Matthew Williams – Page 7 – Meditation on Daily Mass Readings

April 29, 2021April 16, 2021

Sent

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

We see a beautiful and profoundly encouraging dynamic in today’s readings starting chronologically from the gospel, and moving through the events of the first reading, with reflection back in that reading and in the psalm on events leading up to the climax of Jesus’ arrival on earth.

In today’s gospel, Jesus proclaims that “I AM”; He uses for Himself the sacred title of Yahweh, of God. The majesty of this title, which attributes existence itself to God’s nature, is incomparable. And in this context, Jesus is the “Sent” one of the Father. God the Father has sent Jesus, and whoever received Jesus receives not just Jesus, but the Father as well.

But what Jesus says toward the end of the passage carries monumental consequences for our lives: “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me.” So, this divine continuum of “sending” continues down from the Father, to the Son, and then to us.

Does this mean we are divine? Of course not. But it does mean that, when we are in the act of fulfilling the mission He has given us, those hearing us have the responsibility to receive us with all the solemnity with which one would receive Jesus Christ Himself.

We see this play out in our first reading, where Paul fulfills his mission from Jesus by proclaiming salvation in Christ in the synagogue. To build up to the announcement of the great “I AM,” Jesus, he references the colossal preparation for Jesus’ coming that God undertook with the people of Israel; and his build-up is echoed in today’s psalm:

The favors of the LORD I will sing forever;
through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness.
For you have said, “My kindness is established forever”;
in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness.

Per Jesus’ words in today’s gospel, Paul’s hearers have the obligation to receive his words with the same openness and solemnity with which they would receive Jesus Himself.

We should take immense consolation from this reality. When we are genuinely in the midst of fulfilling in our lives the mission, the vocation that Jesus has given us, we are due a reception like that which Jesus would receive, because we come in His name. As such, we should no longer worry about our shortcomings, personality quirks, poor communication; so many human faults. What merits respect from our hearers is not our personal potpourri of human qualities and skillful performance, but rather the fact that Jesus has sent us. Period.

And when are we “sent” by Jesus? When are we fulfilling our vocation? Whenever we are seeking to do His will in the state of life to which He has called us.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to fill you with the confidence of an apostle–not confidence in your own abilities and virtues, but confidence in the nobility of your mission as one sent by Jesus.

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April 28, 2021April 13, 2021

The Weight of the World

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

As Christians, often we feel that we have the weight of the world on our shoulders. Subconsciously comparing ourselves to hedonists, to those who strive only to satisfy their own passions and desires, we feel that we are the few in the world serious and responsible enough to discern what is good. It is up to us to make the world a better place, swimming against the current.

Today’s first reading and gospel, on the other hand, paint a different picture. In the gospel, Jesus explains that He simply says what the Father has commanded Him to speak. He is accepting and fulfilling the direction of His Father.

Similarly, in the first reading, Paul and Barnabas do not sit down with an analysis of the characteristics of all the towns in the area, to deduce which towns are best to preach in. Rather, the Holy Spirit commands them where they are to go, and they simply go.

We do not have the weight of the world on our shoulders. Yes, the salvation of many depends on us. But it does not depend on our problem-solving skills and forceful, persuasive willpower. It depends on one thing, as in the case of Jesus, as in the case of the apostles: It depends on our “yes” to God, consistent, attentive, loving, strengthened in our daily prayer.

Jesus’ yoke is easy, and His burden, light. (cf. Mt. 11:30)

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to send you His Holy Spirit to guide you and show you the will of God. Ask Him to give you the wisdom and fortitude to hear the Spirit and to follow His direction.

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April 27, 2021April 13, 2021

Safe Sheep

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

Jesus’ words in reference to the sheep of His flock in today’s gospel figure high on the list of His reassuring utterances:

I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand.
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,
and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.

At times as we strive to live our Christian life, the words of the now-invisible Jesus can seem so faint, as the roar of the world antagonistic to His word swirls around us, that we can become frightened and perturbed. We can feel like the disciples in the boat on the lake, when Jesus was asleep. At those times we need to call to mind that, even if He is invisible and cannot be heard, Jesus is active in our lives. He is active, not only to inspire us and demand a certain way of life from us, but also to protect us in His grace.

Today’s gospel shows that Jesus is well aware of the dangers threatening His sheep. We don’t need to understand fully those dangers, overpower them, conquer them. All we need do each day is cling to Christ, who assures us that no one can take us out of His protecting hand.

It was with this confidence that the disciples in today’s first reading launched out past Israel into the country of the Greeks, trusting that no pagan influence could take them out of the hands of their Lord. If we have this confidence as well, no fear will keep us from doing God’s will for the salvation of our brothers and sisters.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to give you the same confidence in His protection and guidance that the first apostles enjoyed. Tell Him that you trust Him to lead you actively, even when you do not sense His presence.

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April 26, 2021April 8, 2021

Meat Plate

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

St. John Paul II taught us that the original Covenant between God and the Jewish people has never been revoked. In spite of their on-and-off infidelity in the Old Testament, and the fact that their leaders crucified the Son of God, the original Covenant still stands. He is still their God, and they His people.

Much as we in the Church have a history of on-and-off infidelity, and we with our sins have crucified the Son of God, and yet the New Covenant likewise has never been revoked. God’s fidelity and mercy are endless.

Still, we see God’s Covenant with man broadening before our very eyes in the first reading, as Peter is led by the Spirit to consume unpurified meat with the uncircumcised. St. Peter, the first Vicar of Christ on earth, is led by the Spirit to open God’s Covenant to these uncircumcised. It is the moment when all of us who are not of Jewish ancestry have the door to Christianity and salvation opened to us.

Now, as today’s gospel tells us, we can all enter through the sheep gate that is Jesus, into eternal life. He is the gate. For all of us.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to lead you through the gate that is Himself. Tell Him that you trust Him, even though you are an “unwashed” sinner, to wash you in the blood of the Lamb and make the garment of your soul as white as snow.

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April 25, 2021April 8, 2021

The Cornerstone

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

“The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone.”

We hear this theme over and over during the Easter season. Consider it: This theme is not about salvation, directly. It is also not so much about Resurrection from the dead as such.

What it directly speaks to, over and over again in this season, is the absolutely pivotal place Jesus has in human history through His victory, and how that place was attained specifically through the rejection of the craftsmen of human history. For Jesus, rejection is the path to critical relevance.

It is not much of a leap to identify that this metaphor speaks not only of Christ, but of the Christian as well. “If the world has hates you, realize that it hated me first,” says Jesus to His disciples in Jn. 15:18. So too, then, while Christ is the one true Cornerstone, through the rejection of the world we take our place as critical foundational stones for the salvation of humanity.

Every saint has the glorious calling and role to bring many others to heaven who were not previously on the path there. Every saint becomes one of these foundational stones. When we consider this, a Christian life aimed solely at avoiding grave sin makes no sense. We must take advantage of the glorious opportunity of our calling, to become saints, true intimates of Jesus, redemptive partners with Him, for the salvation of many.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus brazenly for a share in His glory. Tell Him that you want the eternal glory that He offers, not the glory that the world provides. And when He asks you, as He did the Sons of Thunder, “Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?”, answer like them: “I can.” (Cf.

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April 24, 2021April 5, 2021

Good Choice

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

Simon Peter appears in today’s gospel, as well as in today’s first reading.

In the Gospel, when Jesus’ teaching becomes very difficult to understand and maybe even a bit disturbing, Peter makes the decision that few others make: He stays with Jesus, not because he understands the teaching, but because He believes in Jesus. He has seen enough to become permanently convinced.

It took Jesus’ death and Resurrection, as well as the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, to bear out Peter’s decision, but it is fully borne out in today’s first reading. We see him heal a man who had been paralyzed for eight years, as well as a fellow disciple. Jesus’ life and power have come to maturity in him.

We don’t choose Jesus to see immediate signs and wonders in our lives; we choose Him because we believe in Him. The gifts that He will bring–we let Him bring those as He sees fit, in His own time. But bring them He will, in response to our unconditional “yes” to Him, like Peter’s.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to give you a heart like St. Peter’s which, through the thick and thin of suffering, disappointment, and even personal weakness and sin, chose Jesus forever, and wound up reaping the fruit of that choice.

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April 23, 2021April 5, 2021

Fruit in Grace

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

In today’s first reading, we see how Paul, a murderous persecutor of Christians, received through no merit of his own the grace of conversion, ultimately to become the great Apostle to the Gentiles.

If God granted such a grace to a brutal persecutor, what graces will He not give to you, if you give your life to Him daily and beg Him for the gifts of faithfulness and fruitfulness? Sometimes we do not feel particularly passionate for the Gospel, or fruitful for the Kingdom of God. But if our daily gift to Him is sincere, we can trust that He will use it for His Church–even if we do not become itinerant preachers, as Paul did.

Jesus provides for us the clincher of fruitfulness in today’s gospel: If we eat His Flesh and drink His blood, we will have His life within us, and enlivened with that life, by His power our fruitfulness for the mission of the Gospel is guaranteed.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to help you to perceive your worth and value, not according to the measures of the world or of other people, but by the measure of faith, gift, and eternity–which was the measure of His own life, and that of His mother.

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April 22, 2021April 22, 2021

Chariot Chat

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

In the first reading, the Holy Spirit prompted Philip to talk to the Ethiopian eunuch in his chariot; he explained Scripture to him, and the eunuch was baptized. Then, the same Holy Spirit removed Philip mysteriously from the presence of the eunuch.

Sometimes, we may think that we are devoid of the Holy Spirit, if He doesn’t prompt such semi-miraculous marvels in us.

But we must remember, the Spirit will prompt us according to the vocation to which God has called us, often with nudges rather than pushes. Often, when faced with a situation and seeking guidance, all we need to is incline an ear in His direction, and He will provide us with a path. The path may not appear miraculous, but in a sense, it may be said the the Spirit’s promptings within the human soul are always by definition miraculous.

But how do we increase the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in our hearts?

Jesus gives us the sure means in today’s gospel: “The bread that I will give is my Flesh for the life of the world.” To increase the life of the Holy Spirit within us, we need not seek extraordinary means–persevering participation in the sacraments and in contemplative prayer will build that life slowly, almost imperceptibly, over time.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to help you in your perseverance, particularly in frequent reception of the sacraments and daily contemplative prayer. Ask Him for the gift of His Holy Spirit, and tell Him that you trust Him always to provide you the guidance you need through the Spirit.

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April 21, 2021April 1, 2021

A Duality

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

From the beginning, the story of the Christian Church has been an interplay between the operation of the Holy Spirit for the transformation of the souls of believers, and persecution in various forms from those who do not want to center their lives on Christ.

In today’s first reading, that full duality plays out: A severe persecution of the Church breaks out in Jerusalem; as the disciples scatter throughout the countryside, rather than hunkering down and slowly disappearing, they bring many more to believe in Christ.

In our Christian effort to create in the world a just society in line with the principles of the Gospel, we often can become so idealistic that we forget that this duality of conversion and persecution is willed by God; it is His plan for history. We should not shy away from the persecution side of the equation, because the other side of that coin is the effectiveness of the Holy Spirit in bringing souls to Himself, as He has for all ages of the Church.

Jesus did not come with the objective of winning every single heart on earth to Himself, but rather those who would freely accept Him.

But in today’s gospel, He makes a beautiful pledge to those who do accept Him:

And this is the will of the one who sent me,
that I should not lose anything of what he gave me,
but that I should raise it on the last day.
For this is the will of my Father,
that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him
may have eternal life,
and I shall raise him on the last day.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Tell Jesus that you accept Him with your whole heart, unconditionally, and ask Him to work through you the transformation in souls that He worked through the apostles, in the midst of glorious conversions and of persecutions.

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April 20, 2021March 31, 2021

Stoned

This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.

“Sir, give us this bread always,” Jesus’ hearers said to Him in the Gospel passage of today. Bread of God, sent down from Heaven. And then He went on to tell them that He Himself is the Bread of Life.

Of course, we know that Jesus literally alluded to consuming His flesh as real food, and His blood as real drink, that we may have life within us. This is not some grotesque ritual, but one that bespeaks the intimacy with which He wants to enter our hearts to dwell there.

And that intimacy, of course, is the end goal of the Eucharist. It is this intimacy that is nourishment for eternal life; that is, in fact, eternal life.

We see Stephen, at the hour of his glorious martyrdom described in the first reading, full of this intimacy, full of this eternal life. It would almost seem from the description that this first Christian martyr, literally seeing Heaven opened with Jesus standing by the Father, scarcely felt the stones. They were less real to him than the intimacy He had had gained through the Holy Spirit and, no doubt, through the Eucharist itself.

Jesus tells us in today’s gospel that anyone who comes to him will not hunger. At the hour of his death, Stephen hungered for nothing. He had everything he wanted.

Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Ask Jesus to fill your heart so completely with the Holy Spirit, and with His friendship, that the sufferings of every day, as terribly real as they are, have no power to touch your inner peace.

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