Reflection:
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The Seventh Week of
Ordinary Time
This week begins with the glory and the joy of the Pentecost. The disciples who had been gathered in the Upper Room in great fear now feel the fire of the Holy Spirit in their hearts. With their newly-found courage, they boldly proclaim the good news, in many languages "as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim."
Pentecost marks the end of the Easter season and the return to the liturgical "Ordinary Time" -- the 34 weeks that fall outside of the Advent/Christmas and Lent/Easter seasons. The weeks of Ordinary Time will continue now until the First Week of Advent. But these "ordinary" weeks are anything but!
The Seventh Week of Ordinary Time offers beautiful readings from Sirach, part of the "Wisdom" literature in the Old Testament. This poetic narrative of wise living continues for the next two weeks, beginning this way: All wisdom comes from the Lord
and with him it remains forever.
The sand of the seashore, the drops of rain,
the days of eternity: who can number these?
The Gospel of Mark brings us the narrative of Jesus and his followers as Jesus heals and teaches. Jesus tells them that he is the Messiah who will suffer and rise again, but they miss the message. Jesus gives them (and us) some direct teachings about the challenges of following him.
The week closes with Trinity Sunday, which always follows Pentecost. It celebrates the un-knowable relationship between the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit - and their loving support for us in our lives.
"God so loved the world that he gave his only Son..."
Daily Prayer This Week
This week we can find a lot of encouragement in the Pentecost readings. The disciples, this most human group of Jesus' followers, have opened their hearts to the Holy Spirit and found new courage. They shed their fears and boldly began doing what they longed to do - spread the good news.
We, too, can find that courage in our lives. The same joyous strength that opened their hearts can touch ours in ways we can hardly imagine. We only have to ask!
As we go through our week, in the smallest moments of the day, we can beg God for the strength of the Holy Spirit in our lives. As we awaken in the morning, sort laundry or do the dishes, we can change our attitudes toward these chores and see them as sacred moments of invitation from the God who loves us with such fire and compassion.
Dear Lord, you know how filled I am with fears. Let each moment of anxiety today be a reminder to open my life, my heart and my soul to the love and courage you offer me. I know that if only I could trust in you more, it would change my life.
"I do believe! Help my unbelief!" Let me turn these apprehensions over to you. I beg you to give me the wisdom and strength I need to trust more and to fear less. Teach me that it's OK to stop clinging to the fears I have known for so long and that I can embrace the freedom you offer me. Let me be less fear-ful and more generous.
We can find the courage to proclaim the good news as the disciples did at Pentecost, simply by asking God for that strength and then living as if we received it. It is not about the amount of time, but about an awareness of God's presence in our lives. Believing and trusting in that love and grace, we can find the humility to say, "I'm sorry" to someone we have hurt. We can take a moment to write a note or an e-mail telling a suffering friend we are praying for them.
And all day long, as we run our errands or sit at our desks, we can take a moment to say "Thank you" to the God on whom we have such an utter dependence and who loves us with such abandon.
