The Dialog

By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for December 9

Second Sunday of Advent

Baruch 5:1-9; Philippians 1:4-6; 8-11; Luke 3:1-6

Thirteen years ago this week, my two grandsons were baptized at Mass on the Second Sunday of Advent. In the homily, the priest made reference to the fact that the Gospel was about two cousins, John the Baptist and Jesus, and that two cousins were being baptized that day. He asked, “Which of these children will be like Jesus and which will be like John?”

This question has remained with me through the years as I watched them grow. As I ponder the Gospel today, the question broadens into how will a person be like one of them, and how would a person act like John or Jesus? The place to begin to find these answers is of course in sacred Scripture.

As a disciple of Jesus, there is much to learn from his life as it is portrayed in Scripture. His was a life of self-giving, caring for others, and leading us to the Father.

Today’s Gospel begins to show us the stage on which the drama of their life began. You will notice that the story begins during the time when the Roman’s had a hold on the region. It portrays John as a man proclaiming repentance and forgiveness, perhaps even forgiveness of the Romans. He shows his followers the way to God, pointing out Jesus and directing them to leave him and follow Jesus.

We can emulate John by doing the same, directing others to follow Jesus by our actions, words, and our own awareness of the presence of Jesus in our lives. This awareness will be carried through to others and they will see Jesus in our actions they will hear him as we speak and they will be led to follow him by our example.

The passages from Baruch and Paul remind us that Jesus is returning to bring us back from our own self-inflicted exile of sin. We are being offered the chance to repent and change our lives by forgiving others as we are constantly being forgiven by God.

This is the hope we are offered; that “all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” How will you repent and turn to Christ this Advent? Will you accept the hope that is offered? Will you be like John pointing towards Jesus by your words and actions?

“The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.” These wonderful words from Psalm 126 bring to mind two thoughts. Do we as Americans, living in this first- world, free country truly appreciate the great things the Lord has done for us or do we take them for granted believing that somehow we are entitled to them? Are we filled with joy?

In the beginning of this extremely busy time of the year, perhaps we can write this psalm verse down and carry it with us as we move through Advent. Allow it to serve as a reminder that Jesus is coming to fill our hearts with his joy.

Kathleen Ebner is a member of St. Jude the Apostle Parish in Lewes, where she serves as a spiritual director and catechist.

By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for Sunday, Nov. 11

Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

1 Kings 17:10-16; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44

The Scripture readings draw a sharp contrast between the rich and the poor, the haves and the have-nots. The prophets of the Old Testament were continually railing against the people for the injustices perpetrated against the poor and widowed by the rich and powerful.  In the reading from Kings we see the prophet Elijah moved with compassion for this widow, promising her food to last awhile. However, she needed to trust in his word as he was asking her to give him a share of their last bit of food. Do we have that level of trust in God? It’s asking a lot to share your final bites of food.

For most of us I don’t think God has ever asked us to trust him in a situation quite that serious. And yet we struggle to trust God in even the small dimensions of our lives.

The poor widow in Mark’s gospel contributed her whole livelihood to the collection. The word for “widow” in Hebrew carries the meaning of one who is silent. In the Mediterrean culture of their day, men played the public role, and women were not allowed to speak on their own behalf. Also widows were not included in Hebrew inheritance laws, so their constant concern was simply living from day to day. Times have not changed; we still have the rich and powerful keeping the poor as the underdog and forcing them to live day to day. Keeping the power out of the hands of the poor will ensure that the laws and guidelines of society will lean towards the interest of the rich.

The Mediterrean cultural obligation upon everybody was to maintain one’s status and do nothing to jeopardize or lessen it. If, as Jesus observes, this woman has given to the Temple, “all she had to live on,” she has deliberately worsened her status. Jesus does not praise but rather laments this woman’s behavior. She has been taught “sacrificial giving” by her religious leaders who promised to redistribute Temple collections to the needy.

In actuality, they spent the funds on banquets and unnecessary adornments. Does this sound familiar?

One problem in our American mode of thinking is that we expect everyone to be self-sufficient. This is not always in line with Gospel teaching. Jesus tells us not to worry about material things, or food to eat. Now, we must use some common sense and not sit on the beach all day waiting to be fed and clothed, the bottom line is trust in God. Something that we all must willingly practice and it does take practice. If we can’t trust God in little ways, how are we ever going to handle to critical situations that come our way in life?

The economic situation in our country today is worse that many of us can remember. If the majority of us felt financial pressure these past few years, how are the poor faring? We are a covenant community, the Body of Christ, created and brought together by God to live in community with each other in all ways. Do we need to be like the widow and empty our wallets for charity? Of course not.

Perhaps these readings today can help us focus on where we can help others a little more than we are now doing. We also need to be mindful of our global responsibility to the poor; it’s not their problem, it is ours.

Kathleen Ebner is a member of St. Jude the Apostle Parish in Lewes, where she serves as a spiritual director and catechist.

By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for October 14

Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Wisdom 7:7-11; Hebrews 4:12-13;

Mark 10:17-30

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By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for September 16

Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Isaiah 50:5-9a; James 2:14-18; Mark 8:27-35

The readings this week open with a most important statement, “The Lord God opens my ear that I may hear.”

It’s important that we stop and reflect on this first. We all know how easy it is to listen to what someone is saying but not really hear. Isaiah reminds us that God will open our ears to enable us to hear and understand his word. So now that we have the Lord’s assurance that he will open our ears we can hear today’s Gospel from the very center of Mark’s writings. Read more »

By Kathleen Ebner

By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for July 22, Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

1 Jeremiah 23:1-6; Ephesians 2:13-18; Mark 6:30-34

One cannot read this week’s Scripture verses from Jeremiah and not think about the situation present in our country today. “Woe to the shepherds who mislead and scatter the flock of my pasture, says the Lord.” Read more »

By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for Sunday, June 24

Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist

By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for May 27, Pentecost Sunday 

Pentecost Sunday commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Christ’s disciples, 50 days after his Resurrection. Pentecost is often called “the birthday of the Church.” On this day, with the descent of the Holy Spirit, Christ’s mission is completed, and the New Covenant is inaugurated. Read more »

By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for April 29
Fourth Sunday of Easter
Acts 4:8-12; 1 John 3:1-2; John 10:11-18

Our Scripture readings for this fourth Sunday of Easter are reminding us of who we are and how God is caring for us. We are children of God. This is not just a name; we really are God’s children, even though the world and sometimes even we do not believe this.
We cannot comprehend how such imperfect people as we could be God’s children. No matter what others and we ourselves may sometimes think, we are most assuredly God’s children, despite our imperfections. And as children we need to be feed, disciplined, taught, and loved. It is important that we remember this so that when God is interacting with us as a parent with a child, we will pay attention.
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By Kathleen Ebner

Readings for April 1, Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord

Isaiah 50:4-7;  Philippians 2:6-11

Palm Sunday and as every year we listen to the Passion of Jesus read at Mass. Do we really hear it? Sometimes I think if we really heard and understood these words we would be tempted to rate it “R” based on the violence and brutality. It certainly wouldn’t be deemed appropriate for children.

And yet we read and listen, sometimes with an air of boredom because it’s so familiar. So let’s take some time this week to reflect deeply on this Gospel message.

In the crucifixion, Jesus was humiliated, shamed, abandoned, betrayed, tortured, and brutalized. We might have experienced some of these situations like humiliation or shame, but the torture and brutalization? This was a time of extreme cruelty, not comparable to what most of us can imagine. Even the Apostles could not imagine what Jesus was saying when he told them he would suffer and die. Jesus tried to warn them, “All of you will have your faith shaken,” but they did not understand. Read more »