Matthew 13: 10-17 (Thursday, July 26, 2007)

Jesus Christ continues to reveal himself to his Apostles. He gives them a hint to his messianic and salvific role when he says to them that many of the prophets had longed to see and hear what they hear but they could not. The great prophets of the Old Testament had faithfully carried their mission with the longing for the Messianic reign of God. None of them had the privilege of living, dinning and hearing the Messiah preach to them in human voice. Here the disciples of Jesus have that singular privilege. Many of the people have shut their eyes and ears from seeing and hearing the Messiah. Despite all the signs he has performed and the revelations he had made to them, they still are not open to receiving Him into their lives. Jesus praises the disciples because they have opened their hearts to receive him.

Sometimes we behave like our friend St. Augustine before conversion. We pray, “Lord give me chastity but not now.” We pray to experience the Lord in our lives, yet we are not quite ready to let him into our lives. We want him but just not yet. We close our eyes from seeing him, we block our ears from hearing him. We are afraid that when Jesus comes into our lives, he will turn things around. We are just comfortable where we are but we truly know that we need him to come transform our lives. He invites us today to let him into our hearts, so that he will change us. He is present in the Eucharist begging to come and transform our lives.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ we ask you to open our eyes that we may see you more clearly and acknowledge you as the Lord of our lives; open our ears that we will hear your gentle transforming voice; open our hearts that we may love you more allow you to love us more dearly; and open our whole being that we may follow you more closely holding unto you all the days of our lives.

Matthew 20: 20-28 (Wednesday, July 25, 2007 – Feast of St. James)

The mother of James and John desires higher authority for her son. Jesus Christ in the gospel gives us the Christian meaning of authority. For the gentiles, authority means Lording it over others. We see this all over the world with the corrupt and dictatorial governments. Unfortunately, many persons who call themselves Christians are engaged in this unchristian practice. Jesus Christ in the gospel tells us that Christian authority is for service. This was the ultimate example of his own life when he did not want to be crowned a political king but he took on the form of a slave and died a shameful death on the Cross. The Apostles of Christ understood clearly this teaching of Jesus and they were always at the service of his people. St. James the Greater whose feast day we celebrate today took this example of Jesus seriously. He became the first apostle to be martyred.

In our daily lives, let us take seriously this teaching of Jesus. Opening the door for someone, attending to the needs of others in the community, treating others with respect and love and little but great acts of service we can do. To be the people God wants us to be, we must make ourselves available to others who need us.