water

February 18

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Tuesday, February 18

MARK 8:14-21

The apostles did not understand what I was trying to say about “leaven.”

Prayerthoughts
a. Jesus speaks of the “leaven” of the Pharisees. Leaven is yeast that spreads throughout a substance. So the “leaven” of the Pharisees can be looked at as the way they think and act. Obviously, my thinking should be about “good.” What thoughts in particular should I improve on in my life?

b. Even if the disciples’ thinking was correct (that Jesus was speaking of bringing bread to feed the crowd), it was a lack of faith on their parts that Jesus could do nothing about it. Is my faith strong enough to know that God is always active in my life?

c. Jesus refers to two miracles of the past. There have been miracles in my life, to be sure. Have I thanked the Lord for them the way I should have?

d. Jesus tells the disciples directly to beware of the teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Mainly what Jesus has referred to in the past are their insistence on the Law, while they themselves are not carrying through with the teaching. In what ways do I find myself hypocritical (saying one thing, doing another)?

e. Part of the “leaven” of the Pharisees and Sadducees includes their refusal to understand the “general attitude” of Jesus, that is, his approach to life. With the words of Scripture, do I spend the time necessary to apply Jesus’s words to the way I live right now?

f. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will read Genesis 6 and write an
important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

DO YOU UNDERSTAND?

+ In yesterday’s Gospel, Mark describes Jesus as sighing from the depth of his spirit because the Pharisees refused to understand

- in today’s Gospel, it is the Apostles who do not understand, but it doesn’t seem to be a fault—they simply don’t know enough

- in Mark’s Gospel, the Apostles continually have a difficult time trying to understand exactly what Jesus was trying to get across to them

- it is a constant theme of Mark’s Gospel

+ Here, Jesus is trying to get across that the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod is to be avoided

- taking off on that idea of “leaven”

- the idea that when something is a leaven, it goes throughout the whole product

- if people have the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod, it is not a good thing because they are people who refuse to accept what Jesus is teaching

- Jesus desperately wants his Apostles to understand that, and not accept the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod, but to accept his teaching as leaven

- if his teaching is the leaven, they can function as Jesus wants them to

+ Part of Jesus’ understanding of leaven is the whole understanding of evil in the world

- evil is presented in the first reading today, the story of Noah, the fourth story of pre-history, Genesis 1-11

- the religious truth of the story is quite direct: God does not like evil, and there will be punishment whenever we do it

- when we allow evil in our lives, it too becomes a leaven—it will permeate our whole being, and lead us away from God

+ The application for us is two-fold, I believe

- 1, we have to work with the leaven of Jesus

- that is, we have to allow his words, thoughts and actions to permeate our every being as a leaven

- and then allow those thoughts to spread to the world in which we find ourselves

- that we become the leaven that the world needs, as the Decree on the Laity of the Second Vatican Council reminds us

- and 2, that idea of evil

- we cannot give into the thought of evil because it will become a leaven that controls us

+ It is an important question that Jesus asks in the Gospel: do you understand?

- if we do, we will do everything in our power to make the Lord part of our lives.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Water Under the Bridge" -- Adele

NOT WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE

The Gospel

MATTHEW 6:7-8

Jesus said: "In praying do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Gospelthink: You pray in order to make yourselves better, not God. Do I need to correct my view of why I pray?

"If you’re gonna let me down, then let me down gently." The lady in the relationship has good reason to believe that the man is going to let her down because he does not seem to be responding to her: “It’s so cold out here in your wilderness. I want you to be my keeper, but not if you are so reckless." She does not want to say that their love is just water under the bridge, and she begs him, "Say it ain’t so."

It is relatively easy to compare the love of people of faith speaking to God the Father in prayer and the romantic love of a couple who are thinking about their relationship. Jesus reminds his followers that when it comes to love as expressed toward God, one should not use a lot of words. Instead, we are led to believe that we are to be very direct in our approach. Since your Father knows what we need before we even ask, one should spend time with direct speech rather than with lengthy prayers.

In Adele's song, "Water Under the Bridge," even though the lady in the relationship seems to want the relationship to continue, she is quite direct in telling him that one does not become "reckless" in the relationship. She tells him directly that she does not want their relationship to be "water under the bridge," begging him to "Say it ain't so." It seems as though she is willing to give up the relationship if the man is not able to say directly to her that their relationship will last.

The situation is common in relationships that are beginning. The couples do not know each other well enough to determine whether one wants the relationship to grow into something more than "casual." And often, rather than being totally honest in their discussions, they spend time merely thinking and wondering where their relationship will last, and are simply afraid to ask.

In people's love relationship with God the Father, Jesus reminds his followers that direct thought and prayer is what matters. Prayers than merely recite words is not real prayer. Likewise in our love relationships with one another, whether we are speaking in a romantic way or otherwise, our communication with the other should be straightforward and honest.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, Your Son reminds us to speak to You directly as we ask for Your help in this life. It is a good example for all of us as we try to communicate with others. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: We must face all love relationships, romantic and otherwise, with honesty and directness.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What is your understanding of prayer? (See Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition, numbers 2558-2565.)
2. Text analysis: "It's so cold out here in your wilderness." What is the meaning of the sentence?
3. What are some ways that young people become "reckless"?
4. What is best way to assure that love will continue in a relationship?
5. Why is direct communication between man and woman so difficult?
6. Is it true that most beginning relationships are not honest? Yes or no and why?
7. In your opinion, is prayer really important to all Christians? Yes or no and why?
8. What does the song “Water Under the Bridge” teach young people?