THE 2020-2021 LITURGICAL LIFE CYCLE IS ENDING

“Jesus said to his disciples:
‘In those days . . . they will see the Son of Man
coming in the clouds
with great power and glory,
and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect. . . from the end of the earth.
Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.
Be watchful! Be alert!
You do not know when the time will come.'”  Mark 7:24-33

As we approach the end of this Liturgical Year, the Gospel readings provide instructions about the end of time, “Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come.”  These words are not spoken to frighten us, but to remind us that

Neither we,
nor anyone or anything around us
will stay
for long
as we are now.

Why think about this now? Perhaps to let it sink deeper into our hearts that God is and will remain with us all along the way.

Is God aware of me right now?
Am I aware of God and God’s presence  – here – right now?
Is God ignoring me?
Am I ignoring God?

As we watch the leaves falling from the trees, let us “see” the trees’ nakedness as a reminder that the time is now for us as individuals, families and parish community to end one more Liturgical Year of “our” lives and ready ourselves for the Advent Season beginning of a new Year of Grace for us. This is a time to reflect on “my” individual and “our” family and parish communal lives that are rooted – grounded-in our Triune God. Let our infatuation with what is not of God fall away. In our spiritual unworthiness, our nakedness before this God whom we too often forgot was here, let us await with hope the new life that will emerge as Jesus leads us into and through the next Liturgical Year of our individual and communal lives.

Sister Loretta

Fall in Love.
Stay in Love.
That will decide everything.

Nothing is more practical than finding God,
that is,
Falling in Love with God
in a quite absolute, final way.

What you are in love with,
what seizes your imagination,
will affect everything.

It will decide
what will get you out of bed in the morning,
what you do with your evenings,
how you spend your weekends,
what you read, whom you know,
what breaks your heart,
and what amazes you with joy and gratitude.

Fall in love, stay in love,
and it will decide everything.
~ attributed to Pedro Arrupe SJ  (1907-1991)