Oct 18 will be the 29th Sunday (Mission Sunday): Is 53:10-11. Heb 4:14-16. Mk 16:15-20. The Gospel this weekend will be this: Mk 16:15-20. He said to them, "Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. 18 They will pick up serpents (with their hands), and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." 19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. 20 But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs. The first reading will be this: Is 53:10-11. The LORD was pleased to crush him in infirmity. If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life, and the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him. 11 Because of his affliction he shall see the light in fullness of days; Through his suffering, my servant shall justify many, and their guilt he shall bear. The second reading will be this: Heb 4:14-16. Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin. 16 So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help. MEDITATION: This Sunday is about God's desire to answer man's search for Life and for Love, and the fact that we're all called to help pass the solution on. That's the 'Mission'. The first reading today has Isaiah describing the 'suffering servant'. That sounds like a horror story, but it's not a story, and the end result is by no means horrific. Jesus rises from the dead. It's the best news imaginable for us: death is a door to a love that lasts forever! The second reading praises the way our 'high priest' (Christ) rose from the dead. The suffering servant went through it all, so that we would believe. In John 12, the Greeks arriving for the Jewish festival represent the philosophical search of the ancient world, while the Jews represent the religious search. It's a good combination, because we're all searching - or at least we should be! I spontaneously fell in love with Christ, and the more I got to know Him, the more it deepened. And it keeps deepening - even in a wheelchair! Christ saciates our 'hungry heart', and since He longs to do so for many millions, He gives us all a part to play. Some avoid the challenge, but it's for our joy. It reminds me of the book by Victor Frankle: 'Man in search of Meaning'. He was a Jewish doctor imprisoned in Aushwitz by the Nazis. He saw how the prisoners who survived best, were those who had children or some plan in life that depended on their survival. Some 'part to play'. Others were concerned only about their own day to day survival, and they got more ill. Frankle founded a successful form of psychotherapy called 'neusitherapy'. But do we really seek properly? I'd realised by 20 years of age, that deep down, what I most desired was love... and by giving true love to others, one ends up recieving! I'm sure many of us remember in our teenage years coming home from discos and parties with a changed heart because we had fallen in love. They're superficial examples, but the truth is that our human nature lives for love. Is that a strange comment for a priest to make? On the contrary. A great joy for me, was when I came across the 'fountain' of love! As a young man, I enjoyed love-affairs, but it's great to discover that God is the fountain of each and every one. I'm a missionary priest living out my vow of chastity, but that isn't to avoid human love. It's to enhance it! And mankind needs help. The rate of depression is still high. The search for riches, honours and pleasures is clear throughout the world, but the world knows how to camoflauge the love of God, and to mock things religious. Aldous Huxley's famous book 'Brave new world' was criticising an imaginary world where the people were made venerate 'our Ford' (I hope that car-lovers excuse me!). Do we realise how much people need to know our Lord? Depression is a real threat to health in our modern world. Christ eventually captured my heart because He gave his life on a cross... and keeps giving it.. Our 'mission' isn't just to speak of Christ, but to make the face of Christ shine before the new generations - to give good testimony. Our Christian mission isn't a matter of coldly 'rattling off' a list of truths and instructions, but of helping Christ to win hearts. The first hearts that thereby get won over, are our own! .........Dara. En Español: Oct 18º será el Domingo de la Misión (29º Domingo del año): Is 53:10-11. Heb 4:14-16. Mc 16:15-20. Este Domingo habla del deseo de Dios de ayudar a la humanidad en su búsqueda de la Vida y del Amor, y del hecho de que estamos todos llamados a compartir la Buena Nueva y ayudar en tal búsqueda. Aquello es 'la Misión'. La primera lectura de Isaías habla del 'siervo sufriente' y nos mueve mucho cuando el Hijo de Dios pasa por la crucifixión por amor a nosotros. Suena como un cuento trágico, pero no es 'un cuento', y el final no es nada trágico. Jesús resucita de la muerte. Es la mejor noticia imaginable: ¡la muerte es una puerta a un amor que nunca acaba! La segunda lectura enaltece a la victoria de nuestro 'sumo sacerdote' (Cristo) sobre la muerte. El siervo sufriente lo aguantó todo, para que creamos. En Juan 12 unos Griegos llegando para el festival Judío, representan la búsqueda filosófica del mundo antiguo, mientras que los Judíos representan la búsqueda religiosa. Es una buena combinación, porque estamos todos buscando - ¡ó al menos lo deberíamos hacer! Espontáneamente me enamoré de Cristo, y cuanto más le conocí, más el amor se profundizó. ¡Y sigue profundizando …aún en una silla de ruedas! Cristo anhela saciar a nuestros 'corazones hambrientos', y al quererlo para muchos millones de hermanos y hermanas, nos da a todos un papel. Algunos evitan el desafío, pero es para nuestro gozo. Me recuerda del libro de Victor Frankle: 'La búsqueda de Sentido'. Era un médico Judío encarcelado por los Nazis en Auswitz. Vio como los prisioneros que sobrevivían mejor, eran los que tenían hijos o algún plan en la vida del que dependía su sobre vivencia - algún 'papel para cumplir'. Los que se preocupaban solamente de la sobre vivencia personal diaria se enfermaban más. Dios nos da a todos una misión. Fundó Frankle una psicoterapia muy útil llamada 'neusiterápia'. Pero ¿de verdad buscamos bien? Me enteré antes de tener 20 años, que lo que más buscaba era amor… ¡y cuanto más das, más recibes! Supongo que muchos nos acordamos, de enamorarnos en las discotecas de jóvenes, y de la vuelta a casa con corazones movidos. Son ejemplos superficiales, pero la verdad es que nuestra naturaleza humana vive por amor. ¿Es extraño oír un sacerdote diciendo aquello? Al contrario. Como joven antes, disfruté de novias, pero me gustó darme cuenta de que Dios es la fuente de cada una. Soy un sacerdote misionero con voto de castidad, pero aquello no es para evitar el amor humano. ¡Es para aumentarlo! Y la humanidad necesita ayuda. La búsqueda equivocada de riquezas, placeres y honores, es bastante evidente en el mundo, pero el mundo sabe poner camuflaje sobre el amor de Dios, y burlarse de la religión. ¡Me gustó el libro famoso de Aldous Huxley 'Mundo Nuevo Feliz' que estaba criticando a un mundo imaginario donde se alaba 'Our Ford' en lugar de 'Our Lord' ('Nuestro coche en lugar de nuestro Señor')! ¿Nos damos cuenta de cuanto necesita la humanidad conocer al Señor? La depresión amenaza mucho a la salud del mundo moderno. Cristo me ganó el corazón porque se entregó en la Cruz... y sigue entregándose. Nuestra misión no es simplemente hablar de Cristo, sino de hacer brillar su rostro para las generaciones que vienen - de dar buen testimonio. No es cuestión de dar una lista de verdades e instrucciones, sino de ayudarle a Cristo a seducir corazones. ¡Los primeros corazones seducidos, serán los nuestros propios! .........Dara. Fr. Dara O'Brien is a Verbum Dei missionary priest from Dublin (Ireland). He was a medical doctor who became a missionary. He was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis since 1998. He continues to write his reflections as a way of sharing the Word of God.
Read his testimony (in Spanish) at http://www.fmverbumdei.com/main/index.php/recursos/pautas/testimonio-de-dara Email him at: [email protected] Comments are closed.
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