Mystery & Majesty, Wisdom & Wonder

At the start of each week, I consider what God might want me to tell you the coming weekend. So I read the scriptures for Sunday, I recall things I’ve read in bible commentaries, things I learned in those graduate school courses 30 years ago (it’s not like there’s anything really new in the field of Biblical studies), things happening in my life, things happening in the world, and I ask the Holy Spirit to unclog my mind and heart to hear God tell me something, anything to pass on to you. Sometimes, it all comes together early in the week. More often it doesn’t until late Friday night or Saturday morning. So I have learned to wait patiently and to listen. I used to get anxious, hoping that the waiting ends sooner. So I sit with the readings a few more times. I read and listen to the news. I celebrate weekday mass. I talk to people. I examine events in my own life – my interaction with others, things I hear, thoughts in my head, my failings, my convictions, my doubts. I pause and ponder when things don’t make sense. And when something profound hits me, I step back and let it sink in. Then I take all these things with me back to my laptop, all the while asking the Holy Spirit to help me put words together so you all don’t fall asleep. Artists often say they can’t be rushed. I know God can’t be rushed either. But every so often I have to remind God that I have to make sense of what I hear, before I can tell you all about it. And I need time to do that, sometimes a lot of time. All I ask is that God remember my limitations. What are your options when your pencil breaks? You either sharpen it or get a new pencil. I know I am just a pencil in God’s hand. God is the one with something to tell you.

Sometimes people will ask me if it’s okay to attend another church. It might be because another family member goes there. I tell them it’s fine but they should still come to mass. There’s just something about the Catholic faith that draws me, our sense of community, our way of life, and the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist we share. But you’d expect that from me. I just rarely get the same sense of community elsewhere, even another Catholic church, or connect with a service that isn’t familiar. Sometimes they nod knowingly and take my advice. No one usually disagrees out loud. And even when they do, who am I to tell them differently? If they claim they aren’t fed here, I urge them lovingly to go find what they need to sustain God’s life within them. I don’t want anyone to go home hungry. But we don’t have to like every meal mom prepares. And when that happens, we deal with it. So sometimes God’s message can unsettle us. We should tell him. And if anyone still goes hungry, it isn’t because our table is empty.

As I look back on the week that was and consider what God was trying to tell me, a few themes came into focus. A few highlights. All this week the UN General Assembly gathered in NY to hash out some of the challenges member nations face. All the while war still rages in the Holy Land and Ukraine, and despite the rising death toll, no one expects any major changes. Sunday evening, I went to dinner with mom and dad and other family. I get to do this more often now that I live just a half hour away. I love that my family has always been a tremendous blessing. Tuesday morning, a lady from Prince of Peace came by to tell us about expanding their ministry to homeless families in Western Branch, feeding them, helping them find housing, offering other state and city services. Then in the afternoon I visited a lady who came home to hospice care. Confronting a grim diagnosis, her husband is fearful there isn’t much time. We talked. We prayed. I said I would return as often as they needed me. Wednesday, I celebrated mass at Portsmouth Catholic and reflected how Jesus sent his 12 apostles to proclaim good news, drive out demons, and heal the sick, and that he sends us out into the world to do the same. Thursday night, Hurricane Helene made landfall causing fatalities in 5 states and devastating many communities. And Friday night, I spoke by videocall with a friend in Australia because I heard he wasn’t well. Something about his medication. And I experienced firsthand news traveling fast around the world.

That was a quick recap of my week. And as I attempted to connect the puzzle pieces, it became clear that I had encountered mystery and majesty and wisdom and wonder all week. And a few themes kept recurring. No one is insignificant. God is at work in the world. Life is short and time is precious. Don’t waste it on fear and worry and resentment and jealousy. We do not travel this life alone. God walks beside us, and we have one another. Share your blessings with those who don’t have much. Lift those who are burdened. Take time to tell those you love that they are important to you. Seek out the lost, the lonely, the angry, the discouraged. And keep calling on God because the road can be difficult sometimes. When things make no sense, believe God cares about you, and you can trust his mercy and wisdom. In short, nothing new.

Jesus was struck by his apostles’ narrow vision. When it comes to accomplishing the mission his Father gave him, it mattered little who got the credit, as long as the good news is proclaimed, and the broken are made whole. Be grateful for any kindness even from someone you don’t like. Don’t be a stumbling block on their path. And remember that God does not need our approval or permission to do what God chooses to do.

This month ahead, delegates from around the world are gathering in Rome once again for the final installment of the Bishop’s Synod on Synodality started last October. The prayer we’ve been praying before mass all year is the prayer they use each day they gather at the synod. And it is the prayer the bishops of the world prayed every day at the Second Vatican Council 60 years ago. From all I’ve been reading about preparations for the synod, many are anxious and eager for solutions to their troubles, at their own parishes, the worldwide church, the human family. They are already complaining how the process is too slow and that nothing substantive will get done because the most pressing hot-button issues are off the table. It seems the Holy Father has different metrics for what constitutes success. And despite all the parliamentary procedures observed at high-level UN meetings, dialogue is still easily stalled by equally vehement opposing viewpoints, often inconclusive votes, and paralyzing inaction.

Like last week, I don’t have answers, just more questions. But we can go deeper. The Holy Spirit speaks in sacred scripture and in our daily life experience. And God’s message isn’t always fun. Where do you encounter mystery and majesty and wisdom and wonder? God doesn’t stop speaking just because we stop listening. What if God spoke the same message to all of us, and we all heard it loud and clear? “Would that all God’s people were prophets! Would that God might bestow his spirit on all his people!”