What Is the Kingdom of God?

The centerpiece of Jesus’ preaching ministry was the bold declaration that “the time is fulfilled” and “the kingdom of God is at hand” (Mk. 1:15).  In fact, Jesus said that preaching this message was his purpose for coming (Mk. 1:38)! 

But what is this kingdom of God?

God’s kingdom is best understood not as God’s place but as God’s reign.  The reign of God means that God is in charge, God’s ways have embraced all creation.  To put it simply, God’s reign means that God is present. 

When we hear this, we may be confused or even skeptical.  The time is fulfilled?  The reign of God is at hand?  God is present?  Sometimes it sure doesn’t seem like it.

When preaching the kingdom of God, Jesus simultaneously calls for repentance (Mk. 1:15).  Repentance is much more than sorrow for sin – it is a genuine change of mind and heart, a total reorientation of our lives.  But before we can repent, before our lives can change, we must first learn to see and believe in God’s reign in our world.  We must be open to possibilities beyond (or deep within) what we can see, smell, touch or hear.  We must look at our world with the most charitable eyes and the most sensitive hearts.  We must believe that God has drawn near.

If we do not live this way, with this kind of hope and openness, then we do not live in God’s kingdom.  We live in a kingdom of our own making.  And the kingdoms we make are small and confining.  Our own reigns are weak and always leave us wanting more.  But if we can listen to Jesus – there was never a bolder preacher – and believe the good news, the gospel, he declares, then we will learn to see God drawing near.  The reorientation of our lives will naturally follow.  And God will be all in all.

Charles Plessard, Gouache on Paper, Courtesy Sacred Art Pilgrim.  Heureux means happy.

Charles Plessard, Gouache on Paper, Courtesy Sacred Art Pilgrim.  Heureux means happy.

Epiphany Prayer

Like the magi, we want to bring Jesus gifts.  But what gifts should we bring?  We should bring him what he wants the most.

Lord Jesus, I lay before you the gold of my sins and weaknesses, the incense of my painful memories and relationships, and the myrrh of my fears and anxieties.  These do not seem like gifts fit for a King, but I offer them to you from the treasure-chest of my heart, knowing that you wish to transform and redeem them.  I come to you open, empty and vulnerable; be a quiet, loving, saving presence in me.  Amen.

Anne Koken, color linocut.  Courtesy Sacred Art Pilgrim.

Anne Koken, color linocut.  Courtesy Sacred Art Pilgrim.

Guest Blogger: Something We Can Do for Families in Syria

Merry Christmas!  I hope you all enjoyed a peaceful and meaningful Christmas Day.  This year my six-year-old’s “second favorite” Christmas song (trumping “Rudolph” is no easy feat) is “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”  We are in full swing! 

Today I offer you a different kind of Christmas reflection.  The post below was originally published on the blog of my friend Jillian Ciriello (www.momingrace.wordpress.com).  Jillian is a thoughtful young woman, the mother of a lively toddler, a nurse by trade, a faithful disciple of Jesus, and a compassionate human being. 

Jillian’s post is a timely reflection on the conflict in Syria.  She helps us understand how near Syria is to Bethlehem (“less than the mileage I will log in the car while visiting family this Christmas”).  She explains the anxiety and needs of many Syrian families, expresses our own angst and uncertainty as we watch the suffering from afar, and offers a concrete way we can help.

"Underwear for Christmas"

As my heart turns to Bethlehem, I find it pulled closer to Syria this Christmas.  Amid a complex civil war, babies are killed and millions of widows and orphans flee trying to find safety. In this painful conflict I hear the words of Jeremiah 31:15:

“A voice is heard in Ramah,
mourning and great weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted
because her children are no more.”

This Old Testament image of grieving mothers is too accurate for many in Syria today.  As I read about the birth of Jesus, this passage is quoted by Matthew 2:18 speaking ofHerod’s massacre of all baby boys two-years-old and under. A futile attempt to try and stop Jesus from changing the world.  I think of my two-year-old son and cannot fathom the anguish of those mothers. But evil did not triumph then, and it will not triumph now.

I hold my sona little tighter and thank God for all we have, but often feel paralyzed to do much more.  Paralyzed by images of wounded children, by my own disbelief and fear, by a struggle to comprehend what is happening and what I could possibly do that would make any difference.  It is overwhelming.  It is confusing.  It is too far away.

Far Away: But this week more than ever my heart is in Bethlehem, which is so very near to this conflict.  The distance between Bethlehem and Syria is difficult to measure because of unclear borders and shifting country lines, but the city of Damascus in southern Syria is just 129 miles, less than the mileage I will log in the car while visiting family this Christmas.  Aleppo, the site of greatest violence and tragedy at present is about 340 miles away.

Confusing: In this region violence seeks to overtake the holiest of lands where Jesus walked during his time on Earth.  We can become numb to the long complex history with many nations and groups fighting one another. But my focus in this present conflict involves the city of Aleppo where innocent civilians, women and children have been trapped for months with no way in or out surrounded by violence and death.  Evacuation efforts are in place but danger remains and the refugees have no where to go once they escape.

Overwhelming: This problem is clearly too big for me, or for any one person, group, or nation to resolve.  But I have been inspired by Nadia Alawa, a mom in New Hampshire who decided to stop waiting and start acting in 2011 to help these mothers and children in Syria and those living as refugees in neighboring Turkey.  She started an organization called NuDay Syria that built grassroots partnerships with people in Syria to get supplies and aid to the most dangerous of places.  Remarkably this is one of the few organizations still working on the ground in the war-torn nation.  They are meeting the most basic and important needs: getting diapers and milk to babies, undergarments and sanitary pads to mothers, not to mention food, clean water, tents, and warm blankets.

Now this is an idea I can wrap my head around.  A local mom, packing up supplies, shipping them oversees in giant 40 foot crates and getting them into the hands of suffering people within 6 weeks.  And I can donate via Amazon gift registry, super easy!

I wish I learned more sooner. I wish I understood more now. But at least I can Amazon up some supplies and know that a mom experiencing unfathomable pain will at least have milk for her starving child and some undergarments to wear.  One mom.  I can do that.

So this year the most important gift I am buying is underwear.  It is not gold, frankincense, or myrrh, but I do think its the gift that Jesus asks me to lay at his feet this year. It may be delivered by a wise woman instead of a wise man.  It will be given to a mother who is caring for her child, in a land that has no place for them, who would humbly welcome the shelter of a manger. It is a far away place and struggle that I am much removed from but Jesus understands it in a very real way.  He is present in this time of suffering as much today as when he lay in a stable just 300 miles away wrapped in swaddling clothes.

Where to go from here:

NuDay Syria
www.nudaysyria.net
Amazon registry

Excellent 5 Min Video Summarizing Syrian Conflict
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKb9GVU8bHE

Thank you to all my friends who posted on social media about the Syrian refugee crisis, until I finally took the time to listen and understand.

Thank you to the Boston Globe for this great article From Small Town NH, A Stream of Relief to Syria, Lisa Wangsness, 31 May 2015

The Killing of the Innocents by Herod, Detail, Leon Cagniet, 1824

The Killing of the Innocents by Herod, Detail, Leon Cagniet, 1824

Christmas Gift Idea!

No, I’m not earning a commission on these Bibles, but I should be!  I was recently given a Little Rock Catholic Study Bible, and it’s the most beautiful Bible I’ve ever owned.  It’s a wonderful gift idea for Christmas for those in your life who love Scripture, or those who you want to encourage to love Scripture!  This Study Bible has all kinds of useful features like background articles, definitions, charts, informative footnotes, timelines, maps and even prayer starters. 

The photos below are of the “deluxe” edition, which is substantial but not too big, with a leather-like cover, ribbon markers, and nice-sized print.  (The Study Bible is also available as a regular hardback or paperback, or even an e-book, with all the same study features.  But the deluxe one is by far the most beautiful!)

A Study Bible can make a huge difference in your understanding of Scripture, which can then make a big impact on your spiritual and prayer life.  There are a lot of great Study Bibles out there, and this is one of them.  Several of my Scripture students have purchased this Bible, and they just love it!

Little Rock Study Bibles are available online.  On the Little Rock Scripture Study site, the deluxe edition is $64.95.  Happy shopping, sharing, reading and learning! 

Advent Retreat Online

Today I’d like to share with you several meditations from my Advent Retreat, which focused on the Infancy Narratives – the stories of the conception, birth and infancy of Jesus found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. 

If you simply want to listen to the meditations (which are about 10 minutes each), you will find them below – one based on Matthew’s Infancy Narrative (Mt. 1-2), and the other based on Luke’s (Lk. 1-2). 

If you would like a fuller retreat experience, follow the link below.  There you will find everything on one page:  a short “Introduction to the Infancy Narratives” (pdf) that will help you compare Matthew’s and Luke’s accounts (you’ll be amazed how different they are!), links to the texts of the Infancy Narratives, the audio meditations, and reflection questions to correspond with the meditations.

Feel free to share with others, especially those who may not be able to get out for a parish retreat.  We can bring a retreat to them!

CLICK HERE FOR AUDIO AND PRINT MATERIALS: ADVENT RETREAT ONLINE.

John Mosiman, courtesy of The Sacred Art Pilgrim (sacredartpilgrim.com).

John Mosiman, courtesy of The Sacred Art Pilgrim (sacredartpilgrim.com).