September 1

    [media presentation below]

GospelThink

Tuesday, September 1

LUKE 4:31-37
Controlling Evil 

Prayerthoughts

a. Jesus kept the Sabbath day holy. My Sabbath is of course Sunday. Do I give a proper amount of time to prayer and to my family on Sundays? 

b. Jesus was a teacher. In many ways I am a teacher to those around me. As I study what I do, say yesterday, what are the principal themes of my “teaching”? 

c. Evil knows when holiness is present. My holiness should control my words, actions and especially my thinking. Am I evil in these things? 

d. Jesus controls every evil. What evil do I want Jesus to help me with today? 

e. A good phrase to meditate on: “What is there about his word?” We see holiness in action before our eyes. In our world, where do we see holiness the most? 

f. If your “fame” would spread in the place around you, how would people describe you.  

g. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will read 1 Corinthians 2:10b-16 and write an important thought from it.

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Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

IMBUED WITH THE MIND OF JESUS

+ In the first reading from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, Paul makes an important distinction for anyone interested in the spiritual life

- calling for us to understand the difference between a natural man/woman and a spiritual man/woman

- natural man/woman—does not understand what pertains to the Spirit of God

- spiritual man/woman—a man/woman is able to judge everything because he/she has the mind of Christ

- the fundamental element of the spiritual man/woman is that which rules his/her thought process

- namely, the mind of Jesus

the reason why Scripture is so important

- it is the only way to determine the mind of Jesus


+ The Gospel gives us one of those characteristics of the spiritual person imbued with the mind of Jesus

- as Jesus, he/she must be interested and concerned about the liberation of those who are oppressed by evil

- “the spirit of an unclean demon” means various things in Scripture

- and one of them is the control that evil has in one’s innermost self

- evil is controlling the situation in the man’s life

- and Jesus addresses that evil directly, freeing the man


+ It is the mind of Jesus to free from evil

- the person imbued with the mind of Jesus will simply not allow evil to control a situation, if he/she can possibly prevent it

- there are many applications of this Scripture in daily living, of course

- one of them, we might consider, is in our speech

- we have so many bad examples of that happening wherever we are

- we are surrounded by it right now at political campaign time with the negative campaigning of candidates


+ The spiritual person is a person who has been overcome by the mind of Jesus—that is a great image: to be overcome with the mind of Jesus

- and today we hear that one of the characteristics of the mind of Jesus is that such a one attacks evil whenever it is present.





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MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "One Call Away" -- Charlie Puth

ONE CALL AWAY



 

The Gospel


JOHN 1:44-46

Philip was from Bethsaida, the town of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth." But Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come from Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see." 

Gospelthink: My apostles gradually came to understand who I was. Have I shown that I really know the Lord in my life?

"I'm only one call away. I'll be there to save the day. Superman’s got nothing on me. I'm only one call away. Call me if you need a friend. I just wanna give you love. Reaching out to you, so take a chance. Come along with me and don't be scared. I just wanna set you free. You and me can make it anywhere. For now, we can stay here for a while 'cause you know, I just wanna see you smile."        

These meditations have mentioned many times that romantic love experiences generally are not part of the thoughts of the Gospels. But one can easily study twenty-first century love situations by meditating on how people reacted to Jesus as he taught on our earth. The Apostles did not know who or what Jesus was at the beginning of their experience with him, but eventually they would come to "love" him as a friend and confidant. The relationship always began with a sincere interest in what Jesus was all about.

Most love relationships in our modern day begin with a sincere interest in the other because it is the only way to determine what kind of person the other is. In Charlie Puth's song "One Call Away," the man in the relationship is interested in the other and showing it by his words. He tells the other that he is only one call away from being able to open himself completely. He is reaching out to the other, saying that he is interested in the feelings of the other person, and willing to work on a relationship.

Being interested in the other is the foundation of human love, whether we are talking of romantic love or simple friendship. It suggests an attitude of real concern on the part of the one who is seeking to know another. Such real concern may not lead to anything at all in the sense of permanent friendship or the like, but it is the statement of a truly human person. A person in our world should always be interested in what makes up the other people of our world with whom we interact.

At the beginning of a love relationship, we are not called to love deeply at first. We are called to be open to the other person, giving them the opportunity to build a friendship if they and we would like to develop it. In fact, our attitude as Christians must always be that we are "one call away" from getting to know another. True friendship involves true interest in another.   



PRAYER 
Good and gracious God, You call us through Your Son to show interest in others by reaching out to them in friendship. Give us the grace to be people who truly are interested in others and to show it by our actions.  Be with us, we pray.



 

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GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: Beginning a love experience involves being truly interested in another. 

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. In your opinion, what was the most important characteristic for an Apostle of Jesus?
2. Text analysis: "Can anything good come from Nazareth?" What is the true meaning of the question?
3. Text analysis: "To save the day." How does one "save the day" in a romantic love relationship?
4. What is your definition of a "friend"?
5. Text analysis: "Don't be scared." Why should people who are just discovering love be afraid of another?
6. In general, do you know of any "romantic" references in the Gospel?
7. The meditation calls us in general to always be interested in the people with whom we interact. Why is this such an important thought?
8. As one matures, what is the best way to "discover" another possible partner for life? 
9. What does the song "One Call Away" teach young people?     



 

©2007 Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America