ST JOSEPH'S ABBEY, SPENCER MA

          The opening words of  today's gospel “After six days” have been  unfortunately left out of the Lectionary.  These simple words connect today's gospel of the glory of Jesus transfigured on the mount with the first prediction by Jesus of his passion--namely his being tortured and killed--including the prediction that after three days he will rise again.  The disciples Peter, James and John will be given a vision of what his “rising again” means in the Transfiguration. They are being taught that the glory that radiates from  Jesus is intimately bound up with the suffering he will endure in saving us from our sins.  Thus, the passage in Mark is about two mountains, that of transfiguration and that of disfiguration in the  Crucifixion—Mounts Tabor and Calvary. In the Synoptic accounts of the predictions of the Passion and today's miracle, St. Peter is very adverse to the notion of Jesus suffering and dying.  Pete...

It is amazing to think of all the different aspects of the Christian life that Fr. William explored and expounded during his lifetime: contemplative prayer, the meaning of Scripture, the communion that is monastic life. But there are two other aspects that are also important, both for Fr. William and for us: being a child of God and sharing in the kingship of Christ as we heard in today’s readings. They might seem like an odd combination, childhood and kingship, but they are essential to the Christian life. Let us see how they apply to Fr. William and to us?             In the first reading, we heard those remarkable words of St. John: “See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are.” Fr. William had a childlike streak in him, a little mischievous at times, a little stubborn at times, but with a desire to experience what a child experiences, namely, using the words he used to e...

  This arresting image of Christ is a favorite of many of us and reveals El Greco's indebtedness to the icon painters of his native Greece. But while icons have brilliant gold backgrounds signifying timelessness and eternity, in this painting Christ is shown against a background of daubed and scumbled muddy browns. Thus it is that El Greco depicts Christ as absolutely of the earth, one of us. At the same time, his diamond-shaped nimbus, his right hand raised in blessing, and his left resting in dominion over the brown orb of Earth reveal that he is truly divine. Truly human, truly divine, Christ Jesus is with us, truly with us in all things, always and everywhere. The Savior,  El Greco (and workshop), 1608-1614, oil on canvas, 72 cm x 55 cm, The Prado, Madrid.

The church is…a living reality.  She lives along the course of time by transforming herself, like any living being, yet her nature remains the same.  At her heart is Christ. Lines by Servant of God Romano Guardini.

  Jesus is just back from the Jordan River, where he has received John’s baptism. God only knows why. He certainly did not have anything to repent of. Why was he there? P erhaps it is that he could do no less. He had to be there, with his people - with us - in all that embarrasses and burdens us, our regrets and our failures, all our soggy truth. Jesus has immersed himself in all of it. Only the passion of his love can explain his desire for baptism or any other one of his actions for that matter. Jesus perfectly expresses this determination of God to “share unreservedly” 1  in our distress, to be with us in everything. Never distance or separateness but immersion and identification with us, so that we might know ourselves holy and beloved like him, through him. Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us. My mother often spoke of my grandmother, sitting at the kitchen table reading the soldiers’ obituaries in the newspaper night after night during the Second World War, reading and sobbin...

Lent, the springtime of the Church situates us between two gardens - the garden of Eden, that lush middle Eastern paradise where the first Adam lost his innocence and the garden of the Resurrection on Easter morning where the new Adam wounded and resurrected will walk in peace having restored our lost innocence. In between like Christ Jesus, we will spend forty days in the desert, the place where wild beasts and demons are most at home,  the place  of trial and self-knowledge, where with Jesus we discover who we really are, what we really desire - better still, W ho  it is we really desire.

            We have been talking recently about the great good of unity in the community. Lent adds another layer to this unity; it calls for unity even as we shed our extra baggage and walk with the Lord to Jerusalem—no coppers in our belts or extra tunics. Complacency has to go, because the poor Christ has a baptism to be baptized with, and we are called to join him. Coincidentally, the prophet Joel had to shake the people of Jerusalem out of their complacency—in his case, the imminent arrival of a famine in the land. It was no longer business as usual. It seems to me that the Lord has chosen this Lent to summon us out of any complacency we may have, faced as we are with so many challenges—Covid-19, political upheaval, death in our midst—we need our communal unity to press on to Jerusalem.             Joel’s words are like a trumpet blast for us: “…proclaim a fast, call an assembly; Gather the peopl...

  Shrove Tuesday in the monastery brings our “farewell” to the Alleluia at this evening’s Vespers, as we chant an elaborate Alleluia at the conclusion of the office. Then we head to the refectory for homemade pizza, followed by ice cream and sweets. Then there’s clean-up followed by Compline, and the last time we can chant the Salve Regina with Our Lady’s window illumined until Easter Sunday. The sanctuary is then prepared for the Ash Wednesday Mass and the cross over the altar veiled in purple for the holy Forty Days ahead.

Our Father William Meninger, a renowned teacher of contemplative prayer, passed away suddenly on Sunday morning, February 14 after a prolonged diminishment. Up to the end, he had been speaking to a devoted audience via Zoom.  Born, raised, and educated in the Boston area. Father William entered the monastery in 1963 after serving as a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston for five years. As a monk, William worked in the Abbey guesthouse for fifteen years, as well as teaching scripture, liturgy, and patristics to the younger monks. He also served as subprior, prior, and dean of the junior professed monks. In 1979 Father William transferred to Saint Benedict's Monastery in Snowmass, Colorado, a daughter house of Spencer, where he served as prior, vocation director, master of novices, and teacher of theology and scripture. Later he spent three years in Israel where he studied Scr...

Lepers were among the most piteous of people in the ancient world. Although little was known about the origin of the illness, it was considered to be contagious and greatly feared. Since there was no known cure, the only solution was to isolate the person and not allow them to have contact with other people. Those with the disease were often ostracized and treated with contempt. What was probably more tragic is that many who were branded as lepers could have been suffering from some other disease altogether, like cancer, eczema, or some other skin disease. In today’s first reading from the book of Leviticus we hear kind of primitive diagnosis. “If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch which appears to be the sore of leprosy, he shall be brought to Aaron the priest who will declare him unclean.” Whether the person really had leprosy or not, the judgment was severe: “A man infected with leprosy must wear his garments torn, his head bare and his mouth covered and cry out...

With every fiber of his flesh and blood and divinity Jesus expresses this compassion that God feels for us. Our sufferings, and pains, and the trap of our sinfulness wrench Jesus’ guts, he feels it all in his innards, a “visceral” love. Jesus is moved; he is the mercy of God enfleshed. And this mercy gushes forth from his heart; he can’t hold it back; his mercy expresses itself as he cures “every disease and illness, ” including the leper in today’s Gospel .  And even now his heart is brimming over with tenderness and compassion, indulgence and mercy for us, because, he sees that we too are “troubled and abandoned.” Jesus sees into our hearts, knows all the stories we are He sees our confusion, pain, and incompleteness, our sinfulness, and his heart goes out to us. His heart is magnetized by our need for him. The heart of Jesus is always riven by the cry of the poor, and this morning his compassion expresses itself as he cures  this  leper. Perhaps what Jesus is doing be...

Today's memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes,  is also World Day of the Sick, which surely has added significance for us during the current pandemic.  Mary is gateway to all the compassion that Jesus longs to be for us. Through her intercession, we pray for all the sick, for all physicians and health care workers, and all who do medical research. We rely upon Our Lady's attentiveness. Like Saint Bernadette, we stand beneath the watchful gaze of Mary. The humble maiden of Lourdes tells us that the Virgin, whom she called “the Lovely Lady”, looked at her as one person looks at another. Those simple words describe the fullness of a relationship. Bernadette, poor, illiterate, and ill, felt that Mary was looking at her as a person. The Lovely Lady spoke to her with great respect and without condescension. This reminds us that every person is, and always remains, a human being, and is to be treated as such. The sick and those who are disabled, even severely, have their own inalienable di...

Once upon a time Scholastica went to visit her twin brother Benedict. They spent the day in spiritual conversation and dined together. As it began to get dark, Scholastica begged her brother to stay there all night, so that they could continue speaking of the joys of heaven. But Benedict could not be persuaded. The sky was clear and cloudless, as Scholastica joined her hands, bowed her head, and prayed ardently to God.  Suddenly there was such a rainstorm with lightning and thunder, that Benedict could not possibly depart. He was very annoyed and said to his sister, "God forgive you. What have you done?" She answered, "I wanted you to stay, and you would not listen to me; so I asked our good Lord, and he  granted my request." And so, they spent the whole night in heavenly  conversation  and comforted one another.  Reflecting on the power and efficacy of Scholastica's prayer, Saint Gregory the Great will remark,  "It's no wonder at all. Those who love mo...

We long for spring, even as we enjoy the beauty of the Abbey in winter. Frost and chill bless the Lord;  praise and exalt him above all forever. Ice and snow bless the Lord;  praise and exalt him above all forever.   Daniel 3 A collection of photographs taken by Brother Joseph.

We are always amazed by the story of Saint Josephine Bakhita, whose feast we celebrate today. Stolen from her family and sold into slavery when she was only about nine years old, Bakhita’s childhood was filled with cruelty and suffering. Her young body cruelly tattooed, whip marks on her thighs, and one leg forever damaged by brutal kicking, so much so that she limped for years thereafter.  Children are great survivors. But surely this was a little girl who suffered far too much. Hounded by pain and death from her girlhood, Bakhita somehow learned early on how to live as if death did not have the last word.  And finally years later when she hears about Jesus, she is magnetized and seeks baptism with a tenacity and conviction that astound us. As she gazes at the cross, she is transfixed. The cross is key to her self-understanding, her true self-identity, her freedom, her hope. Jesus, an innocent victim like her, bestows life, her survival has meaning at last. She is drawn into ...

A large, crowd has been following Jesus; this morning’s Gospel goes so far as to say that in fact,  everyone is looking for Him. Jesus has captivated their imaginations and their hearts. And as they seek Him, His compassion flows abundantly, and He heals their sick. I recall a friend telling me about his sister and her too taciturn husband, a reserved guy with a big job. They had been married only a few years, and she could always tell when something was worrying him. But he would just shut down. So, as they were snuggling at bedtime, she often would demand, gently, insistently: “Tell me, tell me what’s wrong, what’s bothering you.” She knew, women always know, something was up, and she wanted to be let in, to accompany him. The intimacy, the relationship demanded it, the relationship demanded it . But he couldn’t do it. And unfortunately, the marriage floundered and eventually ended; he was simply not a communicator. Our relationship with Christ demands the same intimacy. Man...

Jesus admonishes his disciples this morning to “ take nothing for the journey but a walking stick –no food, no sack, no money in their belts.” What are we to do? What shall we take with us as we go?  In our heart of hearts we know, Jesus alone is enough for us. We cry out to him with the Psalmist, “You alone Lord, make me dwell in safety. It is you who are my portion and cup. The lot marked out for me is my delight.”   Take , O  Lord , and  receive  all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will. Whatever I have or hold, you have given me; I restore it all to you and surrender it wholly to be governed by your will. Give me only your love and your grace, and I am rich enough and ask for nothing more.   Photograph by Brother Brian. Prayer of  Saint Ignatius Loyola

As Mary and Joseph brought the child Jesus into the temple, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. The Mother of God, the most pure Virgin, carried the true light in her arms and brought him to those who lay in darkness. We too should carry a light for all to see and reflect the radiance of the true light as we hasten to meet him. The light has come and has shone upon a world enveloped in shadows; the Dayspring from on high has visited us and given light to those who lived in darkness. This, then, is our feast, and we join in procession with lighted candles to reveal the light that has shone upon us and the glory that is yet to come to us through him. So let us hasten all together to meet our God. Let all of us, my brethren, be enlightened and made radiant by this light. Let all of us share in its splendor, and be so filled with it that no one remains in the darkness. Let us be shining ourselves as we go together to meet and to receive with the aged Simeon the light whose brillia...

In the gospel this morning, we encounter Jesus early in his public ministry entering the synagogue in Capernaum. As an adult male member of the community, he follows the custom of the time and takes his turn at teaching those gathered there. Interestingly, we are not told that his audience is impressed with his learning , but only that they marvel at the authority with which he speaks. Unlike the scribes, who gave insight and answers based on biblical and other traditional precedents , Jesus speaks clearly and directly in what might be described as a prophetic manner. In other words, his authority rests solely on God’s claim on his life; he makes appeal to no other source or authority. In commenting on this passage, Michael Casey makes a key observation that I’d like to focus on this morning. He says in Fully Human, Fully Divine : The evangelist has interwoven two themes which at first sight may seem to us unconnected. The power which Jesus manifests in expelling the demon is dep...