Fr. Michael’s Reflection at Eucharist 04/25/18

Fr. Michael’s Reflection at Eucharist 04/25/18

+(1 Peter 5:5b-14; Mk 16:15-20) Going through the readings for today I found myself moved by Peter telling us to clothe ourselves with humility in our dealings with one another. There is evil in our world but we must remain steadfast in our faith, “knowing that our brothers and sister throughout the world undergo the same sufferings.” There is a lot of suffering in our world today and if one is sensitive and tuned in, one may find it nearer than imagined. What must have been going on in the mind and heart of the young man who recently took the lives of four persons at the waffle house? What must be the inner pain that drives a person to commit such a criminal act? The God of all grace has called each one of us to glory, Christ Jesus is himself restoring, confirming and strengthening us right in the middle of the suffering we endure.

Then Jesus in the gospel invites us to go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel everywhere. What was begun by the Incarnation and his suffering on the Cross, Christ continues to do in each one of our lives. As Christ’s love abides in us we become living messengers all day long of God’s saving and transforming power. What we do at this altar goes on all day long as we allow Christ’s Spirit come down upon us. Just as bread and wine become the very body and blood of Christ, so our lives become living members of Christ’s own for the life of the world.