Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

We are constantly deluged by voices claiming to speak for God. So how do we know which ones are real and true? What signs should we look for as evidence of divine favor? Do we hope to be dazzled with supernatural powers? Or are we content to settle for the merely superhuman? What about those poor schlubs who possess neither popularity, nor institutional credentials, nor the proper lifestyle, nor a resume full of righteous deeds? Do we dismiss their words out of hand, or give them an opportunity to penetrate our hearts? How many prophets pass our tests, but spew more bile than love? And how much grace do we walk away from, because we could not prove its value in advance?

Which brings us to the elephant in the room: why should you believe that my voice is genuine, that the revelation I share is Truth, that I speak for our Parent? I have no proof, only words. But they are not really my words. They are a song I see in the eyes of the middle schoolers in my detention room, full of rudeness and disrespect, but also promise and hope. A song that screams from the mountains that climb above my hometown, a blinding sign that the kingdom is far grander than our little dog and pony show of an existence. A song I did not compose, but one whose lyrics I cannot help but write, for they are ripe fruit bursting from every nook and cranny of creation. How can anyone not hear this song or taste this fruit when it is so overwhelmingly omnipresent? They are yours for the taking, but you do not take them, do you? And so God asks a poor schlub like me to try to open your eyes. And so I offer you words, just words, and ask you to "harden not your hearts."

Deuteronomy 18:15-20; Psalms 95:1-9; 1 Corinthians 7:32-35; Mark 1:21-28

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Deuteronomy 18:15-20; 1 Corinthians 7:32-35; Mark 1:21-28

What prophets do you listen to? Ones who frighten you with tales of the apocalypse? Ones who impress you with magic tricks? Or ones who simply tell you the truth? Truth is simple, not flashy or complex. This makes it more beautiful, not less. When you find such beauty, pay attention.

Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time

Deuteronomy 18: 15-20; 1 Corinthians 7: 32-35; Mark 1: 21-28

For too long our family has been plagued by notions that the spiritual is better than the material, that we must flee the world and the flesh to truly love and serve God. I say to you that such ideas are nonsense. Who do you think created the material? Who do you think created our flesh? We are meant to be together. Celibacy may be of practical necessity in some cases, but it is certainly not a higher calling. Yes, the world and flesh are full of distractions, but it is precisely there that the One is to be found. The Kingdom does not lie in the extraordinary, but in the average and the mundane. There is truly the delight of the Spirit. Time is not passing away, but even if it were, Father would want us to revel in her creation until the very last second. That is "adherence to the Lord." Do not expect miracles to prove that what I say is true. Listen to the authority of the Spirit that dwells within you; she will not lead you astray.