Readings of the Day
RB: Ch 54 Letters or Gifts
Mass: Is 42:1-7; Resp Ps 27; Jn 12:1-11
HEART OF JESUS, VESSEL OF JUSTICE AND LOVE,
HAVE MERCY ON US.
Today we have Jesus visiting his friends, Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. It's no wonder that a large crowd followed Jesus: He had recently raised Lazarus from the dead (Jn 11:1-44). Sure, they wanted to see Jesus, but they also wanted to see the man He raised from the dead (Jn 12:9). Wouldn't you?What has been sticking with me all morning while going about a deep cleaning of a highly trafficked area of the monastery is this: "Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today." Martha didn't; she got busy and served Jesus and Lazarus (Jn 12:2). Mary didn't; she anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair (Jn 12:3). Not surprisingly, ill-intentioned Judas complained (Jn 12:5). Jesus' response? Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me (Jn 12:7-8).
Let us not put off until tomorrow what we can do today. Write that letter; make that phone call; forgive; make peace; make your favorite dish; wear your fancy sweater. Be grateful. Jesus is always with us.
We pray with the Holy Father:
Where there is overcrowding, there is danger in this pandemic that it winds up being a grave tragedy. Let us pray for those responsible, and for those who need to make decisions in this area, that they may find a correct and creative way to resolve the problem.
Today's photo. Wild apple tree. A bit o beauty from Mount Angel Abbey, Oregon, courtesy of JD.© Gertrude Feick 2020
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