Today's Gospel invites us to "rest in Jesus"…to turn our burdens over to Jesus and allow the power of the Holy Spirit, dwelling within us, to empower us to push on, ever forward, knowing that we do so not alone, but filled with the presence of the very one who created us and loved us into being.
Jesus does not dismiss the burdens of life. On the contrary, Jesus recognizes just how heavy they are and, in the midst of the struggles of our lives, he assures us to be with us and help us.
We are not asked to set our burdens down at the door of the church as we enter…but rather we are invited to bring them to the altar and place them side by side with the bread and wine which we offer to be blessed and broken, transformed and shared.
This Jesus, the Christ, knows firsthand of our human burdens and understands our suffering. We need not fear that our God does not understand, or does not care. The message of all of Jesus' preaching and teaching was the exact opposite: our God knows us and loves us deeply and passionately and walks with us in the midst of our sufferings. Our God weeps with us when we weep and suffers with us when we suffer.
And as the Body of Christ, we are invited to reach out to others whose burdens and pain overwhelm them…to be the living compassion of Christ to them…to help carry their burdens and to walk with them in the midst of their suffering. As Pope Francis said, to "be a sign of mercy."…a living sign of mercy.
Welcoming the stranger, the immigrant, the one who is "other," is an authentic living out of our discipleship…it incarnates the Gospel in the midst of our community. For so many among us and around us right now, that welcome is not an notion or an abstraction. It is the difference between a family that can bring its burden to the altar in peace, and a family that carries its burden alone, in fear, afraid even to be seen. Our own bishops have said as much in recent months, reminding us that whatever a person's circumstance, the thought of families held and separated and detained in fear "should challenge the conscience of every American." That is not a political statement…it is a Gospel statement!
Ironically in our reaching out to others, often our burdens are lightened, our wounds begin to heal and we become more and more the living Body of Christ. We become the face of the mercy of God.
Let us ask ourselves…do I have burdens or old wounds that I am holding on to and not giving over to Jesus, that getting rid of might allow me to be more available to my sisters and brothers in need? Whose burden or pain am I being called to help carry, and how might I do that? Is there someone among us right now -- an immigrant neighbor, or a family stripped of support and safety by recent government cuts to public aid programs like “SNAP” whose fear and hunger I have not noticed? How might I become the face of mercy, in a concrete way, to those who are suffering, and thus live out more fully my discipleship of Jesus Christ?
Blessings,
Fr Tim
Jesus does not dismiss the burdens of life. On the contrary, Jesus recognizes just how heavy they are and, in the midst of the struggles of our lives, he assures us to be with us and help us.
We are not asked to set our burdens down at the door of the church as we enter…but rather we are invited to bring them to the altar and place them side by side with the bread and wine which we offer to be blessed and broken, transformed and shared.
This Jesus, the Christ, knows firsthand of our human burdens and understands our suffering. We need not fear that our God does not understand, or does not care. The message of all of Jesus' preaching and teaching was the exact opposite: our God knows us and loves us deeply and passionately and walks with us in the midst of our sufferings. Our God weeps with us when we weep and suffers with us when we suffer.
And as the Body of Christ, we are invited to reach out to others whose burdens and pain overwhelm them…to be the living compassion of Christ to them…to help carry their burdens and to walk with them in the midst of their suffering. As Pope Francis said, to "be a sign of mercy."…a living sign of mercy.
Welcoming the stranger, the immigrant, the one who is "other," is an authentic living out of our discipleship…it incarnates the Gospel in the midst of our community. For so many among us and around us right now, that welcome is not an notion or an abstraction. It is the difference between a family that can bring its burden to the altar in peace, and a family that carries its burden alone, in fear, afraid even to be seen. Our own bishops have said as much in recent months, reminding us that whatever a person's circumstance, the thought of families held and separated and detained in fear "should challenge the conscience of every American." That is not a political statement…it is a Gospel statement!
Ironically in our reaching out to others, often our burdens are lightened, our wounds begin to heal and we become more and more the living Body of Christ. We become the face of the mercy of God.
Let us ask ourselves…do I have burdens or old wounds that I am holding on to and not giving over to Jesus, that getting rid of might allow me to be more available to my sisters and brothers in need? Whose burden or pain am I being called to help carry, and how might I do that? Is there someone among us right now -- an immigrant neighbor, or a family stripped of support and safety by recent government cuts to public aid programs like “SNAP” whose fear and hunger I have not noticed? How might I become the face of mercy, in a concrete way, to those who are suffering, and thus live out more fully my discipleship of Jesus Christ?
Blessings,
Fr Tim
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