Meditation is an ideal way to pray. Using God's word (Lectio Divina) allows me to hear, listen and reflect on what the Lord wants to say to me - to one of his disciples - just like He did two thousand years ago.
The best time to reflect is at the beginning of the day and for at least 15 to 30 minutes.
Prior to going to sleep, read the Mass readings for the next day and then, in the morning, reflect on the Meditation offered on this website.
I hope these daily meditations allow you to know, love and imitate the Lord in a more meaningful way.
God bless you!


Saturday, April 20, 2013

John 6:60-69 Are You Shocked?

Saturday of the Third Week of Easter
(Click here for readings)
Many of the disciples of Jesus who were listening said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?”  Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, “Does this shock you?”
They were highly intelligent.  Dzhokhar was a diligent student who dreamed of becoming a great doctor.  He was registered as a student at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.  He was even awarded a $2,500 city scholarship toward college two years ago.  Tamerlan was married.  His wife was half Portuguese and half-Italian.  It has been reported that she converted to Islam in order to appease her boyfriend.  Now, her family states that “she never really knew him.” 
The Tsarnaev brothers, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar, were not loners.  On the contrary, they loved to hang out with people and party all night long.  In fact, the day after they planted two bombs that killed three people and injured over 150, they sent nonchalant twitter messages and spent some time at a party. 
The two fit in so well with the rest of America.  Dzhokhar was even naturalized an American citizen on September 11th, 2012.  No one ever suspected them to be Islamic terrorists. 
Are you shocked?
Given the news we have heard on the Boston Marathon bombers, it appears as though neither of these two individuals were mentally ill, socially inept, or economically disadvantaged.  Does this shock you? 
So, the question everyone is asking is:  What was wrong with them?  Why in the world would they want to kill hundreds of innocent people?    Why in the world would they take their talents and knowledge and wish to do grave evil with them? 
This morning I spoke to a woman who was very grateful for modern technology.  She credits it with saving her husband’s life.  She said to me, “Technology is wonderful!”  I was about to agree with her, but then I corrected myself and said, “If used in the right way.”
Educated people will not save our world.  Holy people will.  We don’t need more educated people.  We need more holy people.  Does this shock you? 
Science and technology are wonderful, and people market them as if they were some sort of god.  But in the hands of spiritually dead (or ill) people, technology and science become extremely dangerous.  Does this shock you?   
Well, “intelligent” people will not save us or our world.  Holy people will.  And to be more specific, people who live like Jesus Christ will.
Does this shock you?  It shouldn’t!
There were many things that Christ said and did that shocked “the hell” out of people and out of this world.  He was on to something. 
Does this shock you?  It shouldn’t by now.  It should be common knowledge, especially in the face of so much evil.

7 comments:

  1. The Boston bombers were terrorists that happened to be Muslim. Since Islam, like Christianity, is a religion that encourages peace then is it possible that their religious choices had little to do with their actions?

    There are good people and bad people in every religion. The Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh was a Roman Catholic. If the Boston bombers were Islamic terrorists the wouldn't it be feasible to say that Timothy McVeigh was a Christian terrorist?

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  2. I'm glad you made the point that these men were in their right minds when they committed their horrible crime. Sin motivated these guys, plain and simple. Of course, few people will actually say that. The media will claim that religion did it, turned their heads, and will group radical Muslims from Chechnya with all other people of faith. I hope this kind of logic won't follow, but I'm afraid it will because commentators tend to blame anything but the criminals themselves, especially if the criminal is religious.

    Hopefully, we can think of the good religious people donating and providing aid to victims in the Boston bombing and the West, Texas explosion. We should keep them in our prayers.

    Despite the cynical snarling of our leaders and pundits, only our faith will bring us together and restore the community. Persecution and condemnation will only tear our society apart and make us perpetually vulnerable to wayward souls driven to destroy life and goodness.

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  3. Really John?

    Was Timothy McVeigh a practicing Catholic? Or did he renounce his Catholic faith during his teenage years. (This is an invitation for you to look up his life).

    Are islamic terrorists practicing muslims? Do they communicate often with clerics? Do they identify themselves as muslims?

    Why is Timothy McVeigh not known as a "Christian Terrorist?" Answer: Because he never identified himself as a Christian or even Catholic.

    Com'on John. That was a little too simple to refute.

    Regardless of this. One must live up to the standard. Christ died forgiving his enemies, and Christians took pride in that. Mohammad died in battle, and muslims took pride in that.

    The standard for both religions were set long ago.

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  4. I never heard Timothy McVeigh say "Jesus is great" and blow his truck up. I do remember the Ft. Hood islamic terrorist say "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) and shoot and kill dozens of people.

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  5. The point I'm trying to make is that as soon as the public learned that the bombers happened to be Muslim the public started referring to them as "Islamic Terrorists" even though they did not have any knowledge of whether or not the attacks were religiously motivated. I know you didn't start this, however you just appeared to go along with it.

    One's religion does not determine whether or not they're a good person. It simply determines where they're likely to go once a week.

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  6. Okay. I understand what you mean.

    "One's religion does not determine whether or not your a good person. It simply determineswhere you go once a week."

    Well...for me...it determines where I live, where I work, and who I am. :) It also defines the struggles I face.

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  7. Fr Alfonse,
    Your point about needing holy people, not just educated people, resonates again today, on Apr 22, with the news that one of the suspects in the Al-Qaeda-related US-Canada train plot is a PhD student in Canada.

    Yes, we need holy people; I very much agree. Educated AND holy people would be excellent too.

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