THE HEART

Quote for Today  March 27, 2013

        " - O remember
In your narrowing dark hours
That more things move
Than blood in the heart."

Louise Bogan [1897-1970], Night, Stanza 4

IT WAS NIGHT 

“It was night!”

If you hear those three words be scared -

be scared of that echo in your soul.

“It was night!”

That night - that Last Supper night -

Jesus said to Judas,
“What you are going to do, do quickly.”

“It was night!”

What was Judas going to do?

He was going to betray Jesus.

He did it for money - for 30 pieces of silver.

He did it because the reason he joined Jesus

had become unglued - unhinged - unconnected.

So that night Judas ran out into the night 

to get his silver coins

“It was night!”

Judas had heard and had seen

in the light of the lamps in the Upper Room -

Jesus washing his disciples feet - 
telling us this was an example - 
that we should wash each other’s feet.

He saw Jesus feeding his disciples 
with bread and wine

- with the last ounce of his body and his blood -

trying to be in communion with them 
in his whole being.

He might have missed Jesus last announcements

to love one another as he had loved them.

“It was night!

And after that meal 
Jesus stepped out into the night,

into the darkness - into a dark garden

where he made a last ditch plea to his Father,

“If it is possible, let this cup of suffering

slip away from me - but not my will, 
but your will be done.”

“It was night!”

And his disciples could not even spend 
one hour in prayer with him.

Then Judas came in the night 
with a band of soldiers and guards 
from the chief priests and Pharisees.

He brought them to the garden 
telling them the signal was a kiss -

- the kiss that he used to betray Jesus.

“It was night!”

And Judas fell down into a spiral 
of even deeper darkness.

He had become a petty thief 
silently stealing money -

money that was for the poor. 
His eyes slowly closed

out Jesus - the Light of the World. 
Instead he became night.

His soul became shut. 
He no longer was hearing

the story of the Prodigal Son
and the Lost Sheep

and the call to Lazarus 
to come forth alive from the grave.

He went back and threw the money 
that had clung to his hands 
for a few moments. 
They spilled - they crashed -

they rolled along on the stone floors - 
back at the Pharisees

and then Judas went out and hung himself.

“It was night!”

And Jesus felt that tragedy - 
that scream of Judas in the night.

Is that why Jesus vented those horrible words 
he once said, “It would have been better
if he had never been born.”

“It was night!”

It is night when we think that way,

when  we feel that way,

when we experience that kind of giving up -

that giving up of all hope

And hopefully when we feel that way -

that night we’ll drop that suicide rope

at the trunk of the Judas tree

and crawl our way to the Jesus Tree,

to Calvary and hold on for dear life

to feet of Jesus on the Tree of Life.

He is Light.

O O O O O O O

© Andy Costello Reflections 2013

This Reflection comes out of the gospel for today - Tuesday in Holy Week. It is the simple Greek text, "EN DE NUX " - "And it was night" John 13:30 b.

THE SUN WILL ALSO SET

Quote for Today - March 26,  2013

"No matter how fair the sun shines,
Still it must set."

Ferdinand Raimund [1790-1836] Das Madchen aus der Feenwelt [The Maiden from Fairyland (1826)]

SNIFF, SNIFF, 

SCENT, SCENT, 

HINT, HINT 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Monday in Holy Week is, “Sniff, Sniff, Scent, Scent, Hint, Hint.”

Could you all right now go, Sniff, Sniff?  _____ Thank you.

NOSE

God has blessed us with a nose - a gift - for our protection and our safety.

As we age, we’re aware of the loss of some of our hearing -  but usually in those around us - more than ourselves.

As we age, we’re aware of the loss of some of our seeing ability - usually more in ourselves than those around us.

I was wondering as I began working on this homily this morning: “What about our sense of smell?”

I sense we’re more aware of size and shape of noses more than the sense of smell - but I really am not too sure about all of this - because I never thought about this before - well maybe about gradual hearing loss in those around me.

TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s readings use the image of scent. It can get us thinking about air, breathing, the Spirit.

Today’s Gospel has the story of Mary - the sister of Martha and Lazarus - using a liter of costly perfume oil - made from genuine aromatic nard. She anoints the feet of Jesus and dries his feet with her hair.

You can almost smell the next line from the Gospel of John, “the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.” [12:3]

TRANSITION

The title of my homily is, “Sniff, Sniff, Scent, Scent, Hint, Hint.”

QUESTIONAIRE

If I were a perfume or an after shave lotion, what name would I give myself?

If I were a perfume or an after shave lotion, what name would I give myself?

               

• Lilac,
• Joy,
• A  Breath of Fresh Air,
• Sweetness,
• Spring?

If we were a scent, how would those who are in the rooms we enter each day label us?

Would their labels for us be positive or negative?

If positive would they be one of those I already mentioned - like “Joy” or “A Breath of Fresh Air?”

If negative would the scent I give off be called,

• Anger,
• Grumpy,
• Complaints,
• Negativity,
• Crush,
• Downer,
• Pessimist,
• Hurting,
• Draining?

FIRST READING

Today’s first reading - Isaiah 42: 1-7 -  talks about God’s Servant?

It talks about having the Spirit of God.

It talks about bringing justice to the nations.

It talks about not crying, not shouting, not making noise.

It talks about opening eyes

It talks about bringing comfort to those who are imprisoned.

It talks about bringing light to those in darkness.

Now those are great strategies, methods, ways to become a breath of fresh air, joy, to our world, how to become a welcoming sight in all the rooms we enter.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

In today’s gospel - John 12: 1-11 - we have Mary, the sister of Martha, bringing a sweet aroma to the whole house and we have Judas bringing a negative scent and spin to the scene.

Judas says that the perfume is being wasted on Jesus and it could have been sold and used for the poor.  But John tells us that’s a lie. Judas is being dishonest. He was stealing from the group's money bag. I’ve often wondered what it was like to travel with Judas. Was he Mister Negative? Was he a drain or a pain?  Was he stale air?  Was he a morose dark cloud that hung over the whole group or was all that within and he never told anyone what he was really feeling?

CONCLUSION

The title of my homily was, “Sniff, Sniff, Scent, Scent, Hint, Hint.” We can think about others, but the best thing to do would be to take some time to be with ourselves, and take a big sniff of who we are? Sniff, Sniff, Scent, Scent, Hint, Hint.

I remember reading a quote from a writer named, “Ben Amin” who talked about being, “The person whose perfume is Jesus”.

Wouldn’t that be a great scent to have? Amen.

BRIDGES

Quote for Today - March 25, 2013

"Let everyone praise the bridge they go over."

English Proverb

MY GRANDFATHER 

WAS A CENTURION

My grandfather was a centurion - in charge of a 100 soldiers.

He was stationed in Africa, Gaul and Israel.

In the evenings - after a little wine - he loved to tell stories - about all the different places he was stationed - and all the different things that he saw - as a soldier and then as a centurion in the Roman army.

Now he told these stories over and over again - and I noticed that nobody liked to listen to them. They heard them all before.

But I loved to hear my grandfather’s stories.  Whenever it started to get dark and the friends whom I was playing with in our garden behind our house - had to get home, I loved to go over to where my grandpa was sitting and sit with him. It’s one of the best memories a person can have - but they won’t know this till they are old and he is gone - and now they are a grandfather or a grandmother.

My grandfather loved to look out into the western sky. He loved to watch the sun setting. He loved to watch the dark night creep up the canvas of the sky. Another day …..

I loved to look at his face - thanks to the light from an oil lamp. I loved to wonder where he was and what story he was telling himself at the moment.  I’d love to say, “Grandpa tell me one of your stories.”

The story that intrigued me the most was the story he told about what happened one week - many years ago - in Palestine - in Israel - in Jerusalem.

“One day,” that’s how he usually began, “One day there was this rabbi - this teacher - who came into Jerusalem on a donkey. Everyone was singing. Everyone was  praising him. I didn’t know who he was - but I knew he was well known amongst the Jews. Some people seemed to like him; some seemed to be nervous about him; some seemed to want him killed.

“Whatever. Our job was to be part of crowd control that day. The only damage that could have happened was a fight or two erupting because the crowds were cutting palm branches off other people’s trees and waving them at this man on the donkey - or throwing them as well as their cloaks on the ground. I guess so his donkey could have a soften step. Those stone steps on the way in and out and all around Jerusalem could be tough on one’s feet.

“This would probably be something I'd forget. However, I remember it because a few days later some of these same people were screaming for the death of this man who had arrived in town on a donkey. In fact when my boss Pilate asked the crowd if they wanted this man or a well known thief and murderer named Barabbas killed, they screamed for the release of Barabbas.

“Strange. I just couldn't understand what was going on. 

"In the meanwhile I was watching everything. That was my job. That was why I was getting paid my pieces of silver.

“I heard from other soldiers that one of his disciples - Judas - his own friend - betrayed him for 30 pieces of silver.  I found out this man’s name was Jesus. He was from Nazareth - up in the north - not a bad place to be stationed. It’s cooler up there and they have a lake there - which has had various names. It seems that big shots like to have big spots named after them. In my time Roman soldiers in Palestine called it the Sea of Tiberius. They better have called it that. It was renamed after the Roman emperor - Tiberius Caesar.

“Anyway that night of his arrest some of our soldiers made fun of this man named Jesus and some even beat him. They had heard he talked about founding a kingdom, so they crowned him with thorns.

“The next day - the day Pilate offered the crazy crowd - the choice of releasing Barabbas or Jesus - I was standing there - watching faces. I saw a surprise, ‘What?’ in both the faces of Pilate and Barabbas - but nothing going on in the face of Jesus - just blood - just a silent,  battered face - of a desecrated human being.

“I began wondering, ‘Who is this man? Who is this Jesus?’

“It was my 100 men - who marched him to his execution on Calvary - the place of death - just outside the city of Jerusalem.

“On the way to the cross - a cross which they made him carry - I could see all kinds of faces. Some crying…. Some spitting ….  Some screaming …. Some in shock…. Some silent…. One his mother….

“’Who is this man?’ that became my constant question.

“I had seen death - executions - before - but this was different.

“We got him to Calvary. We nailed him to a cross - along with two other criminals. We planted him in the ground - and he hung there for a few hours and then he died.

“His disciples - had all fled. I know I would have. But his mother was there. She wasn’t afraid - along with a few other women - and someone named John. I heard he was very close to Jesus.

“Anyway it got dark - like the evening sky - but it was still early afternoon. I always think of that day as I watch the sun set every evening.

“It was a scene of horror - like any execution.

“That day - that Jesus - that wounded man on the cross - said some powerful things from that cross. The one that grabbed me was his forgiveness to us who were doing this. I didn’t understand that at the time - but I have understood it ever since.

“Then my grandfather said to me, ‘When you get to be an old man like me - you’ll look back on your life - and if you have done the things I have done, you’ll need to know forgiveness is possible.

He paused and then said, “I tasted it that dark afternoon - and I’ve tasted it ever since - just remembering that moment.’

“He promised one of the other thieves who died on a cross near him that day - he promised him - ‘Today you’ll be with me in paradise.’ I’ve often wondered what that meant. I’ve often wondered what that meant’.

“The weather got worse. Thunder and lightning had some of the few folks there running for the way back to the city. I guess the skies wanted to wash with rain - the blood of this man - that could be seen on those stones on that same way to the cross to this place called Calvary.

“I figured I had to say something. So I said, “This man was innocent beyond all doubt.’

“But I don’t know if anyone heard me …. but I heard me.”

[PAUSE]

My grandfather was a centurion. He died as grandfathers do - but of all the stories he told me, I remembered that story the most.

Years later I told some Christians that story my grandfather told me.

Surprise those words my grandfather said that day made it into print - in the Gospel of Luke, “This man was innocent beyond all doubt” but I also heard there’s another version in a Gospel story by a man named Mark, “Truly this man was the Son of God.”

As I said my grandfather told many stories - and he often repeated himself - so maybe he had many versions of what he said that day - don’t we all? Don’t we all? 

THE DONKEY

Quote for Today: March 24,  2013

                   THE DONKEY 

When fishes flew and forests walked   

   And figs grew upon thorn,   

Some moment when the moon was blood   

   Then surely I was born.

With monstrous head and sickening cry

   And ears like errant wings,   

The devil’s walking parody   

   On all four-footed things.

The tattered outlaw of the earth,

   Of ancient crooked will;

Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb,   

   I keep my secret still.

Fools! For I also had my hour;

   One far fierce hour and sweet:   

There was a shout about my ears,

   And palms before my feet.

Gilbert Keith Chesterton [1874-1936], from The Collected poems of G. K. Chesteron (Dodd Mead and Company, 1927, The Donkey