Luke 1

Selected Lectio Reading:
Luke 1:26-56


Meditatio/Reflection:

Elizabeth said to Mary, "Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled" (Lk 1:45).  Fulton Sheen, in his book The World's First Love, made this connection: "Eve had believed the serpent; Elizabeth now praises Mary for blotting out the ruin of Eve by believing in God."

This idea of belief struck me this time through this reading.  Two things immediately came to mind.  The first is simply the seeming degradation of society.  It seems to be falling apart in so many ways.  It's almost as if nothing can be talked about without risking offense.  Things have become so polemical and so heated that it appears as if we're on the brink of a major downfall or conflict.  It scares me, to be frank.  But, in the midst of this fear, I have to remember that God has promised that his Church would never fail, that the "gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Mt 16:18).  And belief in this promise gives me hope.  And when we meditate on the mysteries of the Annunciation and the Visitation, we are ultimately encountering stories of the fulfillment of hope.

The second thing that comes to mind is that the theme of my classes this semester is trust.  Adam and Eve didn't trust God and so ate from the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (Gen 3).  Abram didn't trust God's promises and so used Hagar to have Ishmael (Gen 16).  Rebekah didn't trust God's promises and so had his son Jacob trick Isaac to steal the blessing (Gen 27).  Moses didn't trust God's promises at the Burning Bush and so involved Aaron who would eventually craft the Golden Calf (Ex 4, 32).  Yet, Mary believed and trusted that what the angel said would be fulfilled.  In this one simple act, she invites us to undo all of our disbelief and distrust.  Thanks be to God for that!


Oratio/Thanksgiving:

Lord, thank you for giving us Mary as our model of faith and as our mother.  Thank you for gracing her so abundantly that her immediate response was to proclaim her Fiat to you.

Oratio/Prayer Intentions:

Lord, bless us with the graces we so desperately need to trust in you, to rely upon you, and to abide in you.

Mr. Crane's Song of the Day:

Marian Grace, "Ave Maris Stella"

Saint Quote of the Day:

"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe."
      - St. Augustine

Genesis 6-9

Selected Lectio Reading:

Genesis 8:1


Meditatio/Reflection:

"[A]nd then God remembered Noah..." (Gen 8:1).  Imagining this scene unfold this time around, I had a profound sense of the sadness Noah and his family must have experienced.  They watched as the entire human community rejected God so thoroughly and so completely that they were subject to the devastation of the flood.  The wholesale descent into sin (see Gen 6:5) is just so tragic.

Ashley and I had a scare yesterday.  We had a positive pregnancy test on Friday and were so excited to be welcoming "Baby Bear #5".  And then we had all the indications of a miscarriage.  When we had some blood tests run, it showed that the pregnancy test had given us a false positive.  On the one hand this was a significant relief, as we hadn't lost a baby.  But on the other hand, it felt like we had lost a baby.  I felt as if I had already fallen in love with this kiddo and so I was deeply saddened to get the call from Ashley that we might be miscarrying.  But this morning, reflecting on this passage, and now after getting the news that the pregnancy test was wrong, I have a renewed sense of peace.  I was able to focus on this passage that God remembered Noah in his affliction.  God remembers me and is with me in my affliction, in my sadness, in my grief.

I'm still not entirely sure how to grieve over this situation, but I know that God is with me and will never abandon me.


Oratio/Thanksgiving:


Lord, thank you for the gift of life and the possibility to join in your creative work in bringing forth new life.  Thank you for the kids you have given us and any that you have yet to give us.  Thank you for being present in our times of heartache and distress to give us peace.


Oratio/Prayer Intentions:

Lord, continue to be with us and help us to know of your love and presence.  May we never succumb to feeling you are far from us and help us to always hope in you.


Mr. Crane's Song of the Day:

Casting Crowns, "Praise You in the Storm"

Saint Quote of the Day:

"Pray, hope, and don't worry.  Worry is useless.  God is merciful and will hear your prayer."
      - St. Padre Pio

Psalm 84

Selected Lectio Reading:
Psalm 84:11-13


Meditatio/Reflection:

As I first read this, I thought that my attention would be focused on the image of God's courts, but I was surprised that I was rather moved by the image of being on the "threshold of the house of my God" (v. 11).  I've been watching a lot of saint movies over the last few months, and I've been moved by the poverty that they so frequently encountered and so frequently embraced, such as St. Francis of Assisi.  I was so attracted to the simplicity which he devoted himself to and the great joy which he found in having only God.  I also watched a movie on St. Philip Neri, which portrayed him as having the motto (for lack of a better word) "I prefer heaven."

This idea of needing nothing other than God is one that I can understand intellectually, and I often teach it to my students, but I don't always live it out.  I'm often attached to various habits or comforts in my life, which may not all be necessarily bad, but have become distractions in many cases.  Or I wonder what my life would be like if I were to give these things up, and I can intellectually see the benefits, but I have a hard time actually following through with it.

However, in all of this, I try not to be overly scrupulous.  I want to enjoy the things God has provided for me so that I can be authentically grateful.  Maybe then I'll be able to appreciate the simplicity and poverty of the saints, that simply being on the "threshold of the house of my God" I can understand St. Philip Neri's preference for heaven.


Oratio/Thanksgiving:

Lord, thank you for the simplicity of your saints and the wonders you worked through their holy lives.  Thank you for your great love which invites us not just to the threshold of your house, but into your heavenly kingdom.

Oratio/Prayer Intentions:

Lord, grant me the grace to know and love and serve you in the simple ways that I am able.  Help me to avoid the temptation of pride in scrupulosity and to know your love for me.

Mr. Crane's Song of the Day:

"Preferisco il Paradiso" from the movie "St. Philip Neri: I Prefer Heaven"

Saint Quote of the Day:

"He who wants anything other than Christ does not know what he wants."
      - St. Philip Neri

Mark 1-4

Selected Lectio Reading:

Mark 4:35-41


Meditatio/Reflection:

A couple of years ago, I led the March for Life trip to Washington, D.C. for a group of seniors.  One of the evenings we were reflecting on our experience at the march.  The discussion turned to what we can do about life issues, especially because they seem so much bigger than us.  I brought up this story, and how we can look to Jesus' disposition on the boat which was about to capsize.  He is sleeping.  He is at peace.  Even in the midst of the storm, he is not anxious.

This also reminds me of when Liam (our second oldest, currently 4 years old) was going through a period where it took at least an hour each evening to put him to bed.  I think he was around 14-18 months at the time (my memories are not so clear from the kiddos' early years...).  Every night, I would pray with him, sing songs, and put him in his crib where he dutifully lay down.  But then any time I tried to leave, he would start screaming.  It got to the point where I would kneel down and slowly back out of the door and very slowly close the door so that he might not see me leave.  One night, I had been trying to get him to sleep for about 45 minutes.  I lay him down, I very slowly left the room, I closed the door.  I didn't hear anything for about five seconds and so I silently rejoiced.  And suddenly Liam started screaming.  And so in my prayer, I shouted at God, "What do you want from me?"  And his response, clear as day, was, "Just be."  And I was flooded with peace, knowing that I was not alone and that I could be at peace in the midst of this storm.  And so I went back in and worked for another hour to get him down.

That statement, "Just be," has been with me since.  I try to recognize when I'm getting overly anxious about something at work, or if I'm being short-tempered with my kids, and I ask God again what he wants from me.  And that same peace that he offered a couple years ago is available in those moments.

Oratio/Thanksgiving:

Lord, thank you for my kiddos and how you call me to love them.  Thank you for how you are present to me in the hard moments when I feel like I can't take it anymore.

Oratio/Prayer Intentions:

Lord, bless all of those who have a hard time seeing you in difficult times and help them find the peace that you offer in those moments.

Mr. Crane's Song of the Day:

Jonny Diaz, "Breathe"

Saint Quote of the Day:

Matthew 5-9

Selected Lectio Reading:
Mt 7:1-5


Meditatio/Reflection:

Who am I to judge?  Don't judge me!  I cringe every time I hear these phrases, and I hear them all too often.  How often when we hear someone tell us to not judge them, it seems like they're looking to excuse a certain action, behavior, attitude, etc.?  Do we no longer have the capacity to discern right from wrong?

What is Jesus saying here?  Is he telling us to not recognize the true faults and failures of each other?  Hardly.  Otherwise, why would he tell us to "take the speck out of [our] neighbor's eye" once we can "see clearly" (Mt 7:5).  I think the emphasis here is twofold.  First, don't condemn your neighbor.  When we condemn others, we tend to reject any sort of relationship which could result in conversion.  Second, don't get all high and mighty and point out other people's faults and failures without considering your own.

But we must consider the good of others, even when it means that we have to confront their objectively harmful choices.  Would we want someone to leave us in an addiction to something detrimental to our physical, spiritual, or psychological health?  No, we'd want them to judge the thing as harmful and help us get out of it.  So too, we should care enough about each other to call each other out in charity.  We should also be open to this fraternal correction from others when we are at fault.

It can take a lot of courage and patience to do either.  And it's something that I know I need to work on.

Oratio/Thanksgiving:

Lord, thank you for your moral law and for those in my life who offer me fraternal correction in charity.

Oratio/Prayer Intentions:

Lord, help me to be open to those who authentically want what is best for me and who all me out of mediocrity to sanctity.

Mr. Crane's Song of the Day:

Matt Maher: Letting Go

Saint Quote of the Day:

"Don't neglect the practice of fraternal correction, which is a clear sign of supernatural virtue of charity.  You may find it hard, for it is easier to be inhibited.  It's easier to behave that way, but it's not supernatural.  And you will have to render an account to God for such omissions."
      - St. Josemaria Escriva

Matthew 1-4

Selected Lectio Reading:
Mt 3:7-12


Meditatio/Reflection:

"You brood of vipers!" John the Baptist says to the Sadducees and Pharisees (Mt 3:7).  As serpents are often associated with Satan, we might hear "You children of the devil!"  We often see in the Gospels, the Jewish leaders investigating a situation which may fall under their jurisdiction, and yet it's often from a position of skepticism or doubt.  How often did they try to impede Jesus in his public ministry?  No wonder John is so critical of them here.  He is trying to get the people ready for the coming of Christ through his baptism of repentance, and yet these people are potentially disrupting that by offering a different teaching.

But what about me?  How am I like the Sadducees and Pharisees?  I hear the admonition to bear good fruit.  I know I try to lead people to Christ, like John, but do I?  Am I more like the Sadducees and Pharisees in their sense of self-righteousness?  A frequent prayer of mine is may nothing that I do cause another to turn away from God.  I pray this especially with for my wife and kids.  I pray it most fervently when I've been harsh or uncharitable or selfish.  It has often led me to seek forgiveness for however I treated them and to mend the relationship.  If I don't, I am no better than the "brood of vipers" John condemns here.


Oratio/Thanksgiving:

Lord, thank you for inspiring me to lead people to you, especially my wife, my kids, and my students.

Oratio/Prayer Intentions:

Lord, may nothing I do today lead a single soul away from you.

Mr. Crane's Song of the Day:

Oh Hellos: Dear Wormwood

Saint Quote of the Day:

"Your faith should be for you a light which guides you in all things, and a shining light for those you instruct, to lead them on the path to heaven."
      -St. John Baptist de la Salle

John 13

Selected Lectio Reading:
John 13:1-8


Meditatio/Reflection:

I can just imagine the incredulous sound of Peter's question: "Master, are you going to wash my feet?" (Jn 13:6).  How many times have we seen Peter humbled by Jesus, either through a recognition of Jesus' greatness or a rebuke from Jesus when Peter didn't quite get it right.  To watch someone who I consider to be greater than myself lowering himself to do a task that in certain contexts not even slaves would have to do, I'm not sure how I would respond.  I feel like I can really relate to Peter's protest here.  I would feel uncomfortable having the Lord of the universe seemingly beneath me.

Yet, I know that is only my pride talking.  It's a false humility to say to another, "You're so great that you couldn't possibly deign to serve someone like me."  In rejecting the service of another, we are actually putting ourselves above them, judging who is and who is not capable of offering service.  Who are we to make that judgment?  Who are we to reject the charity of another?  We may even think that we don't need the service being offered.  How utterly arrogant!

When we can enter into a mutual submissiveness to serve one another, how great would that relationship become!  Jesus models for us the need to consider each person higher than ourselves, to be willing to enter into the most demeaning of circumstances to serve them.  When we do this ourselves, and allow others to do it for us, then we have a sense of what Jesus is trying to accomplish here.  For as he anoints them in their priesthood in these moments, he also shows what it means to be a priest, to lay down his life for his flock.  The question I need to ask myself is whether or not my pride gets in the way of all of this, or if in fact I am seeking to follow the example of Jesus washing his disciples' feet.

Oratio/Thanksgiving:

Thank you Lord for the model of service that you gave to us in the upper room.  Thank you for providing a standard which inspires me to lose my pride and open myself to what you offer me, to what others offer me, so that I can offer myself to you and them.

Oratio/Prayer Intentions:

Lord, humble me as you did St. Peter.  I'm scared to ask for this, so help me to trust in your provision and grace as you help me to recognize myself in truth.

Mr. Crane's Song of the Day:

Matt Maher: Love Comes Down

Saint Quote of the Day:

"Whoever does not seek the cross of Christ, doesn't seek the glory of Christ."
      - St. John of the Cross