Click here for today's readings.
When I was asked to reflect on this passage I was brought back to my first week facilitating JusticeworX, when we asked the students to put themselves in the position of the paralytic. A man, who after being paralyzed for what could have been years, is told to rise, pick up his mat and go home. The verse says that the paralytic “stood up immediately before them.” He had such strong faith and trust in Jesus that he did not even hesitate in rising. Would we have done the same?
As a disciple of Christ, we trust that God has a plan and purpose for our lives and because of this we are called to respond, without hesitation, to His call. This Advent season, in preparation for the Incarnation we celebrate at Christmas, we are challenged to explore those parts of our lives that paralyze and hinder us from fully serving Christ. We are also called to recognize and give thanks to the people in our lives who propel us forward on our spiritual journeys. Just as the paralytic went home glorifying God, we too give glory to God for the blessings He has bestowed in our lives.
- Melissa Chedid is a member of the SOFIA Evangelization Team and LeaderworX alumna
We've Moved!
06 December 2010
05 December 2010
Advent Reflection for Sunday, December 5th
Click here for today's readings.
Some of the most popular Christmas cards are reproductions of the many images of “The Peaceable Kingdom” painted by the Pennsylvania Quaker folk artist Edward Hicks (1780 – 1849). Time after time Hicks returned to depictions of today’s text from Isaiah. Perhaps when we are younger the focus of our desire for peace is outward. We’re like John the Baptist in today’s Gospel. We want to call one and all to a new way of thinking (installing a new mind!) which is what “repent” really means. Perhaps as we grow older, our expectations shrink and we think that we’d be happy if the members of our family and friends, our work colleagues, our parish or religious community could come to live in peace. Then the words from today’s Epistle of Paul to the Romans become our prayer: “May the God of encouragement grant you to think in harmony with one another.” Wouldn’t that be great? Then perhaps later in life we begin to realize that all along there has been a lion, a leopard and a bear within our own hearts. If we are blessed enough to take long hard looks at these dark parts of ourselves we may then also see that the child promised by the prophets is also deep within our hearts. The child is there already and is yet to come. The child is the Christ-self within us. Once we befriend and care for that child the peaceable kingdom begins to come to reality within us and we begin to move out to those to whom we have been blind and in need of our attention and care. Then others begin to “catch our peace” as though it were a communicative blessing. As far as this happens this Advent and Christmastide the world will have moved a little closer to the peaceable kingdom promised by Isaiah, founded by Christ and being built in the Spirit in and through and among us.
- Fr. Andrew D. Ciferni, O. Praem, is Prior of Daylesford Abbey (Paoli, PA).
Some of the most popular Christmas cards are reproductions of the many images of “The Peaceable Kingdom” painted by the Pennsylvania Quaker folk artist Edward Hicks (1780 – 1849). Time after time Hicks returned to depictions of today’s text from Isaiah. Perhaps when we are younger the focus of our desire for peace is outward. We’re like John the Baptist in today’s Gospel. We want to call one and all to a new way of thinking (installing a new mind!) which is what “repent” really means. Perhaps as we grow older, our expectations shrink and we think that we’d be happy if the members of our family and friends, our work colleagues, our parish or religious community could come to live in peace. Then the words from today’s Epistle of Paul to the Romans become our prayer: “May the God of encouragement grant you to think in harmony with one another.” Wouldn’t that be great? Then perhaps later in life we begin to realize that all along there has been a lion, a leopard and a bear within our own hearts. If we are blessed enough to take long hard looks at these dark parts of ourselves we may then also see that the child promised by the prophets is also deep within our hearts. The child is there already and is yet to come. The child is the Christ-self within us. Once we befriend and care for that child the peaceable kingdom begins to come to reality within us and we begin to move out to those to whom we have been blind and in need of our attention and care. Then others begin to “catch our peace” as though it were a communicative blessing. As far as this happens this Advent and Christmastide the world will have moved a little closer to the peaceable kingdom promised by Isaiah, founded by Christ and being built in the Spirit in and through and among us.
- Fr. Andrew D. Ciferni, O. Praem, is Prior of Daylesford Abbey (Paoli, PA).
04 December 2010
Advent Reflection for Saturday, December 4th
Click here for today's readings.
One Sunday, every time I got in or out of my car, I heard the same warm and engaging voice calling out to me from my satellite radio. Gregory Boyle, a Jesuit priest and author of Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion had definitely caught my attention. When I returned home, I found the interview online. Lately I have found the level of intolerance for anyone seen as “other” both alarming and disturbing. Boyle’s message of the transformative power of God’s unconditional love – apparently for gang members and suburban moms alike – was one that had clearly struck a chord. I bought his book that day.
In today’s Gospel, we hear: “At the sight of the crowds, [Jesus’s] heart was moved with pity for them . . . troubled and abandoned like sheep without a shepherd.” Can’t you just imagine it? Jesus sees His people and before He even reaches them, He feels them and is moved by them. In Tattoos on the Heart, Boyle speaks of Jesus’s compassion being visceral, coming from the very depths of His being. That’s the way I have been feeling lately listening to the news, relating to the pain of the college kid brought to the depths of despair by the cruelty of a roommate or of faithful Muslim Americans being scorned and reviled because of ignorance and bigotry. That’s really the only way to feel compassion, though, isn’t it – from your heart, in your gut?
What to do about these feelings? Jesus has the answer: “Go out to the lost sheep . . . proclaim[ing]: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” Jesus commands me to proclaim that His kingdom is indeed coming. Knowing that He loves me unconditionally – whether I succeed or fail – frees me to work to bring about His kingdom here on earth. That’s The Power of Boundless Compasssion, though, isn’t it – from your heart, in your gut?
What to do about these feelings? Jesus has the answer: “Go out to the lost sheep . . . proclaim[ing]: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” Jesus commands me to proclaim that His kingdom is indeed coming. Knowing that He loves me unconditionally – whether I succeed or fail – frees me to work to bring about His kingdom here on earth. That’s The Power of Boundless Compasssion.
- Erin Dolan is chairwoman of the Center for FaithJustice’s Board of Trustees
One Sunday, every time I got in or out of my car, I heard the same warm and engaging voice calling out to me from my satellite radio. Gregory Boyle, a Jesuit priest and author of Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion had definitely caught my attention. When I returned home, I found the interview online. Lately I have found the level of intolerance for anyone seen as “other” both alarming and disturbing. Boyle’s message of the transformative power of God’s unconditional love – apparently for gang members and suburban moms alike – was one that had clearly struck a chord. I bought his book that day.
In today’s Gospel, we hear: “At the sight of the crowds, [Jesus’s] heart was moved with pity for them . . . troubled and abandoned like sheep without a shepherd.” Can’t you just imagine it? Jesus sees His people and before He even reaches them, He feels them and is moved by them. In Tattoos on the Heart, Boyle speaks of Jesus’s compassion being visceral, coming from the very depths of His being. That’s the way I have been feeling lately listening to the news, relating to the pain of the college kid brought to the depths of despair by the cruelty of a roommate or of faithful Muslim Americans being scorned and reviled because of ignorance and bigotry. That’s really the only way to feel compassion, though, isn’t it – from your heart, in your gut?
What to do about these feelings? Jesus has the answer: “Go out to the lost sheep . . . proclaim[ing]: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” Jesus commands me to proclaim that His kingdom is indeed coming. Knowing that He loves me unconditionally – whether I succeed or fail – frees me to work to bring about His kingdom here on earth. That’s The Power of Boundless Compasssion, though, isn’t it – from your heart, in your gut?
What to do about these feelings? Jesus has the answer: “Go out to the lost sheep . . . proclaim[ing]: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” Jesus commands me to proclaim that His kingdom is indeed coming. Knowing that He loves me unconditionally – whether I succeed or fail – frees me to work to bring about His kingdom here on earth. That’s The Power of Boundless Compasssion.
- Erin Dolan is chairwoman of the Center for FaithJustice’s Board of Trustees
03 December 2010
Advent Reflection for Friday, December 3rd
Click here for today's readings
Upon reading the Scripture for the day, you may notice how flush the readings are with preoccupation on eyesight and hearing. Particularly, eyesight, how one sees (or doesn't), is a theme traced through the readings from Isaiah, Matthew and Psalm 27.
For instance, Isaiah reads, “...and out of gloom and darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see.” The antiphon from the psalm proclaims, “The Lord is my light and my salvation.” The psalmist ardently desires to “...gaze on the loveliness of the Lord,” and he believes that he “shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living.” Finally, the Gospel is a story of two blind men who, though blind, somehow follow Jesus into a house where they are confronted with a question: Do you believe that I can do this?
Jesus, the Messiah, came to shed light on the darkness; the darkness in our lives, in our country, in all of human history. Our country currently suffers from a near 15% poverty rate, a struggling economy, a polarized people, and a toxic culture. Natural disasters have crippled parts of the globe. There is just so much going on, the desire to hide ourselves from this reality is great. It is too much. Often, our culture is good enough at hiding it for us
We all also face our own darkness, our blindness. We all have blind spots. We may not be physically blind, but can be blind to the truth. We all pray for liberation, and want to be part of the freedom of the sons and daughters of God. We are told that the Kingdom is here among us, but then why all this darkness?
Do we believe that Jesus can do this? Do we truly wish to see? These readings should give us hope. As Christians, we are leaven for the world, salt of the earth. Sometimes we don't wish to see, or we turn a blind eye to the problems at our doorstep. Jesus seems to be asking, “I'm ready to heal you (and the world) and am in fact healing you; but, are you ready to see?”
Ask yourself today, and often, what this means for you
- Joel Yablunsky is a former FaithJustice Fellowship volunteer and LeaderworX alumnus.
Upon reading the Scripture for the day, you may notice how flush the readings are with preoccupation on eyesight and hearing. Particularly, eyesight, how one sees (or doesn't), is a theme traced through the readings from Isaiah, Matthew and Psalm 27.
For instance, Isaiah reads, “...and out of gloom and darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see.” The antiphon from the psalm proclaims, “The Lord is my light and my salvation.” The psalmist ardently desires to “...gaze on the loveliness of the Lord,” and he believes that he “shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living.” Finally, the Gospel is a story of two blind men who, though blind, somehow follow Jesus into a house where they are confronted with a question: Do you believe that I can do this?
Jesus, the Messiah, came to shed light on the darkness; the darkness in our lives, in our country, in all of human history. Our country currently suffers from a near 15% poverty rate, a struggling economy, a polarized people, and a toxic culture. Natural disasters have crippled parts of the globe. There is just so much going on, the desire to hide ourselves from this reality is great. It is too much. Often, our culture is good enough at hiding it for us
We all also face our own darkness, our blindness. We all have blind spots. We may not be physically blind, but can be blind to the truth. We all pray for liberation, and want to be part of the freedom of the sons and daughters of God. We are told that the Kingdom is here among us, but then why all this darkness?
Do we believe that Jesus can do this? Do we truly wish to see? These readings should give us hope. As Christians, we are leaven for the world, salt of the earth. Sometimes we don't wish to see, or we turn a blind eye to the problems at our doorstep. Jesus seems to be asking, “I'm ready to heal you (and the world) and am in fact healing you; but, are you ready to see?”
Ask yourself today, and often, what this means for you
- Joel Yablunsky is a former FaithJustice Fellowship volunteer and LeaderworX alumnus.
02 December 2010
Advent Reflection for Thursday, December 2nd
Click here for today's readings
Asher Brown, age 13. Seth Walsh, age 13. Tyler Clementi, age 18. Young men who took their lives rather than face what our society had in store for them as homosexuals. Instead of working to curb intolerance and bullying, there are some who claim that school anti-bullying programs that advocate tolerance are part of the “gay agenda,” and therefore should be tossed out.
Yet Jesus, who holds out his arms to love us on the cross, demonstrates love of all. He tells us that just saying, “Lord, Lord” will not get us into the Kingdom of Heaven. Nor will it build the Reign of God. It is in the listening and acting on his words that we build a firm foundation. Theologian Richard Rohr says, “Jesus’ concept of the Reign of God is totally positive – not fear based or against any individual, group, sin or problem.” The strongest house is the one that is built on love, acceptance, respect and justice. Jesus embodies these building blocks. He died so we can be free to live them. So, in this prayerful Advent season, let us remember and pray for all of God’s children: the bullies and the bullied, the troubled and the troublers, the questioners and the questioned. Let us watch and wait as the Incarnate Word, Emmanuel, God-with-us, Jesus, arrives on the scene to show us how to build. Then let us continue to work to build a world in which we all can live in God’s peace.
- Christine Barranco is a pastoral associate at the Church of St. Ann (Lawrenceville, NJ).
Asher Brown, age 13. Seth Walsh, age 13. Tyler Clementi, age 18. Young men who took their lives rather than face what our society had in store for them as homosexuals. Instead of working to curb intolerance and bullying, there are some who claim that school anti-bullying programs that advocate tolerance are part of the “gay agenda,” and therefore should be tossed out.
Yet Jesus, who holds out his arms to love us on the cross, demonstrates love of all. He tells us that just saying, “Lord, Lord” will not get us into the Kingdom of Heaven. Nor will it build the Reign of God. It is in the listening and acting on his words that we build a firm foundation. Theologian Richard Rohr says, “Jesus’ concept of the Reign of God is totally positive – not fear based or against any individual, group, sin or problem.” The strongest house is the one that is built on love, acceptance, respect and justice. Jesus embodies these building blocks. He died so we can be free to live them. So, in this prayerful Advent season, let us remember and pray for all of God’s children: the bullies and the bullied, the troubled and the troublers, the questioners and the questioned. Let us watch and wait as the Incarnate Word, Emmanuel, God-with-us, Jesus, arrives on the scene to show us how to build. Then let us continue to work to build a world in which we all can live in God’s peace.
- Christine Barranco is a pastoral associate at the Church of St. Ann (Lawrenceville, NJ).
01 December 2010
Advent Reflection for Wednesday, December 1st
Click here for today's readings.
As I reflect on the readings of today, I am moved to joy and wonder concerning our Lord’s superabundant love for us. The Creator of the Universe is inviting me to his table and feast and anointing me with oil. The King of Kings wants to stand by my side and wipe tears from my face. The Lord, who is made of love, loves me, a sinner, who is not deserving of this immense generosity that is truly beyond my understanding. But for some reason, the Lord loves me.
During this season of Advent, I cannot help but be in awe. I can only describe the love our God has for us as incomprehensible or indescribable. In “A Sky Full of Children,” Madeleine L’Engle explains: “Don’t try to explain the Incarnation to me! It is further from being explainable than the furthest star in the furthest galaxy. It is love, God’s limitless love enfleshing that love into the form of a human being, Jesus, the Christ, fully human and fully divine.”
- Mike Gomez is a member of the Center for FaithJustice’s Board of Trustees.
As I reflect on the readings of today, I am moved to joy and wonder concerning our Lord’s superabundant love for us. The Creator of the Universe is inviting me to his table and feast and anointing me with oil. The King of Kings wants to stand by my side and wipe tears from my face. The Lord, who is made of love, loves me, a sinner, who is not deserving of this immense generosity that is truly beyond my understanding. But for some reason, the Lord loves me.
During this season of Advent, I cannot help but be in awe. I can only describe the love our God has for us as incomprehensible or indescribable. In “A Sky Full of Children,” Madeleine L’Engle explains: “Don’t try to explain the Incarnation to me! It is further from being explainable than the furthest star in the furthest galaxy. It is love, God’s limitless love enfleshing that love into the form of a human being, Jesus, the Christ, fully human and fully divine.”
- Mike Gomez is a member of the Center for FaithJustice’s Board of Trustees.
30 November 2010
Advent Reflection for Tuesday, November 30th
Click here for today's readings.
- Erin Jones is the youth minister at St. Bartholomew’s Church (East Brunswick, NJ).
We must remember as it is written in Scripture: “No one who believes in him will be put to shame. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!” As we celebrate the feast of St. Andrew today, we must remember that we are all called to be disciples of Christ. In being a disciple of Christ, we must walk each day professing that He is Lord and Savior. This is not only done with our tongue, but in the way we live. We must live our faith each and every day not only for ourselves but for those we come in contact with. Please ask yourself, “Am I living out my faith and giving thanks for the gifts God has bestowed upon me through service to others? Am I constantly striving to bring peace to the world through prayer and action? Do I work for justice on behalf of those less fortunate and marginalized?”
As we prepare to celebrate the coming of our Messiah into the world let us pray that we live for Him in our daily lives through giving of our time, talent and treasure on His behalf.
- Erin Jones is the youth minister at St. Bartholomew’s Church (East Brunswick, NJ).
29 November 2010
Advent Reflection for Monday, November 29th
A few days ago, I was walking through the mall and I saw a guy wearing a plain black T-shirt that said, “Stereotypes are a real time saver.” As someone who can easily laugh at his own cultural foibles, my initial response was to smile.
No matter how evolved and righteous we may think we have become, who among us at some point in time hasn’t sought to label another? Stereotyping is part of our DNA. While there are positive stereotypes – for example, we teach small children that policemen are good – all too often we engage in the not-so-kind classification of people. For some of us, it’s skin color, cultural heritage or age, while for others it may be social status, the car that they drive, the length or color of their hair, body piercing, tattoos or sexual orientation. Even our business culture pounds this into our subconscious through not-so-subliminal advertising. “Buy this DVD and You Too Can Have Buns of Steel!” As if people with “buns of steel” are better than the rest of us.
Jesus, being both fully human and fully divine, all too well understood the folly of humanity. He immediately acknowledged the faith of the Roman soldier, a person outside the normal circle of His followers. He remarked to those following him (from Israel), “In no one in Israel have I found such faith.” In other words, “It’s not all about you guys … all people of faith are welcome at my table.” That means everybody!
In these early days of Advent, as we prepare ourselves for His coming, I see this as a well-timed opportunity to mindfully shed negative stereotypes. This is a time when, as people of faith, we should embrace our diversity, knowing that God welcomes all the faithful to His table. It is up to each and every one of us to be the Body of Christ, now and throughout the coming year.
-Rocky Balsamo is a member of the Center for FaithJustice’s Board of Trustees
28 November 2010
Advent Reflection for Sunday, November 28th
Therefore, stay awake!
For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.
Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night
when the thief was coming,
he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into.
So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.
Mt 27:42-44
I don’t like waiting, and I seem to have a lot of company. We are a society that wants everything now: fast food, instant messaging, express lanes. In short, we hate to wait. Yet, in the words of the Rev. Dr. P.C. Enniss, “Our lives are inevitably shaped by those for whom we wait.”
The most profound experience of waiting I’ve ever had was the 9 months I carried my first child inside my womb. At first the days sped by, but by the third trimester, the progress of days and centimeters slowed to an excruciating pace. I was uncomfortable and a little afraid of labor, but more than anything, I was anxious to become a mother. I longed to hold my child, feed her, bathe her, sing to her. Yet in the months of carrying her inside me, I had already begun to nurture and protect her, choosing healthy foods and avoiding alcohol and caffeine. I had already grown to love her deeply. In the 9 months of waiting for this child to be born, before I ever held her or saw her face, I had already become her mother.
In Advent, as we await the coming of Jesus Christ, we long for the Kingdom of God. Isaiah tells us that “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; one nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again.” In our world so filled with the suffering of innocent victims of war, disease, poverty, discrimination, and slavery, we long for Christ to come again and restore our world to balance and all people to wholeness. Yet, our lives are inevitably shaped by those for whom we wait. The theologian Paul Tillich wrote, "Although waiting is not having, it is also having. The fact that we wait for something shows that in some way we already possess it." As we await the coming of the Christ and long for His return, we become the Kingdom of God on earth.
- Mary Vanderhoof is a member of the Center for FaithJustice’s Board of Trustees.
27 November 2010
Advent 2010 - Daily Reflections
On behalf of the staff and board of the Center for FaithJustice, welcome to our Advent Reflection Guide! We have asked a number of wonderful people to offer a brief reflection on the daily readings. I must admit, I am both impressed and inspired by the reflections to follow over the coming weeks. I think you will be too! My hope is that we, as an extended community, might take a few minutes each day of Advent to pray with the readings and meditate on the reflection. In doing so, together preparing for the Incarnation, we share an experience that binds us as a community of faith.
It is true that the Center for FaithJustice requires the support of a great many people to continue our work. There is, however, a deeper reality, rooted in our mission. More than any programming goals, we seek to build a broad community marked by love and friendship, a “place” where all are welcome, to foster a commitment to a faith that strives for justice and serves those in need. CFJ is comprised of people from diverse walks of life, but we believe that God is calling each and every one of us.
As we journey together this Advent, let us open our arms to those for whom this time of year is marked by loneliness or despair. Likewise, let us open our hearts to those who, in this season of overconsumption, lack even the most basic of needs (much less the means for elaborate gifts). This guide is dedicated to all those who support CFJ through their time, talent and treasure. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do. Be assured you are remembered in our weekly prayer and that our door is always open to you, your family, and to anyone those seeking a community of faith that does justice. Your support is appreciated, your friendship sustains us. You are, for us, a sign of hope, a revelation of God at work in the world. For that, we are eternally grateful.
Peace on your journey,
Sean Patrick Sanford
Executive Director
It is true that the Center for FaithJustice requires the support of a great many people to continue our work. There is, however, a deeper reality, rooted in our mission. More than any programming goals, we seek to build a broad community marked by love and friendship, a “place” where all are welcome, to foster a commitment to a faith that strives for justice and serves those in need. CFJ is comprised of people from diverse walks of life, but we believe that God is calling each and every one of us.
As we journey together this Advent, let us open our arms to those for whom this time of year is marked by loneliness or despair. Likewise, let us open our hearts to those who, in this season of overconsumption, lack even the most basic of needs (much less the means for elaborate gifts). This guide is dedicated to all those who support CFJ through their time, talent and treasure. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do. Be assured you are remembered in our weekly prayer and that our door is always open to you, your family, and to anyone those seeking a community of faith that does justice. Your support is appreciated, your friendship sustains us. You are, for us, a sign of hope, a revelation of God at work in the world. For that, we are eternally grateful.
Peace on your journey,
Sean Patrick Sanford
Executive Director
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