As part of our blogging schedule, we have agreed as a group that we will not be doing individual blog posts on Sundays. However, we do want to keep discussion going, so we will be posting about Mass and our obligations on Sundays. Don’t worry, we’re set to auto-post so we can enjoy family time, too. 🙂
Sunday readings hold different meaning for different people. Inevitably, some part of Scripture or a certain place during Mass jumps out at someone, giving them something they needed at that precise time.
What was memorable for you today? Did you marvel at the Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity of our Lord, Jesus Christ? Did the kids behave? Did you find forgiveness in something you had been holding onto for a while? Anything of particular importance you want to share with us? We’d love to hear how Mass impacts your life.
After a post here last week I found myself paying extra attention to the EM as they distributed the Precious Blood this week. You are making people think, thanks!!
Today’s Mass was memorable because…a close family member said some terribly hurtful things to me and my husband on Friday. I have been in agony over it. Our Parish Priest chose to preach on forgiveness, and how God wants us to handle disagreements (while looking right at me, in a very crowded church, I swear!). I came home, put love and humility into my words, and we have started a healing dialogue.
I am blessed to be at a parish with a priest who is an Amazing homilist! Quite a few of the parishioners sit through mass with notebooks and take notes. Yesterday, the New Testament reading was Romans 13:8-10 and the Gospel was Matt 18: 15-20…both dealing with loving your neighbor and how to admonish those who are sinning. Our priest reminded us to hate sin, both in ourselves and in others. He pointed out that in loving our neighbors as ourselves, many people don’t love themselves with the respect that they should and that affects how they love others. If they treat themselves as objects, they will treat others that way also. While we hate the sin we need to love the sinner, even if the sinner is ourselves. We are all called to sanctity, not just goodness and all it takes to make the leap from goodness to sanctity is the Act of Will. Yes we are all human but we are not only human…..we have sanctifying grace that we receive through regular receipt of the sacraments. The Gospel was clear on the steps to take to admonish the sinner or someone’s whose behavior is troubling..first privately with the person and if that doesn’t work then ask two or three others to join you and if that doesn’t work then tell the church (your priest) and if still doesn’t work then let them be (explanation of ex-communication as medicinal, not punitive)…..however during this process to remember not to judge the mind and the heart of the other person, just their human behavior. The priest humorously commented that those who annoy us, actually sanctify us…they are like a piece of sandpaper to sand down our rough edges. Love that analogy. The priest also reminded us of the words of the “Our Father” when we say, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”…..that should give us great pause and to seriously think about what we are saying with those words….we are asking our Lord to forgive us our sins in the same manner that we forgive others…..much to ponder about how we forgive.
The Mass impacted me in multiple ways. First, I am a CCD teacher and preparing to teach an RCIC class (RCIA for children/teens) and early in the homily I was hit with the theme for the year, God’s unconditional love. Ideas to highlight that including the day’s readings were flowing as the priests words could easily be presented in a way to practically apply in the student’s lives.
Second, on a personal level, the explanation of how to approach someone whose behavior is wrong or annoying helped me discern a course of action with a friend whose recent choices need a reaction to make her re-think those choices. And it was also helpful in reviewing with another friend who was the subject of an “intervention done wrong” to forgive and reconsider returning fully to the church .
It was an intense Sunday! But when you are hear the truth and are in the Lord’s presence, how can it not be intense?
Peace.