Saturday, October 27, 2012

Son of David

This week we read about Bartimaeus.  

While Jesus restoring his sight is nothing short of a true miracle, there is another amazing fact that often goes overlooked.

Bartimaeus calls Jesus the Son of David, which is a Messianic phrase.  

Assuming that phrase was not added later by Mark, that means this blind man knew what all the people with sight did not.

That Jesus was the Messiah.   

Which goes to show you that sight is not always as important as insight.

God Bless.

Sunday, October 21, 2012

It's a Celebration

I was visiting another church this weekend, and the deacon ended the mass by saying:

"Go in peace ... this Celebration of the Eucharist has ended."

I'm used to hearing "The Mass has ended, go in peace," or something to that effect, but I really liked that Deacon's perspective.

In one short phrase, he reminded us that the Mass is really one 
big celebration of the Body and Blood of Christ.   

Something I sometimes take for granted.

God Bless.

Saturday, October 13, 2012

LaGuardian Angel

"Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in Heaven."

That line was from this week's Gospel - a Gospel that is mainly known for a line about a dromedary and needle.  

You know that story, so no need to repeat it here.

But our Deacon told us a different one this weekend.  One that focused on what it means to help the poor. 

Fiorello LaGuardia was the mayor of New York city during the Great Depression.   He often took over the judge's bench in one of the poorest parts of the city.  

One night, when he was presiding, a poor woman was brought before him.  She was charged with stealing a loaf of bread to feed her family.  

LaGuardia reportedly told her that the law is the law, and he could not make exceptions for her. He fined her $10, then reached into his wallet and paid the fine himself.

He then turned to the courtroom and fined each person fifty cents for living in a town where a woman had to resort to stealing bread so her family could eat.  

In other words, even the poor in the Great Depression were expected to help those less fortunate.

I imagine the same applied, tenfold, to the rich.

God Bless.