Vocations Newsletter

I love a saying commonly attributed to Benjamin Franklin: “Doing your best means never stop trying.” It’s the striving that distinguishes what we do in life—and as believers, it also means the way we share our gifts with the less fortunate.Tomorrow is Labor Day, a great American holiday that honors the workers and the strivers who labor each day on behalf of their families and their communities. For people of faith, we know that the tasks we perform with the intention of honoring our call to mission are another way of participating in God’s creation. The work we do each day has the potential to transform the world. And that’s not a fanciful thought. We each have a role to play—whether we’re bankers, homemakers, astronauts, or public servants.The promise fulfilled in Christ is the gift we strive for: eternal life when our work in the here and now is completed. Our role as missioners is to make the world we live in a better place by witnessing God’s love and the gift of salvation. That means laboring in all the ways we know how: laboring to support our families… laboring to make our neighborhoods stronger and more livable… laboring to…
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“One who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.”Responsorial Psalm 15We often talk about justice with words that “feel right” to us—words of balance and proportionality. Tit-for-tat. Insult for injury. But what exactly is the right response to a human failing, including ones we ourselves commit? What will satisfy an injury, if that’s even possible?Balancing the scales is not what God is about. Rather God’s justice is rooted in mercy and love—in unquantifiable ways. That’s why when we seek justice with God in mind, the strategies we learned as little children can’t work any longer. We need another way to heal from injury and fulfill the law at the same time.Maybe the best way to practice justice is to build bridges. I am not saying that rules don’t matter because they do. The law was important to the Jewish people and to Jesus as well. But he also gave us the greatest commandment: Love God with all your heart; and love your neighbor as yourself. In today’s Gospel Jesus says the evils that come from within us—malice, greed, deceit and many more—are what defile us. What enters from above—gifts from the Father and the commandment to love…
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“We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”John 6:69 The apostles started to have doubts. Could they accept the things Jesus was saying? Today’s Gospel is a good starting point for our weekly meditation. After all, we have doubts, too… Isn’t the “formula for success” too hard at times? Maybe even a little unreasonable?In truth, a life of faithfulness isn’t always easy. In fact, it can even be painful. Forgiving someone who has hurt us is hard. So is being generous when we feel needy ourselves. And is it really true that the more we give, the more we get? Is God actually listening to our prayers?Life is a journey with its own rhythms. Just like the apostles, we don’t always see the straight line to our goal when there are so many challenges. But doubt does not damage faith. What damages faith is taking the path that’s easier and less complicated. And that’s just what some of the disciples did. I am reminded of the saints who had doubts and even great crises of faith. Saint John of the Cross wrote poignantly about his “dark night of the soul.” And in…
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On the Feast of the Assumption, I can’t help but think about Mary’s courage in becoming the mother of God. Did she know that God was asking her to play a unique role in human history—one with moments of joy but also pain and sorrow? Did she ever consider saying “no” to the angel Gabriel?
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