Our Father of Benevolence

(Here is a wonderful reflection on The Lords Prayer (Matthew 6: 9-13 and Luke 11: 1-4) , paraphrased by Malcolm Street, a member of  the Bread for the World board of directors from Fort Worth, Texas. The prayer was said at one of the sessions of the November board meeting).

Our Father, Father of all benevolence, We are in reverent awe of you: your Goodness and your Grace, your Mercy and Forgiveness, your power and might, your humble and gentle heart.

We pray that your reign of love be realized, made real, in us and that your desire for Good be pursued by us, as it is already so in the saints who have preceded us to heaven.

Just as your earth yields bread for our bodies, give us a Word from you to nourish our souls.

Release us from the debt we have incurred by acting as if we were God and not you, as we will forgive the debt of those who have tried to lord it over us.

O Lord, dont lead us as you did Jesus, into the desert that tests our faith; But if it must be so, deliver us from falling away from you in the time of trial.

We long for your Kingdom rule over us in love, your power in us that frees us from our sins, and for Christ, who is our only hope of glory.

And Lord, we go on to pray that you would bless our deliberations here today that they may bear the fruit of blessing to those on the margins, yes even beyond the margins of hunger and poverty.

Lord, may you give bread to the hungry and a hunger for you to those who have bread.

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Father James Martin How to Avoid Christmas Stress No Less Yes

(Thanks to Jesuit Father James Martin for this reflection, which was one of his Facebook posts)

Can I make a confession? I’m starting to dislike Christmas. Before you ask me to hand in my collar, let me clarify.

When I say “Christmas” I mean the unpleasant cultural trappings that have almost suffocated the holiday: overheated stores packed with stressed-out shoppers; the pressure people feel to buy, buy, buy; and the endless commercials that make the season feel more about spending money than about anything else.

Is it possible to set aside the unhealthy aspects of Christmas and focus on the Nativity of Our Lord?

Yes, and let me suggest three ways to do so.

• First, just say no. You don’t have to go to every party, send a card to every friend, or buy a gift for every family member. Saying no to one thing (a party) means saying yes to something else (time to pray).
• Second, just say less. Try sending three-quarters as many cards or buying half the gifts you did last year.
• Third, just say yes. Choose events that are more spiritual (church services, lessons, and carols) as a way to nourish yourself and prepare for the real Christmas.

Overall, it’s important to pull back from the craziness and to carve out more time for prayer during the Advent and Christmas season. Happily, the beautiful readings of Advent easily invite us to prayer.

Christ wants to enter into your life in a new way during these holy weeks. But if you’re in a store listening to two people fight over a video game, you may not hear him.

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Father John Dear to Discuss his New Book on Thomas Merton

Father John Dear has gained a reputation in New Mexico and around the country for his opposition of war and his staunch support of disarmament and peacemaking efforts. Dears philosophy is evident in the books he has published, including A Persisent Peace, The Nonviolent Life, Disarming the Heart: Toward a Vow of Nonviolence, and Put Down Your Sword.

Dear has also written books or introductions to books about important people who share his philosophy: Daniel Berrigan, Mohandas Gandhi, Henri Nouwen and others.  He recently published Thomas Merton: Peacemaker, which will be the subject of his talk on Thursday, January 21, at Bookworks (4022 Rio Grande Blvd NW (map), a small independent bookstore in Albuquerques North Valley, at 7:00 pm.

Heres is how Bookworks is promoting the event on its website:
A noted peacemaker reflects on Thomas Mertons lessons for peacemaking today. In this centenary year of Thomas Mertons birth, longtime peace activist and author John Dear shares meditations on Mertons writings on peace and spiritual life. "The God of peace is never glorified by human violence," Merton wrote.

In the early 1960s, the famous Trappist monk, author, and poet broke new ground through his prophetic writings on nuclear weapons, war, and racism. For Merton these were not only moral challenges. They reflected a deeper spiritual crisis.

Among the lessons John Dear has learned from Merton: the connection between contemplation and nonviolence; the importance of faithful reliance on God instead of weapons or war; the need to speak out publicly for disarmament and justice; the importance of silence, solitude, and minduflness; the daily celebration of the resurrection and the wonder of creation.

In the end, John Dear invites us to take up Thomas Mertons journey and become mature spiritual seekers who break beyond the accepted norms of religious obligation into universal love, compassion, and friendship with God, that we too might become peacemakers, the beloved sons and daughters of the God of peace.

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Franciscan Father Richard Rohr Discusses Laudato Si

Shane Claiborne and Richard Rohr

Listen to Father Richard Rohrs talk on Pope Francis Encyclical Letter on the Environment, Laudato Si. Rev. Rohr presented the talk at the Francis Factor conference in Albuquerque on Aug. 30-Sept. 1. The audio comes courtesy of the Center for Action and Contemplation.

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