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33rd Week in Ordinary Time – November 13, 2022

When a horrible injustice occurs, such as when 22 people were brutally slain in Nova Scotia a couple years ago, you might hear someone say something like, “there’s a special place in hell for persons who do such evil things.” I confess that I have used that expression myself on occasion.

The readings from the prophet Malachi and from the Gospel of Luke for this 33rd Week give us encouragements to live hopefully and without fear or judgement. On those who live in reverence “the sun of righteousness will arise with healing in its wings”, Malachi wrote. In other words, we are encouraged to do good and let God sort things out.

The idea that Malachi had of an afterlife system of rewards or punishments was a later development among the Israelites. The author of the Book of Genesis, for example, refers to the “world of the dead” (Gn 37:35). The common name for that world was Sheol.

In Sheol the dead went into an underworld of stillness and lifelessness, regardless of how they had lived. It was only a few centuries before Jesus that Jewish scholars began to have the idea that the dead must pass into an afterlife where the good are rewarded and evildoers are punished. Jesus was also schooled in that thought.

However, Jesus was insistent that we are not to make judgements about persons. “Do not judge, or you will be judged” (Mt 7:1). And in the passage from Luke’s Gospel today Jesus encourages us to not live in fear. Rather, even if you suffer because of your belief in me, he said, “not a hair of your head will perish.” In other words, put all your trust in Jesus, and you have nothing to fear.

The good news in the readings today offers us the opportunity to renew our dedication to live fearlessly as part of the “beloved community” as we follow and imitate Jesus and rely on the loving kindness and mercy of Gtchi Manido. In “End Times” or any time of hardship, live in hope.
Always be kind and compassionate. Live fearlessly.

Fr. Mark Hoelsken, S.J.

 

Thank you to Fionna Pereira for sending us the following photos taken during her stay at the Anishinabe Spiritual Centre, a peaceful place surrounded by nature.

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For those of us who think God is silent, let’s take the ear plugs out of our hearts to hear, because God is never silent.

The first readings this past week were about how to live and conduct ourselves. In the gospels, it seems Jesus was shouting at us, trying to wake us up from our complacencies and privileged attitudes, “woe to us”. The messages we hear every year have not woken us up because we continue to live today as we did yesterday. Even in a pandemic, we continue to live in luxury and in abundance, at least in our western society. We have everything we could ever want at our fingertips and if we don’t have it, we can manipulate our way around to get it.

The story of the wake-up call continues in today’s readings. Deuteronomy tells us: don’t add or remove anything to God’s commandments. Human nature tends to minimize or rationalize what we are told, to suit ourselves. God is saying: stop doing that. We cannot manipulate God. The psalmist invites us to be authentic, by walking blamelessly and in truth. The letter of James talks about the necessity of action when we listen to God’s teachings; otherwise, we have a deaf ear. Jesus in the gospel spells out in detail all the ways in which we are hypocrites because He can see right through us. We are good at doing lip
service but missing in action. Jesus says, “their hearts are far from me”.

We are living in a pandemic, not just COVID, but pandemonium in countries where people are fighting for power and control. The earth is also retaliating through fires, floods, tornadoes, and earthquakes, as we hear daily in the media. All of these exist because we put human nature first, or human traditions first, before God. Our actions are showing our distorted values and Jesus is calling out to us: “listen to me, all of you…”. Let’s listen with action and not just with words. Let us change our lives, our actions
and behaviors by walking our talk. Let’s be authentic Anishnabek Catholic Christians.

Let’s be honest and open enough to hear that still small voice inside of our hearts that is yelling at us: “wake up” and look around you. What are we doing to ourselves, our world and our future generations if there will be any? We need to return to our ancestors and our grandfathers’ teachings with courage to be respectful, honest, truthful, humble, and loving, thereby receiving the by-product of wisdom from a good and balanced life. We will be a “wise and discerning people” whose God is near whenever called upon.

~ Sr. Terry Beaudry, cps

By Fr. Paul Robson sj

This year, it is a treat and a blessing to have the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary fall on a Sunday. This feast day is always celebrated on August 15 th ; but when August 15 th is a Sunday, the Assumption replaces the usual Sunday in Ordinary Time celebration.

On this day we recall how Mary was “assumed”, body and soul, into Heaven. In other words, she didn’t suffer death the way we do. This belief is related to another one: that Mary was a specially blessed person. Mary’s unique blessedness is mentioned in today’s Gospel reading, such as when her cousin Elizabeth says: “Blessed are you among women” (or, in Anishnaabemowin, “Awashime ki kitchitwawendagos endchiwaat ikwewag”).

Another feast day which is closely connected to today’s feast of the Assumption is the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which is celebrated a week later, on August 22 nd . (However, unlike the Solemnity of the Assumption, the Memorial of the Queenship of Mary does not replace the usual Ordinary Time Sunday celebration, and so isn’t on the calendar this year.) A connection between Mary’s Assumption into Heaven and her being crowned Queen of Heaven is found in one of the prayers for the Mass of the Assumption, which states that “she was crowned this day with surpassing glory.”

Maybe the image of a queen wearing a crown seems old-fashioned, or like something belonging to another culture. Well, the notion of Mary as Queen of Heaven suggests, again, that she is a specially blessed person, and that she now has a special place in Heaven.

Another image and a good description of Mary, one that perhaps we can relate to more than the image of a queen, is that of a mother. Mary is not only the mother of Jesus, but was given by Jesus to us to be our Great Mother. And Mary loves us as a mother, and is there for us, and intercedes for us and for our loved ones and our world.

Mary, Mother of God and our Mother, pray for us.

(based on John10:17-18)

 

I am loved by you God.

I lay down or offer my day for you God.

So, I take up my work & living 

for the service of others 

and as an expression of love.  

God, you have given me the power to offer my life freely

and I have the power to take it up again, 

this day 

and if you grant me a tomorrow, 

then so be it.

Amen

 

by Fr. David Shulist, S.J.

Anishinabe Spiritual Centre–Wasseaandimikaaning

 

 

Music:

Session 1:

Session 2:

Session 3:

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time – September 13, 2020

By Fr. Gerry McDougall, sj

I was taught, more than once, that anger can have two outcomes:
one outcome can be good; another can be regrettable. If we let anger take hold of us, likely the outcome will be something we regret. But, if we take hold of anger, it is a powerful force for bringing about positive change, in our life, or even in the world.
Recently, the world witnessed a great tennis player have a short outburst which, gratefully, did not have the tragic consequences it could have had. He seemed to have acted out of anger, that is, anger at himself for how he was playing. Then, there are the teen ecological warriors of our times, whose anger, right-directed, at wealthy industrialists and powerful world leaders, is educating so many of us about the necessity to care for our Mother Earth, and is changing the hearts and minds of people everywhere, for the better.
Sister Helen Prejean, who wrote the book, Dead Man Walking, is another person who helps us see how anger can have undesired consequences. She is a strong, prophetic advocate against capital punishment, by which an offender is offered no forgiveness, no mercy, but rather has his life taken, apparently, by the collective vengeance of society. In some cases, even innocent people have faced execution, and the lives of many in our world have been the cost of saving the face, and pride, of dictators and other bullies. Sister Helen hopes that more and more of us will recognize the great healing power of mercy.
We have all heard the phrase, “the wrath of God,” but Jesus came to the world to teach us that God is Love, pure Love. If God ever does get angry, that anger is always right-directed, directed by God’s Spirit of pure Love, and we never experience God’s “wrath” as vengeance, but rather as mercy, forgiveness, compassion, healing, guidance, the call to holiness, the invitation to the fullness of life, the abundance of life. Let us choose life, love and mercy, and with Jesus, let us bring more forgiveness, healing and justice into our world.

 

By Fr. Jim Kelly, s.j.

1st Sunday of Lent
1st March 2020

So the season of Lent has begun. It is a ‘season’ not so much because it is a certain number of days, but because it is the appropriate time for something, the right time. The word ‘season’ comes from the Latin word for ‘sow’, as in to sow seed in the field or the garden (when the time is right). That is also the same root as to ‘season’ foods–to throw the right herbs or spices in the pot when the time is right.

Sometimes we say there are four seasons (Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall), but as these past few weeks have shown it is much more delicate than that. Consider how in February, especially in our area, we had beautiful winter weather with plenty of snow and cold temperatures. But many days the sun beat down with surprising heat. The other day I saw some people ice-fishing with no hut but just their folding chairs. They looked more like they were on the beach in July. And I heard a song-bird whose name I do not know but whose voice I recognized from last summer. I wondered if this little one knows what season it is.

Our season of Lent is a chance to imitate Jesus’ experience of going out into the desert for forty days and forty nights. Jesus, Son of God, free of sin, goes out alone into the wilderness to fast and pray. There he is tempted by the Devil himself who can offer him food, and independence, and great power over others. Why does Jesus go out into this wilderness, into this time of temptation?

And for you, really, what are you asked to do in these forty days to grow closer to Christ? The Church proposes that you: 1) Fast. Seriously, is there some food or activity that you should just cut out in this season?

2) Give Alms or give something to the poor. You have a chance to donate something to someone more in need than you. You know full-well that near where you live there is a neighbour who could well use a new set of towels or some good cooking pots. If you give in this way you have to be careful never to appear snooty with your nose in the air. You give as one friend would give to another. If it is helpful, you ask another person to give the gift from you, saying simply that “a friend asked me to give this to you.”

3) Pray. Go to Mass more often, or to prayer groups, or the Stations of the Cross when they are offered; and encourage your friend to come with you. But beyond that spend at least some private time each day during Lent in prayer. Why? Nothing more than to be present with Jesus during his forty days of prayer.