The Catholic Gospel Reading on the Feast of St. Sebastian 2013

I have commented on three of four readings for tomorrow's Catholic mass on the Feast of St. Sebastian.  Today, I will end with a comment on the Gospel.  The Gospel is the story of Jesus's first miracle in the Gospel of John, the wedding at Cana.  As a person who, here is what I take away from it:

(1) At weddings, miracles happen. It is amazing to think that two people would promise each other one year together.  It is incredible to think that two people would promise each other the rest of their lives.  Sherry and I got married at 22.  That could be 60 years--or even 70.  Through all of a partner's changes.  Opinions.  Self-expressions.  Aspirations.  And moving forward together.

(2) Our gifts should be shared.  Mary asked Jesus to share a gift when the wine at the wedding ran out.  Jesus was hesitant at first.  Then he decided to do what his mother had asked.  Part of that is respect for parents.  Part of that is sharing gifts.  I am all called to do that.  St. Sebastian found bold ways to do it.

(3) Knowing when to share our gifts.  Sometimes I think that there is a specific time for development and display of particular gifts or talents. Sometimes I think my life is on a certain path and a certain timeline.  But life rarely follows the exact path and the exact timeline I expect.  As Jesus overcame his hesitation, in some cases so must I.  Life is not on a set path.  And I must respond when at the right time even if I was not originally thinking that the time was right.  The tension between what I expect to be the right time and what actually turns out to be the right time is tricky to figure out sometimes.

Many insights from the readings on the day of the saint I have adopted as a patron saint for the last year.  Now, I hope to continue throughout the rest of this year in the process of my own development of living out the roles in which I am given the opportunity to show and share my gifts.  For my own benefit and hopefully for the benefit of others.    

Sunday's Response

In the Catholic church I attend we rarely use the written and recited response.  We always have a song.  Despite rehearing on Tuesday night, I could not tell you off the top of my head what the song we will use instead of a response will be this Sunday.  However, looking at the written response that is to be recited, we find that the Catholic church chooses to draw on Psalm 96--more or less verses 1-10 on this year's second Sunday of ordinary time and feast of St. Sebastian.

The people's response is "Proclaim his marvelous deeds to all nations."  Certainly after having one amazing year (20th anniversary, qualifying for Boston, new career opportunities emerging, children maturing) and with another amazing year ahead (still teaching Sunday school, still playing bass, more running, more cooking, approach our 21st anniversary, looking forward to celebrating my parents' 45th anniversary, helping our oldest apply to college), I see many reasons to proclaim marvelous deeds that I, for one, attribute in part to God.  I realize that plenty of people see no room for God.  But I do and I think that all this good begins with God.

The verses talk about singing a new song from all the lands that reflects the blessing of God's name.  I know that St. Sebastian spread the word of God.  I don't think of myself as necessarily singing a song to the Lord, but every day when I blog, I am proclaiming in some way.  Each day is new.  Each year I teach Sunday school there is something new.  And I thank God every day for what I have.

The verses proceed to mention that we should announce his salvation day after day. Again, for me this goes along with blogging.  And for St. Sebastian it meant continuing even after he knew just how much his life was at risk.

Then the verses shift to giving glory to God's name.  And they chose with a reminder to worship God who is king and rules with equity.

In some ways this is a bit repetitious. Simple praise verses while being very positive and uplifting tend to repeat the same message.  It is that way with many of the songs we sing  It doesn't make them bad.  It simply makes them read as though whoever was inspired by God to write it was inspired to "beat us over the head and remind us in every way possible" of the importance of the message.  Still, reminders are important.  Reminders are what St. Sebastian brought to the world in his words and reminders are what he kept bringing to the world even thought it put him at risk.  I have never felt at risk from the reminders I bring.  I try to use actions as much as words and let the way I lead my life following God speak for itself.   

More on Sunday's Readings

Yesterday I commented on the second reading in the Catholic church this coming Sunday--the feast day of St. Sebastian.  Today, I will comment on the first reading: Isaiah 62:1-5.  The footnote to the reading on the US Conference of Catholic Bishops' website notes that this is the prophet addressing Zion about the changes of fortune.

Changes in fortune.  Certainly a good description of St. Sebastian and being left for dead but nursed back to life.  Certainly a good description of what the city in which my spirituality matured (and is incorporated into my tattoo for that reason) has tried to achieve and is largely continuing to achieve.

For myself, I would say that I enjoy changes in my life and have had positive ones.  In fact, almost my entire life has been positive.  I am blessed.  For that, I count myself lucky.  And I pray for God's continued blessings and continued guidance so that I may be a light for others.

Sometimes being a light for others can be a very religious thing.  Sometimes being a light for others can be a very spiritual thing.  But mostly being a light for others just means being present, being a positive influence, and being someone who can stand by someone else's side for support with no strings attached.

Five short versus from a prophet.  Much probing into my life as I move forward.   

Looking Ahead to Sunday's Readings

I don't usually comment on Sunday's readings in advance.  I sometimes comment on readings after I hear them and hear the priest's interpretation in the homily.  I sometimes comment on readings during the week just as the days go by.  But this weekend, I am actually doing what priests generally hope the congregation will do and encourage the congregation to do--reading the readings, processing the readings, and thinking about the readings in advance.  That way, my read, my ideas, and my interpretation can come right up against the priest's, get mixed around, and come out with even more insight at the end.  At least I hope.  It should make the readings more interesting for me to listen to.

Sunday is the second Sunday in ordinary time, the Feast of St. Sebastian (January 20), and the day when much of Baltimore will tune into a Ravens game.  So, I'll be listening to readings, thinking about how they relate to me and to the saint in whom I have taken a larger interest, and taking in the mass while many are worried about how quickly the 5:30 mass will end so they can get home to see the Ravens game.  I enjoy watching football, but in my mind the mass remains more important--particularly as someone involved in the music ministry.  So, I will just take it all in and go watch whatever remains of the game when mass is done.

I think I'll comment on the second reading first.  The second reading is 1 Cor 12:4-11.  The reading talks about how there is just one spirit but how the spirit gives many gifts.  The gifts that are enumerated include wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, prophecy, the discernment of spirits, varieties of tongues, and the interpretation of tongues.  Whether the list was intended to be exhaustive or not is not relevant here.

The key is that there are many different gifts.  Gifts that I have been given.  Gifts that my favorite saint was given.  Sometimes as I have gone through my own life, I have felt as though the spirit of God (perhaps coming back to the ruach from Sunday) has given me different types of gifts.  The variations I have experienced make life incredibly interesting.

The reading also explicitly states that different people are given different gifts.  Not everyone has the same gifts.  Not everyone is asked to use them in the same way.  Everyone, however, is asked to use their gifts, but there is plenty of variation in how and when, and even how people interpret their gifts.  For this reason, I try not to judge.

I have no way of knowing what gifts anyone else has been given and whether they have been able to maximize their use or not.  It is for God to figure out.  My job is to set an example of maximizing the utilization of my own gifts and hope that others will follow suit.  It is incredible to imagine what life might be like if everyone made the effort to maximize the use of their gifts and did not use their gifts to denigrate others.  I am not saying that everyone should work together for a common good necessarily.  But if everyone at least worked for their own good and did not trample others in the process and put the gifts they have been given to their ultimate use, we might have a much different, much better, much more prosperous, much less stressed out, world.

Here's to hoping.  

Motivational Images

Earlier today I wrote my entry that was supposed to be for yesterday, and I discussed my experience of community in Baltimore at a dinner for donors to WEAA--a local public radio station.

I noted that when I think about Baltimore, I think about contrasts.  Elaborating on what I said earlier, I think about something new around every corner.  I think about a city of the unexpected.  Wonderful music.  Wonderful artists.  An incredible running community.  Interesting African drumming.  Dancers.  Great churches.  Spoken word artists.  And that is just the tip of the iceberg.  So many things that once a person has lived here as long as I have you can know all about but that may take a visitor or newbie by surprise.

I think about the image I have of Baltimore.  The image I have in my head which is mostly described above and in my earlier entry.  And the image I have as part of the tattoo on my leg.  The image that reminds me of where my spirituality matured.

I think of all the symbolism and I think of me.  I think of how much symbols have meant to me--in my day-to-day life to guide my own spirituality and my story of myself (I wonder what a psychologist would say about the use of images to guide my self-image?) and in my marathon training.

The first marathon I ran, the imagery was all about Rocky--the music, the story of someone making it through many trials.  Now, I find the images of Baltimore more useful than the images of rocky.  A city that if you only visit it as a tourist you may think of as a flat city with mostly a "touristy" existence.  However, once you get to know the city it has many hills and many nuances that make it a very interesting place to live and to raise a family.  I mentioned all the unexpected things that one can find if one "turns over some rocks" or "looks around corners" in Baltimore.

My self-image and the link to motivation is as a city of the unexpected.  Crazy turns.  Changes.  Contrasts.  I think of my life as a stream of turns, changes, and contrasts.  And I see how the city is trying to come back and how it sports teams have shown an amazing ability to come back.  And I think of the saint I have on my tattoo against the Baltimore skyline and how he came back and kept going.  And I think of the many professional and running opportunities I have ahead of me that offer opportunities to persevere, or come back, or change or take a turn and always seek and find something new that can open incredible doors on a wonderful future.

Thus, this year, when I run at least one marathon, I think I may occasionally hear a Rocky song running through my head, but I also think I may have finally outgrown that set of motivational images and moved on to images of Baltimore as my guiding light to moving forward on the marathon course and in my life.  

Community

Last night I have the pleasure of attending a dinner hosted by WEAA for donors who gave a specific amount during the Marc Steiner or Anthony McCarthy shows.  The gathering included both gentlemen, several other WEAA, staff, and a number of donors and their guests at a restaurant called Chazz’s that Sherry and I had never been to before.  Over dinner we spoke with two other couples seated closest to us and at least one of them knows Father Sam—the priest whom we hear most often at mass at St. Pius X. 

The dinner was lovely.  The most interesting part was after having eaten.  Each guest was invited to stand up and say something and then we had what was very similar to an “open phones” show in the restaurant.  What was so exciting was the fact that we the donors were all so engaged.  Different backgrounds.  Different educational levels.  Different amounts of time in Baltimore.  But everyone appreciated the open discussion that the two men encourage.  Everyone appreciated the varying points of view that the two men bring to the table.  Everyone appreciated being part of a community.  This community we call Baltimore.  This community that is big but small; that is troubled and troubling but vibrant; this community that is gritty; this community that is educated and educational and yet struggles so much; this community with so many different faiths, beliefs, ethnicities, and races.  And a community that everyone was interested in making a better place.

Just 30 individuals on one evening.  But the world can only become a better place one step at a time.  This was a step along the path.  

Women in Luke's Gospel and in Spirituality in General

Just a quick thought--today at mass, Fr. Sam Lupico mentioned the women of St. Luke's Gospel.  He listed off a few and commented on the role they played in Jesus's life.  With a quick online search, it does not take long at all to find many entries in which people have written about the importance of women in St. Luke's Gospel.

It is interesting to me as I think about the importance of women in my own spiritual development:

• My mother was a larger influence on my spiritual growth as a child.  Not that I didn't admire my father and my father is now a cantor which brings him into the mass in an entirely different way than my mother who attends but does not lead singing, but in my formative years it was m mother.
• My mother encouraged me to join the Newman Catholic Student Association.
• There was a woman prominent in the campus ministry at Penn State.
• Much of the leadership during my years there was young women.
• We had a very active sister in our parish at the University of Michigan.
• Of the leaders of our pre-Cana training before we got married, I could relate to the woman (who was a more senior grad student) than I could to her husband
• While my tattoo is of St. Sebastian, he is accompanied by Irene who played an important part in the story
• Nearly all the youth/children's ministry leadership at St. Pius has been female
• Our pastoral life director is female

Now, I am not Jesus.  And none of the women with whom I have the experience to relate to over the years would compare themselves with Elizabeth, Mary, Mary Magdalene, etc.

But, I do recognize the importance of women in my spiritual life.  It is interesting that as I have to raise my own kids, I am the father taking an active spiritual role in the life of three sons.  We will see how they turn out.  And when they grapple with the Bible and with their own spirituality some day, will they see themselves in the same context that I do or will they see themselves and interpret their spiritual growth through a completely different lens?

I don't know, but I suspect it will shape how they think of their spirituality as they grow and how they end up living their faith as they grow and become adults.  It is interesting to wonder how much different my day to day adult mid-life spiritual experiences woud be if I'd had a different set of influences as a child and in my young adulthood.  The context matters immensely.