In this book, “Into His Likeness”, Ed Sri teaches us a little about rabbi’s and discipleship. He said that students of the rabbi were so eager to learn from him they would follow so close that dust from his sandals would get on their own clothes. They were so eager to hear every word the rabbi said. If you haven’t noticed we have been working at intentionally tying together the reflection on Our Lady of Guadalupe and Discipleship. Are you aware that the church considers Mary as the first disciple? She being the first to say ‘yes’ to Jesus Christ. We don’t hear her speak too many times in the Gospels, however when she does it is powerful. Take for instance what she says at the Wedding at Cana, “Do whatever he says” (John 2:5). Imagine how much stronger our relationship could be with Jesus by following Mary’s words? Because God himself knew we would fall short on this suggestion he provided us with grace to help us grow in our relationship with Him. They are the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. Those gifts provide for us the strength to follow and grow in our relationship with Jesus. But we will have to discuss those at another time. Today lets talk about increasing our relationship with Jesus. We all know that personal relationships do not grow without personal effort. A phone call to a friend, taking time to have lunch, visiting them in person, even small social gatherings. These are all the very same ‘actions’ I personally realized I needed to increase with Jesus Christ to strengthen my relationship with him. To be attentive to “whatever he says” I need to hear him daily in his words not my words. Such as finding 10 minutes to read a Gospel passage and reflect on what he is saying. Maybe try doing this twice a week and then increase it over time. Two mornings of the week, you find 10 quiet minutes to sit and read one of the Gospels, such as Mark. This will begin the journey of following Jesus closer and soon his sandals will cast dust upon you. We will continue our journey in the next article…..

Often people will pick up a book to read during the summer. I really enjoy reading with my morning cup of coffee so I generally go through about three or four books in a summer. One that I am just finishing up is called “Into His Likeness”. It is written by Catholic author and speaker Edward Sri who works with the Augustine Institute and the Catholic online resource Formed. Ed Sri, in this book “Into His Likeness”, in a very simple way invites you to discover what it means to be a follower of Jesus. He helps us to experience the difference between ‘knowing about Jesus’ and ‘knowing Jesus personally’. He states that as Catholic’s “we must go deeper and consider what’s happening interiorly in our spiritual lives. Being a disciple of Jesus is not about merely going through the motions with our faith – attending Mass, saying some prayers, and avoiding bad things”. Something I have enjoyed about this book from the very beginning is how it continues to invite us to consider “Am I journeying with Jesus as a Catholic allowing him to transform my life?”. Are you familiar with paintings by Caravaggio? If not please look up his painting portraying the ‘Call of Matthew’. It might just help you experience Jesus anew in your life and his invitation for you to follow him a little more closely. Ed Sri uses this image to help us to consider we are all called by Jesus to get up from our ordinary perception as Catholics and follow him as his disciple. 

Ed Sri writes in his book “Into His Likeness”, that Jesus’ invitation for us to follow him is “life shaping”. I wonder if Matthew knew that kind of experience was about to happen for him when Jesus called him as a tax collector to follow him. In last week’s bulletin I suggested to look up the painting by Caravaggio where Jesus invites Matthew. I included it this week. Imagine sitting with Matthew right now and asking him, “How was it ‘life shaping’ for him to be called by Jesus?” As I stated last week this book really helps me to grow as a Catholic in terms of considering how my faith is strengthened by following Jesus. Ed Sri’s encouragement about answering Jesus to ‘Follow me’ should not be looked upon as ‘following the disciples in scripture’ just to see the different places and experiences. Ed Sri helps us to consider a different way of life for our lives in what we experience by following Jesus. The author is speaking about how Jesus’ words and deeds should be making an impact on our own words and deeds in our life as a Catholic. Reflecting daily on the gospels show us how the disciples noticed that Jesus wakes up early to spend time in prayer. The gospels show us how they witnessed the daily compassion of Jesus in helping others. The disciples listened intently to his teachings so their hearts were changed. Over time, the author writes, they began to absorb this way of life. As we know, Matthew’s life was dramatically transformed because of following Jesus. How has yours?

...from the desk of our staff member for Evangelization and Adult Faith Formation Darrin Nelson

Lenten Reflection:  by Pat Dorsi

A few months ago, I had lunch with a friend. While we were waiting for our food to come, we were chatting with each other and occasionally, someone sitting near us would join in our conversation. I noticed an elderly woman with a very kind face and a twinkle in her eyes, sitting alone but taking in her surroundings and smiling. When the kind woman had finished her lunch and was leaving, she stopped by our table to say hello and ask how we were doing. My friend asked me where I knew her from and I answered “I did not know her, I thought you did!” She left, our lunch was delivered, and the woman was forgotten … or was she? Later that afternoon, I went to the Shop-Rite to pick up a few things. As I was leaving, once again I saw the “elderly woman with a very kind face and a twinkle in her eyes.” This time she approached me, and leaned in close enough to whisper this message to me: “We are all God’s children!” Is life too daily? Do our days become so routine that we fail to notice the sights, sounds, and people that surround us? Lent is a good time to take a seat on the back porch of life, away from our normal activity and dailyness, to reflect on who we are in the eyes of God. My Lenten challenge this year is to remember that “we are all God’s children.” To recall it when I am doing laundry or cleaning the house, to ponder it when I enter a room filled with strangers, to meditate on it when I have been hurt or have caused another to be upset, to rejoice in it when I experience community. Yes, life is daily but if we strive to keep our faith alive we may become messengers along with the “elderly woman with a very kind face and a twinkle in her eyes—We are all God’s children!”

Have you ever paged through the popular children’s book “Where’s Waldo” and not been able to locate Waldo in each scene? Methodically, you begin your search of the picture scanning left to right, then up and down. You know that Waldo is there somewhere, and yet, he is sometimes very difficult to find! Waldo is not actually hiding, but our eyes are distracted by the small details in the picture. He is there standing shoulder to shoulder with all his friends, looking very similar to them and yet he is unique and different. During the liturgical season of Advent, amid all the seasonal distractions, our faith gently asks us “Where’s Jesus”? The word “advent” when translated from Latin means “coming to”. For many years, I observed Advent in anticipation of Jesus’ birth. I believed that all I had to do was to focus on preparing and purifying my heart so Jesus would come and dwell within me. However, I always seemed to fail at this. Recently, I have been wrestling with the idea that maybe Jesus is the one waiting…waiting for us to come to Him! Perhaps Advent is a season to focus on seeing the multitude of ways that we can be present and available to Jesus. Can you find Jesus amid the dailyness of your life? Is he standing in line with you as you wait to purchase a gift for a loved one? Is he helping you carry the extra groceries you plan to donate to the local food bank? Perhaps he is waiting with you at the Doctor’s office, or sitting beside you at a funeral, or even nestling up next to you as you read a book or watch TV with the family. When you can find Jesus in another person, you can also find him within yourself. Jesus is the smile you share with a stranger, the concern you feel for a sick friend, he is in the tears you wipe from another’s eyes, and he is even in the stress and busyness of the Christmas season. Jesus is the “Word made flesh who dwells among us”. He is here standing shoulder to shoulder with all of us. Can you find him? 11/27/18 

Session 3 of our parish small faith group experiences with ‘Be My Witness’ focuses on the Holy Spirit. As Catholics our minds seem to associate the Holy Spirit generally with the reception of the sacraments. Rightly so, the Holy Spirit does have an effectiveness within us during Baptism and Confirmation. But what about our daily life. What about the ongoing conversion God desires for us? Have you ever felt that tug in your heart? A certain prompting that has led you to discovering something new about your relationship with God? The stories heard and the scripture read during our session on the Holy Spirit shares experiences how the Spirit works within our lives and converts our hearts closer to God. Newly canonized Saint Paul VI said, “the Holy Spirit is the principal agent of evangelization.” Evangelization is the conversion of the heart through the message [‘Good News’] of the messenger [Jesus Christ]. Let us remember that ‘evangelization’ is not a term used by certain religions, it is the proclamation of the Gospel. The very mission of Jesus Christ. “The Church is an evangelizer, but she begins by being evangelized herself. And she always needs to hear the proclamation of the "mighty works of God" (Acts 2:11) which converted her to the Lord.” Saint Paul VI—Evangelii Nuntiandi [15]

Prayerfully Darrin Nelson
Evangelization and Adult Faith Formation
St Mary’s Stony Hill

Reflection question: How have you experienced the movement of the Holy Spirit in your life?