I Will Place My Law within Them

“I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jer. 31:33). So the Lord spoke to the prophet Jeremiah.

God is speaking to His people, assuring them that He Himself is their teacher. All of us who are taught by God are taught to love one another by the mere fact that God is writing His Word upon our hearts. By means of this implanted Word, we discover the path to newness of life.

As God promised to His Chosen People, He now speaks intimately to each of us, calling us by name; not just any name, but a name known only between us as intimate friends.

The life of faith is not a recital of rules and regulations. The life of faith is entering into an embrace of love that brings us into communion with the Persons of the Trinity. In that embrace, we come to know that we are loved and forgiven.

In this knowledge, we will become Ambassadors of healing and reconciliation for a world scarred with violence and sin. This pardoning mercy flows from the pierced heart of Christ and is freely given to us to be shared with all who are in need of forgiveness.

Having been conformed to Christ in baptism, it is not out job to condemn sinners but to call them back to fullness of life and grace.

The mystery of grace is not that we seek to know God, but rather that we come to realize that we are known by Him.

Acknowledging this love, we can love others with the same all-consuming love. In a world that continues to seek retribution and to fan the flames of hatred, such love is absolutely revolutionary.

The message will not be written on banners or placards, but shall be etched upon the tablets of our hearts. When God pours forth His Spirit upon us, we will not burn the cities of man, but will be consumed by the fire of divine love.

I will close with a few words of Pope Francis, spoken at the prayer vigil in Krakow: “This is no time for denouncing anyone or fighting. We do not want to tear down, we do not want to give insult. We have no desire to conquer hatred with more hatred, violence with more violence, terror with more terror. We are here today because the Lord has called us together. Our response to a world at war has a name: its name is fraternity, its name is brotherhood, its name is communion, and its name is family... Let our best word, our best argument, be our unity in prayer.”

--Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Fidelity to God/Love for People

It is important to keep in mind that the Pharisees were morally upright and religiously observant people. They were a reform group that was intent upon sanctifying the world by restoring Jewish life to its original purity. They firmly believed that they could bring about Messianic redemption if they could convince everyone to observe the dictates of the Law. They worked tirelessly to unify all the Chosen People in their fidelity to the God Who called them. This being said, why do the Gospels usually present the Pharisees in a negative light?

The comments Pope Francis made to the members of the Curia before Christmas may help us work towards an answer to this question: “We are therefore required... to live ‘speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love’.” At the core of fidelity to the covenant must be the love of God and the people He loves. The Pharisees replaced the love of God with slavish compliance with tenants of the Law.

Like the Pharisees of old, we get into trouble when we obsess on the minor details of ritual devotion and cease to be single-heartedly devoted to the God Who loves us. What starts as a desire for religious piety gradually evolves into self-righteous and hypocritical formalism. The Pharisees provided a great service in teaching and preserving the word of God. How tragic that they were not able to let go of their preconceptions and embrace their Messiah when He came to them! Even though they saw Him, they did not recognize Him. Even though they heard His voice, they did not listen.

Our faith tells us that God has perfect knowledge of us and loves us. As people of faith, all our thoughts and actions are laid open before him. Because God is personal and relational, it is important that we meditate on Divine truths, applying them to our own cases, and that we ponder them with hearts in prayer. In a few months the Synod on the family will meet in Rome. It’s too early to predict the results of that meeting. Are we willing to grapple with the possibilities should the Synod propose solutions to so many difficulties and innumerable challenges that families must confront; to give answers to the many discouragements that surround and suffocate families that some might consider unacceptable – pastoral practices that when dealing with the Pharisees Jesus called “your own traditions”.

Are we willing to confront the temptation to hostile inflexibility, that is, wanting to close oneself within the written word, (the letter) and not allowing oneself to be surprised by God, by the God of surprises, (the Spirit); within the law, within the certitude of what we know and not of what we still need to learn and to achieve. St Augustine, in his Commentary on the Gospel of St John, says: ‘let it therefore be a commitment of love to feed the flock of the Lord’ (cf. 123, 5); this is the supreme rule of conduct for the ministers of God, an unconditional love, like that of the Good Shepherd, full of joy, given to all, attentive to those close to us and solicitous for those who are distant (cf. St Augustine, Discourse 340, 1; Discourse 46, 15), gentle towards the weakest, the little ones, the simple, the sinners, to manifest the infinite mercy of God with the reassuring words of hope (cf. ibid., Epistle, 95, 1).” May we all hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church.

--Fr. Jerome Machar, OSCO

The Church: Family of God

Throughout the history of the People of God, it was essential that fathers passed on to their sons the memory of the deeds of the Lord. Family rituals were established to guarantee the transmission of the significant events in the people's history. The family was the center of social and religious life. The family table was a place to find refreshing drink when you were thirsty, tasty morsels when you were hungry, and a compassionate ear when you needed to sort things out. The family was the core element of society and the glue that help society together. But something went terribly wrong along the way. Men and women forgot that they were created in the image and likeness of God and no longer sought to stroll with Him in the cool of the day. No longer living in communion with God, men and women ceased to see each other as helpmates, or lifesavers in their daily tasks. They became more and more alienated from each other and saw no need to repair the breech. The hearth stopped functioning as the heart of the home and the table stopped being the gathering place of the family.

During the advent season we are reminded that through the mystery of the Incarnation God is doing something new. We have only to recall these words from the Book of Revelation. “Behold, I am making everything new” (Rev. 21:5). He is taking the work of human hands into His hands and recreating it. He is using the fruit of the mutual self-gift of Elizabeth and Zachary as the herald of Emanuel. Through the birth of the son, the voice is returned to the silent father. The family is once again established as a place of joy and celebration of the works of God. Recognizing the reign of God and restoring mankind’s relationship with Him is the starting point, foundation and ultimate goal of the restoration of all things in our lives and in our world. Healing our broken relationship with God is the foundation for healing our broken relationships with the world. The Word became Flesh and dwelled among us because a world without God can never be whole.

As we strive to renew our lives in Christ we will find grace to reestablish our relationships with one another. Let the words with which Pope Francis closed the Synod close these reflections. “And this is the Church, the vineyard of the Lord, the fertile Mother and the caring Teacher, who is not afraid to roll up her sleeves to pour oil and wine on people’s wound; who doesn’t see humanity as a house of glass to judge or categorize people. This is the Church, One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic and composed of sinners, needful of God’s mercy. This is the Church, the true bride of Christ, who seeks to be faithful to her spouse and to her doctrine. It is the Church that is not afraid to eat and drink with prostitutes and publicans. The Church that has the doors wide open to receive the needy, the penitent, and not only the just or those who believe they are perfect! The Church that is not ashamed of the fallen brother and pretends not to see him, but on the contrary feels involved and almost obliged to lift him up and to encourage him to take up the journey again and accompany him toward a definitive encounter with her Spouse, in the heavenly Jerusalem.”

--Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Here Are My Mother and My Brothers - Whoever Does the Will of God Is My Brother and Sister and Mother

January 28, 2014

Tuesday of 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas

2 Samuel 6: 12b-15, 17-19

Mark 3: 31-35

The Family of the Virgin by Martin de Vos (1593) Painting on Wood

“Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother (Mk. 3: 34-35)”.

This passage never ceases to challenge preachers. On the surface, Jesus appears to be repudiating His family. But, if we were to pause and ponder the passage for a moment, we would see that Jesus is attempting to move His hearers beyond the level of mere blood relationship to a spiritual one. He is expanding upon the concept of being created in the “image and likeness of God” our heavenly Father. In this context, we come to see the fraternal relationship within the Kingdom of the Father as a gift from God.

The Father was made known by the Son Whom Saint John the Evangelist describes as being “close to the Father’s heart” (Cf. Jn. 1:18). Because we are members of the Family of God, we find ourselves close to the heart of Christ.

We access the heart of Christ by “hearing the word of God and observing it” (Cf. Lk 11: 28). In this hearing and observing, we come to surrender our lives and will to the love and care of God. Taken in this light, Jesus is actually honoring His mother when you consider how she pondered the actions of God in her heart and surrendered herself totally to the divine will as it was revealed to her by the message of the angel Gabriel.

Jesus is challenging us to surrender to God's love for us and to place ourselves at the service of all whom He loves. The Church offers us a wonderful example of this act of abandonment in today’s first reading, where David danced before the Lord (Cf. 2 Sam. 6:14). David was filled joy at the nearness of the God of Israel. He could not control his exaltation. The king did in the midst of the people of Israel what John the Baptist did in the seclusion of Elizabeth’s womb. Rediscovering the joy of his youth, David danced, leaped and sang the praises of God.

In the presence of a loving God, David was set free from any slavish fear that had possessed him. The knowledge that he was under the watchful eye of the Almighty caused  him to be filled with a new hope that comes from being the object of divine blessing. Like David, we find ourselves in the presence of the Heavenly King Who tells us that by hearing His Word and pondering it in our hearts; we are united to Him by a bond closer than family lineage. It is in Him that we truly find ourselves. We are called to live authentically and consistently, loving and serving others as we have been loved and served. It is important that we show mercy and compassion to all those whom God loves, especially the poor, the sick and the marginalized.

Faith is a gift of grace. God Who is love, makes His dwelling within us and empowers those who accept Him to live in love--love of Him and love of others. This abiding in Christ and Christ in us is manifested to the world when we show love for one another. Love is the fruit of faith at the service of the Kingdom.

Love is the means whereby faith manifests its energy and power to transform not only the individual, but also the whole world. Loving compassion is the means whereby faith is activated and energized.

As believers we place ourselves at the service of those who suffer from despair at the lack of meaning of life, drug addiction, fear of abandonment in old age or sickness, marginalization or social discrimination. As believers we strive to build a world that respects human life and fosters personal growth and development.

Blessed John Paul II wrote: “God created man in his own image and likeness (cf. Gen 1:26, 27): calling him to existence through love, he called him at the same time for love. God is love (cf. 1 Jn 4:8) and in himself he lives a mystery of personal loving communion. Creating the human race in his own image and continually keeping it in being, God inscribed in the humanity of man and woman the vocation, and thus the capacity and responsibility, of love and communion. Love is therefore the fundamental and innate vocation of every human being” (Familiaris Consortio, 11).

Father Jerome Machar, OSCO