The Problem of Pain

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time: A cycle



The first reading each Sunday is usually from the Old Testament or Hebrew scriptures. Besides it’s own value, the first reading serves as an introduction to the Gospel reading. I think that the majority of these readings are taken from the Prophet Isaiah whose words, uttered more than six hundred years before the birth of Jesus, have always been thought to refer to the Messiah.

However, these words are not Isaiah’s words since he tells us that he is merely passing on the word of the Lord to us. In today’s reading the Lord invites all those who are thirsty to “come to the water;” and all who are poor to drink wine and milk “without paying and without cost;” and all who are hungry to “eat well,…and delight in rich fare.”

The Church uses this passage from Isaiah to introduce St. Matthew’s gospel account of the feeding of the 5000, a miracle that has always been regarded as pointing to the miracle of the Holy Eucharist. But before we get to the actual account of the “loaves and fishes” let’s look at the beginning of this gospel passage.

When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist,
He withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself.

We believe that Jesus was true God and true Man, but I think that we tend to overlook the actual humanity of Jesus. We might have reverence for His Sacred Heart but sometimes I think we read a gospel passage like this and think that Jesus had a heart of stone. There is no sign of grief or sorrow in Matthew’s account. He just tells us that Jesus went off by himself when he heard the awful news.

Maybe the Evangelist wanted us to use our own imagination or experience to understand the actual emotional response of Jesus. My eye surgeon once told me that only 2% of the eye drops I have to put in my eye each day actually get through the defensive wall that protects our eyes. In the same way, I think that our souls have been made with a defensive wall that protects us from most of the horror and tragedy we hear about each day on the news. Otherwise, how could we calmly read about murders, wars, earthquakes, tsunamis, and famine and calmly go about our business each day? Once in a while, a public event like September 11 stops us dead in our tracks but it doesn’t take long for things to get back to normal unless we have been personally involved.

It is only when the bad news becomes personal that it can penetrate the outer defenses of our souls. The death of a loved one especially if that person was young or in the prime of life is truly devastating. Sickness and suffering within our families can be overwhelming. I have heard it said that everyone in church is there for a reason. Despite our outward calm most of us have some hidden pain that we bring to the altar each Sunday. How can we deal with it? How did Jesus deal with the tragic news of the death of John the Baptist?

He had a human as well as a divine nature and so we see him act like many of us would do when faced with a great tragedy. He needed some time to Himself. But then, He got back to work. He saw the vast crowd and despite His own grief, “his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick.”

Some people think that suffering and pain come from God. It is hard not to sympathize with those people who ask, “How could God have allowed this suffering to come to me?” The pain and suffering does not come from God, it comes from the world we live in. Much of it is even caused by down own efforts. But Jesus was a healer who never hurt anyone. He came to bring us happiness, not sorrow. His words and miracles provide a way for us to deal with the sorrows that this world provides.

Look at today’s account of the feeding of the hungry crowd. This miracle should remind us of the way we are fed in the sacrament of the Eucharist. Jesus took the little bit of food that they had and offered it up to his Father in heaven. He said a blessing and broke the loaves just as the priest does at Mass. Then he asked the Apostles to distribute the food to the assembly. They were all fed just as Isaiah had predicted. Despite his own personal grief Jesus took care of the needs of others. He expects us to do the same.

It is interesting to note that before the miracle Jesus had expected the Apostles themselves to provide for the hungry crowd. He said, “There is no need for them to go away, give them some food yourselves.” Is it in the Eucharist and in the care for others that we will find solace for our own pain? The love of God is the true food that Isaiah talks about, and it is given freely, not like the false or junk food that we accept today as a costly substitute.

In today’s second reading from the Letter to the Romans St. Paul says that no amount of tribulation can separate us from the love of Christ. Despite all of his own pain and suffering, he could write,

What will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,…
Nor any other creature will be able to separate us
From the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Reading 1. I Isaiah 55: 1-3
Reading II. Romans 8:35, 37-39
Gospel. Matthew 14: 13-21 (Loaves and Fishes)






























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The Sower and the Seed

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
A cycle



Today’s first reading is clearly an introduction to the famous parable recounted in today’s gospel account of the sower and the seed. Isaiah compares the word of God to the rain and snow that make everything blossom and grow. Without this moisture which comes down from above there would be no life on earth. Obviously Isaiah is talking about much more than rain and snow. For him the word of God is more physical and more important than the rain and snow.

My word shall not return to me void,
But shall do my will,
Achieving the end for which I sent it.

In today’s parable Jesus shares Isaiah’s view. He even quotes from Isaiah. The parable of the sower and the seed is one of the most famous but it is also the only one which Jesus bothers to explain to his puzzled disciples. In Matthew’s account the seed, that is, the word of God, falls in different places with different results. Some falls on the hardened, trodden down path and is quickly eaten by the birds. Some falls on rocky ground where there is little soil to nourish it. Some falls among thorns or weeds which choke it. Finally, the rest falls on good soil and produces a bountiful harvest.

What is the meaning of this parable? After telling His disciples why He uses parables, Jesus then explains to them the meaning of this one. Let’s try to put His explanation in our own words. In the first place, He equates the seed sown in the path with those who hear the word of God without understanding it. Who could that be?

How many people today have only the most rudimentary knowledge of their own faith? For how many of us does our religious education stop with the 8th grade? Is there any other field of endeavor in which we would be content to stay at the 8th grade level? What would we think of a job application where the candidate’s schooling stopped at the 8th grade? Why do we spend thousands of dollars trying to get a college degree? What professional athlete would be content with 8th grade skills? Even when they make the pros they have to keep acquiring new skills in order to remain competitive. Why should life be any different?

The second case of the rocky ground is more difficult. We all know of people whose faith has been shaken and even lost by some setback, some sorrow, and even some tragedy. Our Lord speaks of tribulation. But today, how many people have lost their faith because of a bad marriage or a divorce? How many have lost it because of some word spoken by an insensitive priest or religious? How many have lost their faith because of the scandalous behavior of a few priests? Finally, it is so sad to see the death or illness of a loved one cause someone to question their beliefs.
We don’t have to work too hard to understand the third category.

The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word,
But then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word
And it bears no fruit.

Worldly anxiety is something we can all relate to. It requires no dramatic event or crisis. It creeps up on us slowly and before we know it we are in its grasp. Young people know how important it is to have friends, but often the desire to be popular and well liked can take over and ruin their lives. We all know that it is important for us to work hard in order to provide for the basic needs of our families, but how often do we see men and women so consumed by their work that their families are seriously hurt in the process of getting ahead? Even the elderly can fall into a daily routine that chokes them like the thorns in today’s gospel.

Life is full of snares and traps. Maybe that is what St. Paul had in mind in today’s reading from the Letter to the Romans.

for creation was made subject to futility,
not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it.

There is no denying that there is pain and suffering in the world. Paul continually urges his followers to remain steadfast in their beliefs and not to turn their backs on God, or ignore the teaching of his Son, Jesus. As in any endeavor there is a reward for perseverance.

I consider that the sufferings of the present time are as nothing
Compared with the glory to be revealed.


Reading 1. Isaiah 55: 10-11
Reading II. Romans 8:18-23
Gospel. Matthew 13: 1-23 (A sower went out to sow).


























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My Yoke is Easy

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time
A cycle

Reading 1. Zechariah 9: 9-10
Reading II. Romans 8:9, 1-13
Gospel. Matthew 11: 25-30 (my yoke is easy)

After celebrating the three great feasts, Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, and Corpus Christi, that bring the Easter season to its conclusion, we now enter again into what the Church calls Ordinary time. Ordinary time refers to that time of the Church year that is not associated with Christmas or Easter. During Ordinary time the priest will usually wear vestments of green, the color of hope. In a way these Sundays after Easter will give us an idea of what the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus means for us.

In today’s first reading from the Book of Zechariah the prophet speaks of a day when the burdens laid on people by their oppressors will be lifted.

He shall banish the chariot from Ephraim,
And the horse from Jerusalem;
The warrior’s bow shall be banished,
and he shall proclaim peace to the nations.

Chariots, horses, the warriors bow are instruments of oppression and military conquest. The overlords of the people often put heaven burdens on their subjects. Even today on the Fourth of July we celebrate our own Declaration of Independence whereby our founding fathers through off the yoke of British oppression.

However, even though we live in the freest country in the World, there is a kind of oppression or burden that hits very close to home. So many of us have had a yoke placed upon our shoulders by our friends and family. Indeed, sometimes we are the ones who have placed the burden on our own shoulders.

I will never forget an incident that occurred years ago when I was a financial advisor. I visited an elderly couple in their home one evening to look over their finances. The man sat stooped over the kitchen table after his long commute home. The train ride to New York City took over an hour each way, but then he had to take a subway, and then walk a few blocks to his office. He hated the long commute and was sick of his job, which he had been doing for years.

After looking over the financial situation, I told them that there was no reason for him to continue working. They lived very frugally, and the income from their savings and investments was more than enough for them to retire comfortably. I was amazed when the man slowly raised his head and shoulders as if a great burden had been lifted. This miracle was not my doing but theirs. They had worked hard but just didn’t realize how well they had done.

It’s the same thing with most of us. I’m not just talking about finances now. Why do teenagers seem to be so gloomy and depressed? Why is there such addiction among young people? Why is there such a high rate of teen suicide? Why, in the years when they should feel the most free, do young people have to do say what their friends want to hear; have to follow peer pressure and do what their friends want them to do? Why do they feel that they must smoke this, or drink that in order to be socially acceptable?

As we get older the burdens seem to get even greater. We all know the stress of family relationships, job insecurity, raising children, or caring for aged parents. Half the country seems to be on some sort of medication, legal or illegal, to relieve the burdens. Who is there to lift the yoke from our backs.

Here is a good way to tell a true from a false friend. A true friend helps us to bear life’s burdens; a false one just piles more weight on our backs. In fact, the good friend is the one who actually lightens the load by sharing it with us. In today’s gospel Jesus is trying to make us realize that our burdens have been lifted.

Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
And I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
For I am meek and humble of heart;…
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.

Christ suffered so that we would not have to. He told us to be humble and not proud; to care for our neighbor instead of always thinking of ourselves. He was always healing people. Did he ever hurt anyone? Jesus continually criticized the Pharisees for their rules and regulations that put innumerable burdens on people.

St. Paul was born and raised a Pharisee. In fact, he said he was a kind of super-Pharisee who followed all rules to their minutest detail. After his conversion, however, he realized that that to living in the Spirit and not in the flesh was the road to happiness.

For if you live according to the flesh, you will die,
But if by the Spirit, you put to death the deeds of the body,
You will live.

Right before today’s Eucharistic prayer, the priest will ask the congregation to “lift up your hearts.”

Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ

Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ: A Cycle


After the completion of the Easter season, we are presented with three great feast days, all designed to follow up and reinforce the great message of Easter. Two weeks ago we celebrated the great feast of Pentecost commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles and on us. Last week we celebrated the feast of the Holy Trinity which brought to mind the ways in which God works in our world. Today we celebrate the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, formally the feast of Corpus Christi, which celebrates our intimate relationship with Jesus, Himself.

Today’s first reading takes us back to the wanderings of the Israelites in the desert after their escape from the bondage of slavery in Egypt. Moses reminds them of how the Lord has sustained them on their long journey. They had been fed with manna, a new and miraculous food unknown to them and their fathers. This had been done in order to show them that,

Not by bread alone does one live,
But by every word that comes forth
From the mouth of the Lord.

In the beginning of the John’s gospel Jesus, himself, is called the Word of God. Today’s gospel from the 6th chapter of that gospel contains the hardest, perhaps the most difficult, words that Jesus ever uttered. They were so difficult that not only did they strike consternation among His Jewish hearers, but they also caused some of His disciples to leave Him. He said.

I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
Whoever eats this bread will live forever;
And the bread that I will give
Is my flesh for the life of the world.

To make his point clear He repeats it over and over.

Amen, amen, I say to you,
Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood,
You do not have life within you.

This was especially shocking and disgusting to the Jews because of their traditional abhorrence to eating even the blood of animals. These words remain a stumbling block today to many who cannot accept them as literally true. What are we to make of them? How do we eat His flesh and drink His blood?
Of course Catholics have always believed that it is in the Holy Eucharist. At the Last Supper, Jesus took bread into His hands, broke it, and gave it to them to eat saying that it was His Body. He also took the cup of wine and told them to drink it for it was His Blood. No Pope or theologian made this up. We get it from Jesus Himself. We live by the Word of God; Jesus is the Word of God: and “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my Blood remains in Me and I in him.”

What could the Apostles have been thinking when they saw Jesus take the bread, offer thanks, break it, and then say, "This is my body that is for you?" How could the bread be His Body? Or what about, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood." How could the wine be His Blood? We know that they believed it because He said it and because He would raise His Body from the dead only three days later. We also know that the first Christian communities also believed it and from the beginning repeated the Lord's words whenever they gathered together "in remembrance of Him."

Since the beginnings of Christianity theologians have tried to come to a better understanding of what our Lord meant. In the Middle Ages they came up with an explanation that is as good as any that has been offered since. Guided by the rediscovery of the works of ancient Greek scientists and philosophers, theologians like St. Thomas Aquinas developed the concept of "transubstantiation."

Like most scientific words "transubstantiation" is a long word made up of different parts in order to give greater clarity and precision. But if we break the word down into its parts, we will get a better idea of what it means. First, let's deal with the prefix, "tran." It means going from one thing to another, like in transport or transmit. The suffix, "ation", at the end of the word means a process or action, like in transportation. So if we get rid of the prefix and suffix, we're left with the root or core of the word, "substance." Now "sub" means under and "stance" comes from the Latin verb, "stare" which means, "to stand."

When we deal with substance we're dealing with that which stands under a thing, it's real core, what it is. So "transubstantiation" means that the bread and wine although they still look, and feel, and taste like bread and wine, have become something else. It's something like when we advance through the different stages of life, from infancy to old age. Although our bodies change, aren't we always the same person?

However, transubstantiation is an attempt to explain a mystery. It is not the mystery itself. Like the early Christians we believe that the Body and Blood of Christ are truly present in the Sacrament of the Eucharist because our Lord said so at the first Eucharist. What we do today at each Mass is what the first Christians did from the very beginning. As St. Paul said in today’s second reading,

The cup of blessing that we bless,
Is it not a participation in the blood of Christ?
The bread that we break,
Is it not a participation in the body of Christ?

Reading 1. Deuteronomy 8: 2-3, 14b-16a
Reading II. 1 Corinthians 10: 16-17
Gospel. John 6: 51-59 (the living bread).