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Drawing Near to God
Dear Friends in Christ,
We continue with the Letter of James this week in our message series Heart Matters!
From our take, the letter is an exhortation to engage our whole being in living the Gospel. We are not called to be merely hearers but doers, those who show the beauty and power of our faith through good deeds. Not just good things done, but works accomplished in faith for love of God and neighbor.
The passage this week (Jas 3:16 - 4:3) is quite challenging. James must have been a fiery preacher! He contrasts jealousy and ambition with wisdom, while bringing to light the hard truth that passions or disordered affections cause “wars” with us. Towards the end of the section (beyond the text for Sunday) we find the remedy to what ails us: “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you,” (4:8).
Truly our verse goes into greater detail. The whole reads “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you of two minds,” reminding the hearer of these disorders and the need to purify our hearts. Again, the biblical heart being the center or deepest core of our existence.
Faith Manifest in Works
My Dear Friends,
I have really enjoyed your comments and insights related to our current Message Series, Heart Matters. In the first week after Mass, someone said that they had never heard that our faith is not all about coming to Mass. In the homily I had said that our worship should change our lives. Our primary calling is to live the Gospel in the world, really to be living Gospels (as one author expressed holiness.)
Sometimes historically it has seemed that as Catholics we were comfortable just coming to Mass. If we missed Mass, we needed to go to Confession, and if we came to Mass unless we robbed a bank - we were “good” for the week. A certain strain of 20th century Catholicism seems to have held to that. Yet Mass is not the end or goal, but the beginning. We gather for worship because it is what is due our God. It is just and fitting for his creatures to comply with his just commandment. But the command is for us, for our benefit. God mandates our attendance so we can gather, worship and be fed, leaving refreshed in order to live out the Gospel in the world. Church is an oasis, a place of refreshment God knows we need to make it through the week. Otherwise, we will die in the desert of the world.
Heart Matters!
Dear Friends in Christ,
We are underway with our Message Series, Heart Matters! - a study of James. In preparation, I have been praying with the Letter of James over the past several weeks and every time I take it up, I find new wisdom and insight. It is very rich! The inspired Word of God is a mine of endless riches. Each word and phrase offers a unique wealth since it was composed by the human author, while also written by the divine author.
The rhetoric, or stylistic plan, of James appears to me as somewhat spiral. The young bishop explores a series of topics and then returns to each in greater depth. For example, in James 1:19 we read, “Let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger…” counsel related to the listening and speaking. Later, James gives an in-depth reflection on the need to take care in speech (Jas 3:1-12). In part noting, “The tongue is a small member and yet has great pretensions. Consider how a small fire can set a huge forest ablaze. The tongue is also a fire… but no human being can tame the tongue.” These verses are a huge help for anyone who struggles to bridle the tongue.
