St. Therese of Carmel Podcasts

St. Therese of Carmel 2 March 2013 5:30pm

recording


Gathering:#686 Come and Journey
Psalm: #58 The Lord is Kind and Merciful
Preparation: #396 The Cross of Jesus
Communion: O God You Search Me
Meditation: Come Back to Me
Meditation: # 410  Return to God
Closing: #416 Lord Throughout These Forty Days

Father Nick was the presider, assisted by Deacon John Fanelle.

March 16th day-long retreat about the eucharist was announced. Following the evening Mass on that day will be a dramatization of the Passion by a young Polish man from Chicago. He has given performances for the past seven years on the Passion. This is one of two performances on the West Coast.

The homily began with the frustration of expecting to harvest fruit, and finding nothing on the tree. Would you blame the owner for wanting to cut down the tree that doesn't bear fruit?

The parable is powerful in the sense that it asks us "who are we in the parable of the fig tree".

The owner of the orchard? The gardener? Or perhaps, the fig tree?

In our spiritual lives, where do we come in?

Almost every day we are in the garden, making mistakes, and failing to bear fruit. Suffering was believed to be a result of sin. Jesus had a tough time convincing people that God doesn't punish us in this way. God is the owner of the orchard, and when he sees the barren fig tree, and thinks about cutting it down, he instead listens to the gardener, who says let's wait one more year.

Are we the owner of the orchard in our lives? Do we rush to condemn? Or do we give second chances? Are we the gardeners?

Are we people that encourage? Are we the barren tree? What do we produce? Do we bear good fruit, or bitter fruit?

The gifts of compassion, understanding, and love are available to those of us that are open to them.

God can't make us repent. It has to come from within our hearts and minds. People's hearts are changed during this season. Let us all try to be the gardeners.

posted by Michelle @ 8:44 AM