Misleading First Impressions
Last week I attended the funeral of a little ninety-three-year-old Chinese woman, “Alice.” Long ago I had been introduced to her as the mother of a friend and sized her up as a sweet, gentle lady who probably spent most of her life in the kitchen making beef chop suey, wonton soup, and egg rolls. Only now do I know what a powerhouse she was. I should have guessed it from her accomplished adult children.
Alice, a graduate of a leading university in Shanghai, was one of the first female journalists in China and interviewed prominent people. During the civil war there, she led more than twenty family members to safety. The homily at her funeral Mass and the masterful eulogy delivered by her son shed even more light on this remarkable woman, whose life touched thousands. (more…)
Reaching Across Divides
In November as I sat in a Newark airport at a crowded gate, across from me was a dark-skinned man in a turban, a Sikh. Suddenly he left. When he reappeared, he was pushing an elderly woman in a wheelchair, which he parked by me. Her husband sat on the other side of the empty chair beside me. The four of us chatted, and I gestured to the Sikh that he sit in the empty chair. He shook his head, probably because he was thoughtfully leaving it for someone else. Shortly, a Black woman dressed elegantly for a funeral sat in the chair.
The woman in the wheelchair asked the Sikh if he were a doctor. He was. She said she thought so because of his kindness. He explained that in his religion when someone was in need, you must act to help. It has to be so much a part of you that you don’t think twice. You respond spontaneously. And then you don’t reflect on your good deed later, or you will get a swelled ego! Boarding the plane, I glanced back and the Sikh gave me a thumbs-up. (more…)
What’s in the Name Jesus?
When someone calls me Catherine, I don’t like it. My name is Kathleen. We are sensitive about our names because they stand for us. I wonder how the Savior feels when we call him Jesus. He and his people spoke Aramaic, which has no “J” sound. His name would have been Yeshua, a common Jewish name. It’s akin to the name of Joshua, the great leader who succeeded Moses and led the people through Jericho into the promised land. Both names are short forms of Jehoshua, which means “Yahweh is his salvation.” The name Yeshua then is appropriate for the savior of the world. We use the Greek equivalent Jesus. I don’t suppose he minds it, no more than my Italian friend Lorenzo minds being called Lawrence here in America. As Shakespeare observed, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
God personally chose the name Jesus for his Son made man. The angel Gabriel told Mary that Jesus should be her baby’s name, and then to insure that this would occur, he appeared to Joseph in a dream and repeated the instruction. As is still the Jewish custom today, on the day the infant Jesus was circumcised, he received his name.
Since the name Jesus stands for God the Son, it is powerful and holy. The apostles cured people in this name. St. Peter preached, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21). Jesus told us that whatever we ask the Father for in his name, we will receive. (That’s why our Mass prayers conclude with a variation of “We ask this in Jesus’ name.”) St. Paul wrote that God gave Jesus a “name above every every name” and “at the name of Jesus every knee should end, in heaven and on earth and under the earth. (Philippians 2:9–10).” Some people have the habit of bowing their heads whenever they hear the name of Jesus.
We just celebrated the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus on January 3. It originated in 1530, was removed from the Roman Calendar in the liturgical reforms of 1969, but reinstated in the reforms of 2002. St. Bernard preached, “JESUS is honey to the mouth, and music to the ear, and gladness to the heart.” The Franciscan St. Bernadine of Siena in the 15th century gave impetus to the devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus by carrying an image of IHS as he preached. These were the first letters of the Greek name “Jesus.” The Jesuits adopted this abbreviation as their insignia, adding a cross and three nails to the letters. Traditionally, the whole month of January was dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus (like May is dedicated to Mary).
One of the oldest prayers is the Jesus Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner. This prayer is repeated over and over as a mantra, breathing in on the first half and exhaling on the second half. An even shorter prayer is simply the holy name: Jesus! You might look up the Litany of the Name of Jesus, which contains a number of titles for Jesus. The following video does too.
What is your favorite name for Jesus? Why?
https://youtu.be/865HKtIB8to
First Days of the New Year 2017
I remember looking forward to 1984 when it was the title of a book about the future. All of a sudden it’s 2017! How did that happen? In case you are still deciding on your new year’s resolutions, here are some tips culled from Pope Francis and from my previous New Year posts:
First, Pope Francis’s practical suggestions for resolutions:
- Don’t gossip.
- Finish your meals.
- Make time for others.
- Choose the “more humble” purchase.
- Meet the poor “in the flesh.”
- Stop judging others.
- Befriend those who disagree.
- Make commitments, such as marriage.
- Make it a habit to “ask the Lord.”
- Be happy
Here are my suggestions:
- Reconnect with old friends and make some new friends.
2. Break some bad habits and form some good ones.
3. Get out of a rut and aim for the stars.
4. Listen to God in your heart and speak about him to others.
5. Stop wasting time and make every moment count.
6. Turn crosses into stepping stones.
7. Forgive hurts and ask pardon of others.
8. Dispose of unused clothes and clutter and buy something you need.
9. Feed the hungry and eat healthy yourself.
10. Avoid conflict and create peace.
11. Lose a distasteful job and take up a new hobby.
12. Surprise others and be surprised by them.
13. Love and be loved.
Here are some SMART tips for making resolutions:
Specific and include motivation and a plan for carrying out the goal.
Measurable with a clear result aimed at and a definite means to measure progress.
Achievable, something realistic for you (but challenging).
Results-focused, able to see concrete results.
Time-bound, with a timeline that urges and motivates you to attain the goal but allows for some slip-ups.
Other Tips for Making and Keeping Resolutions:
Make just one. That way we have a better chance of keeping it.
Ask a trusted and honest friend to suggest a resolution for you.
Write the resolution and place it where you will remember it.
Associate a daily activity with your resolution as a reminder, for example brushing your teeth.
Choose a day each month to review how well you are attaining your goal, maybe the first of each month . . . or the day of a full moon.
Finally, remember to ask the Holy Spirit, our wise guide, to help you choose a resolution, remember it, and keep it.
Blessings on your New Year of life!
A New Year Poem to Recall God’s in Charge
My present to you:
An encouraging poem as we face this new year.
Happy New Year!
God Knows
by Minnie Louise Hoskins
And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”
And he replied:
“Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”
So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.
And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East. (more…)
