Fr. Kevin's Cluttered Desk
April 5, 2020
It is kind of hard to think about a triumphant entry when most of the world is in lockdown. My mom tells of her experience of anxiety when strangers sneak into the seniors home where she lives. Some people are upset because they are getting tickets for not maintaining social distancing. People are getting upset when other people stand too close to them. And in the midst of this we begin Holy Week. So I thought I would share some social distancing from the scriptures.
John 19:25-28 standing by the cross were a few woman and John the beloved close to the crucified one. And then there is Mark 15:40-41 and the women were standing at a distance.
This year we will all be standing at a distance, unable to come close to the one who loves us and invites us into a love relationship. But if we truly love one another we need to keep our distance and embrace this opportunity to feel the pain of separation from our Lord; to enter into the agony that Jesus feels each time we walk away from Him, when we separate ourselves from Him.
Let us reflect upon what the early Christians must have felt when they were not allowed to pray together; when they could have been arrested for publicly gathering. Let us reflect on the early Christians (and for some of us the stories of our parents) who did not get to receive the Eucharist every week let alone every day. Let us reflect upon the pain of our Holy Father and our Bishop who must, in their love for the faithful, close the doors of the churches for the good of the faithful.
You might want to look at Matthew 15:21-28, the story of the scraps that fall from the table. In these times we are feeding on the scraps; we are not getting the fullness of the Eucharist. But let us not forget the power of personal prayer, of family prayer, of family devotions. No, they are not the Eucharist and can never replace the Eucharist, but as Jesus said to the woman, “woman great is your faith”. In the past many people did not get to receive the Eucharist each week or each month and sometimes only once a year, but they prayed, and they devoted themselves to prayer and the scriptures. They prayed for the day that they would once again be fed with the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus.
Let us pray to the Lord that at the table of God’s Holy Word, we might be sustained till that day we may be truly fed with the fullness of the Eucharist.
For those who do not know the table of God’s Holy Word, it is the Bible. Basic Information Before Leaving Earth.
Peace Fr. Kevin
John 19:25-28 standing by the cross were a few woman and John the beloved close to the crucified one. And then there is Mark 15:40-41 and the women were standing at a distance.
This year we will all be standing at a distance, unable to come close to the one who loves us and invites us into a love relationship. But if we truly love one another we need to keep our distance and embrace this opportunity to feel the pain of separation from our Lord; to enter into the agony that Jesus feels each time we walk away from Him, when we separate ourselves from Him.
Let us reflect upon what the early Christians must have felt when they were not allowed to pray together; when they could have been arrested for publicly gathering. Let us reflect on the early Christians (and for some of us the stories of our parents) who did not get to receive the Eucharist every week let alone every day. Let us reflect upon the pain of our Holy Father and our Bishop who must, in their love for the faithful, close the doors of the churches for the good of the faithful.
You might want to look at Matthew 15:21-28, the story of the scraps that fall from the table. In these times we are feeding on the scraps; we are not getting the fullness of the Eucharist. But let us not forget the power of personal prayer, of family prayer, of family devotions. No, they are not the Eucharist and can never replace the Eucharist, but as Jesus said to the woman, “woman great is your faith”. In the past many people did not get to receive the Eucharist each week or each month and sometimes only once a year, but they prayed, and they devoted themselves to prayer and the scriptures. They prayed for the day that they would once again be fed with the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus.
Let us pray to the Lord that at the table of God’s Holy Word, we might be sustained till that day we may be truly fed with the fullness of the Eucharist.
For those who do not know the table of God’s Holy Word, it is the Bible. Basic Information Before Leaving Earth.
Peace Fr. Kevin
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