TGIMMstereo

February 19

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Thursday after Ash Wednesday, February 19

LUKE 9:22-25

I remind you that the salvation of your soul is more important than anything you can accomplish on earth.

Prayerthoughts
a. Jesus tells of his redemptive action in the future. Do I show my appreciation of the Lord’s action by thanking him often for his gift of eternal life?

b. The classic definition of a disciple of Jesus is given here: “deny himself”, “take up his cross daily” and “follow me”. Which of these three directives am I not doing well?

c. Do I deny myself certain things that I like every now and then, and think of the Lord during that time?

d. Do I accept the situations of my life as they occur? I need to change the things that I can, but accept the illness, old age or things that I cannot change.

e. The following of Jesus means reading the Scriptures, especially the Gospels. Have I made the thinking of the Scriptures to be part of my daily routine?

f. We can get wrapped up in the things of this life without the Lord (“saves” his life) or we can choose to lose our life for the Lord’s sake, that is, give ourselves to the Lord more and more in our living. Do I see evidence in my life that I am choosing correctly?

g. We do not want to fall into the pattern of working only with material things. We need to “forfeit” them by turning more and more to the Lord by making God part of our living.

h. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will read Deuteronomy 30:15-20 and write an important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

FOLLOWING JESUS

+ The passage from Deuteronomy is one of the most quoted Hebrew Scripture passages because of its statement to choose life

- the life that Moses wanted his people to choose is the path of God in a three-fold manner:

- loving God, listening to and heeding his voice, and staying close to him

+ That God is, of course, not only the God of Moses, but Jesus whom we believe is God’s Son

- and therefore our guide as our Lord and Savior

- here in the liturgy today, St. Luke’s Gospel reminds us right away at the beginning of Lent of the overall goal of Lent

- we are reminded that the Passion, Death and the Resurrection of Jesus is a priority of ours

- as if to say: during Lent, keep your focus on this and don’t lose its perspective

- then the Gospel gives very practical advice for personal meditation

- namely how to allow Jesus to be our guide

- again there are three ways that have a little more bite to them than Moses’s ways of following God, but they are similar

- 1 – in Luke’s Jesus’s mind, there must be a denial of self

- we want what we want

- Jesus is saying that an element of denial of self is necessary to follow him

- 2 – Jesus says that we have to take up the cross

- suffering must be understood and accepted as part of the Christian scheme of things

- whether it is the physical pain of age or disease or the mental pain of psychological crises

- Jesus says that taking up the cross is the way of following him

3 – and to be a follower, we must discover his steps and walk in them

- discover the words he said, the actions he did, and the thoughts he had and try to follow them

+ God is present in our lives through Jesus, who calls us to deny self, take up his cross, and walk in his steps

- or in the words of Moses, choosing life.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Stereo Hearts" -- Gym Class Heroes

YOU'RE CHANGING MY MIND

The Gospel

MARK 15:42-46

[After Jesus died,] when it was already evening, since it was the day of preparation, the day before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a distinguished member of the council, who was himself awaiting the k

ingdom of God, came and courageously went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate was amazed that he was already dead. He summoned the centurion and asked him if Jesus had already died. And when he learned of it from the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. Having bought a linen cloth, he took him down, wrapped him in the linen cloth and laid him in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb.

Gospelthink: I died for you and for all and Joseph of Arimathea had the courage to bury me. Am I courageous in the way I bring about Christian values?

"My heart’s a stereo. It beats for you, so listen close, hear my thoughts in every note; make me your radio, and turn me up when you feel low. The melody was meant for you; just sing along to my stereo. I apologize for any skipping tracks; it's just the last girl that played me left a couple cracks. Now, I'm over that. If I could only find a note to make you understand, I'd sing it softly in your ear. Just keep it stuck inside your head like your favorite tune, and know my heart's a stereo that only plays for you. Thought love was dead; now, you’re changing my mind."

At the beginning of Jesus's ministry, one can guess that as a member of the Sanhedrin Joseph of Arimathea had been against what Jesus taught, but had changed his mind the more he got to know him. When Jesus died, Joseph "courageously" approached the governor asking permission to bury this person in whom he had come to believe.

Modern love songs speak of change all the time. Many times it is a change that comes after significant pain. The person in Gym Class Heroes' clever song "Stereo Hearts" had such a past relationship, one that had left "a couple cracks" on the "CD" of his life. Now, he's hearing interest from another, and, as he says, "you're changing my mind." He is acknowledging that he is changing, but one senses that he is taking his time in allowing the change to happen.

He is exemplifying a pattern of behavior that can be helpful to every one, whether there is a romantic love involved or not. Change is difficult, especially after similar situations in the past have ended in a painful way. If something has produced pain in the past, we will be cautious about the future. In fact, it is a good principle for worthy living. Before any change can take place, one has to "live for a while," that is, "exist." Only after some time and serious thought will the human being be ready to allow something different.

Joseph of Arimathea in the Gospel studied his situation and changed his mind to follow Jesus. The person in Gym Class Heroes' song was studying his situation as he looked at the possibility of romantic love. They both produce a lesson that teaches us the necessity to spend some time of serious thought before we make significant changes in our behavior patterns.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, as human beings we are often cautious about change because changing behavior is difficult. Help us learn the lesson of cautious change, and in the end, give us the grace to change our behavior and accept your Son completely no matter what our lifestyle. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: We can change our minds, but it will usually take time.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. There were some members of the inner circle of religious leaders in the Gospel who accepted Jesus, such as Joseph of Arimathea, while most rejected him. In your opinion, what caused the religious leaders to reject Jesus?
2. We do not know anything about Joseph of Arimathea's later life. What can you guess happened to him, given the circumstances of his situation?
3. The group sings of past pain in a poetic way. What causes the most pain in a young love situation?
4. Text analysis: "I apologize for any skipping tracks." What is the meaning of the statement?
5. What are the characteristics of "courage"?
6. It often happens that people rush too quickly into a relationship after some breakup. Why do we do that?
7. After finishing one relationship, how much time should a person spend before beginning another one?
8. The meditation makes the point that any significant change should be made slowly. What are the most important changes a person makes as he/she grows out of adolescence.
9. What does the song "Stereo Hearts" teach young people?