June 16

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Monday, June 16

MATTHEW 5:38-42
I say to you: do not be a person that fosters revenge.

Prayerthoughts
a. Jesus tells me to offer no resistance to someone who is evil. Looked at on a personal level, that means that I should bear no hostility toward others no matter what the situation may be. Do I find that I am doing that at the present time? That is, do I have a tendency to hold a grudge and/or give into revenge?

b. The Lord goes to exaggeration again to bring home his point. He wants us to be people who will not allow the evil of others to make us respond negatively. How do I respond to people who do not like me or completely disagree with me?

c. The Lord tells us to "give" to anyone who asks me for anything. Am I generous with my time and energy for others?

d. Obviously, our world is not a world that follows what the Lord says with regard to revenge, etc. Have I allowed my thinking to be influenced by the world in a negative way.

e. My prayerthoughts...

Today, I will read 2 Corinthians, chapter 6 and write
an important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

WORKING WITH GOD’S GRACE

+ Paul in this reading from second Corinthians realizes that a person absolutely must have the grace of God in order to accomplish the things of Christianity

- Paul writes: “We appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.”

- it is not possible to follow the directives of Jesus without that grace

+ We see that fact acted out in a couple of areas, in particular, a couple of areas that the liturgy reminds us of today

- one of the primary places in our lives is in the whole area of revenge

- the American response to being hurt is to hurt back in some way

- our legal system, and TV and movie plots have done that to us

- we respond to most situations with revenge in one way or another

+Jesus talks to us directly, referring to the Hebrew Old Testament law of the talis that called for some type of exact retaliation

- and says:

But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil.

- this Christian law is extremely difficult to follow, because ultimately it may do away with armies or police-type people

- the Church over the centuries has not taken Jesus’ words that far, but we are required to look at the importance of them in our own spiritual daily lives

- what part does revenge play in the way we live and act?

+ Another area where we refuse to use the grace of God that is given to us is when we feel as though we are being overwhelmed

- overwhelmed with the difficulties of living—“afflictions, hardships, constraints…” Paul calls them

- Paul reminds the Corinthians and us that they should suffer with “much endurance”

- that is, to accept the things that we don’t like, work with the difficulties, “work the problem”

+ With Paul, we believe that everyone of us has the message of truth and power of God—

- we have received the grace of God

- we really have

- now we must honestly hear his directive not to receive that grace in vain.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "How Do I Say Goodbye"--Dean Lewis
LOVE OF PARENTS

The Gospel

LUKE 2:51-52

Jesus went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor before God and man.

Gospelthink: As I finished off my young years, I was obedient to my parents.

"Early morning, there’s a message on my phone. It’s my mother saying, ‘please come home’. I fear the worst, how could you leave us all behind? There’s so much to say but there’s so little time. So how do I say goodbye to someone who’s been with me for my whole life? You gave me my name and the color of your eyes. I see your face when I look at mine. When I couldn’t, you always saw the best in me. So, how do I say goodbye. And I saw the way she looked into your eyes, and I promise if you go, I will make sure she's alright."

It is interesting to study the close of St. Luke's "infancy section" of his Gospel with the thought of how Jesus reacted with his parents in his young years. Luke simply reports that Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor. Case in point: part of that wisdom that he learned was no doubt a love of his parents. Being a devout Jewish person, he had to be aware of the directive of the Book of Deuteronomy, "Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you." (Deut 5:16) Such a study means that as he grew, he was most concerned about his father and mother.

Interestingly enough, a popular song gives the same counsel to the singer's life. Dean Lewis in his song "How Do I Say Goodbye" speaks in a sense of a deep love of his father and mother, a love no doubt that directed his life as he grew up, but especially as his parents became older. The song is directed toward his father, but he also includes his mother and his love of her.

Dean Lewis must have realized how hard his parents had tried with him. He understood that he and indeed all of young people did not come out of the womb with instructions. Like any young person, he probably had given his parents a rough time. As often expressed by adults, he may have been responsible for the gray hairs that were part of their lived life. He also understood that his parents at times did not do what was best for him. They made mistakes as they directed him, but he understood also that he had caused some of the problems.

The song does not mention the "problems" of his growing up or the "problems" of parenthood, but given the nature of families today, he must have realized what his life with his parents was like and what it should have been. And with the song, he is telling them how much he has loved them, and that he wants to take care for them as they get older.

It is an excellent "call to others" to do the same for their parents.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, we all have families, and we all have parents who have been part of our lives. If they have passed, we pray for eternal life for them. If they are still alive, we ask for the grace to help us understand their needs especially when they get older. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: We must remember our parents and help them if they are still alive.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What does the song "How Do I Say Goodbye" teach young people?
2. What do you think Jesus's early life was like?
3. What do our parents need most from their children?
4. [personal suggestion] Perhaps it would be a good idea to write a love note to one's father and mother.
5. In your opinion, do most young people understand their parents and the situations of their lives? Yes or no and why?
6. If there was only one thing that everyone should say to their parents (besides the obvious "thank you"), what would it be?
7. What is your opinion about placing parents in nursing homes or the like?