Wednesday – 24th Week in Ordinary Time

First Reading – 1 Corinthians 12:31 – 13:13

LOVE!

Mount Zion

I Love My Wife! I Love Ginger! There, I said it! Always and forever, no matter what the circumstance or difficulty or detour in this road we call life, I Love Her! But you know what?  Those are just words and, if that’s all there is, then is it really love??

Today’s First Reading is probably one of the most familiar, most well-known readings.  It’s used at anniversary celebrations, at funerals and most especially at weddings.  It is a constant reminder that love demands action, not just words. It is a Christian call to action, to love others!  Not just our family and friends but to love all! The poor, the sick, the marginalized, the forgotten and neglected, and those whose views are different from our own. We are called to love everyone no matter the race, gender, color, nationality, or politics! And we are reminded today that love is the greatest of virtues. It reminds me of that old hymn – they’ll know we are Christians by our love!

So let’s take the time today to examine ourselves.  Whom do we love? How do we love them? Do we really show our love by our words AND our actions? Does it measure up to the words of St. Paul?  Do they really know we are Christians by our love?

Love is patient, love is kind.
It is not jealous, love is not pompous,
it is not inflated, it is not rude,
it does not seek its own interests,
it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,
it does not rejoice over wrongdoing
but rejoices with the truth.
It bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Tuesday - Third Week of Easter Gospel – John 6:30-35 Knead to Know Cooking Class Over the past month or so, I gathered together a couple groups of my altar servers for a cooking class!   They learned not only my recipe for zucchini chocolate chip muffins but how to make them from scratch!   And, YES, they took home their finished products, or at least the muffins they didn’t wolf down as soon as they came out of the oven!   It was a fun, wonderful (and messy) experience!   Who knew that cracking eggs and measuring out flour could be so ‘untidy’.   But it brought home the lesson that, in order to get those yummy muffins, it takes time, effort and a heaping cup of patience. And it reminded me not only of their loyal service but those long months of Covid when they missed their Mass ministry.   So from time to time during the pandemic, I stayed in touch with them by dropping off goodie bags filled with chocolate chip cookies, zucchini chocolate muffins and, of course, sampl
Read more
Image
Sunday – Feast of Holy Trinity Gospel – John 3:16=18 God Above, Beside, Within Church of All Nations, Gethsemane Today we celebrate the Feast of Holy Trinity, a key church doctrine – 3 Persons in 1 God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit, one of the great mysteries of our faith. We hear in today’s readings a description of those 3 persons.   The First Reading – God the Father, the Creator and Law-Giver.   The God so far above us all that we bow down before Him in reverence and obedience.   The Second Reading – the Holy Spirit – God who brings us peace and love and fellowship.   The Spirit or encouragement inside all of us by virtue of our Baptism and Confirmation.   And the Gospel - God the Son – Jesus Christ – who took on human form to redeem us of our sins and lead us to eternal life.   Jesus who walked the same earth as all of us. Essentially the Trinity is a relationship – the love between father and son and that love so intense that it is embodied in the Holy Spirit.
Read more
Image
  Friday – 7 th Week of Easter Gospel – John 21:15-19 Following a NEW path Hand in Hand!! Today is May 17 , a memorable day for my family, a mixture of joy and sadness.   If he were still with us, it would have been Bob’s, my father-in-law, 96 th birthday.   But sadly he passed away on April 22, just 6 days after Ginger’s Mom, Shirley, on April 16.   A day full of memories and love, a time of sorrow! And 9 years ago today, I was ordained a Permanent Deacon in the Archdiocese of Chicago.   A celebration of joy and faith with our friends and family!   And a new path to follow in service and in hope! And exactly 50 months ago today (and every day since), I shared with you my first daily Gospel reflection.   A time of pandemic and death, a time of loss and separation! One single day packed with so many memories!   And isn’t that exactly what life is all about – moments of tears and moments of smiles, times of elation and times of sorrow, of loss and gain, of love an
Read more