12 Step Catholic Spirituality Series: Rich Young Man ( Mk 10-17-22) and what we can learn for our lives.

WELCOME TO 12 STEP CATHOLIC SPIRITUALITY SERIES.

I started this series in September 2018 and will continue with the series this year.  If you have not read the first posts, click here to read.  This series is based on the 12 Steps of AA and could have easily been called 12 Step Christian Anon programme.  However, I prefer to think of it as a 12 Step guide to Catholic spirituality.

Jesus and the rich young man.

In St Mark's Gospel (10: 17-22) we read the story of a rich young man who had been faithful Jew all of his life.  He had probably heard of the teachings of Jesus and would have likely to have been impressed with the joy, peace and strength of Jesus.

However, one day, when Jesus was on a journey, this young man broke through the ranks of disciples and other followers surrounding Jesus and knelt before him at his feet asking earnestly and without attention to the scornful looks of the crowd and disciples " Good master what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

Jesus recognised the earnestness and sincerity of this young man and told him what he needed to do. Sadly, he got up to walk away. His heart had become hardened since the Gospel tells us that he was a man of great wealth.

The question we might wonder about is why he sought out Jesus in the first place since he was a man of great wealth. He had all the pleasures, comforts. youth and even a clear conscience. He had what most people would envy (even today). He had it all.

Yet he knew he was psychologically and materially entrapped.  Once he recognised his quiet despair, he sought out Jesus. His invite to be a disciple was too much for the rich young man since he was unable to let go of all the attachments of his life.  He could not visualise in his mind another way- a simpler way and yet his heart longed for a different way.  Letting go is never easy even when our hearts know it is a better path.

CHRIST THE REDEEMER

FIRST STEP.  ''We admit that we cannot realise our fullest human potential by living a life of selfishness'' 

So what does this episode in the Gospel teach us in the light of our first Step:
 ''We admit that we cannot realise our fullest human potential by living a life of selfishness'' (Step 1).

It teaches us:

1. legalistic observance of the commandments of God does not bring deep Joy.  In other words, being committed to our faith to love God with our whole heart, soul and mind and to love one another as ourselves is key. Love of God is the key.  When we follow God with legalistic observance, our heart has lost sight of the WHO and focuses too much on the WHAT. (even though the what/how is important).
2. Jesus comes to all of us in whatever position we are in. He comes to heal not only the broken or those in need but those whose have ''everything'' and yet suffer emptiness.
3. Our need to examine our lives and admit our deeper yearnings for God in our hearts. 
4. We need to be obedient to Jesus when He shows us a different way- His way to fullness and happiness rather than that of the world.
5. We must be willing to accept the invitation of Jesus and His grace which He wishes to give us.

ACTION FOR THE WEEK:

During this week you may wish to start to identify your ''selfishness''.   Here we are trying to admit to ourselves the areas in our lives which are not reaching their fullest potential and why is this so.  Be gentle with yourself particularly if having a stock take of your self is something you have done in a while. It can be confronting and perhaps even depressing for some people.  So, give yourself time, be kind and gentle to yourself as God is to you and ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten you.  This is just a start of the programme, so don’t worry if you do not have a thorough spring clean of our selfishness the first time around. Being aware of our selfishness and the ways it manifests itself is the most important step forward.  You may wish to write these thoughts in your journal.  Since a journal is a very private object, remember to keep it in a safe place so that your privacy is respected and that you will be able to write freely- only you and God can see it.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:

1. What does the word admit mean to you? What do you feel?

2. In your life generally, do you think of admitting something as a sign of weakness? ( in yourself/in others).

3. When you read the first step- what reaction do you have? write your reactions both positive and negative or even no reaction in your journal.  This is useful information.

4. What does living your fullest human potential mean to me? What would it look like- describe it.

5. How have you been living a life of selfishness (Name it/them). Areas to consider: Physical, Emotional, Cognitive, Social, Spiritual and even Financial.  Remember to be gentle with yourself as you consider these areas or other areas you wish to nominate. Why- Jesus loves you.  

More specifically as we examine our lives, light a candle so that the light from the candle will be a symbol of the light you wish to illuminate in your heart and soul.  Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you and be close to you as you explore your life. 

You may wish to examine one area per day or one area per week or one area every couple of days.  Do what is worthwhile for you and be guided by Holy Spirit.  Remember it is about recognising and admitting at this point. We cannot accept the invitation of Jesus if we do not recognise and admit we need Him. Be comforted by the rich young man in that he desired to change. He was not able to make the next step but at least he had a desire. Desire for God is a great start. Let us have the courage to take the next step as we recognise and admit for God.

FINISHING YOUR SESSION.'

Remember after you have written in your journal and you are ready to move forward with your day/night, to say a prayer of thanks to God (e.g. Glory be, Our Father) and ask Him to hold any emotional impact until you meet with Him again. This way, God is holding you and your discoveries shall not be negatively impacted upon you.  

Some people find that when they do interior work, they feel more tired or can be grumpier with others.  This is why it is important to ask God to hold the impact for you. In this way you will be able to continue the work without it negatively impacting on you or others. It then is a positive process between you and God.  Monitor your own reactions carefully during this process.

As this is early in the New Year, it is a great opportunity to start to review our lives.  You may already have your New Year resolutions in place.  Great.  If you feel that this process is not for you, then find something that meets your needs.  

If you do wish to follow the process in these posts, then I hope that you may wish to join me in this journey of coming to closer to Jesus in 2019 through this process.

Jesus heals the epileptic boy Gospel of Mark series (9:14-29)

GOSPEL OF MARK SERIES: Jesus heals the epileptic boy.

The Bible: Gospel of Mark Series Icon.

During 2019, each week, I will write a weekly post about the Gospel of Mark, as I review and explore each of the 16 chapters and how it may be applied in our daily lives. If you are following this series for the first time, you will find this series under Scripture- New Testament- Gospel of Mark. 

Click here to read the first post in the series. I have written this series in different years (2012, 2015, 2018) with some irregularity, but am determined to complete this series this year since I am more than half way through this Gospel.

My goal is to understand and pray the Gospel of Mark. I hope you will join me on this journey as we travel through the liturgical season.  In today's post we explore chapter 9:14-2913 which is called Jesus heals the epileptic boy.

Jesus heals the epileptic boy.

This story, which comes after the revelation on the mountain of the real identity of Jesus as Messiah, shows again the power of Jesus to free from evil, but also the powerlessness of His disciples, since they do not yet fully know Jesus or His ways.  This can be paralleled with the revelation to Jesus by God at the Jordan river
( 1:9-11) and His struggle with Satan that followed in the desert (1:12-13).

The sickness of the boy, the anguish of his desperate father, the lack of faith in the disciples, the scribes, the crowd, and in the father, himself is fully described. Mark is keen for us to feel the inner pain of Jesus as He senses the lack of faith around Him.

God is ready to heal human brokenness and reveal His power over evil, but using people as channels is lacking.  The burden falls on Jesus alone, Himself supremely the man of faith and responsiveness to what God does in the world.

Jesus seeks to foster the little faith which the father of the boy, a symbol of the disciples themselves, already has. The reply of Jesus to the father,'' What is this if you can? Everything is possible for one who has faith.''   This is meant for the disciples ( and us) and  of course to the father himself.

Jesus wants to free the boy from the sickness before too many curious people gather around him.  Emphasising the need for faith in the boy's father, He drives the evil from the boy with such power all think the boy has died.

When the disciples, who earlier had power to drive out demons ( 6:7) are alone with Jesus, they ask Him why they were unable to drive out this demon.  This kind of evil, Jesus tell them can be driven out only by a faith that nourished in prayer, in the way His own faith was.

JOURNAL REFLECTIONS

In our journal and/or our discussion group we may wish to reflect on this passage as follows:

• Name the key points that you have learnt about the person of Jesus in this passage of scripture?

• Imagine that you are one of the disciples- What do you see and hear and feel. What can I learn from this?

• Imagine being the father of the child or one the scribes- what would you have felt?  

• What is reading the Gospel passage with the eyes and ears of disciple mean to me?

• How does Jesus show Himself as the healer Christ to me?

• What are the areas in my life I need to be healed and transformed to be a true disciple?

• Am I willing to be a true disciple of Jesus in the light of this teaching and face loss, social rejection for the sake of the Gospel? 

• How will I kill/transform these areas in my life? What will I say/do? 

• In the light of this passage, how will you respond to Jesus as a true disciple?

• If a fellow parishioner had read this passage, what might he/she say about this passage?

• In the light of this Gospel passage what positive change will you adopt in your life and in your spiritual life.  How will you implement these changes?
  
  
• What do I know about epilepsy and the struggles encountered by people who suffer from this affliction? How are they still marginalised by society in the 21st century?

Epiphany of Our Lord Year C

SOLEMNITY OF THE EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD.

The Collect for the Epiphany of Our Lord reads as follows:

May the splendour of Your majesty, O Lord, we pray,

shed its light upon our hearts,

that we may pass through the shadows of this world

and reach the brightness of our eternal home.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son

who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God for ever and ever.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

In making this prayer tangible for during the week, the following reflection questions emerged:

1. What areas in my life needs God's light and and splendour?

2. What is my attitude to our eternal home?

3. If I was told I am to live only this week, am I ready to reach the brightness of our eternal home?

4. What areas of my life would I change this week to be ready to reach my eternal home?

5. How does the visit of the Kings affect my faith and my life this coming week?

6. What blessings have I gained from this Christmastide.

TRADITIONS OF EPIPHANY

There are several traditions and names for celebrating the Epiphany.  The Epiphany is celebrated each January 6 and is a day dedicated to the birth of Christ, which includes a nod toward the three Kings who came to visit Him.

The word "epiphany" means "an appearance or manifestation, especially of a deity". Appearance is correct, as Christ revealed himself in the form of a newborn babe to the Three Wise Men, who travelled from their countries to pay tribute to the Son of God.

It is also a reference to the baptism of Christ by John the Baptist. The six Sundays following Epiphany are known as the time of manifestation. 

The Gospel of Matthew describes three Wise Men, named Melchior, Caspar and Balthazar, who were told of Christ's birth and set off, following the Star of Bethlehem, to meet the baby Jesus. Each king brought with him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to represent Jesus' elevated position, divine birth and mortality respectively,

Historically, Christmas was celebrated each day from Christmas Eve to the Epiphany, with January 6 being as large a celebration as December 25.

Though Protestant churches celebrate a season of Epiphany from January 6 to Ash Wednesday, the Catholic Church observes Epiphany as a single day, with some in America celebrating the Epiphany feast the Sunday following January 6.

In Spain, children believe their Christmas presents are delivered by the Three Wise Men on January 6, while in Venice, children believe "La Befana," an imaginary old woman in Italian folklore, brings gifts to them on the Epiphany Day. An old Catholic tradition is the Star Singers, which are groups of people who dress as the Wise Men and carry a wooden star who go door-to-door to sing and collect donations for the poor. 

GOSPEL OF TODAY: Matthew 2:1-12.

Today at Mass the Gospel will be from Matthew 2:1-12.   I have previously written a post here on this Gospel in detail. 

However, in today's post I wish to focus on Homage. Interestingly enough, there are 77 times in the bible where the word Homage is used. Seven of course was considered a perfect number.

Historically the word homage meant " a man doing homage to his personal lord'. Let us think about this historical meaning for us today in 2019. Does it still hold true for us as we kneel before the crib?

Do we pass the crib at Mass during Christmastide and not do Him homage?  How many times during Christmastide do we call into our parish and kneel before the crib, ponder and do Him homage?

The burning question not only from a historical perspective then is does this definition hold true for me?   Is Christ my personal Lord? It is something to ponder as we start the New Year.

WAYS TO DO HOMAGE

Of course, it is not only on the Solemnity of the Epiphany of Our Lord that we do Him homage.  We should be doing Him homage every day- every moment of every day in our hearts.  Special times to do Him homage are:

• Praying our morning and Evening Prayer: a time to connect to God and ask Him to be our personal Lord and Saviour every day.  How is our Prayer time?  What changes do I need to make in 2019 to give Jesus homage?
• Daily Mass (or as often as we can attend). It is easy to become distracted at Mass especially if we have a lot going on in our lives or we are stressed/depressed.  We can easily find reasons to allow our mind to wander during Mass.  We are human of course.  However why not think about the word homage and its meaning. It may be an anchor for us to remember that Christ is our personal Lord.
• Receiving Holy Communion: This is the most precious time to give our Lord homage. It is definitely a time to be with Him as fully as we can.  Receiving Communion can be given in a flash and the moment for us is gone if we are not prepared. Again, distractions in the aisle can take our thoughts and minds away from what we are about to receive- Jesus Himself.  

Let us this year keep our minds focused on Jesus and make Him our Lord and Saviour.  Walk to Holy Communion like the Kings of today's feast- make the journey and do Him Homage.

• Our daily life: Everything we do, our work, our family life, our parish life needs to be focused on Jesus and our commitment to Him.  How we interact with each other, how we try to live the commandments and give each other love and understanding shows respect not only for these people but for Jesus who lives in them. We do not need to accept bad behaviour or abuse. However we do need to remember that Jesus lives in every person. Give Him homage in that person. It is a tough lesson to remember but one worth cultivating with everyone-yes even those whom we naturally dislike or have good reason to dislike. Jesus lives in them too.

So on this Solemnity of Our Lord let us do Him homage.

You may wish to listen to O Holy Night as you reflect on this Solemnity or perhaps you may prefer to listen on this setting

Challenge and Hope.

REFLECTION AND PRAYER SERIES

My reflection and prayer series is about sharing reflections and Prayers which have impacted upon me and have provided food for thought. I hope that they will also nurture your soul and spirit.

My Scripture reflection is: 

''Go in peace. Your journey has the Lord's approval''    Judges 18:6

My post is called:

  Challenge and Hope

 Let me welcome the challenge of this new year 

with hope in my heart.

and faith in Your goodness.

Let me look forward to each day 

on the way as many splendored gift from You.

Promises of the Sacred Heart.

PROMISES OF THE SACRED HEART

Sacred Heart of Jesus:
Promise of the Sacred Heart Icon.

In this series, there will be posts on the Promises of the Sacred Heart on each First Friday.  I may add further posts on other Fridays as well but for now as it is a new series, let us focus on each promise each month.

Today is the first Friday in January so my post today is about the Devotion to the Sacred Heart and the promises associated with the 9 first Fridays.

Some people criticise this devotion and make disparaging remarks.  However it is not easy as they seem to think to go to Mass and receive Holy Communion on 9 consecutive First Fridays. I know, as I have tried and succeeded in some years and not in others. What is important to remember when engaging in any devotion is that the obligation/obsession to the devotion does not become the centre of attention but of course the reason behind engaging in the devotion.  Jesus has to be the reason for the devotion. 

Sometimes people get so obligated/obsessed in attending Mass on First Friday that it becomes the be all and end all rather than attending Mass and receiving Holy Communion out of love for Jesus. It is this type of behaviour that is unhelpful to the person and to other people who are observing. They may be interested in the devotion but see the behaviour of the person and fail to distinguish between these 2 key aspects.  Jesus is the reason for everything especially when we choose to engage in a devotion.  It is meant to help us in our spiritual growth not hinder us or other people.

What I have found is that if you start the year with the good intention to try to keep the First Fridays sacred in honour of His Sacred Heart, it is easier to focus on Jesus who is Love Himself and combine it with some penance as well.  Remember Fridays throughout the year are days of penance ( in whatever way you choose)  as well, not just in Lent.

DEVOTION OF THE SACRED HEART.

Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary and revealed devotions to His Sacred Heart. She was favoured with many apparitions; the most special ones took place between 1673 and 1675.Jesus appeared as St. Margaret was praying before the Blessed Sacrament and revealed the Love of His Sacred Heart for humanity.

He requested her to receive Him in Holy Communion of the first Friday of every month and to meditate the passion on Thursdays between 11 and 12 p.m.  We may not be able to meditate on the Passion at this time, but we can meditate on it during a First Friday. There are so many aspects to meditate upon regarding the Passion.  The important thing is to make the effort to meditate on it.

"And He showed me that it was His great desire of being loved by men and of withdrawing them from the path of ruin into which Satan hurls such crowds of them, that made Him form the design of manifesting His Heart to men."

As Catholics, we should honour the Sacred Heart of Jesus by doing this devotion for 9 consecutive Fridays and then by attending Holy Communion as often as possible, daily if our gift is such, we must enthrone an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in our homes as Our King and also an image of the Immaculate Heart of Mary our Mother and Queen.

The practice devotions to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on the First Saturdays of the months as she has requested through Sister Lucy is highly recommended.

THE PROMISES OF OUR LORD.

"I promise you, in the excessive mercy of my heart that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Friday for nine consecutive months, the grace of final repentance; they shall not die in my disgrace nor without receiving the sacraments; my divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in that last moment." 

1. I will give them all the graces necessary for their state in life.

2. I will give peace in their families.

3. I will console them in all their troubles.

4. They shall find in My Heart an assured refuge during life and especially at the hour of death.

5. I will pour abundant blessings on all their undertakings.

6. Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and infinite ocean of mercy.

7. Tepid souls shall become fervent.

8. Fervent souls shall speedily rise to great perfection.

9. I will bless the homes in which the image of My Sacred Heart shall be exposed and honoured.

10. I will give to priests the power to touch the most hardened hearts.

11. Those who propagate this devotion shall have their name written in My Heart, and it shall never be effaced.

12. The all-powerful love of My Heart will grant to all those who shall receive Communion on the First Friday of nine consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they shall not die under My displeasure, nor without receiving their Sacraments; My Heart shall be their assured refuge at the last hour.

Wow.. I do not know about you but as I read these promises, I cannot help say thank you Jesus. I definitely want to receive these blessings for 2019.What is your reaction when you read these promises? Do you want them for yourself, your family, your parish, our world?

Sometimes we can lose focus in our spiritual lives or we need something to centre our attention. Here is a devotion worth our attention.

There are 12 months to the year and 12 promises.  Why not join me in praying for each promise to made manifest in our lives during 2019. Apart from our own personal needs, there are many needs- The Church itself, our own parishes, families, friends, people in the world we do not know but need our prayer and so on.  We could take a different need/ group each day in the month as we consider the promise.  You may be able to do this in your family or parish too.  If you do not wish to focus on the promise every day, then why not choose to focus on it on fridays of the Year.  Whatever you decide, choose something that works for you.

Let us claim the Promises of the Sacred Heart for ourselves in 2019.

Happy New Year- Being a better person in 2019

Happy New Year

A NEW SITE DESIGN

First of all, I want to assure you that you have arrived at New Horizons.  I have just updated the site.It is not wildly different with similar colours but as I have been blogging for 9 years today, I thought it was time I explored another layout. I would like to know what you think.  If you dont like it, I am happy to go back to the original format.

REFLECTION ON 9 YEARS BLOGGING

I want to thank you for being interested in my blog over many years. My desire to enhance Catholic faith is just as strong as it was when I first started 9 years ago.  In fact, I think it is actually stronger.

Still despite some periods of inactivity, I hope that you have gained from reading my posts over these 9 years.  Sometimes I have felt the blessing too as I have written.  Sometimes I started out with a topic in mind and yet ended up writing on a different topic.  It was as though the Holy Spirit was telling me what to to type and doing it for me.

I know in the last few years due to a range of circumstances and also some lack of motivation and tiredness on my part, i have not written as much as I had previously written years ago.  Any doubts that I had was confirmed when I went back over posts when I had some computer virus.

After going through my blog thoroughly I have now backed up all my posts from 2009 to the current post.  No mean feat I assure you.  I wont let it get like that again.!!  I have realised too in this great review that some series did not get completed.  Sorry about that.  I have made a note of some of them and I will endeavour to put that right in the coming 12 months.

I know that I love writing my blog posts for you.  

I do ask for your prayers as I begin another year of blog writing and as we mark this milestone together.  

SOMETHING NEW AS WELL: TALKINGMUSIC.ONLINE

Something I have added recently is that I am on Pinterest as talkingmusic.  Within my boards I have set up a board called New Horizons so that you can explore my work there.   I will create pins for New Horizons and I will mention it when I do in my posts from now on. 

My talkingmusic.online website is not quite finished but hopefully by the end of year I will be launching that as well. I will let you know so you can head over there and look and follow me there in a different setting where i will be running some online courses on Music and on Life Issues.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NEW HORIZONS

So today on New Horizons Birthday, I have a lot to be thankful for.

Without YOU there would be no reason to write.  Thank you.