Anyone who is not against us is for us

 Twenty-Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B - 26th September 2021

Gospel Mark 9: 38–43. 45. 47–49

John said to Jesus, ‘Master, we saw a man who is not one of us casting out devils in your name; and because he was not one of us we tried to stop him.’ But Jesus said, ‘You must not stop him: no one who works a miracle in my name is likely to speak evil of me. Anyone who is not against us is for us.

‘If anyone gives you a cup of water to drink just because you belong to Christ, then I tell you solemnly, they will most certainly not lose their reward.

‘But anyone who is an obstacle to bring down one of these little ones who have faith, would be better thrown into the sea with a great millstone around their neck. And if your hand should cause you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter into life crippled, than to have two hands and go to hell, into the fire that cannot be put out. And if your foot should cause you to sin, cut it off; it is better to enter into life lame, than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. And if your eye should cause you to sin, tear it out; it is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell where their worm does not die nor their fire go out.’

... just because you belong to Christ

Gospel Reflection from St Beuno's Outreach

I deliberately slow down, maybe attending to my breath, noticing the slow inhalation of life-giving oxygen into my body; and the slow exhalation of air. I attend to the present moment; disposing myself to God’s grace.

When ready, I turn to the Gospel and read Jesus’s teachings reflectively. Which one most draws me? I allow this teaching to find its home in me.

I may note Jesus’s attitude of generosity towards others who are not of his ‘tribe’... his warning against judgements and elitism; his blessings on simple kindness. When I consider my own inner attitudes and motivations, do I feel challenged or reassured by Jesus’s open-heartedness? I ponder...

Perhaps his third set of teachings invites me to see how I can take on the mind and attitudes of Christ to become like ‘the little ones’.

I ask for the freedom and grace to die to those parts of myself that do not lead to fullness of life ... for myself, my neighbour and all inhabitants of our planetary home.

I end my prayer expressing both sorrow and gratitude.

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Last of all and servant of all

Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B - 19th September 2021

 Gospel Mark 9: 30–37

After leaving that place they made their way through Galilee; and Jesus did not want anyone to know, because he was instructing his disciples; he was telling them, ‘The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men; they will put him to death; and three days after he has been put to death he will rise again’. But they did not understand what he said and were afraid to ask him.

They came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you arguing about on the road?’ They said nothing because they had been arguing which of them was the greatest. So he sat down, called the Twelve to him and said, ‘If anyone wants to be first, they must make themselves last of all and servant of all’. He then took a little child, set him in front of them, put his arms round him, and said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name, welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not me, but the one who sent me’.

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Gospel Reflection from St Beuno's Outreach

As I come to stillness, I may wish to have a lit candle by me, symbolizing that Christ is present with me.

Whenever I feel ready, I slowly read the Gospel passage prayerfully, pausing wherever I feel moved.

If it helps, I may like to place myself in the scene, perhaps as a disciple or a bystander travelling on the road with Jesus, or maybe in the house.

I listen to Jesus’s words and notice the expressions and reactions of those around me.

I watch as Jesus holds the child, and notice the tone of his voice.

If I’m confused by anything he says, I know I can speak to him openly, just as I would to a trusted friend.

How might Jesus be inviting me to welcome the ‘little children’ in our world? Those without influence or status ... refugees, the homeless, the poor, the abused, the vulnerable, the sick, those who are neglected ...?

I ask him to show me. I listen to what he has to say.

Maybe there is a gift or grace I feel I need to help me? I can ask Jesus for this too.

With a deep sense of gratitude, I end my prayer with Glory be ...

Click here to read or listen to a one-minute homily on this Sunday's readings!

He has done all things well

 Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B - 5th  September 2021

 Gospel Mark 7: 31–37

Returning from the district of Tyre, Jesus went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, right through the Decapolis region. And they brought him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they asked him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, put his fingers into the man’s ears and touched his tongue with spittle. Then looking up to heaven he sighed; and he said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘Be opened.’ And his ears were opened, and the ligament of his tongue was loosened and he spoke clearly. And Jesus ordered them to tell no one about it, but the more he insisted, the more widely they published it. Their admiration was unbounded. ‘He has done all things well,’ they said, ‘he makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.’

www.LumoProject.com

Gospel Reflection from St Beuno's Outreach

I go to my own place of prayer, be it a seat in the garden, the corner of a quiet room, or wherever. As I do, I notice how I am feeling. What am I bringing with me? How disposed and prepared am I to pray? 

Jesus’s cure of the man with a speech and hearing impediment is a clear echo of the First and Second Readings. God chooses the weak, the poor, those without capacity, to show that one’s level in society counts for nothing. What is of lasting value is a heart set on God.

As I begin this time of prayer, I might ask that the Holy Spirit help me to see everything through faith, to recognise that power counts for nothing unless it be the power of love.

I might move into prayer by reading the text, noticing what is striking me, or by putting myself in the Gospel, perhaps as the man needing healing. Where, in my life, do I want to be opened?

However I am praying, I keep my gaze firmly on the person of Jesus and on his priorities, noticing that he is even at pains to avoid the crowd’s praise.

By journeying through the more Gentile Decapolis region, Jesus is making a choice – those outside the Jewish law will not be forgotten.

In my daily decision-making, who and what directs my own choices?

Do I notice when others need help? Do I turn a blind eye?

Do I truly listen when someone speaks?

Am I someone who helps others to open up and unburden themselves? I ponder...

I end, when ready, with a sign of the cross.

Click here to read or listen to a one-minute homily on this Sunday's readings!