Between now and Epiphany, I would like to share with you each of the 12 "Stations of the Manger" from a little booklet that I wrote several years back. Here's the first:
Station 1. In the Beginning
First Sunday in Advent
Nativity Scene: Empty, no buildings, people or animals
Scripture: John 1:1-5
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him; and without him was not anything made that has been made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness; and the darkness apprehended it not.
Reflection: In the beginning the world was perfect, and all things ran well. Complete love and harmony existed. But to have love, free will must also exist, and with free will comes choice. Some spiritual beings chose their own way; and some humans chose their own way. As a result, some of God’s creation became separated from Him. It is God’s plan to eventually return His creation to the state of perfect grace once again.
Prayer: Father of Jesus Christ, open our hearts to your Word and to the power of the Holy Spirit. Give us the love to discover Your will and strength to carry it out always; for you are light, forever and ever. Amen.
Hymn(s): O Come, All Ye Faithful
Response: Reflect on your own life. Renew your commitment through your baptismal vows to follow God’s path. Know that past sins will be carried by God so that you don’t have to. Know that if you fall again, He will be there to pick you up and send you on your way. Know that God is love and He wants you reconnected with Him in His grace.
Blessings to you this Advent season!
Brother Daniel-Joseph
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Fix It!
Greetings, Sisters, Brothers and Friends of the Community,
In today’s lectionary readings, Zephaniah reported 2,600 years ago that there were people during his time who felt that the Lord played little, if any, role in the daily events of society: “Neither good nor evil can the Lord do.” (Zeph. 1:12) It is somewhat surprising that even today we sometimes have to wonder how much power the Lord really has when we look at the troubles we face: a shattered global financial system, declining stock markets, military uprisings, business failures, famine, disease, climate change and on and on.
Perhaps the problem is not that the Lord is without power, but it is because we are keeping him so busy trying to hold everything together. After all, who is creating all these messes? Rocks? Remember that we were given dominion over the earth (Gen. 1:28) With this ‘dominion’ comes responsibility. This is the responsibility to run things according to God’s rules, not ours. As in Zephaniah’s day, whenever we turn from God either as individuals or as a nation, we begin to implode. Scripture is replete with examples of this. The result is always the same – trouble. Then we wonder why ‘God has no power.’
The ‘financial consultant’ on the Saturday Night Live program was asked a while back what should be done about the current financial crisis. His response: “FIX IT!”
Ah, yes, but how? How to fix any of the world’s ills? No one person can fix everything, but together, as the unified body of Christ, with him and through him, we can. Consider the advice found in today’s parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30). As the body of Christ, we have all been given different gifts, different talents in varying amounts. All of them are equally important, but only if they are used. Each gift, regardless of what it is, plays some role to further God’s creation. Whether you build roads, sew stitches, fly planes, collect trash, grow peas, heal people, teach people, pray, draw or sing – each piece is needed to make the whole. Each piece is sacred. Each piece is vital.
The power and love of God flows through all of us to each other. Use your gifts, whatever they are, for good every day, every moment, and soon we won’t have to wonder anymore if God has any power in the affairs of people.
Bless you for who you are and what you do. Please keep doing it and encouraging others as well.
Your semi-talented Brother,
Br. Daniel-Joseph, CTG
In today’s lectionary readings, Zephaniah reported 2,600 years ago that there were people during his time who felt that the Lord played little, if any, role in the daily events of society: “Neither good nor evil can the Lord do.” (Zeph. 1:12) It is somewhat surprising that even today we sometimes have to wonder how much power the Lord really has when we look at the troubles we face: a shattered global financial system, declining stock markets, military uprisings, business failures, famine, disease, climate change and on and on.
Perhaps the problem is not that the Lord is without power, but it is because we are keeping him so busy trying to hold everything together. After all, who is creating all these messes? Rocks? Remember that we were given dominion over the earth (Gen. 1:28) With this ‘dominion’ comes responsibility. This is the responsibility to run things according to God’s rules, not ours. As in Zephaniah’s day, whenever we turn from God either as individuals or as a nation, we begin to implode. Scripture is replete with examples of this. The result is always the same – trouble. Then we wonder why ‘God has no power.’
The ‘financial consultant’ on the Saturday Night Live program was asked a while back what should be done about the current financial crisis. His response: “FIX IT!”
Ah, yes, but how? How to fix any of the world’s ills? No one person can fix everything, but together, as the unified body of Christ, with him and through him, we can. Consider the advice found in today’s parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30). As the body of Christ, we have all been given different gifts, different talents in varying amounts. All of them are equally important, but only if they are used. Each gift, regardless of what it is, plays some role to further God’s creation. Whether you build roads, sew stitches, fly planes, collect trash, grow peas, heal people, teach people, pray, draw or sing – each piece is needed to make the whole. Each piece is sacred. Each piece is vital.
The power and love of God flows through all of us to each other. Use your gifts, whatever they are, for good every day, every moment, and soon we won’t have to wonder anymore if God has any power in the affairs of people.
Bless you for who you are and what you do. Please keep doing it and encouraging others as well.
Your semi-talented Brother,
Br. Daniel-Joseph, CTG
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Beware the Serpent
Greetings, Sisters, Brothers and Friends of the Community!
All are well here in East Central Wisconsin. The weather has given us an extended fall season with continued beautiful fall colors. As one person reminded me this week, “Every day we get of this nice weather in the fall is one less day of the slippery white stuff in the winter.”
This week’s lectionary readings spoke to me of hypocrisy. [Micah 3:5-12; Psalm 43; Matthew 23:1-12; and I Thess. 2:9-20] Micah had to deal with this 2,800 years ago, Christ had to deal with this 2,000 years ago, and we have it in abundance in today’s world, too. Throughout recorded time we have had people claiming allegiance to God and yet compromising His love and message to suit personal or group interests. Micah predicted that this spiritual corruption was not sustainable and would lead to the downfall of the Hebrew nation. It did. Jesus exposed the Pharisees as hypocrites by saying that although they taught the law of Moses they themselves did not follow it. Even today we learn about high profile politicians or business leaders who claim allegiance to God and yet fall to corruption of varied sorts. And on a personal level, many of us have experienced friends or acquaintances who occasionally succumb to secular forces. We may even experience it in ourselves on occasion.
To live in this world committed to God can be a daunting task. The serpent of Eden comes to visit us in many forms. Consider the forces designed to lead us astray:
· Peer pressure
· Misinformation being propagated by special interests (especially during campaign seasons)
· Monetary pressures (being too heavily linked into financial obligations that we may have to compromise our values)
· Marketing and advertising pressures (We aren’t good enough unless we have whiter teeth or designer jeans)
· Our own instincts and urges that can add fuel to the fire
· What others have you faced?
The mercy and compassion of God understands that our lives are not easy. Just as we were given light so that we can use the gift of our eyes, so too were we given moral choices in life so that we could exercise our free will. But we were not put into the arena alone. We can avoid being carried off to Babylon, or facing personal implosion, if we keep the tools and support that are available to us.
Christ avoided temptation during his ordeal in Matthew 4 by rejecting power, greed and magic. He reminds us that we live by every word that comes from God. We do this through prayer, worship and meditation. We do this by watching the world around us moment-by-moment and listening to the heart whisper. Jesus also reminds us not to tempt or test God. This leads us to acceptance of our life situation. It does not mean we do not attempt to make things better, but it does mean that we can face each situation with a clear mind and heart if we first accept what we have and work from there. And Jesus reminds us to serve God and worship Him alone. Be aware of the false gods of greed, power, wealth, fear and worry. They rob you of the present moment – the place where life happens.
I ask you to reflect on Matthew 4 this week, and let me know your discoveries and thoughts.
Know that you are all loved by Our Lord!
Br. Daniel-Joseph, CTG
All are well here in East Central Wisconsin. The weather has given us an extended fall season with continued beautiful fall colors. As one person reminded me this week, “Every day we get of this nice weather in the fall is one less day of the slippery white stuff in the winter.”
This week’s lectionary readings spoke to me of hypocrisy. [Micah 3:5-12; Psalm 43; Matthew 23:1-12; and I Thess. 2:9-20] Micah had to deal with this 2,800 years ago, Christ had to deal with this 2,000 years ago, and we have it in abundance in today’s world, too. Throughout recorded time we have had people claiming allegiance to God and yet compromising His love and message to suit personal or group interests. Micah predicted that this spiritual corruption was not sustainable and would lead to the downfall of the Hebrew nation. It did. Jesus exposed the Pharisees as hypocrites by saying that although they taught the law of Moses they themselves did not follow it. Even today we learn about high profile politicians or business leaders who claim allegiance to God and yet fall to corruption of varied sorts. And on a personal level, many of us have experienced friends or acquaintances who occasionally succumb to secular forces. We may even experience it in ourselves on occasion.
To live in this world committed to God can be a daunting task. The serpent of Eden comes to visit us in many forms. Consider the forces designed to lead us astray:
· Peer pressure
· Misinformation being propagated by special interests (especially during campaign seasons)
· Monetary pressures (being too heavily linked into financial obligations that we may have to compromise our values)
· Marketing and advertising pressures (We aren’t good enough unless we have whiter teeth or designer jeans)
· Our own instincts and urges that can add fuel to the fire
· What others have you faced?
The mercy and compassion of God understands that our lives are not easy. Just as we were given light so that we can use the gift of our eyes, so too were we given moral choices in life so that we could exercise our free will. But we were not put into the arena alone. We can avoid being carried off to Babylon, or facing personal implosion, if we keep the tools and support that are available to us.
Christ avoided temptation during his ordeal in Matthew 4 by rejecting power, greed and magic. He reminds us that we live by every word that comes from God. We do this through prayer, worship and meditation. We do this by watching the world around us moment-by-moment and listening to the heart whisper. Jesus also reminds us not to tempt or test God. This leads us to acceptance of our life situation. It does not mean we do not attempt to make things better, but it does mean that we can face each situation with a clear mind and heart if we first accept what we have and work from there. And Jesus reminds us to serve God and worship Him alone. Be aware of the false gods of greed, power, wealth, fear and worry. They rob you of the present moment – the place where life happens.
I ask you to reflect on Matthew 4 this week, and let me know your discoveries and thoughts.
Know that you are all loved by Our Lord!
Br. Daniel-Joseph, CTG
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