches that if someone compels or forces you to go with him one mile (often considered to be a reference to a Roman soldier), go two.  Going two is a kind of initiative, something not compelled and not forced.  So today as I read this parable, I'm struck by the personal initiative that is asked of us in becoming Christ's disciples, becoming like Christ.  In our practice of neighborliness, we are asked to take the initiative -- first with the great commandment of love for God in our hearts (because why else do we wish to become Christ-like except out of our love for Him?), and because we are also asked to bear that kingdom into the world.  I don't think God requires of us to take any foolish leaps purely of good intention, without being discerning. (He's told His disciples to be wise as serpents and gentle and doves, that they are sent out as lambs among wolves.)  But we are asked here to learn God's love for ourselves and to practice it.  To take the initiative.  Paralleling this story as allegory of Christ's saving mercy for the world afflicted and oppressed by the demonic, by evil and suffering (and we remember that the Seventy have just returned rejoicing at their power over even the demons as they announce that the Kingdom has come near), we will see all around us the effects of evil upon others.  Innocents suffer for things they aren't responsible for.  One way to bear the Kingdom into the world is to help others afflicted by sin that's not their own.  And I think that for me today, this is the great message of the parable.  We can look all around us and see people who suffer because sin or evil doesn't just affect one person, but rather its effects are borne as a burden in the world by the innocent who aren't responsible for it.  An analogy to Original Sin has often been given in an example of a murder committed by a father:  his children aren't responsible and don't bear the sin, but they do bear the effects of the sin in their lives.  A bad act isn't done in isolation, but affects others, and can do so for many generations, throughout a community of any kind.  As in the example of the Good Samaritan, innocents suffer all the time for sins committed against them.  It's not enough to avoid sin as in the example; but rather we seek to address its effects in our world.  Therefore as bearers of His faith, we are to address this suffering; we bring the Kingdom into the world through our own acts of kindness and compassion, our creation of "neighbors."  Let us remember that we love God first with all our heart and soul and strength and mind, and that this is an ongoing internal dialogue and learning, so that we may in turn learn really what love is to express to others, and to grow in that understanding!  In love and mercy, the Kingdom may be at work in us and among us. 

I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven

Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name."  And He said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.   Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven."  

In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  

Then He turned to His disciples and said privately, "Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it."

- Luke 10:17-24

 In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus appointed seventy apostles (in addition to the Twelve) and sent them two by two to every city into which He was about to go as He journeyed toward Jerusalem.   He told them,  "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into the His harvest.  Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.  Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.  But whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house.'  And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.  And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'  But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 'The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.'  But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.  Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades.  He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."

 Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name."  And He said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.   Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven."    Christ's distributed power is at work among these apostles.  My study bible says that I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven is probably a reference by Jesus to Isaiah 14:12-15.  It says, "Note the five 'I wills' in that passage.  Because he pursued his own will, Satan is both fallen from heaven, and he is defeated and dethroned from his demonic lordship over the world by the ministry of Christ and His disciples.  The joy of discipleship is not in authority over demonic power, but in the citizenship of God's kingdom."  The authority to trample on serpents and scorpions refers to images of demons - those which give pain, and poison, to human beings, and used by the power of the enemy.  The word translated as power (of the enemy) may also be translated as strength. 

In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  My study bible says, "These things are the mysteries of the Kingdom manifested through the words and works of Jesus.  They are received by babes, people of simple and open hearts, rather than by the scribes and Pharisees, the wise and prudent."  We have a powerful turning point in the ministry here, and in a sense, in the history of the salvation story.  Through faith, the "revelation" of the Father by the Son, to whom the Son chooses, human beings carry this power of the Kingdom into the world; it defeats the strength of the enemy, allowing them to trample on "serpents and scorpions."  My study bible adds, "Jesus is the Son of God in the absolute.  He shares fully all authority and knowledge of the Father, and is the sole and eternal revealer of God to humanity."

Then He turned to His disciples and said privately, "Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it."  Again, there's a helpful note here:  "Many prophets and kings of the Old Testament anticipated the coming of Jesus, but they did not experience the blessing of His Incarnation and the presence of His kingdom."

In Jesus' last statement, about the many prophets and kings who have desired to see what the Apostles see, we get a sense of the tremendous awe at what is at work here, its preciousness.  Often I think we're so inured to hearing stories from the Bible, especially of Christ, that it's hard to understand this feeling of awe, rarity, preciousness.  But the truth is that when we experience Christ's presence in our lives it's always new, and awesome, and something we can't really predict by our worldly understanding of what life holds.  We may not have the kinds of awareness of the "work of the enemy" in our midst that the Gospels convey, but there are all kinds of oppressive forces in our lives with which we have to grapple.  In a modern context, we may experience Christ's power in our lives through a kind of healing resolution to painful problems, a way through a difficult situation, a way to bear troubles and difficulties, and to find a more wholesome sense of self.  All of these things are healing efforts against a painful and oppressive enemy, against things which poison our lives.  Often, I find, a way through a difficult situation isn't that I am able to change that situation, to change a person who's being cruel or unjust, to undo a kind of imposition or hardship or painful experience, but rather through Christ's power perhaps a better perspective is gained, something that helps in the long run, a kind of way of seeing and experiencing that adds to life, helps growth, and puts someone in good stead with God, right-relatedness as the result.  Children of abuse, for example, come to blame themselves; it's far easier than coping with the fact that parents may unjustly hurt them.  In Christ, we have an example of love, healing, a parenthood by adoption in which chastisement or rebuke is just, not unjust.  For the child of abuse, morbid shame or guilt becomes something to correct in Christ's embrace, the plank in one's own eye being the inability to see past this childhood abuse, and to become healed in order to love properly oneself, and not to pass on shame in the forms that prolong the problem.  The world suffers from all kinds of oppressive problems and we should not discount the power of wrong choices, abuse of authority, other ways in which right-relatedness is obscured, made harder, and stood upon its head.  Let us consider the outcome of Christ, His awesomeness, His day in our own lives - and then grasp its precious sight.

Behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves

After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.  Then He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into the His harvest.  Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.  Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.  But whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house.'  And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.  And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'  But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 'The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.'  But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.  Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades.  He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."

- Luke 10:1-16

In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus had "set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face."  But because His face was set for Jerusalem, a Samaritan village refused to receive Him.  John and James Zebedee asked, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?  But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them."  And they went to another village.  As they journeyed, a man said to Jesus, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."   Then He said to another, "Follow Me."  But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."  And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."  But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.   My study bible tells us that only in Luke are the Seventy mentioned, but in the records of the early Church many of them are known.  Many became bishops, all are numbered among the saints of the Eastern Church.  Some of their names are known from Scripture (especially Acts of the Apostles and Epistles of Paul), among them Barnabas, Titus, Aristarchus, Sosthenes, Tychicus, Simeon,   Aristobulus.  My study bible says, "The record of their work is preserved in accounts handed down through the centuries from place to place, especially in those locations where they labored. . . . To tell the stories passed down in the Church concerning all of the Seventy would fill a book of considerable size."   These seventy are also Apostles, just as are the Twelve; and my study bible also points out that the instructions given to them are similar.  They may fulfill the type of the seventy elders appointed by Moses.  We see here that they are sent as messengers, heralds before Him, into all the places He's about to go on His way to Jerusalem.

Then He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into the His harvest."   The first image we're given is that of the harvest. Jesus will use metaphors and teach in parables about those who enter into others' labor, giving us an understanding of the continual labor of the Church for this harvest.  In John's account of the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well, Jesus says, "Do you not say, 'There are still four months and then comes the harvest'? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true: 'One sows and another reaps.' I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors." 

 "Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves."  This is the tone of the instruction now, one that understands a need for watchfulness and discernment, while at the same time teaching about gentleness.  My study bible says, "Lambs speaks of the sacrificial life of the missionaries, their innocence, while the world into which they are sent is hostile and cruel."

"Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.  But whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house.'  And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you."  Again, as in the previous instructions to the Twelve on their first mission, these instructions emphasize humility, but they also tell of the great power conferred upon them.  My study bible points out that "the missionary of Christ travels light, moving easily from place to place, and avoids superficial conversation."  It also notes that going from house to house implies looking for better accommodations.  We also notice something else, and that is the way this power works that is conferred upon them, the kingdom which they carry with them.  That is, the way in which it interacts with those whom they encounter.  Peace is wished upon a house, but it will not rest if a '"son of peace" is not there; instead it will return to the apostles. 

"And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'  But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 'The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.' "  My study bible notes, "The gospel of Christ is not simply that there is a divine Kingdom somewhere, but that the kingdom of God has come near to us. It breaks into our lives through the work of Christ and His sent ones."   But again, we notice how this power is used and how it works:  where it is rejected, the work of the apostles is simply to "wipe off the dust" and move on; and yet, the message is delivered.

"But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.  Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades."  Finally, Jesus speaks of Judgment, which is not ours to give, but which comes in that Day of which He speaks -- also something that is not ours to know.  My study bible says, "Judgment is more severe against those who witness Jesus' mighty works, or hear His word but reject it, as in the case of these Galilean cities."  Again, there's a hint as to the way this power of this Kingdom works:  a rejection of grace bears a responsibility in the one who would have received it.

"He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."  Here is a kind of pointer to the reality of that power; it's not merely the Apostles who are rejected.  In those who truly bear this Kingdom into the world is also Christ and the One who sent Him.  Therefore rejection carries a stronger weight than one would think at first sight.

Today's reading gives us a sense of the power of this Kingdom and how it works.  We have to think carefully about when and where grace comes into our lives.  Do we accept it?  Do we reject it?  If we look at the books of the Old Testament, especially at the many prophets warning of rejection of God's grace, of behaviors inconsistent with the salvation history of Israel, we see a kind of strong warning implying what this rejection really means for Israel as a people, and for her leaders who fail to uphold what it is to be "People of God."  Here in Christ's instructions to His Apostles, we have a kind of sense of how this grace borne into the world works within us and among us.  The Apostles themselves are told in Matthew's gospel, as an addition to today's teaching given by Jesus, that they are to be "wise as serpents and gentle as doves."  So while we understand the power in Christ's words and mission, in the Kingdom conveyed into the world -- as my study bible puts it, that which "breaks into our lives" -- it's up to us to simply be wise as serpents and gentle as doves, to "shake the dust off our feet" as rebuke (as opposed to calling down fire which the brothers Zebedee suggested in yesterday's reading!), and the wise discernment we're called upon to use, the watchfulness that is indispensable to lambs sent out in the midst of wolves.  But this is a spiritual Kingdom, and Judgment does come; it's just not ours to make nor know when its time will come.  A Kingdom is ruled by a King, His power is given out to those to whom He wishes to give it, it works in the way He decrees, and His Judgment remains His judgment, in His hands.  We are are told what we must do and how we must be.  My study bible notes that "Missionary endeavors are accomplished by God's initiative and power.  We pray to the Lord, and it is He who calls and sends out the workers.  We have the assurance, however, that the harvest is truly great."  We bear the marks of His grace, His healing work within us and among us, and we may carry that out into the world.  But the warning remains for our conduct:  humility is the hallmark, innocence the character, discernment and watchfulness always called for.  Can we live up to His teachings, even as we seek to bear this Kingdom into the world?


 

No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God

Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face.  And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him.  But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?  But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them."  And they went to another village.

Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."   Then He said to another, "Follow Me."  But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."  And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."  But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

- Luke 9:51-62

 In Saturday's reading, a great multitude met Jesus after He had come down from the mountain of Transfiguration with Peter, John, and James.  A man told Jesus, "Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child.  And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him.  So I implored Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not." Jesus said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?  Bring your son here."  Even as Jesus approached, the demon threw down the boy and convulsed him.  But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and gave the boy back to his father, and all marveled at the majesty of God.  But while they marveled, Jesus said to the disciples, "Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men."  But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.  Then the disciples began to dispute who would be greatest among them.  Jesus told them, "Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives him who sent Me.  For he who is least among you all will be great."  Now John answered and said, "Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us."  But Jesus said to him, "Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side."

 Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face.  And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him.  But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  My study bible says that "He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem marks a turning point in Jesus' life and ministry.  From this point in the Gospel, Jerusalem and the Passion is the next step of Jesus' journey.  The Greek verb received up describes the Ascension, the ultimate goal of His Passion and Resurrection."  His ministry is no longer in Galilee, a place of mixed peoples (Jew and Gentile), nor among the Samaritans, but rather it is time for Jerusalem and the Passion, in the center of the religious authority.

And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?  But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them."  And they went to another village.  James and John are known as the brothers Boanerges - "sons of thunder" - no doubt because of their tendency to fiery passion!  As with all things within us, we will see this passion turned to God and for the use of God.  Here, Jesus corrects them for us to see:  "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of."  His mission - and theirs, as apostles - is to save.  As He instructed the Twelve on their first mission, when they are refused they simply go on to another village.  My study bible says, "Jesus does not exclude the Samaritans from salvation, even though this village refuses to receive Him.  Other Samaritans welcome Him."  Such an example - and a splendid one - will be written about by John himself, see John 4.

Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."   As Jesus journeys toward Jerusalem, the adversity to this ministry is showing itself; discipleship isn't an easy task.  John and James learn that this ministry is not one of powerful "success" in material terms, but saving and healing takes on a completely different aspect to understand in this work.  Here, Jesus points out to another who would be a disciple that He Himself has nowhere to lay His head.

Then He said to another, "Follow Me."  But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."  Here, Jesus calls another to discipleship.  But the powerful statement is in this idea that nothing comes first before this call, and where it asks us to go and what it may ask of us; all things are placed before this saving mission.  My study bible points out that there is a cost to discipleship, and here Jesus talks of three such costs.  Above, "provision for personal security does not mix with true discipleship.  The disciple will be no more secure than the Teacher.  If the Teacher has nowhere to lay His head, neither will the disciple."  And here, in this example, "Discipleship demands singular commitment to the Kingdom of God.  A disciple must be willing to let the spiritually dead bury the physically dead."  While the family relationship makes this teaching seem harsh, we can see in it a parallel to walking on to the next city rather than remaining where Christ hasn't been received, in the example of the Samaritan village, above.

And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."  But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."  Of this example, my study bible says, "Discipleship does not look back to reconsider, or operate by delayed response.  It means taking hold of the commission given by Christ and moving forward."  Again, we see the similarity to the example of Christ Himself and the Samaritan village where He isn't welcomed.  Onward, there is a current positive movement, a place to go forward in discipleship, whatever that may mean for each one of us.

What does it mean to make a commitment to this journey of discipleship?  I think first we have to ask ourselves the question, as it is framed by the examples in today's reading, of what it means to be "saved."  How do we save others?  Can we convince someone else to believe, to change their heart, to love something if they aren't ready to make that choice?  Ultimately, it comes down to a focus on our own discipleship, what is the next step toward which Christ calls us.  We keep on going forward.  It's not up to us to force others to faith, to use coercive power (as in the example of the Samaritan city and Jesus' words that He is not here to destroy but to save).  We can't really do that anyway.  God wants hearts to come to Him; that's how we're made as human beings.  But what we can do, ultimately, is work on our own discipleship and commitment, and put all things into the hands of God, finding the positive way in which we're called to go forward, to deepen our commitment, to learn God's love better for ourselves and how to move forward within the dynamics of this Kingdom and its work in the world.  While we may meet adversity, while everyone around us may not follow this nor welcome it (and even its saving work in us), we may be called back into our old ways of life and thinking, there will be all kinds of pressures to somehow give up what we're doing -- to forget what manner of spirit we're about, or to be called back into a life we've left.  What we remember is that Christ is always calling us forward into His love, His kingdom, and into discipleship.

O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?

Now it happened on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him.  Suddenly a man from the multitude cried out, saying, "Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child.  And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him.  So I implored Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not."  Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?  Bring your son here."  And as he was still coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him.  Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father.  And they were all amazed at the majesty of God.

But while everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples, "Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men."  But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.

Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.  And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, and said to them, "Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives him who sent Me.  For he who is least among you all will be great."  

Now John answered and said, "Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us."  But Jesus said to him, "Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side."

- Luke 9:37-50

In yesterday's reading, we read of Jesus' Transfiguration.  About eight days after Peter's confession on behalf of the Apostles that Jesus is the Christ, Jesus took Peter, James, and John with Him on the mountain to pray.  As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening.  Moses and Elijah appeared in glory, and were talking with Him about His decease (exodus) He is about to accomplish in Jerusalem.  The apostles were sleepy, but as they awoke they perceived the three together.  As Moses and Elijah were parting from Him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles:  one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."  While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud.  And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son.  Hear Him!"  When the voice had ceased, Jesus was found alone.  But they kept quiet, and told no one in those days any of the things they had seen.

 Now it happened on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him.  Suddenly a man from the multitude cried out, saying, "Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child.  And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him.  So I implored Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not."   Perhaps the disease described here is epilepsy, identified with an unclean spirit.  Whatever it is, if we look at the text we get the idea of the oppression of evil in the world, the helplessness of a father who loves his child and turns to Christ.  This time, the power entrusted to the disciples doesn't seem to be working.  The father turns to the Teacher.

Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?  Bring your son here."  And as he was still coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him.  Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father.  And they were all amazed at the majesty of God.  My study bible says, "the majesty of God is His greatness and power shown through Jesus' miracles."  The implication of Jesus' words is about faith, or the lack of it.  In other examples in the Gospels where the disciples fail to heal, Jesus speaks of prayer and fasting.  The implication remains the same - when we call on God we may find a deeper need for prayer, a kind of deepening resolution within ourselves, a kind of deeper way of giving a situation to God.  The oppressiveness of evil is again emphasized:  even as Jesus speaks the child is again harmed.  In some way, there is the suggestion that what ails us is persistent, and so we need be persistent in our faith.

But while everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples, "Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men."  But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.  If I may continue in a medical metaphor, these words here remind me of something I was once told by my doctor, that bad news is very difficult to grasp.  We can't take in easily, or let "sink down" words of great crisis.  So it is with the disciples, "it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it."  They were afraid to ask Him about it; a natural human response to things we can't quite grasp, or that with which we are unprepared to cope.

Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.  And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, and said to them, "Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives him who sent Me.  For he who is least among you all will be great."  My study bible notes, "The disciples themselves are not above the desire for worldly glory and power.  One of the last lessons they will learn before Christ's Ascension is that of humility and service.  Jesus teaches them by a simple illustration:  a little child -- an icon of dependency."

Now John answered and said, "Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us."  But Jesus said to him, "Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side."  Again, my study bible has a note worth reading:  "This is an example of Jesus' tolerance and breath of vision.  It is a temptation for us to want everyone to have a spiritual practice exactly like ours, to do things the way we do, and to be in our group.  How many schisms have occurred in Church history because people missed Jesus' lesson here!"  It's another lesson of humility, too, a way of living peacefully with one another and not striving for hierarchy.  We don't look for enemies to label.  (How often until today do we do this when we disagree among ourselves?)  And it's an example of relying on God's grace, first.

All the readings taken together today remind me of one thing especially, and that is that we are all only human.  The Gospels are filled with afflictions, maladies, foibles, and all kinds of behavior that remind us:  we are only human.  Christ, God through the whole of salvation history, works with us as imperfect human beings.  We're the ones called on to be God- and faith-bearers in spite of and all along with our own imperfections.  The helpless man who brings his child to the disciples who somehow can't quite manage this healing -- all, father, child, and disciples, need the help of grace and the deepening of their faith.  We live in imperfect worldly conditions that make it hard as well, and this is something quite clearly also in the mind of God in salvation history.  The disciples can't quite grasp Jesus' words; despite His saying so, those words don't quite make it to "sink down" into their ears.  And then, perhaps because of Jesus' words about resurrection (see Thursday's reading), they engage in a dispute about which one of them is going to be greatest in the kingdom.  Clearly, the teaching needed for those who are going to bear His kingdom into this world after He is gone is one of humility, considered the greatest of all virtues - and the one upon which all other virtues rest - in church history to come.  We are imperfect human beings.  And yet, it is we upon whom this kingdom rests and is borne into this world.  God has entrusted us with this faith, and this work.  Finally come the verses about the disciples seeking to forbid another who is not "with them" who also uses this power in the name of Christ.  The man seems to be doing work that is also helpful against the oppression of evil in the world.  And here are Jesus' peaceful words in reply:  "Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side."  So how do we, as imperfect human beings, learn to come to terms with this great mission that we're given, to bear this kingdom into the world?  How do we grasp the bad news of that which would oppress, and tear down, and oppose even the good we seek?  How do we deal with others not of our same group?  I find that we're always so active in labeling others who disagree; it's one more human imperfection to deal with.  But through it all, it seems to me Jesus' exasperated words about this faithless generation with which He must persevere, be with and bear with, teach us something about where our strengths really come from.  We rely on faith, we return to faith, we deepen faith.  With bad news, we can "turn it over" and we can allow grace to be at work in our lives helping us to cope and to learn how we are to carry on.  We can seek a deeper faith, an opening up to God - to Christ who is in effect still with us and still bearing with us! - to learn a better humility, acceptance, for peace within ourselves, for insight, and courage and a better perspective.  Think about how faith works in you, how grace works in our lives and in the lives of the Apostles, how it is God with us who helps us to carry on with our lives as faithful.  We're only human, and yet we are entrusted with His Kingdom.