Good morning, my dear friends.
Some of you read this week’s reflection about exhausted caregivers and immediately thought of somebody who needed it. You may even have sent it along while rearranging your own afternoon to take someone to an appointment. Then, when somebody asked how you were doing, you said, “Oh, I’m fine.” I love you, but I do occasionally wonder how explicit Father needs to be.
I have some responsibility here, too. In Wednesday’s piece, I wrote about the people in my last parish who said yes to everything. I was grateful for them. I was less dependable about asking whether they could keep doing what we asked. It is a rather uncomfortable thing to admit when you are the priest writing the reflection.
And yet I meant what I said in Sunday’s homily about the joy of working in the Lord’s vineyard. I love this work. I want us to be able to keep doing it, and that requires paying attention to one another before somebody has to collapse to get a turn at being cared for. There is plenty to read below, including a man in John’s Gospel who has quite enough people questioning him and desperately needs somebody to stand beside him. Jesus does.
Come help shape the First Walk
Which Gospel story still puzzles you?
You know that question you have never asked because you assume everybody else learned the answer in Sunday School? I would like to hear it. Or perhaps you know the usual answer perfectly well and it has never satisfied you. I would like to hear that one, too.
I’m building A Walk With Jesus of Nazareth, which begins November 29. For thirty days, we’ll spend time with Jesus in the Gospels, learning about the world He lived in and asking what His words require of us in the lives we actually have. Before we begin, I want you involved in the work.
Join the Founding Community and I’ll bring you behind the scenes as the Walk develops. You’ll have opportunities to tell me what you want to understand, see what I’m working on, and help shape the First Walk.
Signing up is free. If these Scripture studies have left you wanting more time with Jesus, come help me decide how we spend it.
This Week from Message From the Margins
What happened before Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd”?
The man can see for the first time in his life, and almost nobody seems willing to let him enjoy it. His neighbors argue about whether he is himself. His parents are frightened. The people questioning him keep demanding an explanation they refuse to accept. He eventually asks whether they would like to become Jesus’ disciples, too, which does very little to improve the meeting.
Stay with him when they throw him out. Then listen to Jesus speak about the Good Shepherd. Read past the chapter break, and you discover that Jesus is still speaking in the aftermath of this man’s expulsion.
Read the two chapters together →
When helping becomes more than you can carry
An offer to help once can become a standing arrangement without anyone quite remembering agreeing to it. You still care about your friend. You also need your Tuesday back, and you have no idea how to say so without sounding as though you have stopped loving her.
The friend receiving help needs a say in what happens next. So do the people who could share the work but have become accustomed to leaving it with you. Saint Benedict directs some of his advice to the person making the schedule. I suggest those of us in charge read that part before forwarding the article to the volunteers.
Find a way to share the care →
Which Workers Really Missed Out?
I began Sunday’s homily by picking on a friend who works for a very famous celebrity and rarely lets anyone forget it. Then I had to admit that I also work for someone famous, put in peculiar hours, and could not be happier.
That brought us to the vineyard. We know why the early workers resent the wages given to the late arrivals. But what had they received all day that they could no longer appreciate by sunset? And what had the people waiting to be hired been missing?
Elsewhere this week
Some Thoughts About “Thoughts and Prayers”… asks what we mean when we promise to pray for someone, especially when we wish we could do more. When Your Loss Is their Business Plan looks at the allegations about DraftKings and AI, with a plea to talk to the people we love about what is happening on their phones.
This week’s two supporter bonuses were our visit with Saint Matthew and Padre Pio’s extraordinary life, miracles, and rather lively relationship with his guardian angel.
Tuesday, September 29 · 7:30 p.m. Eastern · Substack Live
The Prodigal Son Like You’ve Never Heard Before
The younger son comes home, his father runs to meet him, and most of us are ready to deliver the lesson about forgiveness. Except Jesus hasn’t finished. There is another son outside, furious about the party. His father goes out to him as well, and we are left waiting to hear whether he will come in.
On Tuesday, September 29, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern, join me on Substack Live for our hermeneutical Bible study of the Parable of the Prodigal Son. We’ll look at whom Jesus is speaking to, why the story might trouble them, and where we find ourselves in this family. You can ask questions as we go. You do not need to have studied theology, and nobody is going to make you pronounce “hermeneutical” before letting you in.
From the Archives
Jesus Chose a Man Who Wanted to Rain Down Fire
After a Samaritan village refused to receive Jesus, James and John suggested fire from heaven. Jesus had chosen them Himself. Being chosen had left quite a bit of work to do on their judgment. If you worry that following Christ requires becoming a person with no opinions and no personality, I think you’ll enjoy meeting James. The man had plenty of both, and Jesus kept teaching him.
Let’s Speak of Mary…
I love Our Blessed Mother. I also think Christians have spent a remarkable amount of time arguing about things other Christians do not actually believe about her. In this essay, we give Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox convictions a fair hearing. We can still disagree afterward. I would just prefer to know what we’re disagreeing about.
Pull up a chair for the conversation →
A little company for your weekend
Imagine receiving a summons from the king who now occupies your grandfather’s throne. Your grandfather spent years trying to kill this man, and now he wants to see you. Mephibosheth has reason to be nervous, and he is the first person we meet in Episode III: The Stone Which the Builders Rejected.
If Church history is more your thing this weekend, Episode II: How Did the Church Become the Church? is ready whenever you are.
In the Week Ahead
I hope to see you Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. Eastern. Keep this link to the September 29 Bible study with your calendar reminder. You can also join the Founding Community here if you would like to be involved while I build A Walk With Jesus of Nazareth.
And Let Us Pray
Lord Jesus, You heard what had happened to the man You healed, and You found him. Be near to those who have been turned away by people they trusted. Give them someone who will listen and stand beside them. Forgive us when we have been too afraid of what others might think to be that person.
Help us care for those whose help we have come to take for granted. Let them rest without having to arrange everything first. When they tell us they cannot keep going as they have been, help us believe them and do our part. And when we are the ones who need help, give us courage to accept it. Amen.
May Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Your Brother in Christ,
Fr. Rich
And Before You Go…
How can we pray for you this week? I mean you, too, my dear friend who is already thinking of everybody else. Leave a request in the comments if you would like, remembering that other readers can see what you write. “Please pray for me” is quite enough. And if you see a request from someone else, please take a moment to pray for them.
Father,
Hear the prayers we have shared
and the ones we cannot yet put into words.
You know who is frightened,
who is exhausted,
and who is waiting for news.
Give them the help they need
and the assurance of Your love.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
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