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Charity dictates who we reveal the truth to. We learn today that the “right to the communication of truth is not unconditional.” Fr. Mike explains that this means we ought to examine what facts we reveal to others prudently. Fr. Mike highlights the role of mass media in disseminating the truth and the importance of guarding ourselves against gossip. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2488-2499.
Click on link: https://youtu.be/T-ic6yaxFlo?si=_2pHWMZ5_a0KCKMu
Now when the pharisees…
When a Gospel reading starts like that, you know something big is coming.
THIS WEEK’S GOSPEL IS MARK 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
Today, let’s reflect on the insidious nature of gossip, learning to see ourselves in the Scriptures, and the power of the inner life. This reading is Jesus’ wisdom in full force. Are you ready?
Now when the pharisees…
When a Gospel reading starts like that, you know something big is coming.
Today, Matthew reflects on the insidious nature of gossip, learning to see ourselves in the Scriptures, and the power of the inner life. This reading is Jesus’ wisdom in full force. Are you ready?
“If we are a little envious of one person or another, we don’t contain our envy but sometimes share it with others by speaking badly about the person. This is how gossip seeks to grow and spread to another person and yet another. This is the way gossip works, and we have all been tempted to gossip. I too have been tempted to gossip! It is a daily temptation that begins slowly, like a trickle of water. This is why we have to be careful when we feel something in our heart that would lead to destroying people, destroying reputations, destroying our lives, leading us into worldliness and sin. We must be careful because if we do not stop ourselves in time, that trickle of water, when it grows and spreads, will become a tidal wave that leads us to justify ourselves, just as the people from the day’s Gospel justified themselves and eventually said of Jesus: “It is better that one man die for the people.”—Pope Francis
The tension in the Gospel of John, even more than in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, is that from the beginning, Jesus is clearly the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God. If all we have are the Synoptic Gospels, we can almost be persuaded that Jesus of Nazareth was a good and holy man who went about the countryside teaching people about God, healing their diseases, and preaching a moral lifestyle. In the Gospel of John, we have to wrestle with the fact that this good and holy man is in fact the human manifestation of the one, true God. And yet, Pope Francis always finds a way of bringing lofty theology to a level where we can see clearly how it can have an impact on our everyday lives. One of his frequent themes is the danger of gossip. Here he reminds us that our very tendency to dismiss it as a minor failing belies the danger it can have in disrupting relationships, social structures, and ultimately lives.
We have opportunities every single day to say no to gossip. Find a way to pay attention to those opportunities for the next few days. You might want to keep a paper tally, a click of a counter app on your phone, moving a small item (a paperclip, a pebble, a dried bean) from one pocket to another. Just the act of noting these times may be enough of a reminder not to indulge in this seemingly minor sin.
— from the book The Hope of Lent: Daily Reflections from Pope Francis
by Diane M. Houdek
//Franciscan Media//
Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us, he sets himself against our doings…. To us he is the censure of our thoughts. Merely to see him is a hardship.”—Wisdom 2:12, 14
“[Jesus] had decided not to travel in Judea because some of the Jews were looking for a chance to kill him…. Some of the people of Jerusalem remarked ‘Is this not the one they want to kill?’”—John 7:1, 25
We have perhaps read the studies which show that once a group has decided to differentiate itself from another group, the rules of conversation change toward that group. We are inclined to believe the worst of them, paranoia and conspiracy theories soon abound, they are fair game for the commentators, and our chosen mistrust looks for any justification whatsoever to fear, hate, or even kill. Soon any defensive or even offensive attacks toward that person or group are fully rationalized and justified. It is a rare person who can stand uninfluenced by this field of gossip and innuendo. This is the sad pattern of human history. It is just such an atmosphere that is presented in both readings today, as we near the climactic events of Holy Week. The taunting verses from the book of Wisdom sound familiar to most Christians because they are the backdrop of the Crucifixion scene: “If he is the son of God, then God will defend him.” In the full text we read a kind of bravado and defiance, daring the “just person” to prove himself. It feels like the school bully mocking the classmate who might be smarter, more popular, or even more mature. For some strange reason, fearful humans are threatened by anyone outside of their frame of reference. They are always a threat and must be brought down. The same pattern is then found in the Gospel. So strange that even religious authorities can speak openly of wanting to kill Jesus, and the crowds even openly know about this. What has religion come to? Vengeance is often an open, but denied secret when fear and gossip reign in a society. Every attempt is being made to discredit Jesus, and even his family of origin, which is a very common pattern. (The whole of John 7 might give you even more of the feeling of malice and intrigue than the selected passage here in the Lectionary.) Jesus is slowly being isolated for the attack, he moves around “secretly.” You can feel his loneliness and anguish, and all he can do is claim his true origins—to deaf ears. In these days, we are being invited to share in the passion of Jesus, and in the aloneness and fear of all who have been hated and hunted down since the beginning of time.
“God of loving truth, keep me from the world of gossip and accusation. Do not let me ‘kill’ others, even in my mind or heart.”
— from the book Wondrous Encounters: Scriptures for Lent
by Richard Rohr, OFM
//Franciscan Media//
“Work is part of God’s loving plan, we are called to cultivate and care for all the goods of creation and in this way share in the work of creation! Work is fundamental to the dignity of a person. Work anoints us with dignity, fills us with dignity, makes us similar to God, who has worked and still works, who always acts.”—Pope Francis
As Jesus responds to those who question his identity as the Son of God, he puts it in terms of the work that God does in the world. From the beginning of creation, it is God’s work that keeps all the universe in existence. Jesus shares in that work. Pope Francis shows us by his deeds and occasionally by his words that his work as pope is to lead God’s people in the way of the Gospel. In any religious organization the foibles and weaknesses of human society can become more visible and at times more important than the underlying good work that’s being done. It’s part of the pope’s responsibility—any pope in history—to rise above the controversy and the squabbling to focus on doing God’s work in the world. We know that in our own lives—at home, at work, in school, in various organizations—that the less admirable behaviors can distract from the work at hand. We spend more time complaining about what other people are doing or not doing than we spend doing the work that is ours to do.
Reflect today on the work that you do, whatever that might be. Ask yourself how focusing on that work can keep you from falling into the various snares that Pope Francis often talks about— gossip, backbiting, jealousy, despair. How can your work help you to further the way of God in the world? When you feel disillusioned, remind yourself that it’s all about the work. With Jesus, you can say, “The Father is at work and I work, too.”
— from the book The Hope of Lent: Daily Reflections from Pope Francis
by Diane M. Houdek
//Franciscan Media//
FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 2021
“I wish everyone a good journey in this Season of Lent. And I recommend you fast, a fast that will not make you hungry: a fast from gossip and slander. It is a special way. In this Lent I will not speak ill of others; I will not gossip… And we can all do this, everyone. This is a good fast. And do not forget that it will also be helpful to read a passage of the Gospel, to carry a small Gospel in your pocket, in your purse, and pick it up when you can, any passage. This will make the heart open to the Lord.” Pope Francis
“The fast of Lent has no advantage to us unless it brings about our spiritual renewal. It is necessary while fasting to change our whole life and practice virtue. Turning away from all wickedness means keeping our tongue in check, restraining our anger, avoiding all gossip, lying and swearing. To abstain from these things—herein lies the true value of the fast.” — St. John Chrysostom
Fr. Mike explains the importance of wisdom in our everyday lives when we face temptations to gossip, encouraging us in the battle for virtue, wisdom, and goodness. He emphasizes that we must ask the Lord for his wisdom to guide us as we interact with the people around us, just like the Jews prayed before battle. Today’s readings are 1 Maccabees 7, Sirach 19-21, and Proverbs 22:22-25.
Click on link: https://youtu.be/u7P60ZXtjQU
As we continue our journey in 1 Maccabees, Fr. Mike explains that this book of the Bible is unlike others because it narrates stories and events without providing any interpretation. In Sirach, Fr. Mike stresses the teaching on the power of our words and the gravity of gossip and slander. Today’s readings are 1 Maccabees 11, Sirach 28-29, and Proverbs 23:9-12.
Click on link: https://youtu.be/r-ozqr4wXMM
