|
First
Reading
Wisdom 3:1-9
1. Can you think of some people who have suffered, died, and who might now stand before the Lamb? Did suffering and distress enter into their reward? Do you encounter resistance to the values of Christianity in your life?
2. Do you find opposition or indifference to Catholic values of social justice. What do you do, especially when people are suffering because of this unconcern? What would you like to do?
Second Reading
Romans 5:5-11
1. In Thornton Wilder’s play Our Town Emily says, "Does anyone ever realize life while they live it ... every, every minute?" The stage manager responds, "No. Saints and poets maybe ... they do some.” Why might saints understand every minute of life? Can you relate it to the line from this Second Reading, “The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him”? Do saints and poets know God?
2. God is always present, hovering over us like a mother hen. Why does God not just jump right in and save us from all the messes we get into?
Gospel
John 6:37-40
1. Moses received the ten commandments on the mountain. Compare and contrast this with Jesus giving the beatitudes in his sermon on the mount. Could Jesus describe his own life with beatitudes? What part of your life do you define with beatitudes?
2. In recalling the beatitudes in his homily, Pope Francis pointed out that they represent “an identity card for Christians,” a program to be practiced. How do you practice hunger for righteousness? Mercy?
… a program for life offered to us by Jesus: So simple and yet so difficult. … Few words, simple words, but practical for all. Because Christianity is a practical religion: it is not just to be imagined, it is to be practiced. If you have some time at home today, take the Gospel, Matthew’s Gospel, chapter five. At the beginning there are the Beatitudes; in chapter 25 the rest. And it will do you good to read them once, twice, three times. Read this program for holiness. May the Lord give us the grace to understand his message.
Homily at Monday morning Mass at Casa Santa Marta, June 6, 2014
Anne Osdieck
|
