Tag: light

“Your light must shine before others.” | Memorial of Saint Barnabas, Apostle

From the responsorial psalm: “Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done wondrous deeds; His right hand has won victory for him, his holy arm. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 5:13-16)

Jesus said to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”

Jesus uses the analogies of salt and light to teach the disciples about a basic orientation to have while on earth and in this world. Salt of the earth and light of the world, the followers of Jesus have a task to go out to others in that manner. Inviting us to live our faith openly, Jesus calls us to witness to society the singular flavor and preservation of God’s word and to be a light that penetrates the darkness as we share the good news of Christ’s victory over sin and death.

God, help me be salt and light in the world today. When I face uncertainty about how I am to do your will when dealing with difficult people or situations, give me the wisdom to know how much salt is needed to season a relationship or at what angle light should shine in the darkness to give glory to you. Guide me today, Lord; reveal clearly my place today as salt and light. Saint Barnabas, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Monday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 8:16-18)

Jesus said to the crowd: “For there is nothing hidden that will not become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light. Take care, then, how you hear. To anyone who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he seems to have will be taken away.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus describes what it is like to live in the light of the Gospel and give witness to it. He uses the analogy of a lamp, which is not concealed under a bed but placed on a lampstand so that anyone entering a room may see the light. Living in God’s light is the same way, and Jesus emphasizes that nothing remains hidden forever. What is hidden becomes visible; what is secret comes to light. How is it then that to anyone who has, more will be given, and from the one who lacks, even what seems in one’s possession is taken away? In the podcast Catechism in a Year, Father Mike Schmitz describes God’s gifts, that everything we have comes from him. “It’s quite possible,” Father Mike says, “that the only thing that I can point to in this entire world and say, ‘that’s mine,’ is my sin.”

God, help me understand today’s Gospel. To live in your light is to gain more; to cling to sin and keep it hidden, is to lose even the little knowledge of you that I believe I have. There is more here to consider than a few minutes of prayer can unpack. Give me the grace to listen to your word and respond to it and the courage to bring the light of the Gospel to places where truth remains hidden or obscured. Despite my failings and shadow side of sin, let me be a means of letting your superabundant grace shine through in bringing the light of Christ to others.

From the Gospel acclamation: “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Friday of the Second Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?”

In today’s Gospel, there is so much to ponder in the miracle of the loaves and the fishes. On encountering the large crowd coming to him, Jesus isn’t startled or alarmed. He knows with unshaken confidence that his Father will provide for him. The question he asks Philip, John tells us, is a test; it’s an opportunity for Philip to answer for himself that God will provide for their needs. By a simple leap of logic, I recognize that Jesus himself is asking me the same question: “Where is enough?” Philip answers this question in human terms with a human solution: they would need two hundred days worth of wages to feed the crowd only a little. And in response, the miracle Jesus provides is not in a little way but is generous to the nth degree: after the crowd had eaten, twelve baskets of leftovers were gathered. Human solutions fail; God’s divine intervention exceeds all human expectation.

God, for the times when my mind goes into overdrive searching for a solution, give me the grace to turn to you for assistance. Give me the eyes of Jesus when overwhelming needs approach that call for a solution. I am often caught up in using the gifts you have given me, trying to do all I can, but am slow to recognize that the best solution is not mine but yours to carry through. Lord, give me the peace to know that it’s okay to step off of the mental treadmill to give you space to work miracles. Relieve me from the sole burden of making things happen and draw me into your will so that I see and accomplish it.

Thank you, Lord, for the gifts of reasoning that you have given me and for your extravagant generosity. Give me the peace of Christ in confronting the problems that seem to be too big for me to handle.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

The Father loves the Son and has given everything over to him. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.

In giving everything over to the Son, the Father shows complete love for him and at the same time provides a means for all of us to have complete trust in the Son. Eternal life is the promise, and it is through the work of the Son that the Father accomplishes this for all who believe in the Son. The wrath of God—is that a kind of burning within each of us, a kind of suffering that finds no peace until obedience to the Son restores us to life?

God, another day of my life begins, and I am given the choice to believe without seeing or to fail to trust and face isolation from you. Give me the grace today of quiet confidence in you. Help me remain obedient to your Son today and every day of this earthly life so that one day I will see you in your glory. Strengthen my faith!

Hear me today, Lord. Make clear to me in moments of the day when I am unsettled and perturbed, that it is you I am missing and need to return to. Lord, lead me to the fullness of life in you.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.

Today’s Gospel picks up from yesterday’s passage, where Jesus teaches Nicodemus. So that everyone might have eternal life, God gave his only-begotten Son. In the words of John: “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” The saving light of Christ did not stop people from preferring darkness to light, just as the Sanhedrin in the first reading from Acts had the Apostles put into prison. But God would not have it that darkness would overcome light. During the night, an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison, and by morning the court officers found the prison locked but empty. There are times, Lord, when I prefer darkness so that my sins might not be exposed. What can I do but turn to you for help?

God, I want to live in the light of your truth so that I know your will and do your works. Today there will be moments when darkness seems desirable, where choosing to do wrong and the captivity of sin seems preferable to believing in your Son. I ask you to come into those moments today and bring them into your light. Save me from the darkness of sin that has power over me only in so far as I keep it hidden from you. With the psalmist, I pray: “Look to him that you may be radiant with joy, and your faces may not blush with shame. When the poor one called out, the LORD heard, and from all his distress he saved him.”

Lord, be my companion today. Disperse the darkness with the breath of your Spirit, and save me from the darkness that I tend toward if left alone. Give me the grace today to take refuge in you.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2W-KSOPWWBY

Fourth Sunday of Lent

“Live as children of light,” Saint Paul says, “for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

“If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you are saying, ‘We see,’ so your sin remains.

In this Sunday’s Gospel, worth reading and rereading because of its richness and majesty, Jesus heals a man who was born blind. John’s account of the story begins with Jesus and his disciples encountering the blind man, and the disciples asking whether the man’s blindness was caused by his own sin or that of his parents. Jesus responds that neither the man nor his parents sinned, but rather the man was born blind so that “the works of God might be made visible through him.” Jesus heals the man by spitting on the ground, making mud with the saliva, and spreading the mud over the man’s eyes. Jesus then instructs the man to wash his eyes in the pool of Siloam. The healing causes controversy among the Pharisees, who question the man and his parents about the healing. They are skeptical of the healing and accuse Jesus of being a sinner because he healed on the Sabbath, and they throw the man out of the synagogue. When Jesus hears about this, he approaches the man and Jesus asks if he believes that he is the Son of Man. The man says to Jesus, “I do believe, Lord,” and he worships him. Jesus tells him: “I came into this world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see, and those who do see might become blind.” In this Gospel passage, the man’s physical blindness is lifted, allowing him to see the world around him. Greater yet, he gains spiritual insight into the truth of Jesus’ power and divinity and worships him. Compare this to the Pharisees who reject Jesus and his healing power remain in spiritual darkness, unable to see the truth of who Jesus is.

God, help me distinguish between blindness and sight. Keep me in your light, visible to you, and bring me to life through you. As Saint Paul says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.” When the man’s physical blindness is lifted, he comes to believe in you. Bring into the light the things that lie in darkness and lead to death so that I can reject them. From the Gospel acclamation: “I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life.”

Lord, I want to live in the light of your truth. “Live as children of light,” Saint Paul says, “for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth.” Keep me in your light, Lord!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://youtu.be/2W-KSOPWWBY

Readings

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

“Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”

Speaking to the disciples, Jesus offers three comparisons of discipleship: salt of the earth, a city set on a mountain, and a light set on a lampstand. Each of these is for the sake of others who see good deeds and because of it give glory to God. In the second reading, Saint Paul says something similar in his letter to the Corinthians: “I came to you in weakness and fear and much trembling, and my message and my proclamation were not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of Spirit and power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.” Just as Jesus taught the disciples to act for the sake of God’s glory, Paul carries this out in his preaching with, as he says, “a demonstration of Spirit and power.”

God, help me understand that as you spoke to the disciples, you also speak to me. When I have opportunities in the very ordinariness of today, help me grasp and carry out your will by being a light to others as a way to give you glory. In the first reading, Isaiah tells us exactly how to care for the oppressed and homeless. “Then,” he says, “your light shall break forth like the dawn.” God, give me the grace and opportunity to be a confident witness in Spirit and power to you and to my faith.

Lord, I want to live in your light and let it shine for others. As in Isaiah, I want to care for the afflicted I encounter today so that when I call you for help I hear you say, “Here I am.” Then, Isaiah says, “light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday.” Help me, Lord, see your light and live in it.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://youtu.be/2W-KSOPWWBY

Readings