Easy to Criticize

~~~ Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola ~~~

~~~ Leviticus 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34B-37 ~~~ Psalm 81 ~~~

~~~ Matthew 13:54-58 ~~~

Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?

If  you are honest, who do you find yourself criticizing the most?

Is it not those you know the best?

It is much easier to criticize what you know

 than what is foreign or unfamiliar.

Jesus had returned to his home town.

These people knew who he was.

They knew his father and mother.

They knew the family business in which he had apprenticed.

None of what they knew about Jesus gave him 

any authority to speak of such holy topics.

None of what they knew about Jesus gave him any more

 insight into scripture than the temple high priest.

So why should they listen to him?

You may have found yourself in a similar situation.

Even if you are trying to give a family member

 information for their benefit they are resistant.

They ask who you think you are

 trying to tell them what they should be doing.

They do not want to believe you.

In most cases you will stop sharing with these people.

You come to realize that whatever you say will just be dismissed.

Jesus finds himself in the exact situation.

He was doing the will of the Father, 

but even that did not protect him from criticism and rejection.

 ...he did not work many mighty deeds there

because of their lack of faith.

Jesus does not try to argue with those who were critical,

those who rejected him.

Jesus simply does not work 

any more miracles among them.

Jesus basically had to control himself ;

his natural instinct was to teach 

and heal as many people as possible.

Jesus never forces faith upon anyone...not even those he loves.

Jesus may have been excited when he began to teach

 in the synagogue where he grew up,

but this was replaced with criticism.

His extended family would have the chance

 to come and hear teach in their official place of worship.

His mother and father could come listen tho their son.

It would have brought them great joy.

This open rejection of Jesus hurt them too.

The next time you catch yourself criticizing pause for a moment...

ask yourself, Why am I critical of this person.

The better you know someone the easier it is to be critical of them.

Jesus criticized their lack of faith.

But was it really a criticism or was he pointing out the truth?

The people of his town were resistant 

to listening to who they thought they knew.

He was one of them.

Why was he speaking in such a radical way?

They wanted Jesus to be just like them.

Jesus came to bring about change...big change.

Jesus came to turn the old beliefs into something better.

Are you stuck with the old?

Are you quick to criticize those you know best?

Are you being criticized by those who know you best?

We are Blessed to have Jesus who understands...

he has been criticized by those in his own hometown.

Saint Ignatius, pray for us.

"Act as if everything depended on you; trust 

as if everything depended on God."

~~~Peace~~~ 

Rejection Reality

~~~Saint Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church ~~~
~~~  Job 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23 ~~~ Psalm 88 ~~~ Luke 9:51-56 ~~~

Let my prayer come before you, Lord.

There are times when each of us can say we have felt rejected.
Maybe it was within your family. Maybe it was
 in your neighborhood or in the work place.
Rejection cuts to the core in many ways.
Perhaps you have received the dreaded job rejection letter...
you just don't quite measure up to their requirements.

Maybe you were passed over for a promotion.
Maybe your were not invited to a special gathering.
Maybe you were invited only to find out
you were seated with the 'casual' acquaintances not the close friends.
Sometimes we make up reasons for feeling rejected that are far from the truth.

Job was feeling rejected. It is evident in much of his writing.
Job does not even know why he was allowed to be born.

Why did I not perish at birth,
come forth from the womb and expire?

Rejection affects the person in much the same
way as physical pain does...
no wonder it makes you feel so bad.
For some reason the brain can remember
the pain of rejection more vividly than physical pain.
Just ask any woman who has given birth to compare that pain
to the pain of being rejected by their best friend.
The physical pain is soon forgotten while the pain of rejection
will quickly bring forth the same emotional pain.

Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem where he is rejected in Samaria.
Jesus did experience rejection even in his own home town
The disciples wanted to retaliate against the people,
 but Jesus took it all in stride.

One of our basic needs is the need to belong.
Rejection stirs up just the opposite feelings.
The apostles needed to feel like they belonged
 because they were with Jesus.
So when he was rejected they took it personally
explaining why they wanted to strike back.
Rejection is dangerous because it creates
 the perfect environment for anger.

Rejection needs to be faced and not just ignored.
Jesus handled his rejection by moving on
thus protecting his self-esteem.
Jesus did not allow rejection to control his future actions.
Jesus understands when we are faced
 with the emotional pain of rejection.

Come to him with your pain.
Know that he will never reject you no matter what you do...
even if you intentionally reject him.
Blessings from the one who understands best.
~~~Peace~~~

Salvation Steps Out of Rejection

~~~ Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a ~~~ Psalm 105 ~~~ Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46 ~~~

Both readings today foreshadow the death of Jesus.

Joseph and the son of the vineyard owner were both rejected.

Joseph was rejected by his own brothers.

They were jealous of him thinking that he 

was favored by their father.

The son of the vineyard owner 

was likewise rejected by those employed by his father.

They had no respect even for the boss's son.

They saw him as a threat to their share of the profits.

They plotted to give themselves a greater portion 

of the inheritance by killing the primary heir.

There is no coincidence that the church gives 

us these parallel readings today.

Joseph is rescued from the well and eventually is reunited 

with his father and brothers.

For many years they were separated.

Their father, so grief stricken oven the loss of his youngest son,

 was sad and depressed.

The brothers concede to their guilty conscience

 and spare the life of Joseph.

But evil still resided in their heart.

Now they are overcome with greed;

they decide to sell their own brother.

They sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver.

Monetary greed is also the motivating factor

 for the workers in the vineyard.

But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,
‘This is the heir.
Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’

Perhaps what we should be considering is how God always provides.

God arranged for Joseph to be sold into slavery 

so that later he would be in a position to save 

his entire family from starvation.

Rejection is not always the worst possible situation.

Sometimes the one who is initially rejected later

 is found in the key position.

To answer the call of God to be a better person often 

requires us to exercise great self control.

Joseph had to face his brothers again 

knowing how much they wanted him 'out of the way'.

Ultimately he made the choice to forgive in spite of his understanding.

To a certain extent we have all participated in the killing of Jesus.

He, with this knowledge, chose to forgive us.

His forgiveness gave us so much more than bread for the next day.

His love and mercy does more

 than fills our growling stomach.

He wants us to join him in heaven for all eternity.

Jesus was rejected as the corner stone and becomes 

THE most important person of all time.

Most of us have an innate fear of rejection,

but it is not necessarily a negative.

Rejection did not stop Joseph 

and it certainly did not stop Jesus from saving us.

You might say rejection was part of the plan 

from the very beginning.

Without the rejection there may not 

have been a salvation.

We could say...

Rejection led to our Salvation.

Rejection is equal to our Salvation.

Salvation stepped out of Rejection victorious in the end.

Blessed beyond words or feelings.

Blessed even if rejected by loved ones.

Peace.

Shaken...Emptied...Guiltless

 

~~~ Acts of the Apostles 18:1-8 ~~~ Psalm 98 ~~~ John 16:16-20 ~~~

 

While this is traditionally known as Ascension Thursday,

in most areas this feast has been moved to the following Sunday.

On Sunday I will write about the Ascension of Our Lord.

 

When Paul was rejected and opposed he

...shook out his garments...

Shaken and emptied...Paul was symbolically removing these comments and feelings.

Leaving them behind...freeing himself from their negative energy.

 

Those who reject God are in effect shaking him off their hearts.

We are fooling ourselves if we believe that we can keep God out of our lives.

It is more difficult to keep God out of our heart

 than to love his presence within.

 

Paul goes on to tell these non-believers

 that he is no longer responsible for their attitude.

It is their choice to believe or to not believe.

He does not stay and try to give them more convincing arguments...

more reasons to believe.

Paul has another incentive to preach to the Gentiles.

The Jews are more resistant...

The Gentiles are hungry for this refreshing message of love.

Their hearts are emptied of resistance.

They are excited by the words Paul is preaching to them.

They are hopeful that this Jesus person also came to save them.

 

 

Paul tells these potential believers that he is without blame.

He came in good will and they rejected him.

They assume guilt for their own actions.

 

To shake something off of your person requires some effort on your part.

Shaking requires forceful action.

Paul knew he could not carry this rejection forward.

He knew he needed to move on proclaiming what he knew was true.

Paul did not intend to return to this group.

 

Sometimes in our life we let an opportunity pass us by

only later to realize what we missed.

 

In the Acts of the Apostles we see so many, many people hungry

 for the words Paul and the others were delivering.

 

The Easter Blessing for today is to allow the Spirit to guide our hearts

to recognize when the Lord is trying to get our attention.

For who knows if we will get another chance to hear his message later.

Remnant Scraps...Believe

~~~ Jeremiah 31:1-7 ~~~ Psalm ~~~ Matthew 15: 21-28 ~~~

The way Jesus reacts to the Canaanite woman in the gospel today

seems out of character for him.

He has withdrawn to the region Tyre and Sidon.

He withdraws to get away from the crowds and those

who want to be healed.

He just needs to take a break and now this woman is clamoring

for him to cure her tormented daughter.

Even the disciples are irritated by her obnoxious presence.

They strongly suggest that Jesus just send her away.

The region of the Canaanite people is today the Gaza Strip in Israel.

At first Jesus resists her request saying...

"I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

A rather odd response from Jesus...almost an impulsive response.

Typically Jesus had been so inclusive and now he seems to be

excluding this woman.

It so easy to ourselves in this initial reaction...

you're not my kind, so I do not want to have anything to do with you.

It is easy to see prejudices when it is not our own.

Have you ever noticed how that happens?

You see Baal was the god worshipped by the Canaanites. 

God did not have much patience with those who insisted on

worshipping these false idols.

The god, Baal was one in particular God often spoke

against through his prophets.

The Canaanites were among the wealthy peoples;

the Israelites admired them.

Maybe the Canaanites were even envied by others.

Jesus and his disciples thought it would be a waste of their time

to entertain a conversation with this woman.

Even though she may have had material wealth

she could not drive the demons from her daughter.

Somehow she was able to realize that Jesus had more to offer

than her Baal god. So she risks rejection by reaching out to Jesus.

We live in a society today where it is easy to get caught

in the web of materialism.

But this woman manages to escape the materialistic trap.

She perseveres until Jesus finally listens to her.

She did not accept rejection. She had so much more to gain by remaining

there continuing to ask for the pity of Jesus.

This woman, a remnant of Isreal, had found faith

in what she had heard and saw about Jesus.

God chose the Isrealites to be his own and he loved them.

This woman too believes and wants to be seen for her faith.

She wants to be loved by God, if not for herself at least for her daughter.

Even the scraps that fall from the table are eaten by the dogs.

If she were not worthy to dine at the table of the Lord then

at least she could savor what fell to the floor.

Finally Jesus was moved by this woman and healed her daughter.

Then Jesus said to her in reply,
"O woman, great is your faith!
Let it be done for you as you wish."
And her daughter was healed from that hour.

 Once Jesus proclaims healing words there is no wasted time...

it is immediate.

The time we spend in prayer is never wasted.

If you cannot find the right words continue to lift your prayers to God in heaven.

This master, our God, cares even for those who eat the fallen table scraps.

I pray that your faith be as tangible as the faith of the Canaanite woman.

She could have given up and walked away feeling rejected,

but she kept herself present to Jesus.

Rejected at Home

2 Samuel 24: 2, 9-17

Mark 6: 1-6

Through the book of Samuel we continue to witness the life of David. We are privileged to see David with all of his short comings and sinfulness. We see in spite of his poor choices God does not withhold his mercy. David humbly accepts responsibility for his lack of wisdom. Again we see David begging the Lord to only punish him and not the innocent. It is because of David's fears that he orders the census of all males who can enter into battle on his behalf. Pride continues to dominate his life's decision. David is constantly being called to change his heart.

The gospel, however, presents a very different picture.

Mark brings into the scene where Jesus is returning to his home town. Surely by now the news has spread back to his tiny village of all the good he has been doing. But the people can only think of one thing; he was the son of a carpenter. Who does he think he is? They could not accept that anything good could come out of his native town, much less from the son of a carpenter.

Whenever I encounter feelings of rejection I remember this scene where Jesus too felt the sting of rejection. So often it happens that those within your own family cannot accept who you are. I think this is especially true if you have had some personal conversion or significant change of heart. You may even be made fun of or ridiculed for the positive changes you have made in your life.

Jesus was clearly surprised by this reception of rejection. It affected him so profoundly that he was only able to preform minor miracles of healing only a few. When your loved ones do not believe in you it can give rise to feelings self doubt.

Now I am not trying to imply that Jesus was suffering from self doubt, but he did not expect this response from those he had known his whole life. He was so shocked that he comments on their lack of faith...in Mark 6:6 "He was amazed at their lack of faith."

This is such a contrast from the examples of faith we saw in yesterday's readings with the hemorrhagic woman and Jairus. We can all be encouraged through their examples of faith. They cooperated in their heart with Jesus' healing power.

I think perhaps Jesus could not work as many miracles while among his childhood friends because of their lack of faith. In order for something positive to take place in your life you must first believe that it is possible. Our faith works hand and hand together with the power of Jesus. When we exercise our faith we complement what the Lord can accomplish. We are working together with him, not against him.

I am not trying to imply that Jesus will only heal those who believe, because after all he is God and God can do all things. God can use all things for good.

When you are feeling rejected by those who love you, remember this time period in the life of Jesus. Remember that in spite of the great things he had been doing he was still rejected at home. He was still rejected by those who had known him the longest. He was rejected by those who also knew his parents.

Jesus, because he was human, experienced the same feelings that you and I experience. "He was amazed at their lack of faith."

We tend to forget that whatever feelings we may experience; we can come to the Lord with those feelings because he knows our pain. He has, through his own personal experience, been in our place. Talk to the Lord about your heart aches and feelings of rejection. Believe that He will be there for you.

I chose this original picture with the word faith spelled out in large letters because these five letters have great meaning for my life.

I chose this kaleidoscope image because the solid blue circle reminds me that my faith supports me both inside my heart and outside through my actions.

Dear Lord, only you know where my faith needs to be increase. Help my unbelief!