theROCK

The Magnolia Tree

Each spring, as the winter finally releases its frigid grip on us, the trees in my neighborhood all come to life. One of these trees is a Magnolia that proudly stands in my front yard.

For a few days in May, this Magnolia is filled with creamy white and ivory flowers, tinged with various shades of pink and purple. I'm always excited when I see the first buds, and I marvel at how quickly the flowers bloom.

And I marvel at how quickly the flowers fall to the ground and make way for green leaves. The entire process is over in several days, shorter if it rains.

During this time frame I do what I can to appreciate their beauty. I know it's fleeting, so I want to savor as much as possible.

Sound familiar? What is fleeting in your life? You can certainly fill in the blank with your blossom time: your children living at home before they begin their own life, special vacations with family and friends, game night with a big bowl of popcorn and lots of laughter, or a glorious sunset on a summer night. 

How are you savoring the moments of your life? Are you admiring the beauty and appreciating every single minute? 

Or are you letting the busyness of life sweep you away?

Take a moment today to discover your Magnolia Tree.

Be Enlightened by Jesus

The Gospel for today is a well-known passage: the Parable of the Sower and Seed. And while every reflection I have ever heard on this Gospel focuses on contemplating what seed we are, I want to draw our attention elsewhere. I want to focus on the section that scares us, the section that we tend to ignore because we aren’t quite sure what to do with it.

When asked why He speaks in parables, Jesus says, “Gross is the heart of this people…they have closed their eyes lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted.” This is a harsh condemnation for the people in Jesus’ community. But as I read these words, I cannot help but find them applicable even now.

We have become a people so defined by our political affiliation that we can’t have friends with opposing views, or have civil discourse on matters of global significance. Instead of letting the Gospel dictate our politics, we have let our politics dictate our Gospel. We have fashioned Jesus in the image and likeness of party values, forgetting that it is us who were fashioned in His image and likeness. It is us who close our eyes and ears to the parts of the Gospel that don’t fit with our political doctrine. It is us whose hearts have grown gross and refuse to be converted by the entirety of the Gospel message.

But we are called to be disciples. We are called to see what others do not see, to hear what others do not hear, to be enlightened by Jesus first, party affiliation second…or last. We are called to be the unifiers, to stand in the middle ground, to be mediators and bridge builders. This is challenging work in a system that makes it ‘either/or.’ But as Christians, let us be the ‘and.’

Community

The loss of community has been the hardest consequence of this pandemic and has dramatically changed our lives. What had been classes, family gatherings, and Masses, became “virtual” classes, meetings, and Masses. These are awesome alternatives, but they don’t replace being with one another. There is nothing like physical proximity and contact. For now, it is what we have.

As we return to having those direct interactions with one another, we realize what we’ve been missing. Yesterday, I had class with my fellow brothers in formation, and it was awesome to be together. My daughter and her family were also at that class, so that I could “practice” marry her. It was an emotionally supercharged day because of the rite and being with those I love.

This points out how important community is. Jesus knew that, and gave us the gift of the Eucharist to unite us to Him and to one another. While being physically separate doesn’t change that union, being together is clearly better. I trust that as we return to “normal” you will feel the restoration of the profound community that is Christ in the Eucharist.