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World Peace

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The acquisition of peace, from a secular framework, is a tricky topic. So many roads appear to lead to peace based on the sayings:

“If you want peace, prepare for war.”

“If you want peace, work for peace.”

“If you want peace, end poverty/hunger/homelessness/racism/social inequality.”

“If you want peace, stop fighting.”

“If you want peace, work for justice.”

How can all of these be true at once? While I’m not about to contradict a pope (that last observation belongs to Pope Paul VI), our Gospel today offers a very different understanding of where peace comes from. And spoiler alert, it’s not something that’s the fruit of our labors as these previous sayings imply. 

As Jesus is preparing His disciples for His Ascension, He explains another gift He is leaving them. Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.” 

The world teaches us that peace must be earned before it can be received. “If you want peace, then you must do something.” This isn’t what Jesus expressed to His apostles. The peace that Jesus offers is something even greater than world peace. It is the state of a soul in right relationship with God the Father.

When we find ourselves out of relationship with God, it becomes very challenging to be in right relationship with our neighbors. There is a reason the first Great Commandment Jesus gave us is about our relationship with God. Then the second deals with everyone else. The world cannot give us this kind of peace. 

The world is concerned, and rightly so, with the peace between peoples. There are many avenues to peace, like the sayings I dictated earlier. There are many places where peace seems unavailable or impossible to achieve. Peace often is seen as a compromise where no one side wins and everyone is sacrificing something for a balance of peace. Peace of this kind takes work.

If only the world could see that the work would not be so arduous we first received the peace Jesus freely offers. Living in harmony with God naturally brings people into harmony with one another. We discover the unity in Christ that binds us together as part of the family of God. We are not all the same, but our differences are not meant to be divisive. 

I love this image from Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare Movement. Chiara says,

“Let us imagine that God is like the sun. A ray from the sun falls on each one of us. Each ray is the divine will for me, for you, for everyone. Christians and all people of good will are called to move towards the sun, keeping to their own ray of light which is unique and distinct from all the others. By doing so, they will fulfill the wonderful and particular plan that God has for them. If you do the same, you will find yourself involved in a divine adventure you never even dreamed of. You will be, at the same time, both actor in and spectator of something great that God is accomplishing in you and through you in humanity” 

Doing the will of God, receiving the peace He has to give. These are the ways we will bring about world peace that is meaningful and lasting for all people.  

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Launching Disciples

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There comes a time in every parent’s journey where they have to step aside and let their children come into their own as persons. My mother-in-law calls this process “launching.” In little ways throughout a child’s development, parents are preparing them for life on their own. We teach our children how to bathe on their own, how to cook a meal, how to fold laundry (or at least wash their clothes). As they grow, children learn how to drive, how to manage finances, how to make wise decisions. Some of these lessons they internalize and begin to use immediately, others take more time and sometimes are rejected before they are well learned. 

In today’s Gospel, we see Jesus “launching” the disciples into the world. They have been formed, they have been tested, and now they are being empowered to go out “to all creation” proclaiming Jesus’ Resurrection. Then, Jesus steps aside, or in the case of most artwork of the Ascension, He steps up, rising to heaven to sit at His Father’s right hand. While remaining with the disciples and indeed, all baptized members of the Church up to this present moment and beyond, Jesus removes His bodily presence from this earth. 

Just as a parent cannot live the life of their child, it was vitally important for the Church that Jesus allow His disciples to come into full ownership of their faith. Peter couldn’t have become the leader of the Church if Jesus had remained. That role would have remained Jesus’. The apostles could not have had the authority or boldness to go out and preach as they did if they were constantly running back to Jesus to check in or verify their work. Jesus filled them with the Holy Spirit and sent them out in His place. 

How good, wise and selfless our Savior is. Even in this moment, after giving up everything on the Cross and returning with our salvation in hand, still He sacrifices for us. He leaves His beloved creation as was the Father’s Will and ascends to Heaven. In His abundant generosity, He gives to all of us the gift of the Spirit which has been handed down from generation to generation. And even more abundantly, He gives us a foreshadowing of Heaven within the Mass, a taste of complete union with God by the offering of His own Body and Blood for us in the Eucharist. Let our Easter Alleluia’s continue to ring out joyfully as we contemplate just how much Jesus has done for us.

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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This Changes Everything

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While the phrase, “This changes everything” could be seen as overused or an over exaggeration, in today’s Gospel no phrase could be more apt. However, in the strange and mysterious ways of God, there is an element that remains unchanged, even while the whole course of human history has been rerouted. 

Today, we hear the story of Mary Magdalen’s encounter with the risen Jesus just outside the tomb. In her distress, when she first hears Jesus she doesn’t look at Him. She assumes He is the gardener. Only when He calls her by name does she look up to see the resurrected Christ. 

By name He calls her. Just as during Jesus’ previous ministry, He intimately knows each one of His followers. He calls them, singles them out of the crowd, to come and follow Him. Even after going through His Passion, even after the mystery of His Resurrection, Jesus, the Good Shepherd, still does not lose sight of one member of His flock. Nothing has changed. 

And yet as we know, everything changed. Without speaking in a parable, Jesus identifies His disciples as His “brothers.” He claims them as siblings, explaining that they would now share one Father, one God. This statement makes it clear that this relationship is changing, it has been transformed. 

As baptized Christians, we are given a claim to this status of sibling. We are sons and daughters of God, brothers and sisters of Jesus. We share one Father and can pray the prayer Jesus taught us with renewed meaning. “Our Father” is not a theoretical statement, or some lofty metaphor. This is my Father, and your Father. We are made into a new family. No one we encounter can truly be a stranger, for everyone we meet is another brother, another sister, within God’s extensive family. 

We are just beginning the Easter celebrations. Just as Jesus instructed Mary to go and announce what she had seen and heard, so too are we called. We are called to share the Good News with our brothers and sisters and to live our lives in such a way that they can see something is different. We too have been transformed. The Resurrection changes everything.

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

Feature Image Credit: Benjamin Taliaferro, 2022, used with permission

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Be a Ninevite

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The Jewish people had been waiting, and waiting, and waiting for a Messiah. They memorized Scripture, kept all of the Mosaic Law, repeated the stories and traditions so that on the day of the Messiah’s arrival, they would be ready. More than ready, they would be the people God called them to be! Jesus comes, the Messiah is truly present among them, and what happens? Not everyone recognizes him. Worse, those thought to be the most religiously “in tune” are the ones who are the most critical. 

Jesus pushes his audience with today’s teaching, and he pushes us as well. He draws our attention to the Ninevites, an Old Testament people who lived lives of wickedness and debauchery. God sent a reluctant Jonah to preach to them so that they could repent. When Jonah finally got to them and began his work, they recognized the truth of his words and the whole city repented and changed their ways. Jesus points to the wisdom and insight of the Ninevites. They heard words of truth and acted upon them. Yet here was Jesus, Messiah and Chosen One, in and among people trained to hear his words of truth, being questioned and doubted. 

When I consider Jesus’ words, I find myself wondering how often I expect a sign from Jesus. Do I ask him to prove himself, his faithfulness, his love? Do I make bargains with him, “I’ll do X but only if you do Y.” Do I question his presence with me or in the Eucharist?

We are blessed, privileged to know the full story of salvation. We know the Paschal Mystery, the mystery of Christ’s Passion, Death and Resurrection. We have the words Jesus said, the things he did, the promises he made. What further signs could we want? 

Even with all that Jesus gave us, still we doubt. As you journey through this Lenten season, take some time to reflect on your trust in Jesus’ promises. Are you like the Ninevites, who recognized Truth when it was preached to them? Are you like the Pharisees, seeking signs when you already have everything you need? Somewhere in the middle? Take heart and trust in the Lord. He is with you, providing you with the Holy Spirit to face any challenge, walk any distance, until you meet the Father in heaven. 

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Escape

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I think it is good for us to see Jesus in this moment. Jesus, fully God, is also fully human. We see Jesus experience the full range of human emotions in the Gospels. Jesus weeping for Lazarus, Jesus lashing out at the money changers in the temple, Jesus participating at the Wedding at Cana – the Gospel writers were not afraid to show Jesus’ depth of feeling. Today’s Gospel highlights a more private emotion, one that we don’t always acknowledge or speak about – the need to escape.

There isn’t a parent out there who hasn’t felt like Jesus at the start of today’s Gospel reading. Jesus, weary and in need of a break, enters a house and “wanted no one to know about it” (v 24). Every parent has had a moment where they have hidden in the bathroom, a bedroom, the garage, the car, even a closet, because they just needed a minute. A minute of quiet, of not talking, of not listening. Just a few minutes by themselves. That’s what Jesus was seeking.

In light of the changes the world has undergone the past two years, this feeling has come to the forefront of many people’s consciousness. Even those of us who aren’t parents have most likely felt this urge, especially during the spring of 2020 when so many were isolated from their usual daily routines and familiar interactions. Somewhere deep within all of us, even within the most social person, is a need for quiet.

Our need for quiet and stillness is a gift from the Lord, even if it seems hard to come by. Psalm 46:11 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Quiet is often elusive. Our minds are full of necessary and unnecessary information. We are flooded with stimuli between our phones, our TVs, even some billboards feature flashing and changing graphics. Those with children have spent many more hours with them than perhaps planned. The time together ought to be cherished, but it also has caused an immense amount of strain on families who struggled and continue to struggle with the changing conditions and schedules that are outside of their control. 

The desire to want a break while under these kinds of stress is normal. It is time we recognized more positively that people need quality breaks. They need moments of quiet, of stillness and of aloneness. Jesus sought it. We each need to seek it. God speaks to us in the quiet of our heart. We have to take the time to be still so we can listen.

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Who Knows

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The Wedding Feast at Cana is one of the more well known Scripture passages. This is Jesus’ first public miracle in the Gospel of John, albeit a reluctant one. As I reflected on this passage, I found myself drawn in by the sheer number of people at play in it. 

There are the obvious characters – Jesus and Mary. Then there’s the wedding couple, the disciples, the guests and the head waiter. There are also the servants. There’s a whole lot of activity in these few verses. Mary comes to Jesus, He protests. The servants have to fill very large pots with water (for a second time as these were already used once for the guests to purify themselves before the meal), the miracle itself and the drinking that followed. It is easy to get caught up in the anticipation of the moment, Scripture coming to life in our mind’s eye. 

In the midst of the swirl and joy of the new wine, I found the extra note in v.9 about the servants to be most fascinating. While yes, this was Jesus’ first public miracle, who exactly knew about it? Not the head waiter. Which means not the couple or the guests. We assume the disciples knew, but aren’t told by the Gospel writer. Who, precisely, knew about the miracle of water turned into wine? The servants and Mary. Only those who actively participated in the miracle knew what had happened. 

It should not come as a surprise that Jesus chose to reveal His power to the lowly, to the poor, rather than to the guests. He could have easily turned this miracle into a show of His great power, commanding the vessels be placed in the center of the party for all to see. Though Mary isn’t specifically mentioned after her request, how could she not know? She doesn’t announce her son’s greatness, boasting in His accomplishments. Rather she, I imagine, sits quietly in the background, marveling at His generosity as she cups her miracle wine. 

This being His first miracle, I see Jesus setting the tone for what is to come. His miracles are for all people, even those who serve, especially those who serve. The servants followed Jesus’ request, though I’m sure they did not understand it. Their obedience was rewarded with knowledge others only learned of later. 

What is Jesus asking of you today? What task is repetitive, simple, or unglamorous to your eyes? Could it be that Jesus is waiting for your vessel to be filled so that He can transform it into something miraculous? Let’s all spend today being faithful to the calling Jesus has given to us, offering it to Him with open hands. Let Jesus take your work today and transform it for His purpose and glory.

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Translations

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People are often surprised to find out just how many translations of the Bible there are. It is hard to find a definitive count and the numbers found online vary. According to one source, the Wycliff Bible Translators (a Protestant ministry), the complete Bible is translated into over 700 languages. In English, a quick Google search will bring you to a minimum of 15 different English translations with more if you dig deep enough.

The translation that the U.S. Bishops have approved for use in worship is the New American Bible. This is a solid translation which is grounded in academic scholarship, research and historical context. If you look at today’s reading from the Gospel of Luke which highlights Mary’s Magnificat, you will be reading in English what is as close as biblical scholars could get to the words, phrases, and meaning of Mary’s prayer.

When I am studying a piece of Scripture I know well or have heard often, I like to spend some time with other translations in addition to our own. I have found that it can be worth looking at other translations to see what other scholars in different times and places understood the original words of Scripture to mean. There are some translations that focus primarily on a literal word-for-word translation.  Others look to convey a contextual or overall meaning of a passage. These worry less about word-for-word and instead look to use their modern language’s nuances and phrases to pass along the message.

For the Magnificat¸ I’d like to offer you a translation you may not be familiar with. It is called, The Message, and is translated by Eugene H. Patterson. There is a Protestant and a Catholic version. This is a reading Bible, as Patterson says. This is a unique translation. Patterson explains, “I became a ‘translator’, daily standing on the border between two worlds, getting the language of the Bible that God uses to create and save us, heal and bless us, judge and rule over us, into the language of Today that we use to gossip and tell stories, give directions and do business, sing songs and talk to our children” (12).

The Message is the Bible in everyday speech. With this in mind, take a few moments to read Patterson’s rendition of the Magnificat. It is decidedly not what you will hear in Church, but it may evoke new images, emotions, or inspirations you had not considered before. This is not meant to replace your study of the Magnificat found within an approved translation. It is meant to enhance that study experience.

“And Mary said ‘I’m bursting with God-news; I’m dancing the song of my Savior God. God took one good look at me, and look what happened – I’m the most fortunate woman on earth! What God has done for me will never be forgotten, the God whose very name is holy, set apart from all others. His mercy flows in wave after wave on those who are in awe before him. He bared his arm and showed his strength, scattered the bluffing braggarts. He knocked tyrants off their high horses, pulled victims out of the mud. The starving poor sat down to a banquet; the callous rich were left out in the cold. He embraced his chosen child, Israel; he remembered and piled on the mercies, piled them high. It’s exactly what he promised, beginning with Abraham and right up to now (Luke 1:46-54)

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Great Expectations

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One way to discover where God is working in your heart is to notice themes happening around you. Often, we think of these as coincidences. This has been happening to me recently. God keeps bringing up the topic of expectation into my life. I wrote a blog post about the attitudes we adopt when it comes to gift-giving, highlighting the problems with giving with expectations attached to the gift (you can find it here). Then, at Bible Study, our leader accidentally played the wrong video for the week. We ended up having a lively conversation about the joys and sorrows that come into our marriages due to realistic and unrealistic expectations that we weren’t supposed to have until mid-January.

When I began preparing to write this reflection, I was at a loss. I did not feel inspired and was not sure what the Holy Spirit was asking of me. I read it to my husband to get his take. You’ll never guess what he pulled out if it – the blindness of the Jewish leaders due to strongly held expectations about the Messiah and His forerunner.

Jesus says that Elijah had already come, as the prophecies had foretold. But the people “did not recognize him.” The prophet Malachi foretold that Elijah would return before the day of the Lord (Mal 3:23). Knowing the Scriptures well, the people of God knew that God keeps His promises. However, by the time of Jesus, many of the leaders were more concerned with establishing and maintaining their positions of power and authority. They believed they were to be praised for how well they were performing their religious duties. They expected to be brought front and center as exemplars for all the people when Elijah came.

What did they get? To be called out for hypocrisy and compared to a brood of vipers. Their expectations of praise and honor clouded their hearts. They were not able to see John for who he was in his mission as Elijah. Then, when Jesus came, they were unprepared to receive Him as the Messiah.

Have you noticed how expectations can be troublesome? Especially when they are intended to be fulfilled by others. We get let down, hurt, and have all sorts of unwelcome feelings. Sometimes, the other person doesn’t even know what they did wrong, especially when our expectation of them was unrealistic.

We might have unrealistic expectations of who Jesus is, like the Jewish elders did. Jesus is in your neighbor who rakes your leaves when you can’t get to them, yes. But Jesus is also in the person who cuts you off on the highway. Jesus is in the generous donor to the homeless shelter. But Jesus is also in each and every person who walks through its doors. We are called to see the face of Jesus in every person we encounter, not just those who meet our expectations.

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Jesus’ Word

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I have been blessed this year to be a part of a wonderful Bible Study at our parish. In the past few weeks, the group I am helping to facilitate looked more closely at the trustworthiness of the Bible. How do we know what it says is true? Is the Bible applicable to our daily lives? Will the message of the Bible ever “run out” or pass into history like so many other writings?

One of the passages we looked at was today’s Gospel, especially the last verse. “Heaven and earth shall pass away but my words will not pass away.” This is a powerful statement made by Jesus for a number of reasons. 

First, the words and teachings of Jesus are beyond our measure of space. Creation itself will someday pass away. But the words of Jesus will endure even beyond such a time. 

Second, if Jesus’ word is able to exist outside of creation, it is outside of time. It is eternal. The opening verses of John’s Gospel come to mind here. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” Jesus, the Word of God, the Logos in Greek. John understood that before God began to create, Jesus and the Holy Spirit were present. Here is one of the underpinnings for our Trinitarian theology. 

When Jesus tells His followers, “my word will never pass away,” we can see the echoes of it in John’s theology. Jesus’ word is creative, He is making things new. His words can change reality. Think of His many miracles. Jesus commanded storms, disease, even death, with His words. 

If Jesus’ words will never pass away, then they still have bearing and meaning in our present day. Even when it feels like our world is ending, we don’t know where to turn or what will come next, Jesus’ word is steady and sure. 

The Bible is God’s eternal Word, written down for our benefit. When we take the time to study it, to pray with it, to listen to it, Jesus speaks to our hearts. 

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Preparing Daily

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“They were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building.” Today, maybe Jesus would say, “They were eating, drinking, watching, posting, zooming, working.” The days’ regular activities may have changed somewhat from when Jesus explored the idea of His second coming, but things really aren’t all that different.

Notice how in both lists, none of the activities listed include any type of worship, adoration or service to others. These are all inward-focused actions, though to be sure there are communal benefits to some of them. I am curious if Jesus’ message would have been softer, maybe less surprising, if the people had been regularly engaging in proper worship and kept themselves in right relationship with God. 

Jesus says people will be going about their days, looking down and looking in. Then, suddenly, things will radically change. People will be taken up without their neighbor’s knowledge. There will be no time to finish a harvest, send one more email, or pack a suitcase. When the Lord comes, there is no turning back, no second glances. 

This takes some planning, it takes practice. It means that your everyday life ought to be lived within an extra-ordinary reality. Yes, we must eat and drink. But we can do so in a manner that acknowledges God’s good gifts. Yes, we need to work, and in many cases, zoom or otherwise use technology to connect with others. But we do so in a way that does not put the technology first. God remains in our center, prayer before posting, Mass before mass email blasts. 

Jesus is speaking to us today. He is asking us to look at our priorities, our to-do lists. Where does He fit in? What are the most important things to get done today? How can you be prepared for His coming?

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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Act of Faith and Hope

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Lately, I have been listening to the soundtrack from the musical Hamilton. The song sung by Aaron Burr, Wait For It, has been especially captivating. The song is about how Burr has hopes and dreams, but also feels the weight of needing to leave some kind of legacy. In the tension between wants and oughts, he finds himself unable to pick sides. He keeps his opinions to himself, never fully committing to one side or the other for fear of choosing wrongly. This feature song expresses his desire to be patient, waiting for the moment he was made for, the time he’s supposed to shine.

The problem with waiting like Burr is that very often, the moment you’re waiting for passes you by. Perhaps you don’t recognize it for what it is, since you are so in the habit of waiting for what could be coming next. Or, you never see the moment because in order for it to arrive you had to make a hard choice in one direction or the other. 

In our Gospel today, Bartimaeus is begging on the side of the road. He is blind, but hears the crowd approaching. His ears pick up the words, “It is Jesus!” “Jesus of Nazareth is coming! Quick, get your mother/father/sister/brother so He can heal them!”

Bartimaeus has been waiting, and waiting, and waiting to be healed. He is at a crossroads. Will he lean into hope, or be held back by despair? If he calls out, will anyone hear him? He doesn’t have anyone to advocate for him, no one to draw attention to his case. The crowd is huge, even he can tell that. How could Jesus even hear him, let alone see him? 

But he does call out an act of faith and hope. He is pushed aside, others tell him to sit back down, and stay in his place. “Who are you to ask for a miracle? Why should Jesus heal you?”

A greater act of faith and hope, a defiant one even in the midst of the crowd’s rejection: “Son of David, have pity on me!”

Bartimaeus is bold. His call to Jesus is one with multiple acts of faith. First, he has faith Jesus will take pity on him and stop at all. Second, that Jesus’ pity will move Him to restore Bartimaeus’ sight. Third, and perhaps most important, Bartimaeus doesn’t just call Jesus, “Jesus”. He names Him as the “Son of David”, a title which points toward Jesus’ identity as the Messiah. 

Bartimaeus did not wait for the perfect moment. He was not timid nor lukewarm in his request. Bartimaeus is a model for all of us to boldly proclaim Jesus’ identity as the Lord of our lives and in Him do we place our hope and trust. We should not wait for things to be perfect before coming to God with our hopes and dreams. The perfect moment is the moment we bring them to God, trusting in His mercy and love.

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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God’s Perspective

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Poor Jesus. Honestly, sometimes when reading Gospel passages like this one can’t you just feel His sigh before He answers? Jesus is God and possesses patience beyond our understanding, but He is also human and gets frustrated and upset like any of us. If I had to place myself in this scene, I think there may have been some exasperation in Jesus’ voice at this line of questioning the Pharisees go with. 

Pharisees: Let’s test Jesus and try to catch him in his words. 

Jesus: Oh Israel, when will you ever learn? What did God say to Moses? Why?

Pharisees: He said it was fine.

Jesus: No, it was permitted because of your stubbornness and hardness of heart, which, by the way, is fully on display for all to see today. When will you learn to see with God’s perspective, an eternal perspective?

Pharisees:………

It’s not that Jesus is opposed to laws or rules. Jesus gave us the Beatitudes, the Great Commandment. He instituted the Eucharist within a specific ritual and situation. Jesus, the God of the Universe, is in the business of creating order out of chaos. But, and it’s a big but, He is not in the business of rules for their own sake. 

Laws, within God’s perspective, are the things which allow us to become our most free and authentic selves. Bishop Robert Barron of the Los Angeles Diocese likes to use a baseball analogy. You can’t freely and fully play the game of baseball if you don’t know the rules of the game. A 6 yr old playing tee ball knows the basics, but there is much about the game they cannot do or accomplish because they are not using the full rule book. Professionals who have studied the game, practice it daily, discuss the nuances and intricacies, these are the ones who play it with full freedom and enjoyment. 

The laws of baseball, and the laws inspired by God’s plan for the world, are there to be in service of us, not the other way around. What had happened in Israel was that the rules were becoming of greater importance than the encounter with God they were intended to create. Instead of bringing greater unity to the community, they had become tools of division, of inequality and judgment. Look at the Pharisees’ question. “Is it lawful…” the subtext here are things like, “Who is excluded?” “Who should be punished?” “How can it be more difficult for x, y, or z persons to have access to the synagogue and temple?”

This isn’t why Jesus came. Jesus did not come to earth to save a few. He came to save all. He didn’t come to make it harder to enter heaven, He came to throw open the gates for those who would come pass through them. This isn’t to say Jesus came to abolish all laws, He tells us specifically this isn’t the intent either. Rather, He is the fulfillment of the law, returning it to its proper place in service of our relationship with God, not in place of it.

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Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at DailyGraces.net.

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