We find ourselves living in a time where there is a stark rise in not only anti-Semitism but in racism and bigotry of all stripes. There has been an astonishing rise in anti-immigrant and migrant sentiment not only here in the US but around the world. People of color, immigrants, Jews, Muslims, members of the LGBTQ community, women are all feeling less and less safe in their own communities because of the rise in violent acts against them continues to increase. Most of these acts of violence are perpetrated by individuals who are usually in some way associated with the Christian community.

This weekend we also begin Black History Month and celebrate The National Day of Prayer for the African American Family, and so today we have the opportunity to reflect on the reality of the Jewishness of Jesus, Mary and Joseph and that we are part of the Judeo-Christian religious tradition. We need to reflect on the reality that Jesus taught his disciples to cross borders, to reach out to others who were different from themselves…to be willing to let go of the stereotypes of the past, like that of the Samaritans, and to see other people as sisters and brothers, as beloved children of God, worthy of our love, worthy of being treated with dignity and respect. How am I being called to be part of the solution to these social evils that are tear-ing at the very fabric of our nation? What can I do to help make the marginalized and targeted feel safer, what borders am I being called to cross to bring about change, however small it might be?

Blessings,
Fr. Tim

John the Baptist is once again at the center of our Gospel reading this weekend. He has moved from shouting “prepare the way of the Lord” to “behold the Lamb of God!”, then he admits that he did not, at first, recognize Jesus as “the Lamb of God”. And remember too that in the Gospel of Luke, after his arrest he sends two disciples to ask Jesus, “are you the one who is to come or are we to wait for another?” There seems to be a certain amount of ambiguity as to John’s understanding of who Jesus really is.

​What is clear is that all of this happened in a particular time in a particular place to real people who actually knew this one called Jesus. God came to us, “Emmanuel”, and it all points to the need for us to be constantly looking for the way in which God continues to come to us and is present in every moment of our day, of our life. Much like the Magi we heard of on the Feast of the Epiphany, they saw the star, they looked up at the same night sky as all the rest of the people of the earth but they were the ones who “saw” because they expected to see something…their hearts were open to God, they expected God to be present in their lives. John the Baptist expected the Messiah to come and so he recognized him when at last he came.

Like John and like the Magi we have to look, expecting to see, expecting to find God present in the midst of our daily lives. Like them we too then will see, with expectant eyes, God’s amazing presence in the most surprising of places and moments of our everyday lives, even, or perhaps most especially in the broken moments of our lives too. Where did I last glimpse God’s presence in my life? Did I stop to savor it, or to share it with someone else?

God’s Blessings,
Fr. Tim

The Christmas Season officially comes to a close with the celebration of the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. In the Jewish tradition water was seen as purifying and healing but John brings to the waters of baptism the concept of baptism as “an act of repentance” and thus Jesus, in choosing to be baptized by John, identifies himself with the sinfulness of humanity when he accepts this “baptism of repentance”. And it is in this very human act of Jesus humbling himself in repentance that his divinity is exposed. It is in this moment that Jesus hears the voice of God say you are my beloved child in whom I am well pleased!

Who among us doesn’t long to hear those words…to be proclaimed “my beloved…in whom I am well pleased”? And the fact of the matter is, that we are at our truest selves, the “beloved of God”. And yet we struggle with accepting that identity, perhaps because we feel unworthy, too broken or too unimportant in the scheme of things to truly be “the beloved of God”. We live our lives based on who we think we are, we make decisions and choose to do or not to do, based on who and how we identify ourselves in relation to the world around us. So coming to embrace the reality that you are the “beloved of God” greatly impacts your life. It is in and through our identity as the “beloved of God” that we become “grace” to the world around us. In accepting this identity we are transformed and all our relationships are transformed as well. When we begin to live out of the identity of being the “beloved of God” we begin to see the world differently and we begin to act toward ourselves and others differently…with less judgment, less selfishness and with more mercy. We begin to live with more openness to self and others and we become filled with more gratitude and generosity. Embracing that we are the “beloved of God” changes not only how we see ourselves and how we see others but changes what we give value to in life and what we believe to be important or unimportant in life…what we are willing to live for and what we are willing to die for. Standing in that place of grace, being the “beloved of God” changes everything!

Do I accept my true identify as God’s beloved child? What self-image might I have to let go of to more fully accept being the “beloved of God”…how might it change my life? May each of us pray for the grace to accept our truest identity, a beloved child of God?

Blessings to you all in the New Year,
Fr. Tim

The word epiphany comes from the Greek; meaning to “appear”…or to be “revealed”. In some cultures the feast of Epiphany is referred to as “Little Christmas” or “the Feast of the Three Kings”, and is the day of exchanging gifts with friends and loved ones. Regardless of what we call it, it is a day on which we tell the story of the arrival of the magi, or the three kings, who have come from afar to see the newborn king and to offer gifts.

Epiphany is a time of celebrating the acknowledgement of “a new beginning”…a time to celebrate the Reign of God bursting forth in the midst of creation! For sure we dwell for a while on the visit of the magi and the wonder of their journey…led by only a star that shown brightly in the deepest of the night sky. It is a time of wonder and awe…a time to allow ourselves to enter into the story and reflect on our own journey…our spiritual journey. For the magi the signs were in the heavens…a star that led them to Bethlehem, to a shabby little stable…where our God came among us as one of us. Perhaps the magi’s real wisdom was that they knew that they didn’t know everything… they valued learning, they looked for signs, they paid attention to dreams…they expected God to talk to them… they believed that they encountered God in their daily lives.

Ultimately the story of the magi is a story of encounter, an encounter of the greatest kind…an encounter with God. Am I open to “following a star”…to paying attention to the signs of God’s presence in my daily life? Where do I encounter God in the ordinary routine of my daily life, even in the midst of all the chaos of our national and international life? The magi came bearing gifts…what gift of self might I offer to God and others? Do I see and accept the gifts of those coming from foreign lands, like the magi who came from afar to honor the birth of Jesus?

I pray you all a most happy and blessed New Year!

Fr Tim