Sept. 27th Reflection DOING THE WORK OF THE LORD

Doing the Work of The Lord
A Reflection on the Readings for September 27th 2009
Numbers 11:25-29, Psalm 18, James 5:1-6, Mark 9:38-48
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius and Bacchus / Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church of New England
www.missionstsergius.org
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EverlastingLoveOfChristMinistry


This Sunday’s readings have, it seems to me, a very important message for all who claim to be Christians and followers of Christ. One of the most important is found in the message of the Psalm which affirms the truth about Almighty God. That truth is that He listens to us and answers our prayers. If we put our lives in God’s hands, He will protect us and make life safe for us. There is, of course, one condition and it is, we have to live according to how Christ’s instructed us.
“I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies. For I have kept the ways of the LORD; I have not done evil by turning from my God.” (Psalm 18)
A second and even more powerful message is that by placing our measure of success in material things we are leading ourselves to possible destruction. The message found in James 5 is crystal clear, on several points.
One concerns how we gain our earthly wealth. If we have accumulated profit at the expense of others that profit will be like a fire that consumes you. It also places blame for many of the problems that our world is facing on those who live for material and financial gain without concern for those who are in need.
“Now an answer for the rich. Start crying; weep for the miseries that are coming to you. You stored up as your treasure for the last days a burning fire. Laborers mowed your fields, and you cheated them – listen to the wages that you kept back, calling out; realize that the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. On earth you have had a life of comfort and luxury; in the time of slaughter you went on eating to your heart’s content. It was you who condemned the innocent and killed them“. (James 5).
The third message found in this weeks’ readings concerns those who seem to feel that they speak for God and can decide who is worthy to participate in offering honor, praise and glory. .They firmly believe that their path is the only path to God and that they can decide who is worthy and who is not.
In the Gospel reading when the apostles told Jesus that they tried to stop people who were not of their group from prophesying and performing miracles in the name of Almighty God Jesus said: “You must not stop them: 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, he will most certainly not lose his reward.’ 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 round his neck”. (Mark 9)
Lastly, the reading from numbers has a very interesting and thought provoking idea for us to ponder.
It concerns a supposition about what the world would be like if everyone was given the gift of prophesy by God. "If only the whole people of the Lord were prophets, and the Lord gave his Spirit to them all!" (Numbers 11)
Imagine if every follower of God had the gift of prophesy. If that were actually the case, the world might not be so quick to declare war against other nations. People would be more likely to be concerned about the needs of the poor, hungry, aged, sick, and more likely to be more compassionate and less judgmental. People would realize that a pure love between two people is a good thing not to be disparaged and condemned.
As we contemplate the messages of this week’s readings and how well we are living our daily lives in accord with them let us keep in mind what the scriptures taught us on what God expects of us.
He put us here to gain the greatest wage and wealth of all, Everlasting life in His presence.
We have been sent out into the vineyards to be the hands, feet, mouth and spirit of Almighty God and to actively wage the battle against the powers of darkness who are attempting to replace His infinite mercy, love, and compassion with hatred, discrimination, war, violence, greed and self-gratification.
The following is a prayer I offer each day as I attempt to go about my daily life humbly serving God as best I can while seeking God’s strength to improve.


O Lord, you are my rock, my fortress and my deliverer in whom I take refuge.
Almighty God, I give you my hands to do Your work; I give you my feet to go Your way;
I give you my eyes to see as You do; I give you my tongue to speak Your words; I give you my mind that You may think in me; I give you my spirit that You may pray in me;
Above all, I give you my heart that You may love in and through me all to whom I come in contact with each and every day. I dedicate myself to doing Your will in all things and to become an instrument through which You might bring about peace and harmony to all your children here on earth. AMEN (Written by Fr. Bob Johnnene OFD in 1991 for a retreat weekend)

Sunday Sept. 20th 2009 reflection

The Last Shall Be First
Reflection on Readings For Sunday September 20th 2009
Wisdom 2:12-20; James 3:16-18; Psalm 54:3-8; Mark 9:30-37
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine mercy
www.Missionstsergius.org

This week’s readings have a series of powerful messages for us to consider. They talk about how people who boast about how great they are, how powerful they are could very well be in danger in God’s design of things. I have chosen a few of the passages from Sunday's readings for us to reflect upon and consider how and where we, and those in the public eye, are living them.
"Where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. But the wisdom that comes from heaven is, first pure; then peace loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness". (James 3:16)
Where you have envy and selfish ambition, you find disorder and every evil practice. Envy and selfish ambition, how often have we and leaders of corporation, governments and churches followed those goals? How does the scripture tell us to overcome those evil conditions in our life? By seeking God’s wisdom and live a life that is considerate of others, full of mercy for those who are suffering because of poverty, illness or who have hurt us in some way. We are told to seek out peace not vengeance.
Remember what we are told in Romans 12:18-20; “Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God. For it is written, "I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it," says the Lord.” In James 3 we are told “The harvest of Righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” Since we are in the seasonal time of harvest, possibly we need to work harder than ever before to harvest peace between those with whom we have had disagreements. We need to try to find the common ground to settle the petty differences that have divided all who all claim to worship the one and same Creator God, The God of Abraham, Isaac, David, Jacob and the Almighty Father of Jesus Christ.
We have sown the seeds of discontent among the seeds of peace and goodwill. Now we need to harvest peace and goodwill and leave the discontent for the weeds to be burned and destroyed.
Mark’s gospel tells the story of how the apostles were arguing about who among them was the greater. Christ knew this, as He knows all of our thoughts, words and actions, and when they got to where they were to rest, Christ gathered them together and asked what they were discussing. When no one answered, Christ sat them down and told them; “Jesus sat down and called for the Twelve to come to him. Then he said, "If you want to be first, you must be the very last. You must be the servant of everyone. Jesus then took a little child and had the child stand among them. Then he took the child in his arms. He said to them, Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me. And anyone who welcomes me doesn't welcome only me but also the One who sent me."
Can Christ’s message to us be any clearer? If we wish to be a true leader, the first of firsts among people we need to become a servant to all. We need to have the innocence of a child that knows no anger or hatred. Hatred, violence, anger are lessons that are learned and then nurtured by people with agendas of their own.
Our only agenda in life should be to live, work and think of what Almighty God wants from us. We need to live our life attempting to emulate our Redeemer and Savior, Jesus Christ, in all of our daily lives.
We can begin doing this by examining how we relate to the issues that our family and the world are facing today. Do we judge people on how they look, their color, the church they attend, who their partner in life may be, how much money they have? We should judge them on how they are respectful of the needs of others, how they are always ready to help someone in trouble or need, by their love of Almighty God.
We live in troubled times. We hear many versions of how life is going to change for us by doing one thing or another. Politicians will be promoting their agendas over the next months all claiming to improve our lives. Television networks are all vying for our eyes claiming to be the #1 network that gives us the best news and entertainment. Advertisers tell us our lives will improve by using their product. The truth is the only way our lives will ever change is if we change them within our selves. Our lives and the world condition will only change when we begin to make a serious examination of our behavior and how closely it and our lives are being lived in relationship to Christ’s teachings. The challenge is ours alone. We can not be seeking to be the top gun but must be willing to be the servant. We need to become a servant of God, serving our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ and work to harvest peace among all God’s children. May God give us the Wisdom to live according to His way. May God grant us patience, compassion, forgiveness, and courage to live according to his way so that we may be welcomed into His Kingdom with open and loving arms. AMEN.

Exaltation of Holy Cross Feast Reflection

Reflection for The Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Readings From Numbers 21:4-9, Philippians 2:6-11, John 3:13-17
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church of New England
www.missionstsergius.org


“We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world”On Monday the universal church celebrates the feast commemorating the finding of the sacred cross upon which Christ died by Saint Helen about the year 325-326
According to some records it seems that not only were the High Priests afraid that someone would steal the body of Christ and claim that he had risen as He said he would they not only convinced Pontius Pilot to post guards at the tomb of Christ, but they ordered some temple workers to go out and bury the cross Christ was crucified on so that no one would ever find it. These workers did not know which cross of the three they found was the correct one so they buried them all and then covered them with mounds of stone. Years later, the emperor Hadrian had a temple built on the hill of Golgotha to honor Aphrodite. The temple was built over the place where the crosses had been buried and covered also the place where Christ’s tomb was.
Saint Helen decided that she would undertake a search for the cross after her son Constantine had related the story of his vision of the cross which told him to fly it as a sign and he would be successful in his battle.
Upon her arrival in Jerusalem the venerable Saint Helen had no visible sign of where to look because the area had the temple built on it. She instructed that the temple be destroyed especially the statue of Aphrodite. She then was drawn to the area where the pile of stones were visible after the destruction of the temple and instructed workers to dig there. Three crosses were uncovered as well as nails and other items The excavators also found a tomb which they believed might have been the actual tomb of Christ, since records indicate that Christ was buried in a rock sepulcher close to the place of His crucifixion.
St. Helen could not be sure which cross was the true cross but Saint Marcarius, the Bishop of Jerusalem, suggested that they have a gravely sick woman brought near to the crosses and hoped that if one of them was the true cross, the woman would be healed. Upon touching the last of the three crosses, she was instantly healed. Saint Helen was so overjoyed she ordered her son to have a church built on the site and a major section of the cross was placed in a Silver casing and placed in the church while another section was brought to Constantinople. The cross remained in the church in Jerusalem until 614 when the Persians plundered Palestine and took the cross to their own country. In 628 the Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross and restored it to it’s rightful place.
Tiny Pieces of the cross have been scraped off from both original pieces and have been distributed over the years, usually imbedded in a replica of Christ crucified. The amazing thing is that the original major pieces have never shrunken in size. I, myself, have had a piece of the cross imbedded in the crucifix of my rosary beads since they were brought from Rome for me by my cousin Bishop Minnahan.
As the Gospel reading of John proclaims “God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life. For God sent his Son into the world
not to condemn the world, but so that through him the world might be saved.’” and the reading from Philippians reminds us that; “Jesus Christ’s state was divine, yet he did not cling to his equality with God but emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave and became as men are; and being as all men are, he was humbler yet, even to accepting death, death on a cross.”Let Us Pray; Through the sign of Your Holy Cross, protect your brothers and sisters, Lord Jesus Christ, from all the temptations of the evil one and lead us to a greater love for each other as you loved us.
It was by your cross, O Christ, that you redeemed all mankind from their sinful ways and opened up the gates of heaven to all who proclaim you. May we be welcomed into your presence when our time here on earth is over to join with all the Heavenly elect. AMEN

Reflection For September 13, 2009

Reasons to Love The Lord, Our God
A Reflection for the 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2009
Based on readings from Isaiah 50:5-9, James 2:14-18, Mark 8:27-35
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church of New England
www.missionstsergius.org


“The Lord has opened my ear. For my part, I made no resistance, neither did I turn away. I offered my back to those who struck me, my cheeks to those who tore at my beard; I did not cover my face against insult and spittle.” (Isaiah 50:5-9)
These words from the book of Isaiah foretold how Jesus Christ would be treated and how Jesus would react to the ridicule and ultimate sacrifice He would endure.
These words also should remind us that we might have to endure taunts and even rejection because of our love for God and because the way of Christ is not the way of today‘s society.
Christ taught compassion, love, mercy, and forgiveness. These are qualities that are in short supply in today’s world.
“What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him? If a brother or sister is ill clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit?
So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But some one will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith.” (James 2:14-18)
These words of James, the brother of Christ and head of the church at Jerusalem, explain how we need to act in order to proclaim our faith. In no uncertain words they say that we live our faith by our actions.
This has been the theme of the last few weeks and a constant theme of Christ’s teachings.
Many people proclaim to be followers of Jesus Christ, but they have blinders on towards the suffering and pain that exists all around them. If they are aware of it, they seem to have no desire to put an end to it.
Our nations leaders who for the most part claim to be Christians are engaged in discussions to make our health plans more affordable and the best in the world for all people regardless of their income yet they resist because of what it might cost or because of their party affiliations.
What happened to the idea of “Government for the people”
So many people give lip service but somehow little is really done to bring and end to homelessness, poverty, affordable medical assistance for the poor and seniors on low fixed incomes and affordable quality education for every person.
The Government can find trillions to explore space, wage wars, give tax breaks and incentives to the rich and corporations that pay their executives exorbitant salaries, often a thousand time greater than the average worker receives.
"If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.” (Mark 8)
These words of Christ tell us that to become followers of Christ, we must be willing to endure the crosses we are given. We must deny ourselves things that are considered luxuries so we can care for the needs of those who are poor, ill and unable to care for themselves without help.
Every day I pray to God asking him to provide me with the tools to do His work here on earth and be able to bring comfort and the sacraments to those who cannot get to church or have been told they were not wanted.
I try to spread The Good News of God’s everlasting compassion, infinite love and mercy for all His children.
God always hears our prayers, but He only answer us with what is best for us and at the appropriate time. When people who are sick, need a job or desire to sell their house or some other need ask God’s help, He hears them, but always gives them what is best for them.
Sometimes he calls the sick person home to him as the best way of ending their suffering.
It leaves us feeling sad, lonely, and sometimes angry but we need to realize that God did what was best for them. That is what it means to deny ourselves. We must accept God’s will in our lives, just as Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane pleaded “Lord remove this cup from me, but not my will, but yours be done”
Maybe if we make that prayer the qualification of all our petitions to God we will not be dissatisfied with God‘s answers to our prayers. I have found that when God deems it right He provides those things I need. My favorite poem FOOTSTEPS reminds us how God sometimes carries us when we thought He had abandoned us. God never leaves us but we often leave God out of our lives. I have learned that God needs to be a major part of our life and in a perfect world God is the center of our life.
We cannot allow ourselves to give up on God, worshiping Him and asking Him to be with us just because some have told us we are unwanted, or others try to claim that God is a myth, and still others who are supposed to represent Him have committed heinous crimes. We need to put our trust in God and love Him with all our being. Jesus instructed us with these words; “LOVE THE LORD, YOUR GOD, WITH ALL YOUR HEART, MIND, SOUL AND BODY AND LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOU LOVE YOURSELF” (Mark 12:30) Christ also said “LOVE ONE ANOTHER AS I HAVE LOVED YOU” God loved us so much He was willing to die so that our sins could be forgiven and we could attain everlasting life with Him forever. AMEN



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Being Doers of God's Word

Being Doers of God’s Word
A Reflection for the 23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time
Based on readings from: Isaiah 35:4-7, James 2:1-5, Mark 7:31-37
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church of New England
www.missionstsergiou.org

"My brothers, do not try to combine faith in Jesus Christ, our glorified Lord, with the making of distinctions between classes of people. Now suppose a man comes into your synagogue, beautifully dressed and with a gold ring on, and at the same time a poor man comes in, in shabby clothes, and you take notice of the well-dressed man, and say, ‘Come this way to the best seats’; then you tell the poor man, ‘Stand over there’ or ‘You can sit on the floor by my foot-rest.’ Can’t you see that you have used two different standards in your mind, and turned yourselves into judges, and corrupt judges at that? Listen, my dear brothers: it was those who are poor according to the world that God chose, to be rich in faith and to be the heirs to the kingdom which he promised to those who love him.” This reading from James 2:1-5 for could not be any clearer or a stronger reminder of how we are called, as Followers of Christ, to treat all the people we encounter on our journey of life.
We are told quite clearly not to discriminate against anyone. We are not do judge anyone as regards to their worship or their coming to seek God or ask forgiveness.
The only judge of a person in regards to their relationship with Almighty God is God Himself.
When we make assertions that this one or that one surely belongs in Hell we are assuming a power that belongs to God alone. Throughout the holy scriptures we find a common thread on how to live out our lives here on earth. From Jesus commandment to us, “love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” (John 13:34) to those of the readings for this Sunday..
We have been told in the past few weeks that it is how a person lives out their faith and not how much they say words of prayer that is important. We need to put action behind the prayers. We need to live so that when we face God He can say to us; “" 'You have done well, my good and faithful servant!' (Luke 19:17) “You have done well because “When I was hungry. And you gave me something to eat. When I was thirsty. you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger. you invited me in. When I needed clothes. you clothed me. When I was sick you took care of me. and when I was in prison. you came to visit me." '(MATTHEW 25:35-36)
Matthew 25:40 sums up how we can be real followers of Christ and how we need to live our lives in order for God to greet us with those words “Well Done my Good and faithful servant.” “Anything you did for one of the least important of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40 )
We have been called to Feed the hungry, Clothe the naked, Visit those in Prison, quench the thirst for those who thirst, care for the sick and aged and not discriminate. James wrote his letter or epistle to the people of the faith community of Jerusalem some time before he was executed in 62 AD. James if referred to as “The Brother of Christ”. James was the leader of “Bishop” of the Christian Community in Jerusalem and was one of the twelve that advised Paul on Christ’s teachings since Paul never actually knew Christ in person and all Paul writes about is second hand knowledge from those original apostles he actually had the opportunity to meet.
Chapter 2 of the first epistle of Peter begins, “Stop being hateful! Quit trying to fool people, and start being sincere. Don't be jealous or say cruel things about others.”.
In James’s first epistle chapter 1 verse 22-27 says: “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; and once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless. Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”
Just imagine how much this world could be changed for the better if each and every one of us were to live our lives in accord with these teachings. It is never too late to begin. We all have an opportunity to make a difference in this world. Look around and see where you can begin to serve God by serving others. This, I feel, is the message of this week and the message of how to live as a follower of Christ.
May God guide us and lead us in our service to Him today and always. AMEN

In Memoriam For Sen. Ted Kennedy

Memorial Reflection for Se. Ted Kennedy

It is with sadness that I write this brief reflection as a memorial to a human person with flaws like us all but a person who place the welfare of many above all his concerns.
At 2:00 AM This morning Edward M. Kennedy the premier Democratic Senator from Massachusetts was taken home to join his brothers and sisters John, Robert, Joe, Eunice, and parents in the presence of Almighty God.
A man like all of us who have flaws he did more to champion the underdog, the poor and disadvantaged than most politicians do.
He pushed through bills that improved their lot by fighting for improved wages, dignity for the physical and developmentally challenged and improved education.
He died urging the leaders of our government to pass one of the most important bills that Kennedy has pushed for, Health Care Reform for every citizen of the US.
My prayers are offered up for the repose of his soul and for his wife Vickie, his children and the entire Kennedy family who have lost their patriarch but also for the people of Massachusetts and the Us who have lost a real champion of the average man.
May His soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in eternal peace. AMEN

Reflection for August 23rd 2009

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time Reflection

Do You Serve The Lord Your God?

Based on the readings from: Joshua 24:1-2,15-18, Psalm 33:2-3,16-23, Ephesians 5:21-32, John 6:60-69

By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD, Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus

Franciscans of Divine Mercy/ Reformed Catholic Church International


　

"Now therefore fear the LORD and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness…. Choose this day whom you will serve… as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." (Joshua 24:14-15)

Just as Joshua challenged the tribes of Israel to chose who they desired to honor and worship, we today are being given the same challenge. Do we choose to serve those human gods of Greed, power, domination, discrimination, materialism and self-effacement or do we choose to follow the way of the son of god, Jesus Christ.

Do we choose to live our lives according to the way Jesus taught by being forgiving, compassionate, kind and generous to all God’s children, especially those in need?

Throughout all of history, one idea has prevailed; it is that there is a supreme being that governs all.

We find it in the histories of the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Aztecs, Mayans, Native American Tribes, in fact every known civilization. Humans have recognized that there is something greater than themselves throughout history.

We humans have sought this greater power out, as history has shown, in every generation. They have given that acknowledgement to the sun, volcano’s, lightning and other natural and sometimes human and imaginary things. They have worship their “Gods” under the names of Ra, Zeus, Apollo, Pele the Goddess of Fire, Mercury, Aesir, and hundreds of other names.

When Almighty God made himself known with the words “"I am that I am. Here is what you must say to the Israelites. Tell them, 'I am has sent me to you.' "(Exodus 3:14) we were told who we should give honor, praise and reverence to and whom we should thank for all things.

When Jesus Christ was transfigured, God informed us clearly who Jesus was with these words; “"This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!" (Matthew 17:4-6).

God has told us to listen to what Jesus was telling us. To listen to the words and teachings of Jesus Christ, not some mere human individual, but Jesus the son of Almighty God. When we read the teachings of Christ, we find clear concise guidelines as to how we are expected to live our lives. These are found in the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount, and in the “GREAT COMMANDMENT”, "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these." (Mark 12:29-30)

Could Christ’s teachings be any clearer, yet so many try to make this love and service to Almighty God so difficult by injecting a lot of man made things in the way.

The have twisted to original writings of the ancient scriptures and the writings of the apostles and early church fathers and in some cases even rejected some of them because they did not “FIT THE POLITICALY CORRECT AGENDA” of that time.

People found passages that referred to a specific kind of sin and twisted it around in order to exclude some individuals from serving God or even to participate in the worship of Almighty God.

When we choose to ignore the teachings of Christ, when we decide what God means and we judge others as outcasts and deny them the opportunity to worship Almighty God and acknowledge Jesus as the son of God and the redeemer and Savior sent by God, then we are not serving Almighty God.

Jesus, rejected no one, not even those who were to crucify him. Jesus sat and ate with those that Jewish law forbade sharing a meal. Jesus spoke with and treated women as equals.

If we believe that Almighty God created all things, and we believe that Jesus was the Son of God made man, then we cannot even think about acting like a god and making judgments that are the exclusive property of Almighty God.

We can dislike the way another person acts, we can reject their choices as not acceptable, we have the freedom to choose not to associate with some people because they seem to be breaking the commandments of God by lying, cheating, stealing, killing, committing adultery, coveting another’s wife or property and act in an manner other than that prescribed by God.

When we decide that power, money, prestige, fame, greed or sexual gratification are more important to us that living according to God’s way, we are not serving God.

We need to remember how we were taught in Paul’s letter to the Romans 14; “But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God.” and Matthew 7; “Do not judge lest you be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.“ In James 4 we read; “Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother, or judges his brother, speaks against the law, and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge of it.”

The law of God is very clear, we are not the ones to judge a person because of how things appear “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment. Our Law does not judge a man, unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing, does it?” ( John 7:24, 51)

We need to judge a person by their deeds. Do they feed the poor? Do they Clothe the Naked? Do they respect and love All of God’s creatures? Do they give shelter to the homeless?

We do not have a right to deny anyone the same rights and privileges as every other citizen.

The question poised at the beginning of this reflection was, Do you serve the Lord ? You do if you live in a manner prescribed by Jesus Christ and do not make judgments according to man made decisions but only by the example and teachings given us by Christ.

“Christ went on, “This is why I told you that no one could come to me unless the Father allows him…Simon Peter answered, ‘Lord, who shall we go to? You have the message of eternal life, and we believe; we know that you are the Holy One of God.“

Let us serve Almighty God not only by claiming to be a Christian but by living out the teachings of Christ in our daily lives. AMEN

Reflection on Anniversay of Ordination

Reflecting on the past 4 years as a priest

On the eve of the start of my 5th year as a priest this Saturday the 15th, I ask myself “Am I being a good servant and disciple of Christ.
I also have become more acutely aware of the blessed opportunity and the many challenges Almighty God has bestowed upon me.
I ponder how well I have done in serving all those who have been made to feel unwelcome and rejected from some Religious denominations and proclaiming to them how GOD LOVES THEM AS HE CREATED THEM.
I pray that I might have inspired them to claim their rightful place within the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church.
With the words “Your are a priest forever like Melchizedek of Old”, a person goes from being a simple follower of Jesus Christ to an individual who is completely committed and responsible to serve God faithfully and proclaim His truth and teachings faithfully to all of His children He sends you.
As a priest, I have been called to be the hands, feet, mouth, heart and human voice of Almighty God here on earth.
I need to be there to give solace and comfort to those in pain. I need to remember always to affirm God’s love, mercy and forgiveness to all His children. I am called to be uplifting and positive toward all even when I do not feel that good myself.
These responsibilities are not limited just to those who are part of the Faith Community you serve but to every child of God that you meet as you go about your daily life.
In a world that appears to be increasingly more self centered and absorbed in the material things of life and less interested in the needs of others or in helping to support the work of the ministries that serve God’s children.
I often feel inadequate, troubled and disturbed because of my limitations and this has sometimes caused me occasionally to be filled with anguish.
My heart becomes heavy when I see and hear of children of God being turned away from worshiping with a faith community and being denied Baptism or God’s gift of the Eucharist because they were born out of wedlock, or the parents are divorced or worse yet, God created them with a same sex orientation.
Sadness fills me when I see dedicated men and women being denied the opportunity to answer the call they hear from God just because they are married or their gender is female.
Why should a person who is dedicated and has the necessary education and training be refused because of their marital state or sexual orientation just as long as they are willing to live their lives in a manner that would not bring shame or dishonor to Almighty God?
The Church had married priests as recently as 1139. In the fourteenth Century a Bishop Pelsgio complained that woman were still being ordained and hearing confessions and in the 1970’s several women were ordained as priests in the Czech Republic to serve the needs of women imprisoned by the Communists. In the 15th century it was estimated that 50% of priests were married. 7 Popes were married and had children into the mid 1400's. 11 Popes were sons of previous popes. Between 1484 and 1585 6 popes had illegitimate children.
Some priests and some of the hierarchy have forgotten their duty and responsibility to God and have done serious damage to the universal church because they ignored their vows and sexually abused children and others that trusted them. The church is having great difficulty healing the wounds that caused. Many good and faithful priests who have lived their vows faithfully have been hurt by the actions of those who failed.
Many of God’s children have become disillusioned because the hierarchy failed to take action against those who committed these heinous crimes.

In accepting God’s call to be His servant on earth a priest needs to put themselves last before the needs of those whom God has sent him to serve.
All the wealth of the world cannot raise a person any higher in the eyes of God than being a good, faithful and humble servant of God to His children sent to be shepherded.
Many people whom God has called to be His servants on earth have attempted to heal the divisions that have separated the Christian church, established through the inspiration of Christ’s teachings and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Among them was a Protestant Brother, Roger of Taize, who found respect and was welcomed into the company of the hierarchy of all religious denominations, including three popes, the patriarchs of the Orthodox churches, Anglican and other denominations all of whom attended his funeral after he was murdered on August 14th 2005, the day before my ordination.
Brother Roger has been called “the male Mother Theresa and St. Francis of the 20th and 21st
centuries.” He was truly a man of God and a good and faithful servant of God. To me, Brother Roger is what I aspire to emulate and a man who should be a model to all priests even though he himself , like St. Francis the seraphic father of our Franciscan order, was never a priest.
To have been called to the priesthood is a tremendous and overwhelming responsibility which I pray daily I am able to live up to.
I find His choice of me to be surprising and heady, filled with many roadblocks to overcome but I am fully willing to accept if it is His will.
I ask God only that He provide me the energy, health, necessary means, tools and courage to accept all He sends me in order for me to serve Him and those He sends my way as He would.
I constantly ask Almighty God to inspire me and guide my every action through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit so that I may bring Him honor and Glory.
I pray constantly that I can make a difference in the lives of those who God sends my way and bring them into a closer relationship with Almighty God.
I ask God to constantly lead me and constantly inspire me to know and do His will.
Please remember me and the work of the mission in your daily prayers and ask God to continue to lead me and guide me in my daily service to Him as I begin the 5th year of my priesthood this Saturday.

Sunday August 9th 2009 Reflection

Is God in Your Reflection
A reflection for Sunday August 9th 2009
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church International of New England
www.missionstsergius.org


When you look in the mirror what do you see looking back at you? Is the person you see reflecting God within them? Is the reflection cast back at you sharp and clear? Are there streaks or dirty spots on the reflection? Do you see, in your reflection, the infinite and everlasting mercy and love of God reflected back at you? Every Sabbath in every Church and Synagogue, the priest, Reverend, or Rabbi preaches on scripture readings. This preaching is called a homily, a Sermon or a Teaching. I call mine reflections because it, like those of the pastors, priests or Rabies’, they are meant for you to think about during the following week and reflect on how well you are doing in following God’s intent.This week I am asking you to imagine that you are looking at your reflection in a mirror and trying to discern how well you, in your daily life, are reflecting God’s teachings to those who you encounter.Perhaps, in your reflection you cannot discern the inner God within you because you are not totally open to accepting yourself as a infinitely loving God‘s child because other have told you that you are not welcome in God‘s house for one reason or another. Maybe it is because you spend too much time thinking about yourself and your desires instead of finding out how you can reach out and help others less fortunate than you.One thing that can cause distortions and streaks in your reflection is a distance you put between you and Almighty God. You believe in God and turn to Him when you are in need, but you do not take time every day to communicate with him as you would with your best friend and thank Him for all he has given you.Sometimes, just possibly, when you look in the mirror you do not recognize the person staring back at you. You need to ask why you not recognize that person.There is of course those times when you can see another figure behind you who seems to be calling to you. That reflection can either be a dark and foreboding presence that should frighten you because it is trying to entice you to do go against God’s teachings and as they used to say in Star Wars “Have you go to the Dark side”. The image you see reflected back at you might be a beautiful luminescent image that seems to glow from within which is the reflection of God and the Holy Spirit alive within you. Take a good look at yourself in that mirror, do you reflect the infinite love and mercy of Jesus Christ to yourself and to all you encounter on your life journey? Do you live your live in a way that would prompt God to praise you as “My good and faithful servant”? If so, your image is crystal clear and exactly what you want to envision when you look in your mirror. What you see in that mirror is how others see you. If you live your life striving always to be kind, generous, thoughtful, forgiving, and not discriminatory of any person, even those you disagree with, you are well on the way to seeing God in your reflection and others will see that in you.If, however, you discriminate because someone is divorced, not of the same nationality, race or religious denomination as you, or because God created a person with a same sex orientation, then your reflection is going to be full of blotches, stains and streaks and your image in the mirror needs to be cleaned up. Jesus Christ never rejected anyone who came to him and neither does God. Christ called and welcomed all even those who were sinners so that he could forgive them and encourage them to “Go and Sin No More”.Christ sat at table with all political and religious persons, rejecting no one, teaching them how to attain salvation. Christ endured suffering and even death on the cross in order to free us from the burden of sin and open the gates of heaven to all. His example showed us how to live. He told us it would not be easy and that we might be ridiculed and rejected and even have to suffer in order to be truthful and live according to God’s will.Christ and His Almighty Father have even given us a source of strength in the gifts bestowed upon us by the Holy Spirit; Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety, and Fear of the Lord. The secret here is, we have to seek them out and we have to ask for them. Christ told us “Love one another as I have loved you”. Christ loved us so much he was willing to die so that our sins would be forgiven and we could attain heaven at the end of our “Proving Time” here on earth. Like Gold that is purified in fire, we also must endure times of testing to become worthy of eternal life with God and the heavenly elect.May your reflection have few flaws and may God grant you the fortitude to make the changes necessary for you to see God clearly in your reflection. AMEN

Truth in Love, Caritas in Veritate

"Truth in Love, Caritas in Veritate"
A Reflection on the recent encyclical of Pope Benedict
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church International of New England
www.missionstsergius.org
Mission_St_Sergius@msn.com


This week I have chosen to write my reflection on the encyclical that was released by Pope Benedict XVI. I will begin with what he said At an audience before the wives of some of the worlds presidents and prime ministers in Italy for the Group of Eight meeting and follow up with my own view of not only the encyclical but the who notion of how TRUE LOVE is the only answer to the worlds problems. The Bishop of Rome noted that the inspiration for the encyclical, “Caritas in Veritate” is a passage from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians 4:15, in which the apostle speaks of acting according to truth in charity: “Rather living the truth in love, we should grow in every way into him who is the head, Christ.”Benedict XVI acknowledged that he did not pretend to offer technical solutions to social problems but that the encyclical "focuses on the principles indispensable for human development. Most important among these is human life itself," he declared, " Benedict XVI gave particular attention to the "scandal" of world hunger, noting how "Caritas in Veritate" calls for "decisive action to promote food security and agricultural development, as well as respect for the environment and for the rule of law." When we read Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians in it’s entirety we find it also points out the diversity of God’s creation with these words; “Christ chose some of us to be apostles, prophets, missionaries, pastors, and teachers, so that his people would learn to serve and his body would grow strong.” … “We must stop acting like children. We must not let deceitful people trick us by their false teachings, which are like winds that toss us around from place to place. Love should always make us tell the truth…. Christ holds it together and makes all of its parts work perfectly, as it grows and becomes strong because of love. As a follower of the Lord, I order you to stop living like stupid, godless people. Their minds are in the dark, and they are stubborn and ignorant and have missed out on the life that comes from God. They no longer have any feelings about what is right, and they are so greedy” ….“Stop being bitter and angry and mad at others. Don't yell at one another or curse each other or ever be rude. Instead, be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ”. Obviously, even in St. Paul’s time, people were being self centered and disposed to greed often forgetting the Corporal and Spiritual works of mercy which instruct us: To feed the hungry; To give drink to the thirsty; To clothe the naked; To harbor the homeless, To visit the sick; To ransom the captive; To bury the dead., To instruct the ignorant, to counsel those in doubt, To admonish sinners, To bear wrongs patiently, To forgive offences willingly; To comfort the afflicted and To pray for the living and the deceased. In our world today I believe that we whom God has called to be His servants here on earth must remind those we serve of their responsibilities, as children of God, to practice these works of mercy and to point out that if all persons did so, the world would be a much better place in which to live. LOVE is the key that opens the door to a better world. Love of self as God created you, love of your neighbors, friends and even enemies as Christ pointed out when He taught; "But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44) The message of LOVE is consistent throughout scripture here are just a few examples; “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34). “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you” (Luke 6:27-28). “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them” (Romans 12:14). “We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it” (1 Corinthians 4:12). “On the contrary: If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:17-21). “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing” (1 Peter 3:9). “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble” (1 John 2:9-10).
The bottom line is that if we all began to practice loving one another as Christ loved us and realized that love is not just Carnal but spiritual and requires hard work to become a reality we could change the world.
I remember how THE FLOWER CHILDREN of the 60’s were disparaged because they attempted to promote this way of life but then they went astray by uniting the message with the carnal type of love and participating in sexual promiscuity or as they called it FREE LOVE. There is no such thing as free love, love takes responsibility and dedication in order to be real and fulfilled.
In order for TRUTH IN LOVE or CARITAS IN VERITATE or any real change to happen in this world we have to change our current ways of being self-centered and greedy we need to take to heart St. Paul’s words when he wrote to the Ephesians “no longer have any feelings about what is right, and they are so greedy” ….“Stop being bitter and angry and mad at others. Don't yell at one another or curse each other or ever be rude. Instead, be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ”. (Ephesians 4:17-20) AMEN

12th Sunday of Ordinary Time Reflection
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church International of New England
www.missionstsergius.org
Mission_St_Sergius@msn.com
Based on the readings from: Job 38:1, 8-11, 2 Corinthians 5:14-17, Mark 4:35-41
　
“From the heart of the tempest the Lord gave Job his answer.”
These words taken from the first reading for the 12th Sunday of Ordinary time are a reminder that sometimes in the darkest moments of our lives; God is actually trying to send us a message.
The reading from the Gospel of Mark is also a lesson we need to keep always in the forefront of our minds and it is that Faith and trust in God will overcome all trials if we believe. The story is of how a strong gale sprung up and the apostles became afraid that the boat was about to sink while Christ as asleep in the stern. The apostle being terrified; “woke him and said to him, ‘Master, do you not care? We are going to drown!’ Christ woke up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Quiet now! Be calm!’ And the wind dropped, and all was calm again. Then Christ said to them, ‘Why are you so frightened? How is it that you have no faith?” Far too often in our lives we become afraid and feel overwhelmed by the circumstances that surround us. I certainly can relate to that feeling when sometimes I wonder if I am making a difference in peoples lives and actually doing the Lord’s work especially when people rarely respond and so few seem to respond to our plea for donations to support the work of the ministry. It is in those times that God always seems to send me a message of affirmation by either a phone call or an email message, letter or a donation arrives.
Faith in God is the strongest weapon to sustain one in times of difficulty.
Without faith we often sink into deep hopelessness and depression because we feel alone and forgotten. God never forgets any of us. God is always there if we call upon Him and He will always answer us in the way that is in our best interests even if we do not see it that way. We need to call to mind the words from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians; “The love of Christ overwhelms us when we reflect that if one man has died for all, then all men should be dead; and the reason he died for all was so that living men should live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised to life for them……therefore, we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh.” (2 Corinthians 5:14-17) Just as the apostles feared that they were about to sink and drown in the storm because they were forgetting who was with them, we also often forget that God is there beside us if we but seek Him out in our hearts using faith as the device to call upon Him.
This past weekend I had the extreme pleasure to meet hundreds of people who seemed surprised but happy to find us at the Boston Pride Festival and loved our mission’s message of; GOD LOVES ME AS HE CREATED ME. All 800 of the stickers we had made up were gone before the day was half over. One female impersonator gave Bishop Mel and me a warm friendly embrace and a sincere “Thank You” for our message of affirmation. More than 30 people signed up to receive our weekly reflections and the Mission News Letter and many offered a small donation to help us spread the word of God’s Infinite Love for ALL His children regardless of their race, creed, nationality or sexual orientation.
With faith there is Hope. With Hope there are possibilities.
For much of my life I told people that my theme song was THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM. It still is! My dream now is for a time that every human being on the face of the earth is treated with dignity and respect. I dream of a time when all Christian faiths will once again unite as one just as the early church was one. I dream of a time when all the hierarchy treat each other as equals and focus on directing the church according to the basics Christ taught in the SERMON ON THE MOUNT and as found in the CORPORAL AND SPIRITUAL WORKS OF MERCY and not on how much power and wealth they can attain.
I have FAITH that one day, more than likely not in my lifetime, this will happen because it is the will of God and in God’s time, He will bring it to be. We humans forget that our time is not God’s time. God often is patient and allows us to have our way as a test. The first reading for this Sunday was from one of my favorite books of the Bible, the book of Job. In fact at one time in my life it was the Book of Job that saved me from self destructing and led me back to God and my service as a Deacon, Teacher and now priest. The book tells of how God allowed Satan to test Job’s actual faith and trust in God. Job lost everything he had even his family but he never gave up on God. As a reward, God gave Job back 10 times what he had before. The message for this week is; HAVE FAITH AND BELIEVE THAT GOD LOVES YOU AS HE CREATED YOU and will come when you call to Him. AMEN

Trinity Sunday 2009 Reflection

Trinity Sunday Reflection
Based on the readings from Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40, Romans 8:14-17, Matthew 28:16-20
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD, Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church International of New England
The first reading for Trinity Sunday from Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40 gives us the following statement supposedly from Moses; "Moses said to the people: Understand this today, therefore, and take it to heart: the Lord is God indeed, in heaven above as on earth beneath, he and no other. Keep his laws and commandments as I give them to you today, so that you and your children may prosper and live long in the land that the Lord your God gives you for ever" This advice, on the face of it, is straight forward and actually easy to follow so why have religious leaders over the millennia made following it so difficult by injecting man made regulations into it and therefore making it so difficult for people to know and love and worship God? The second reading for Trinity Sunday is from Paul's letter to the people of Rome, which we are told was the chair of Saint Peter the first Pope. In it Paul tells the Romans the following; "Everyone moved by the Spirit is a son of God. The spirit you received is not the spirit of slaves bringing fear into your lives again; it is the spirit of sons, and it makes us cry out, `Abba, Father!' The Spirit himself and our spirit bear united witness that we are children of God. And if we are children we are heirs as well: heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, sharing his sufferings so as to share his glory." Romans 8:14-17 These two reading combined confirm that if we follow God's commandments, love God, worship God that as heirs to God's kingdom we will share in God's glory if we practice Christ's teachings. Exactly what was it Christ said was the greatest two commandments? "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. And the second is like unto it, Love your neighbor as you love yourself" Mark 12: 29-31 In Luke 16:13 we are advised of the following; "No servant can serve two masters at the same time. He will hate one of them and love the other. Or he will be faithful to one and dislike the other. You can't serve God and Money at the same time." This advice is what seems to have diverted so many people, including leaders of the various religious denominations, from loving and serving God, as they should. In today's world we are facing a financial crisis which some claim would be worse even that the depression of the 20's and early 30's and it was brought on by GREED. People, especially corporate executives and people who had to have the most modern and costliest of homes, gadgets and luxuries often at the cost to the poorest of society. This was not the way God or Christ and saints like St. Francis, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Padre Pio or for that matter Pope John Paul I would have wanted it. The Gospel of Matthew 28:16-20 relates the story of the first things Christ had to say to his disciples after he had risen from the dead; "The eleven disciples set out to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, `All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time." Here we hear for the first time the trinity spoken of together. Here we also hear Christ telling us to observe or practice what he taught. Christ also affirms that "know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time." Christ will never leave us. We might choose to give up on believing in God and practicing our faith as we should because we feel that we are not wanted or a religious person has rejected us.
God the Father/Creator, His beloved son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, in other words the Trinity, are always with us and ready to hear us. We only have to call out to them and they will hear and answer us with what will be best for us. They will also attempt to protect us and guide us even when we turn a deaf ear to them.
The Trinity is One God in three personifications. The WORD by which creation came to be when God SPOKE.(See Genesis 1 ) THE SPIRIT as defined in Isaiah 11:2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD and in Numbers 11:25 Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke with him, and he took of the Spirit that was on him and put the Spirit on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied," THE SON, God made flesh, as we read in Mark 1:10; "As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." and in Luke 1:32 "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." Let as resolve on this feast of God as the Trinity to give God the honor, praise and worship He deserves, as we have been instructed by the prophets, Christ and the Apostles and ignore all the man made regulations that have caused so many pain and to feel unwanted, unloved and separated from God and often prevented from His worship. AMEN

God Loves All People
A Reflection for the Sixth Sunday of Easter 2009
Based on the readings from; Acts 10:25-26, 34-35,44-48; 1 John 4:7-10, John 15:9-17
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD,
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church International of New England
www.missionstsergious.org
Mission_St_Sergius@msn.com　

“The truth I have now come to realize’ he said ‘is that God does not have favorites, but that anybody of any nationality who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to him.” These words attributed to St. Peter and taken from the first reading for this Sunday should bring comfort and exaltation to all who read or hear them. When we couple them with these following words from the second reading and the Gospel, we have complete affirmation of God’s infinite love for every one of His children regardless of their race, nationality, creed or sexual orientation. “My dear people let us love one another since love comes from God and everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Anyone who fails to love can never have known God, because God is love.” In addition “My dear people, since God has loved us so much, we too should love one another. No one has ever seen God; but as long as we love one another, God will live in us and his love will be complete in us. We can know that we are living in him and he is living in us because he lets us share his Spirit.”
These words from the Gospel attributed to Jesus Christ strengthen the message even more; “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my own joy may be in you and your joy is complete. This is my commandment: love one another, as I have loved you.”…. “I call you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have learnt from my Father. You did not choose me: no, I chose you; and I commissioned you to go out and to bear fruit, fruit that will last; and then the Father will give you anything you ask him in my name. What I command you is to love one another.’
On December 25th 2005 Pope Benedict XVI issued his first encyclical as the new pope, entitled DEUS CARITAS EST which in Latin means God is Love.It matters not what Christian denomination you belong to or for that matter what religion, the main message we need to hold deep within us is GOD IS LOVE and His love is infinite.
The readings of this week are again a reminder to us of that main fact of the Christian faith. We need to keep this message always in our hearts especially when people are berating us or when we are made to suffer from discrimination or bigotry. Any person who does not love as Christ called us to do for one another is not a real or true Christian.God’s infinite and unlimited love is for every person on the face of the earth who calls to him seeking his mercy for their transgressions, seeking His relief from their pain and suffering or just giving Him the honor and praise He deserves or seeking to partake of the sacramental gifts.The only requirement that is made of us is that we keep His commandments and when Christ was asked what are the most important commandments he replied “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these." (Mark 12:29-31).
Throughout the years since Christ taught the apostles and the Christian faith evolved from the Jewish faith because of Christ who told us He came to clarify or establish a new COVENANT between God and His children. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matthew 5:16-18). Christ was the sacrificial lamb of the new covenant and in His sacrifice he gained for us everlasting life and assured us of God’s love. Christ made it clear whom he came to save when He said; “For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." (Matthew 9:13)
God extends us his endless mercy and love when we come to him with love in our hearts for Him and for our fellow sisters and brothers in Christ.That is the wonderful affirming and comforting message for this Week; God’s love is endless, infinite and unconditional to all who seek it. Let us look not on the sins of those who claim to be God’s representatives but let us seek God in ourselves and those around us by how well they exemplify LOVE in not only their words but more importantly in their deeds. AMEN

Divine Mercy Sunday Reflection

Divine Mercy Sunday
A Reflection by Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
Reformed Catholic Church International of New England
www.missionstsergius.org


“And I say to you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. For every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened”. Luke 11:9-10 “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you: For every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened”. Matthew 7:7-8
The above statement is found in two of the four gospels and I have chosen to use it to emphasize my reflection for this Divine Mercy Sunday which is also the anniversary of the founding of the Franciscans of Divine mercy. The readings for this Sunday have one very important point to make and that is the infinite mercy and love of God for everyone on this planet earth. Therefore it is very appropriate that this Sunday be dedicated to Divine Mercy. In the reading from 1 John 5:1-6 we hear these words : “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loves him that begat loves him also that is begotten of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world:”
In Deuteronomy 6:5 we read “And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” Which Christ quoted when asked what the greatest commandment was in Matthew 22: 34-40 to which he added “the second is like unto it, love your neighbor as you love yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets”. In John 13:34 Christ told us “A new commandment I give to you, That you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” LOVE is the main element and LOVE is what God is. Where there is LOVE there is God and where God is there is infinite mercy and love.
So how do we show that love? We might do as those early followers did in the reading from the Acts of the Apostles 4:32-37 are said to have done; “for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made to every man according as he had need. And Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, The son of consolation,) a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus, Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet”. Which is one of the principals St. Francis wanted in his rules, which Innocent III approved 800 years ago last Tuesday the 14th, for the order he founded later to be known as “THE FRANCISCANS”, that they own nothing of their own and use what they receive for the benefit of spreading The Good News of Salvation and to help the poor, sick, aged and societies outcasts.
The gospel relates how Jesus appeared to the apostles and disciples who had locked themselves in a room for fear that they would be persecuted and gave them the powers which have been handed down to all priests ever since at their ordination when they are anointed “Jesus and stood in the middle, and said to them, Peace be to you. And when he had so said, he showed to them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the LORD. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be to you: as my Father has sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, Receive you the Holy Spirit: Whosesoever sins you remit, they are remitted to them; and whosesoever sins you retain, they are retained ……these are written, that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you might have life through his name.” John 20:19-31
I often feel that the problems we have in this world are primarily due to the fact that so many do not love themselves and therefore they are incapable of loving anyone else let alone loving someone they do not know or try to get to know and understand. The troubles, strife, greed, genocide, poverty, war, discrimination that have and still cause so much grief in this world are the result of people not loving themselves and/or loving the God who created them. People look for the faults in, not only others, but themselves and dwell on them rather than on what is good. People tend to hold on to the negative things of their life rather than look at the good around them. I have seen this attitude cause people to actually be physically sick.
As followers of Christ we are called to seek out the light of God’s truth, to ask God to help us to know His will, to knock on the door of heaven and we have been told that if we doo this we will be heard, the door will be opened and what we seek we will find. That is what the infinite and unlimited Divine Mercy and Love of God is all about.
I begin each day with this prayer in the hopes that God will be light my way and let me know his will.
Prayer for God’s Infinite Love
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD, March 24th 2006
Mission Saints Sergius and Bacchus
www.missionstsergius.org
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EverlastingLoveOfChristMinistry
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Divine_Mercy_Franciscans

Almighty and merciful God, open my mind, my heart, and my soul to your infinite love. Instill within me the knowledge of your truth. Guide me in your ways in all the things I do so that I may be to others a reflection of your love towards them. Allow the light of your truth to flow through me towards all I encounter this day in order that they may come to know you better. I pray that all those with whom I come in contact each and every day may be brought into a closer union with you and enjoy your promise of salvation earned through your beloved son, Jesus Christ, in His passion, death, resurrection and ascension.
I humbly ask this in the name of your beloved son, Jesus Christ, who lives, and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever unto the ages of ages. AMEN

Palm Sunday 2009 Reflection

In truth this man was a son of God
A Reflection for Palm Sunday 2009
Based on the Readings from Isaiah 50:4-7, Psalm 22, Philippians 2:6-11, Mark 14:1-15:47
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
www.missionstsergius.org

‘Abba (Father)!’ he said ‘Everything is possible for you. Take this cup away from me. But let it be as you, not I, would have it.” These words cried out by Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane should be a constant reminder to us that it is alright to ask God to lift a burden from us. The Gospel reading for this Sunday of the three year cycle is from Mark 14 and it tells of the events leading up to and through the passion and death of Christ.One curious passage in the Gospel relates an incident that many choose to overlook and it is just one line long it is part of the story that tells how the disciples and apostles abandoned Christ. “And they all deserted him and ran away. A young man who followed him had nothing on but a linen cloth. They caught hold of him, but he left the cloth in their hands and ran away naked.” The symbolism here is clear to me that we are naked and exposed by our actions. So many try to hide their dirty laundry with fancy clothes but before God we are all seen naked for exactly who we are. The Gospel story today is a telling of the entire passion and a different story than the celebration that Palm Sunday commemorates, the triumphant entry into Jerusalem where we hear the people shouting; “Hosanna! Blesses is He who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel” It can be assumed that many of those same people who were shouting Hosanna, four days later were in the crowds shouting, “Crucify Him” because he did not meet their expectations or because they succumbed to greed and accepted bribes from officials of the temple. Further on in the Gospel reading it is related how Christ Called out “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’ which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you deserted me?” which, I believe , allows us the right to ask the same of God when we feel He might have abandoned us. The essence and the truth is summed up in the words of the centurion who witnessed Christ crucifixion and death on the cross, “In truth this man was a son of God”.Paul’s letter to the Philippians sums up the essence of Christ’s life, “But God raised him high and gave him the name which is above all other names so that all beings in the heavens, on earth and in the underworld, should bend the knee at the name of Jesus and that every tongue should acclaim Jesus Christ as Lord, to the glory of God the Father”. Over the last few years books and movies have attempted to raise questions about Jesus Christ’s life and soon a new movie is coming out that follows up on THE DIVINCI CODE, HOLY BLOOD-HOLY GRAIL AND THE LOST GOSPELS. Some claim they should change our beliefs concerning Christ and our Faith. The truth is Jesus Christ lived, Christ died, Christ rose from the dead. Christ was sent to earth by God to save all people of the world, not a select few. All these so called new discoveries and stories should only serve to strengthen our faith and belief in Almighty God. They change nothing about the main facts. Who cares if Christ had a relationship with Mary of Magdala, the fact is Christ was a real person and proclaimed a new covenant with God which carried on and followed that made with Moses. All the numerous non-religious historical documents acknowledge that Jesus was real. All of them affirm that he gave us a new covenant, “LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH YOUR WHOLE HEART, MIND, SOUL AND BODY AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER AS I HAVE LOVED YOU” All based on writings of the early Christians; in many cases, they support what is written in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Gospels we know are the Gospels accepted, mainly on the advice and writings of St. Irenaeus, the bishop of Lyons about the year 180, who called the other Gospels “Heresies”. The Gnostic Gospels, as the lost Gospels are called, proclaimed that salvation could be achieved by knowledge. That is true also, Knowledge of who God is, Knowledge of how we can serve God, Knowledge of God’s intent; all of these are necessary in order for us to faithfully serve God. Did not Jesus Himself say, “Seek and you will find, Knock and it will be opened to you, Ask and you shall receive” (Matthew 7:6-9) None of these “recent” findings change a thing. The Passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ opened the road to salvation to us. Even if the most recent “Gospel of Judas” has any truth, it affirms that Jesus had to die in order for our salvation to be assured. In it, it is purported to state, “For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me." By that, Gnostic scholars conclude Jesus meant “by helping him get rid of his physical flesh, Judas would act to liberate the true spiritual self or divine being within Jesus.” During this Week, let us stop the dissentions that separate all who believe in Jesus Christ and work together to come together as the one family of Christ. Let’s begin living the message of Jesus Christ in our actions, thoughts, words and deeds. Let us be completely faithful to Almighty God and Jesus Christ proclaim loudly, “HOSANNA, HOSANNA, TO THE SON OF DAVID, HOSANNA! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD! HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST! AMEN

Here I Am Lord
A Reflection for the Second Sunday of Lent 2009
Genesis 22:1-2,9-13,15-18, Psalm 115:10,15-19,Romans 8:31-34, Mark 9:2-10
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Mercy
A Ministry of the Refpormed Catholic Church International of N. E.
www.missionstsergius.org

“God put Abraham to the test. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he called. ‘Here I am’ he replied.” so begins the first reading for the Second Sunday of Lent. The reading tells the story of God testing Abraham’s faith and loyalty by asking him to sacrifice his only child. When Abraham is about to offer his son Isaac and angel of the Lord stopped him with these words; “But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he said. ‘I am here’ he replied. ‘Do not raise your hand against the boy’ the angel said. ‘Do not harm him, for now I know you fear God. You have not refused me your son, your only son”
Exactly what should we learn from this reading? We should learn that God sometimes tests us by asking us to accept things or to do something that we normally would never think of doing. God asks us to bear burdens that are unpleasant or difficult in order to test us in our love and faith of God. Another important lesson we can learn is that if we accept these trials and burdens God will reward us just as he did Abraham with these words; “because you have not refused me your son, your only son, I will shower blessings on you, I will make your descendants as many as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants shall gain possession of the gates of their enemies. All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience.”
The second reading for this Sunday strengthens and confirms what I believe we can gain from the readings with the following words; “With God on our side who can be against us? Since God did not spare his own Son, but gave him up to benefit us all, we may be certain, after such a gift, that he will not refuse anything he can give. Could anyone accuse those that God has chosen? When God acquits, could anyone condemn? Could Christ Jesus? No! He not only died for us – he rose from the dead, and there at God’s right hand he stands and pleads for us.”
“With God on our side who can be against us?” What comforting words and ones we need to hold securely in our hearts. If we seek God and love God and accept the burdens he gives us without complaint God will be there to sustain us and to lift us up. We need to remember that God will never ask us to carry a burden that we are unable to carry or that He will not remove when it begins to bee more than we can carry. The secret is that we need to place our trust in God and accept the challenge or burden as Abraham did. Christ was the ultimate sacrifice which was offered to God on our behalf. Christ suffered like no one else has ever sacrificed first by being rejected just as many who love God are rejected because they are divorced or their sexual orientation. Christ was then abused just as many children and others who may have physical or mental shortcomings or whose guardians or those who should protect them failed in their responsibility and demeaned them for their own personal pleasures or gain.
Christ then was humiliated and beaten and disgraced by the governmental and religious leaders because what He preached was not in the best interests of the powers in control but in the best interests all people especially the poor, sick, aged and marginalized.
Does any of this sound like what is happening now? How are we responding? Are we willing to do what is necessary even though it will be difficult or against the fashionable views of even our family, friends and neighbors?
The bottom line we should be following to assure our place in eternity is the great commandment Christ gave us; “Love the Lord, your God, with your whole being and love your neighbor as you love yourself” God proclaimed His instructions to us concerning Christ’s message after Christ was transfigured on the mountain as related in the Gospel for this Sunday; “This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him.”. During these weeks of lent as we are called to prepare and cleanse ourselves of our negative actions that are not in the best interests of all God’s children and try to live our daily life more in keeping with the teachings of Christ let us examine how many times we have responded to God’s call to us with these words; HERE I AM LORD !
I close with this prayer; Most High, Glorious God, enlighten the darkness of my mind. Give me a right faith, a firm hope and a perfect charity, so that I may always and in all ways and things act according to Your Holy Will. Amen.

The Rainbow is God's Promise To Us

God’s Promise in the Rainbow
A Reflection for the First Sunday of Lent 2009
Based on the readings from: Genesis 9:8-16, 1 Peter 3:18-22, Mark 1:12-15

The first reading for the first Sunday in Lent is from the book of Genesis and tells of God’s promise to Noah and his sons after the great flood. It begins with these words; “Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.” Since we trust in God we can know that the end of the world will not be from floods. It is the next portions of the reading I find more significant for those who have chosen a rainbow for their symbol. The Rainbow Nation because it symbolized the diversity of ethnic groups that make up the world. The GLBT community because it symbolizes the diversity of God’s children in regards to sexual orientation. I believe that we should be encouraged by God‘s promise . “ I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between you and I and all living creatures of every kind. …. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."(Genesis 9:8-15)
Whenever we see the rainbow symbol we need to remember that God created every living thing on the face of the earth and has made a covenant with all living things. Since God creates people with their sexual orientation we should never discriminate against them for it but recall that God must have had his reasons for creating people this way and therefore we should never be so bold as to question God’s purpose for then we give ourselves over to the will of Satan because that is exactly how he was cast out of God’s presence. Satan felt he could challenge God and be as great as God. Ever since he was tossed out of Heaven he has attempted to tempt every human creature God has created from Adam and Eve to even Jesus Christ.
The Gospel reading from Mark 1:12-15 tell how Jesus was tempted by Satan in the desert for the forty days Christ spent there in preparation for his public ministry. It is used to remind us that Satan will not discriminate against any one even the Son of God. In fact, the closer one try to be to God the more and greater the temptations Satan will use to turn us away. I mean, if Satan thought he might have a chance to convince Christ to abandon his ministry what makes us think he would ever leave us alone.
The Gospel story ends with these words; “Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15"The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
“THE GOOD NEWS” exactly what was the good news? It was that Almighty God is a merciful, forgiving, and infinitely loving God and we can achieve the promise of eternal life by living as Christ taught us with these words; “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind' ; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' (Luke 10:27) The reading from 2 Peter 3:18-22 reminds us of What Christ’s mission was “Christ died for sins once and for all, for the righteous and for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. God wants us to come to Him," God loves ALL His children. “Christ was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, through whom also he went and preached to the spirits in prison who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In the Ark only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes the water of baptism that now saves you now. You were saved in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.”
Lent is the time when we are called to take stock of our selves in regards to our relationship with God and how well we are following the teachings Christ gave us on how to live. Every time we see a rainbow we should recal that we are called by God to live our lives in a manner that hurts no one and exudes our love of God to all we encounter. We need to recognize and applaud God’s diversity and know His love has no boundaries and is given freely to all who seek it with purity of heart.
God will never break His promise neither should we break our promise made in the waters of our Baptism. At the end of every storm there is a rainbow to remind us of God’s love for us. AMEN

God's Infinite Love Will Conquer All

Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time Reflection 2009
God’s Love will Conquer Sin
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD of Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus
Franciscans of Divine Mercy of Reformed Catholic Church International N.E.
www.missionstsergius.org
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Divine_Mercy_Franciscans


"Forget the things that happened in the past. Do not keep on thinking about them. I am about to do something new…. I am going to make a way for you to go through the desert. (Our daily struggle here on earth) I will make streams of water in the dry and empty land. … I provide water in the desert (the waters of Baptism and the water that is mingles with the wine in the Eucharist) for my people to drink. I do it for the people I made for myself. I want them to sing praise to me. (God wants us to be joyful and to rejoice and be glad for all that God does for us) …you have not prayed to me as you should or even begun to get tired while doing it. You have not brought offerings. You have not honored me with your sacrifices…I am not requiring you to burn incense….Instead, you have loaded me down with your sins. You have made me tired with the wrong things you have done. "I am the one who wipes out your lawless acts. I do it because of who I am. I will not remember your sins anymore. (Isaiah 43:18-25b)
With these words the lesson for this last Sunday before Lent, which begins on Wednesday, we are led onto that wondrous new path that Christ opened in the desert of life with his wiliness to become the perfect sacrifice to God for the forgiveness of our human frailty and sinfulness. God not only forgives us but, as we learned in Isaiah, Forgets forever.
The Psalm for this Sunday is another reminder of how God lifts us up, protects, and saves us. “God lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand…. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD. (This is what we are called to do.) Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.”
Today’s false gods are Power, Fortune, Fame, Personal gratification at the expense of others. The servants of the false gods, Discrimination, War, Genocide, Perversion, Hatred, Greed, Dishonesty and Lust always accompany the false gods.
Psalm 40:2-14reminds us of all that God does for us with these words; “Many are the wonders you have done for us. The things you planned for us are without number; were I to speak of them, they would be too many to declare. Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, … and sin offerings you did not require.”
God would love to hear these following words of Paul’s from 2 Corinthians 1:18-22 emanating from our lips; “Here I am, I have come—I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart. I do not conceal your love and your truth from your people. Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD; may your love and your truth always protect me….my sins are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me. Be pleased, O LORD, to save me; O LORD, come quickly to help me."
Paul gives us the reasons why also; “It is ‘through Christ’ that we answer “Amen” to the praise of God. Remember it is God himself who assures us all of our standing in Christ, and has anointed us, marking us with his seal and giving us the pledge, the Spirit, that we carry in our hearts.”
To quote the final words from the Gospel reading of the events surrounding Christ healing the paralytic; “ they were all astounded and praised God saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this." (Mark 2:1-12). We also will never see anything like what is possible when we have complete trust in God. We need to be mindful that God’s love for us is stronger than any adversity and God will never give us an adversity we cannot overcome if we believe and turn to God. God will do, not just what we desire, but, what is better for us than anything we could ever ask for. God knows we are prone to be sinners since His perfect creation Adam and Eve disobeyed him after giving in to the temptations of Satan. Their punishment is our imperfection and we need to make it our life’s goal to attempt to live our lives with LOVE, Complete LOVE of God, ourselves as God created our neighbors and us. As Lent begins on Wednesday, let’s try to spend the Lenten season taking stock of how we need to improve our relationship with God. Let’s offer God our thanks and praise by making the changes we need to make in order to become better followers Almighty God. Let others be able to identify us as God’s children by our actions as we live our daily lives and not by what words our lips may say. Let our actions speak louder than our words and be examples of Compassion, forgiveness and love like that God has for us. AMEN

Baptism of Christ Reflection

Baptism of Christ Reflection
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus/ Franciscans of Divine Merry
www.missionstsergius.org

The readings for the feast celebrating the Baptism of Christ are such wonderful reminders of the truth of God’s teachings and His everlasting Love and mercy for ALL God’s children. In Acts 10: 34-38 we read the following; “Peter addressed Cornelius and his household: ‘The truth I have now come to realize’ he said ‘is that God does not have favorites, but that anybody of any nationality who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to him.”
This reading is an affirmation that God never discriminates or rejects anyone who loves Him and comes to Him seeking forgiveness, comfort and peace. As followers of Jesus Christ and professed children of God we should never refuse any one the opportunity to partake of the sacraments of to pray to God or participate in liturgical services for any reason. Christ never turned anyone away who came to him in faith.
In the Gospel of Mark 1: 7-11 we read these words concerning exactly who Christ was; “No sooner had he come up out of the water than he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descending on him. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; my favor rests on you.”
Since Christ is the chosen son of God and He came to bring God’s truth to us and to save us we need to look to His teachings as the way we should be living our lives. The Beatitudes direct us in the way to live by instructing us to be generous, caring, compassionate, forgiving and instruct us to care for the sick, aged, and poor. We need to treat all people with justice and equality not just some chosen few who fit our idea of acceptable because they conform to our social, economic, racial or sexual orientation.
In First John 5: 1-9 we read the following words of truth; “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ has been begotten by God; and whoever loves the Father that begot him loves the child whom he begets.We can be sure that we love God’s children if we love God himself and do what he has commanded us; this is what loving God is – keeping his commandments; and his commandments are not difficult, because anyone who has been begotten by God has already overcome the world; this is the victory over the world –our faith.”
The greatest commandments according Christ are the following; “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another." (John 13:34) and “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’ Christ said to him, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with your entire mind.” This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:36-40)
Nothing could be clearer, plainer or easier for us to understand yet we seem to want to add a lot of strings making it very difficult for people to express their love of God. We set all kinds or barriers and restriction up that often cause people to feel that God does not want them. Love is simple and easy to accomplish if we only allow ourselves to be open to it.
As Paul Says in First Corinthians twelve; “If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love never ends”.
God is LOVE as First John four verse sixteen says; “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” Christ is the fulfillment of all the prophecies of the Old Testament that proclaimed the coming of the Messiah. In Isaiah 42:6-7 it is foretold; “Faithfully he brings true justice; he will neither waver, nor be crushed until true justice is established on earth, for the islands are awaiting his law. I, the Lord, have called you to serve the cause of right; I have taken you by the hand and formed you; I have appointed you as covenant of the people and light of the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to free captives from prison, and those who live in darkness from the dungeon.”
Christ fulfilled all of these prophecies, He healed the sick and the lame, restored the dead to life, opened the eyes of the blind and freed all of us from the captivity of the prison of sin through His death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead which gave us the forgiveness of sin.As followers of Christ we need more than ever to diligently begin to LOVE one another as Christ and God loves us and reach out to others with expressions of friendship and peace instead of rejection and discrimination. We need to extend our hands in friendship instead of missals of destruction. We need to be charitable to those in needs and compassionate to those in pain. We need to be patient, kind, and put aside our petty jealousies, arrogance and greed and become a living expression of God, LOVE. AMEN