Gospel Reflections for October 16 2016
Stay the course no matter what
This year’s political campaign seems endless. How can we stay calm, cool, and collected in such a wild political season? Perseverance over time is a good thing and highly praised in today’s Gospel.
In the middle ages, pilgrims would travel by foot or horseback for thousands of miles on a spiritual journey to Jerusalem to see the places where Jesus walked. They knew that if they could just get to that final destination, their lives would be greatly changed. But travel then was hard. They needed to cross rivers, climb mountains, battle weather, and travel across strange territories with even stranger people in them. Yet, they pushed on.
Finally, they would arrive in the Holy Land, and discover they had already changed. The journey itself had made them into different and much better persons who were now stronger, more disciplined, and courageous. The difficult journey brought both success and failure, but courageous perseverance had taught them to use both; to rejoice in success and learn from failure. (After all, it is a success if we make each mistake only once.)
The journey itself can make a difference. In the amusing parable of the persistent woman and the judge, Jesus invites us to persevere in prayer. Just even starting a prayer puts things in the right perspective. It tells us that we are not entirely in control and that there is a God above us who sees the larger picture. Praying helps us know our needs more clearly because we have to choose words to make them intelligible to Our Lord. Speaking makes them clearer to our self as well. We might just find that at the end of our prayer we are already changed for the better, even before we might receive the goal of our prayer request.
In this election year we have seen many challenging events. You might feel like you are walking in a strange land among strange people! Yet, we never let other people’s lack of faith, hope, or love affect us. We stay on our pilgrim journey to Our Lord.
While I will pray that you receive the actual goal of your prayer, keep praying no matter how long it takes. You may find, like the pilgrims of centuries ago, that you like the changes the journey itself brings.
God Bless!
Fr. Dave
Father Dave, your description of the journey brings to mind the “Way” in Spain. Devout Christians walk for many miles as a pilgrimage and prayer experience. I was never able to do that walk, but I have great admiration for those who do it. I have never heard of anyone who made the walk say that it was not worth while.
Yes, the famous pilgrimage route in Spain called “The Way” or “Camino” is another great example of the pilgrim experience of the journey.As the villagers say to the hikers, Buen Camino!”
Hi Fr. Dave, enjoy your weekly gospel reflections…but have to say I’m disappointed… there is so much coming out in the Wikileaks info that is an outright assault on the Church and our faith… and there seems to be “crickets” from the Church and pulpit. Most of our Catholic friends feel the same… I’m sending this video I put up in my Catholic HS graduating class FB site…it is amazing . Fr. Lankeit is demonstrating the courage of Confirmation…in this secular world where the boundaries on morality are weakening at every turn… here is our Catholic Faith guiding us. I posted this 2 weeks ago on the class website… and that was before the revelations of Wikileaks…now more than ever..the ‘sheep’ are seeking the ‘Shepherds’ guidance.
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/phoenix-priest-minces-no-words-voting-for-pro-abortion-candidates-puts-soul
Yes, I understand. I wrote an election year article for our bulletin this weekend and it will be coming to all of the people subscribed to this website on Monday, so stay tuned. In addition, I will be part of a large 8,000 student Pro-Life Rally at USC on October 25th, along with Archbishop Gomez and Bishop Barron. I will be moderating a panel aimed at high school seniors, just before they go to college. Normally in the past, every election year I have published more articles. This year, starting a new assignment as Pastor and being on IHRadio every day has greatly changed my usual schedule. I hope to do more in the coming weeks. However, I do not think anyone can deny that there is no other institution in the US that speaks out more on moral issues than the Catholic Church.
Father Dave, Prayer is a beautiful, precious gift of love!! It is communicating with our Father, our God, our Jesus, our Blessed Mother in Heaven in sharing our joys and our sorrows and asking constantly for help and giving thanks!!!!The reassurance that our prayers will be answered warms our soul!!! To pray is to love!! To love is to pray!!!Loveeeeeeeeeeeee our precious Faith and we will always pray that you touch the world with Jesus’ love for Jesus lives in you!!!!
Loveeeeeeee, franca and Dick
To journey our life with our precious Jesus is to experience life in the beauty of love!!Each prayer is like a beautiful rose unfolding its loveliness and though their maybe rain, the exquisite rose only grows in its beauty with the rich soil of God’s love!!!Prayer is the precious connection to God!!!!
Loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee you,
Franca and Dick
God always provides the best for our spiritual growth.
Thank you!
Father Dave, I have the conviction that out Lord Jesus already did the walk for me, for us, and if we just follow his footsteps closer we will succeed in so many ways even if is not the way we envisioned, personally at times I think my hurts are in a way a success for they draw me closer to our Lord Jesus.
Beautifully written. Thank you.
If I pray hard enough … can I change the nominees for our top elected office?
I’ll pray with you!!!!
Loveeeeeeeeeeeee, franca
Let’s pray that our prayers will change the nominees internally!
May the best “man” win. At least he is open to his mistakes. “She’ covers up and pretends and “snivels.” I’ll take him!
We will no the final results soon. I tend to think that once the election is over that the media circus will continue. I think we are in for a wild political season for many more months to come.
To stay the course in the battle of life is not an easy one!
As our society moves further away from the direction that God has designed
for us, we need to keep focused on what He wants us to do.
Jesus will give us all the helps that we need if we choose to stay the course
as He did for us.
In these uncertain times, and with our knowledge of the facts let’s storm
heaven with our prayers and leave the election debacle in God’s hands.
The Gospel hits me a lot , it makes me recall all the journey I have been through….. journey that somewhat change me ….. thanks Father Dave
You are very welcome. I will say a prayer for your journey.