Month: March 2020

Grace-filled Water

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Discipleship, Eternal Life, Faith, Gospel, Hope, Jesus, Lent, Mercy1 Comment

Third Sunday of Lent

March 15, 2020

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Today, in Mercy, water flows through all our readings, inviting us to God’s refreshing Mercy.

Gen_rock

For the thirsty and testy Israelites, the water flows from the rock of their hopelessness. Wandering in the desert for days on end, they are exhausted and bewildered. Each sunrise seems to push their destination farther away rather than bring it closer. They are thirsty … but for a lot more than a cool drink.

And God gives everything they need – not only water, but surprised hope and renewed confidence as they witness the mighty rock split at Moses’ touch.

Paul points out that it is, indeed, that hope which truly slakes the deeper thirst. 

And hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

In our Gospel story, Jesus awakens in the Samaritan woman a thirst and hope she didn’t know she had. The layers of her tangled life had formed an impervious rock around her, insulating her from her own soul’s needs.

800px-Duccio_di_Buoninsegna_-_Christ_and_the_Samaritan_Woman_-_Google_Art_Project
Christ and the Samaritan Woman by Duccio di Buoninsegna

Jesus, “tired from the journey”, expressed his own need to her. This simple request unleashes a cascade of searching from the woman. Jesus, seeing her readiness for grace, catches all that pours out from her. He transforms it into a challenge for conversion:

Jesus answered and said to her,
“If you knew the gift of God
and who is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink, ‘
you would have asked him
and he would have given you living water.”

And she accepts the challenge:

Sir, give me this water,
so that I may not be thirsty again.

As we pray today, we may sense a desert within us. Or we may feel that our soul’s journey has become frustratingly circuitous. We may be like the Samaritan woman, sitting beside a well that seems slowly drying out. Maybe the juices have dwindled in our souls.

In these readings, as we listen to the Ancients call out for flowing grace, we may find a way to ask God for the refreshment we need just now.

Living Waters – Gettys

Come Back!

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Faith, Forgiveness, Gospel, Hope, Jesus, Lent, Mercy, Prayer, repentanceLeave a comment

Saturday of the Second Week of Lent

March 14, 2020

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Today, in Mercy, our readings are soaked in Mercy itself … seasoned by repentance, forgiveness, hope, and trust.

Both in Micah’s lilting, poetic words and in Jesus’s  parable, we are embraced by the infinite tenderness of God.

You may find the following comparison odd at first, but stay with me a minute. Reading this morning’s scriptures, I thought of Lidia Bastianich, the famous chef. To me, her show is the perfect combination of instruction, humor, and familial camaraderie. Still, even though Lydia offers tons of invaluable culinary tips, it is her repeated farewell phrase that I most treasure: “Tutti a tavola a mangiare!”. “Let everyone come to the table and eat!”

Lydia

Micah, who prophesied just prior to the Siege of Jerusalem in 587 BC, condemned the sinfulness rampant in Israel and Judah. At the same time, he consoled the “remnant” people and, àla Lydia, invited them to the table of forgiveness and reconciliation. Here’s the way Micah asks God to “set the table” for God’s repentant People:

Shepherd your people with your staff,
the flock of your inheritance,
That dwells apart in a woodland,
in the midst of Carmel.
Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead,
as in the days of old …

prodigal dinner
The Parable of the Prodigal Son by Frans II Francken

Jesus describes a similar banquet offered to the repentant son:

The father ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.
His son said to him,
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.’
But his father ordered his servants,
‘Quickly, bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.’

As I pray today, I ask if there is any lost or hungry part of my spirit that longs to return to the table of Peace and Mercy. I pray also for those places and souls throughout our world who hunger to hear:

“Tutti a tavola a mangiare!”

Music: Father, I Have Sinned -written by Fr. Eugene O’Reilly

Rejected

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Charity, Community, Faith, Gospel, Jesus, Lent, Mercy, sufferingLeave a comment

Friday of the Second Week of Lent

March 13, 2020

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Mt21_42rejected

Today, in Mercy, there is a great sadness in our readings.

The poignant opening line from Genesis immediately strikes us:

Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons,
for he was the child of his old age

Joseph

We picture young Joseph in his beautiful rainbow coat and, under an olive tree’s shade, old Jacob(Israel) proudly, tenderly, watching him play.

As the story ensues to reveal the later betrayal of Joseph’s jealous brothers, we are left astounded. Such treachery, especially among brothers, sickens the heart.

Our Gospel picks up the sad theme because Joseph and his brothers are archetypes of Christ’s story with humankind.

800px-The_Wicked_Husbandman_(The_Parables_of_Our_Lord_and_Saviour_Jesus_Christ)_MET_DP835802
The Wicked Husbandman by John Everett Millais shows the owner’s murdered son

Jesus tells a parable in which he is actually the unnamed main character. He is the Son sent by a loving Father. He is the one rejected, beaten and killed by the treacherous tenants of his Father’s garden.

We know from our familiarity with Scripture that both these stories ultimately come to glorious conclusions. But today’s readings do not take us there. They leave us standing, mouths dropped open, at the dense meanness of the human heart, at the soul’s imperviousness to grace, at the profound sadness Jesus felt at this point in his ministry.

In our prayer today, let’s just be with Jesus, sharing his sadness for the meanness still hardening our world. Let us comfort him with our desire to be open to God’s Grace and Mercy.

Music:  Handel:Messiah – He was despised and rejected – Alfred Deller

Thoughts for This Friday the 13th

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Faith11 Comments

(Half in fun, half in earnest, trying to lighten my mood, control my anxieties on this.  I thought some of you might enjoy/benefit from it as well)

sparyOK, friends, here’s the truth. I’m sitting here, spraying Lysol all around me, wondering if I’ll be killed by evil Captain Corona.

I ask myself how the heck did I end up in the “elderly, frail and vulnerable” bin?

After a rather fruitless attempt at a Prayer of Abandonment, I say to myself, “What can I learn from this?” And the always challenging, open question, “Where is God in this?”

bin

My ancestors’ voices come to me saying, “Honey, you’re gonna’ die someday anyway. Don’t be stupid about safety, but try to keep things in perspective. Self-isolate and wash your hands! And then, get on with life!”

My Dad in particular returns to mind with his often shared advice over many decades:

“When your ticket’s up, you’re going.
If it’s not up, you ain’t going, so relax.”

ticket

With that attitude, Dad lived bravely through poverty, orphanhood, depression, flu epidemics and world wars (as well as 1968). So I say to myself, “For God’s sake, get some of Dad’s chutzpah!”

As a result, here’s my main desired attitude:

  • Learn from this. It’s like no other time you will experience! Don’t miss the lessons!
  • Woman up! (Man up! Or Kid up! – Whatever works.)
  • Be kind. Yes, everybody you’re talking to may shrivel and die by next Tuesday. They probably won’t, but don’t you want to be one of their last kind thoughts, just in case?
  • Everybody is at least a little anxious. Be the Calm, not the Agitator.
  • Those bucket list items you never had the guts to do? When Captain Corona is dead from vaccine, go DO them. You almost missed the chance, Baby!
  • Don’t fly, cruise, crowd-gather or do anything else that can wait til the coast is clear.
  • And for heaven’s sake (or Earth’s) continue to always wash your hands. You know you cheated for years on that 20 second scrub! If you get cut a break and live, pay it forward!

And China and other highly affected countries? They paid the price for the rest of us to get ahead of this. Pray for them, and confront those using this as an excuse for racism or xenophobia.

Speaking of racism and all other kinds of hateful categorizations, we all know now what it feels like to be at least slightly desperate for ours lives. Let’s take down the walls of war, immigration isolation, racial profiling… and endlessly on! We know now what a refugee might experience — what it feels like to run from a threat we can’t outrun! Let’s help one another!

Dear God, we can be mean! Let this global suffering teach us! Teach us to rejoice in one another’s lives and to protect them, always, because each one is precious…. each one.

And my final prayer:
Hey, Dad, now among the Saints, ask God to help me to become a better person because of this mess, not a worse one, please?

whiskey-303464_960_720

 

(And for Heaven’s sake, Friends, unearth the 12-year-old Scotch (or case of Corona beer) in the back of your closet, if you happen to have one😂 What were you saving it for anyway!)

 

 

Music: Learn Your Lessons Well

Turn and See

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Charity, Conversion, Discipleship, Faith, Gospel, holiness, Jesus, Lent, MercyLeave a comment

Thursday of the Second Week of Lent

March 12, 2020

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Today, in Mercy, our readings offer us studies in dramatic contrasts.

the barren bush in a lava waste
vs.
the tree planted beside the waters
that turns its roots to the stream

Jere17_7barrentree


a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen
vs.
a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores

Gustave_Dore_Lazarus_and_the_Rich_Man
Lazarus and the Rich Man by Gustave Dore (1891)

 

What are Jeremiah and Jesus teaching us with these unforgettable images?

Jeremiah summarizes his point in the very first verse:

Cursed is the one who trusts in human beings,
who seeks strength in flesh,
whose heart turns away from the LORD.

In his parable, Jesus has Abraham deliver the point:

You received what was good during your lifetime
while Lazarus likewise received what was bad;
but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.

Praying with these passages, we might determine to make sure we don’t end up like the barren bush or the ultimately tormented rich person. 

But how can we do that?

I think the key lies in Jeremiah’s phrase, “one whose heart turns away from the LORD.” 

In his parable, Jesus shows us what that “turning” looks like. It is any blind indifference in us that allows us to ignore another’s suffering. 

Most of us don’t consciously choose that indifference. We simply fail to turn from our own comfort … plans, needs, agenda … to observe the pain or need around us.

So as we leave our prayer today, perhaps we can do so determined to turn from our self-interests … to see if there is a “Lazarus” right beside us whom we had failed to notice.

Music: Turn My Heart – Lynn DeShazo (Lyrics below)

Turn my heart O Lord
Like rivers of water
Turn my heart O Lord
By Your hand
‘Til my whole life flows
In the river of Your Spirit
And my name
Bring honor to the Lamb

Lord I surrender to
Your work in me
I rest my life within
Your loving hands

(Repeat chorus 3 times)

‘Til my name brings honor
‘Til my name brings honor
To the Lamb

Here’s That Cup, Again!

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Discipleship, Faith, Jesus, Lent6 Comments

Wednesday of the Second Week of Lent

March 11, 2020

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Today, in Mercy, we learn a lesson in humble leadership, thanks once againto “Mrs. Zebedee”.

Mk 10_38 cup

Our Gospel recounts the story of the mother of James and John interceding for her sons with Jesus. Like many overprotective mothers, she intervenes even into their adult lives. She wants to make sure they get the best deal for their investment with Jesus.

Listen, I understand and love her! I would be the same way with my kids if I had any. I often say it’s best I had none because “Overprotective Me” would have had to shadow them to school, dances, playgrounds etc. until they were about 35 years old!

But the point of this Gospel story isn’t Mrs. Zebedee’s overprotectiveness.  It has little to do with Mrs. Zebedee at all.

The point is that “Mrs. Zebedee” (like many of us) has missed the whole POINT. The Gospel story is about US and the integrity of our choice to live a life in the pattern of Jesus.

Christ’s disciples have decided to follow a man who says things like this:

  • The last shall be first and the first, last.
  • Unless you lay down your life, you cannot follow me.
  • Whoever takes the lowly position of a child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.

The seats at Christ’s right and left, which Mrs. Zebedee requests for her sons, will bring them rewards only through humility and sacrificial service.

Here’s the way a 14th century artist imagined the Zebedee family. (Dad looks happy!)

sons of zebedee
Mary Salome and Zebedee with their Sons James the Greater and John the Evangelist (c.1511) by Hans von Kulmbach, Saint Louis Art Museum

 

Jesus is gentle with “Mrs. Zebedee”. He understands how hard it is for any of us to comprehend the hidden glory of a deeply Christian life. We are surrounded by a world that screams the opposite to us:

  • Me first!
  • Stand your ground!
  • Good guys finish last!

So Jesus turns to James and John (and to us). One can imagine the bemused look on Christ’s face. He knows the hearts of his disciples. He knows they have already given themselves to him. So he asks them for a confession of faith, “Can you drink the cup that I will drink?”

veronese-le-christ-rencontrant-la-femme-et-les-fils-de-zebedee_-_grenoble
The meeting of Christ with Zebedee’s wife and sons by Paolo Veronese

Their humble, faith-filled answer no doubt stuns their mother. She is left in wonder at the holy men her sons have become. Perhaps it is the beginning of her own deep conversion to Christ.

As we pray with this passage, where do we find ourselves in this scene? How immediate, sincere, and complete is our response to Jesus’ question: “Can you drink the cup….?”

Music: To Be a Servant – David Haas

Refrain:
For I have come not to be served but to serve;
To give my life.
If you wish to be the first you must seek
To be a servant, to be a servant.

1. Can you drink the cup that I must drink;
Are you willing?
Can you be baptized like I have been baptized?
Are you able? Are you able?

2. For to sit at my right hand or at my left,
Is not for me to give.
But for those for whom it has been prepared,
It will be given. It will be given.

A Cheat and a Gift

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn FaithLeave a comment

Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent

March 10, 2020

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soup

(I will be honest with you, dear readers – as I always am.  (So sorry, my Guam and Australia friends that I am so late.) The morning got away from me.  Ever had that happen? This is a re-run because Daylight Saving Time made me get up too late, and I had to make the most delicious soup ever before I wrote a reflection. You see, I live in a hungry community whom I love!

Recipe below as a means to ask your forgiveness. 🙂

But first:

Scarlett

Today, in Mercy, our readings are a study in contrasts
between sinfulness and righteousness.
Isaiah says even the forlorn sinners of Sodom and Gomorrah
could be saved if they live humbly
and do justice to the downtrodden.
Jesus says that the sin-blind Pharisees
can only be saved
by becoming servants of the needy.
The message is clear
that the path to holiness
is the humble service of our neighbor.
May we hear and respond.

Perhaps, responding to these readings,  we would like to give nourishing “soup” – material or spiritual – to our neighbor today. Let me know if you make it, or something similar.  Or have some great suggestions!

Music: Lovely video: White As Snow Maranatha Singers

Recipe

Prelude:
You have leftover mashed potatoes and a few extra sausages, ham or bacon. Hmm? What to do?

1.Make Your Own Broth

Toss a roughly chopped onion, 3 celery stalks, 3 carrots, a couple of cloves of garlic and a meat bone or chicken breast into a pot. I use celery leaves, unchewable asparagus stems and the like.  You won’t actually be eating these.  It’s just to get the nutrients and flavor.

I added a few pork bones today that  I had in the freezer. (Good to roast them first at 350 for 30 minutes if you have time.) You can use some ham or bacon or beef. Add favorite seasonings like salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary, parsley, bay leaf, and marjoram. Go gently with the add-ins.  You can’t take OUT but you can always ADD. Cover with water. Bring to a boil. Then simmer for about 30 minutes. Pour through a strainer to keep liquid. Let cool. Remove surface fat. (It will rise if you place pot by cool window, or in fridge for a while.  I bought a fat separator and it works well too, but COOL first or your plastic separator will melt!)

      2. The Soup

Roughly clear your stock pot.  (Don’t worry about leaving some of the original spices there.) Add 2-3 tablespoon olive oil. Add chopped onion, celery, carrots, and garlic to pot. Depends on your taste. I use 2 big onions, 4 carrots, 4 celery, 2 garlic gloves. If I have a nice half cabbage, I gladly shower it in.  You’d be surprised how sweet it is! Gently brown as you consider God’s gentleness to you throughout your lifetime. If you want to live dangerously and deliciously, (and don’t have acid reflux), add 1/2 stick butter.

When veggies are transparent, coat with about two tablespoons of cornstarch – the way God sends unexpected grace over you. Stir until the white cornstarch disappears in the veggies. Add your beautiful broth while humming a hymn – preferably Amazing Grace or I Love Rock and Roll Music.  If you don’t have enough of your own broth, add some chicken stock. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 15 minutes. Sit down and have a glass of wine.

    3. The Left-over Potatoes , Et Cetera

Mix the potatoes like this:  1 cup taters to a half cup flour. Add an egg, good salt and pepper. Combine.  Form balls a little smaller than golf balls.

Great to have some sautéed and drained sausage balls, shredded chicken, or bacon or ham.

Once soup is simmering nicely, drop in your extras – potatoes, sausage balls, etc.. Add a can of rinsed beans or a couple handfuls of little pasta things if you want some heft. Let cook gently for 15 or 20 minutes.

Honey, you’re gonna’ love it!  Let me know!

 

A Plea for Mercy

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Faith, Forgiveness, Gospel, Jesus, Lent, Mercy, Prayer, repentanceLeave a comment

Monday of the Second Week in Lent

March 9, 2020

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bruggemann

Today, in Mercy, our reading from Daniel gives us one of the Great Prayers of the Old Testament (according to Walter Brueggemann’s like-named book.)

The Book of Daniel and chapter nine in particular, have been the subjects of extensive biblical exegesis. Chapter nine in considered one of the Messianic Prophecies, Old Testament markers pointing to Christ. So there is much we could study about today’s first reading.

 

But how might we pray with it?

Naming the sins of all the People, Daniel’s great prayer is a plea for mercy:

Lord, great and awesome God,
you who keep your merciful covenant
toward those who love you
and observe your commandments! …
… yours, O Lord, our God,
are compassion and forgiveness!

Three themes, so strikingly germane to Lent, arise from Daniel’s prayer:

Repentance
Forgiveness
Transformation

Our Responsorial Psalm picks up this plea to Mercy for Mercy:

Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
may your compassion quickly come to us,
for we are brought very low.
R.    Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.
Help us, O God our savior,
because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
for your name’s sake.

The questions for each of us as we pray today —

Is there someplace in my life
longing for such mercy and healing?
Where can my spirit grow
from repentance, forgiveness, and transformation?

be Mercy

In our Gospel Jesus tells us how to open our hearts to this merciful healing.

“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”

There it is in black and white. Whether or not the advice changes my heart is up to me!

Music: Kyrie Eleison (Lord, have mercy) Beethoven- Missa Solemnis

Daylight Saving Time

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn FaithLeave a comment

Let Daylight Saving Time Bless You

doorway
It was the house we had grown up in and its now empty corners echoed a thousand joys. My brother and I stood on its threshold, ready for the final time to close the door behind us. Mom had died eight months before, following Dad to a home we believed in. Now the house had been sold, emptied, cleaned and blessed. It was time to move on.

That moment on the threshold
is a still-shot in the memory
of those long-ago days.
Such a moment is the tight-wire
between memory and promise;
the border between regret and gratitude.
It is the passageway
between fear and trust.
It is the line we draw
between loneliness and independence.

Such a moment is like the soft, grey stillness
just before dawn
when everything is possible
but nothing is yet real.
It is an exquisite time
when life invites us to become
all and more than we had ever been.

These early weeks of daylight savings time are like that threshold.  They give us a second chance, beyond winter, to pause at the shadowed lintel and to enter the power of pre-dawn.

dawn

Early mornings which, in the past few weeks, had been brightening now plunge back into shadows.

This is a grace-filled liminal time where we might recall all the many doorways we have crossed on the journey to who we are.

It is a time we might reflect on the invitations offered at each crossing and who we have become because of our yeses and our nos.

It is a time to wait for new light, but still to bless the rich darkness that holds the deep roots of our life.

It is a time to realize that we lift our foot for the next step purely on the music of all that has been given to us.

DST

Let’s not take this annual transition for granted.  It has so much to offer us as we pass mysteriously through time.

Some lovely accompanying music: Somewhere in Time

 

It’s Your Turn!

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Discipleship, Faith1 Comment

Second Sunday of Lent

March 8, 2020

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Today, in Mercy, as I prayed with these readings, I heard the words “It’s your turn.”

In our passage from Genesis, it’s the message God gives Abram:

Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk
and from your father’s house
to a land that I will show you.

In other words, I have reached from my Infinite Perfection to call you into a covenant of love. Now, it’s your turn to leave your comfort zone and go find my hope for you and for my people.

In Timothy’s letter, the call comes in this form:

Bear your share of hardship for the gospel
with the strength that comes from God.

Again Timothy tells us that Christ carried the cross so that we could have eternal life. It’s our turn now to bear any cross all the way to the empty tomb.

And in our Gospel, the just transfigured Jesus calls his beloved disciples to a new courage:

“Rise, and do not be afraid.”

In other words.. things are going to get really tough. You have just seen a Glorious Light that will take you through the darkness. It’s your turn to walk beside me on the coming journey.

Folded in each of these messages is the implication that, although challenges may come, a stronger commitment to God and God’s hope is being opened before each listener — before us.

its ur turnJPG

Scripture records the long, ensuing story of Abram’s response. We know, too, how Timothy’s early Christian community turned persecution into indomitable witness. And the commitment of Peter, James, and John built the foundation of our faith.

Every morning when God wakes us up, the Holy Voice shining in the morning light whispers, “It’s your turn. Today will be part of your journey into my Heart. How will you respond to the many calls being offered you?”

Let this “Transfiguration Moment” give us brave, loving, and insightful hearts! Let us walk the path Christ would walk, especially as we deepen into the lovely blessings of Lent.

Music:  Transfiguration – Carey Landry

We behold the splendor of God
shining on the face of Jesus.
We behold the splendor of God
shining on the face of the Son.

And oh, how his beauty transforms us,
the wonder of presence abiding.
Transparent hearts give reflection
of Tabor’s light within, of Tabor’s light within.

Jesus, Lord of Glory, Jesus, Beloved Son,
oh, how good to be with you;
how good to share your light;
how good to share your light.

We behold the splendor of God
shining on the face of Jesus.
We behold the splendor of God
shining on the face of the Son.

And oh, how his beauty transforms us,
the wonder of presence abiding.
Transparent hearts give reflection of
Tabor’s light within, of Tabor’s light within.

Jesus, Lord of Glory,
Jesus, Beloved Son,
oh, how good to be with you;
how good to share your light;
how good to share your light.