The Second Wife

Job - http://www.biblevector.com/2011/03/bible-stories-job.html

The Second Wife (Job's Second Wife)

At the Devil’s doings,

(and with God’s Blessings)

came the annihilation

of Job’s animals, his children perishing in the collapse of a house,

the death and destruction

of all that Job cherished.

Job did not curse God,

as Satan believed he would, and

God rewarded Job’s faith

by restoring his prosperity. 

Yes, He gave him twice as much as he owned before suffering the Devil’s trials!

Fourteen thousand sheep; and

six thousand camels; and

a thousand yoke of oxen; and

a thousand she-asses.

And there was even more:

seven sons and

three beautiful daughters named Jemimah, Keziah and Kerenhappuch.

Presumably, a new wife who bore him these seven sons and three beautiful daughters.

And Job was happy again.

Life was good.

God was Good.

But what did the nameless new wife think, when

a restored Job came a'courtin?

Did she ask: where is your previous family, oh, unlucky one?

Oh, God-fearing, pious one? Oh, cursed one?

Did she wonder why God destroyed Job’s family, his life?

And later, after she accepted Job into her life,

as she lay awake by Job’s side at night, in his new house,

did Job’s new, nameless wife keep her eyes open, wondering:

Will God one day also wipe me out, along with our seven sons and three beautiful daughters?

Mediation on Psalm 90

Dust particles

Meditation on today's Morning Office, Psalm 90:

You turn men into dust,

  you say to them “go back, children of men.”

Where, exactly, is God sending the "children of men" back to? The dirt and dust from which we were made? To the beginning, since we are being sent "back". If we go backwards, we return to what, then?

What state of being do we return to, when we are turned into dust? Inert dust? Molecules of matter that no longer need to be "en-souled" for survival/life? The term "dust" does not imply any kind of in-formed matter, does it? A dust particle is insignificant, it is carried to and fro by a breeze, by something else that animates it, that moves it. Its random movement (qua fate) is in someone/something else's hands.

The phrase "children of men" implies they (we?), the dead, are not "children of God". We are one or the other: children of men, or children of God. Jesus was both, but can we be both? We begin our life on earth as children of men, but remembering that our earthly existence only begins once God has joined our soul to a body (matter/dust).

Do we simply "go back" if we fail to acknowledge our divine origins? In other words, return to your state of dust if you cannot or have not lived your life in a holy way. If you want to live as children of men, you will die as children of men, and not children of God?

The answer lies further down in the psalm:

 

Let the glory of the Lord God be upon us:

  make firm the work of your hands.

  Make firm the work of your hands.

We implore God to "make firm the work of His hands". We are the work of His hands. Let's remember that. God is the only one who gives meaning to our lives, since He is responsible for creating us in the first place. Why did God make you? The Baltimore Catechism answers this for children (of God):


A. God made me to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him forever in the next.

Read your Catechism, people.

Taking Down the Body From the Cross - Meditation

Taking Down Christ's Body from the Cross is the sixth prayer meditation in the Devotion to Mary's Sorrows.

Michelangelo's Pieta, image from Wikipedia

Whenever I think of Michelangelo's or anyone else's rendition of the Pieta, Mary cradling Jesus' lifeless body is always juxtaposed in my mind with Mary cradling the infant Jesus. This brings great comfort, in one sense, since it completes Jesus' ministry on Earth, which began with his incarnation, with the mystery of the marriage of divinity and humanity, which then led to His birth.

Besides a mother's loss, what did Mary feel when she held the body of Our Savior? Did she recall the angel's encounter thirty-three years before? Did she think of her quiet assent, her humble and faith-based ave, her assent to God's request? Did she consider all those times when the Holy Family had to flee from dangerous threats to her son? Did she wonder why the Innocents had to be murdered, when ultimately, Jesus still met his death in such an ugly, humiliating way? Did she recall that bitter-sweet event so long ago, at the presentation of Our Lord in the temple, when Simeon praised the baby Jesus and then warned our Blessed Mother that her heart would be pierced by sorrow?

As she holds his corpse, the weight of his flesh straining her arms, did she wonder how Jesus could be the Savior of the world when he couldn't, or wouldn't, save himself?

Was her faith in God tested, after seeing her Son brutally tortured for two days?

No, probably not. Mary had faith in God. And she was the most tested of God's earthly creatures, and for that she deserved to be crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth.

Mary's Left Hand

A long time ago I set one of my favorite works of art (Michelangelo's Pieta) as my computer wallpaper, so I've had plenty of opportunity to meditate on this work. But only recently did Mary's left hand get my attention. And so I thought I'd share my thoughts about it with you.

The Pieta is Michelangelo's interpretation of the taking of Christ's crucified body down from the cross and laying Him in his sorrowful Mother's waiting arms.

Pieta image from wikipediae.com

As you can see, at the physical level, Mary supports Christ's body (His dead weight) with her right hand. Her fingers dig into the flesh of His underarm. She seems unwilling to let go of His cooling body, unwilling to let go of the physical proof of her miraculous life- and history-changing fiat, her faithful response, "Be it done to me according to Thy Word" to the archangel Gabriel's request on God's behalf for her free will assent to bear His son, to bring forth the Word into our corruptible and sinful world.

In the sculpture, Mary's right hand is on the skin of her Son, but look closely at her left hand. Her hand is open. Who holds an open hand? A beggar. Someone who either wants something placed in it, or someone who has just released something. In the context of the Pieta, Mary shows both states. She needs to release her physical hold on her deceased Son because His body and blood, after all, belong to the physical world, a world full of trials and tribulations and, for both Jesus and Mary and all humans, the realm of much anguish and sorrow.

But Mary's hand is also open, because she wants to receive something.

What can Mary possibly receive at this point in her life? What could any grieving mother want that would make the nightmare of holding her deceased Son remotely bearable? She can receive the only thing that she as a loyal servant has ever asked of God: His graces.

Mary lived her whole life – from the moment of her immaculate conception onward – for Jesus. What does she have to live for now, now that her only begotten Son has experienced such a gruesome death? As a mother, she must be despondent. Vicious Roman politicians and legionaries (compelled by the religious leaders of the day) helped to kill her Son, the miracle of life that once issued from her womb. And Mary was helpless to stop them.

But with her open left hand (and bowed head) she humbly accepts God's will, acknowledging her Son's soul and divinity. Mary has always understood herself as part of God's unfathomable Providence, and she knows deep in her heart that the death of Jesus is also part of the unfolding of His will. Not an easy situation to find comfort in one's faith.

But it is precisely Mary's perfect, although human, response to these horrific events that make us Catholics recognize her as our intermediary to Jesus and His Father. We love Jesus' Holy Mother, not as a goddess to be worshipped, but as the only perfect human being who ever lived (after Adam and Eve's fall) someone who always acted with love and who is "full of Grace", just as we should all live.

Mary understood! She did not sin, and submitted her whole life, her entire being, body and soul, to God's will. And through this submission to God's will Mary has shown us the unsurpassed strength found in the true love and humility of her son. As St. Louis Marie de Monfort observed, "To Jesus through Mary". And St. Maximilian Kolbe reminded us: "Never be afraid of loving the Blessed Virgin too much. You can never love her more than Jesus did."

Mary constantly reminds us that although we live in this temporary world, that we will indeed suffer much physical pain and many hardships, she herself has experienced all of these sorrows and understands our distress. We pray to Mary to intercede on our behalf to her Son, as she once did at the wedding at Cana. Why? Because, when it comes right down to it, what son has ever refused his mother's sincere request?

We need to open that closed hand and stop grasping at things. God will provide for all our needs, if only we ask Him.

~JT~

Finding The Child Jesus - Rosary Meditation

This is the first in what I hope will be a series of meditations on the Rosary. As an auxiliary member of the Legion of Mary, I pray the Rosary at least once daily.

Since today is Monday, my thoughts lead me to the fifth Joyful Mystery: the finding of the child Jesus in the temple.

The Child Jesus in the Temple - Image is from gardenofmary.com

You can read the Joyful Mystery here, along with all of the other Mysteries.

1. When Jesus is twelve years old, He goes with His parents to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover.
2. After the feast of the Passover, Joseph and Mary unknowingly set out for Nazareth without Jesus.
3. At the end of the first day's journey they discover Jesus is missing.
4. His parents return immediately looking for Him.
5. This loss causes grief and anxiety beyond our understanding to the hearts of Mary and Joseph.
6. On the third day they find Jesus in the Temple among the Doctors who were astonished at His wisdom.
7. Mary: "Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been searching for you in sorrow."
8. Jesus: "Why did you search for me? Did you not know that I must be about my Father's business?"
9. Jesus goes down with them to Nazareth, and is subject to them.
10. Mary keeps all these things in her heart.

Actually, I am more concerned about the events prior to Mary and Joseph finding Jesus, namely, the fact that they left the temple without Him in the first place. This event is also one of the Seven Sorrows of Mary that I pray daily, so it is frequently in my thoughts.

What are we to make of this serious lack of parental supervision on Mary and Joseph's behalf?

The moral/message revealing itself to me is more along the lines of a cautionary tale: If we do not constantly pay attention to Jesus, we will lose sight of Him. Luckily, we always know where to find Him, for, as he tells Mary "I must be about my Father's business."

I think the difficulty is first of all realizing that we have lost sight of Him, and then figuring out how get Him back into our lives. Without knowing that we have lost Jesus (and all that this sad state of affairs entails, including His redemptive sacrifice on the cross for us), we cannot move toward changing our situation.

So, how do we know if we have lost sight of Jesus?

One way to find out is to perform a sincere examination of conscience to see if/how we are leading exemplary Christian lives. Do we follow all the commandments, not just the easy ones that we are comfortable with? Do we truly see Jesus in others? Do we give our lives completely to Christ? Do we read the Bible and meditate on God's Word on a daily basis? As Catholics, do we read/study the Catechism of the Catholic Church? Do we regularly seek reconciliation, and all of the other sacraments God has instituted on Earth for us? Do we study the lives of the saints, in order to learn how they were able to dwell on Earth and to follow God's Law? Do we respect human life from conception to death?

If we're not as close to Jesus as we would like to be, where do we find Him again?

The very easiest way is to invite him back into His temple - in us, body and soul.

The second (and also easy) way is for us to go to the temple - His Holy Church. Jesus waits for us in His Church, especially in the Blessed Sacrament; in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. We will always find him there.

No one is perfect. We can all be better. The question is: are we willing to make the effort, before it is too late? The first step is to ensure that we search for, and find, and then keep our eyes firmly on Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer.

Amen!

~JT~

Meditation: On Acceptance

This is the first in what I hope will be a series of meditations, to be posted when inspiration strikes. I might not do too many of them, since others have spoken much more eloquently and in more edifying ways than what I could possibly have to say.

During a recent sacrament of reconciliation (confession, for non-Catholic readers) I confessed how critical I felt toward others. I admitted that it is a character flaw I wish I could change. The priest suggested that I light a candle and focus on that flickering light for five minutes or longer. In that time, I should imagine that the candlelight is God's love reaching and enveloping me, warming me, accepting me as I am, right at that moment. I should use the candlelight to create a clearing in which I could dwell without judging myself.

The priest's belief was that if I could accept myself more easily, then I could more freely extend that acceptance to others. The theory sounded good, and I gave it a try.

The first time I tried this meditation I did not enjoy it too much. Keep in mind that before giving it up, I'd practiced yoga for 15 years, so I'm quite familiar with meditation and meditation techniques. In fact, as the priest described this meditation I was already relating it to the Opening Heart chakra that I'd once practiced.

So, I lit my candle and focused on sensing God's love and on His accepting who I was. Within seconds I began to think about my faults, and how unworthy I was to receive this Divine love and acceptance. I soon became aware of my wayward self-defeating thoughts and re-focused them not on me, but on God accepting me, with all my faults. I admit that my mind kept coming up with reasons as to why I wasn't worthy of God's acceptance, and I kept having to return to the initial aim of the exercise, of feeling acceptance, reminding myself that this was not the time for an examination of conscience.

It wasn't easy. But it was a great first step. I now practice this meditation every day, and will continue to do so until I feel that I am less critical, and more accepting, of others.

It's important to recognize that as much as I would like to be accepted for who I am, that others shouldn't judge me too quickly or harshly, that I haven't walked a mile in anyone else's shoes, I should consider extending to others the same... courtesy? attitude? judgement?

Of course, the real litmus test of this meditation will be my acceptance of tailgaters as I drive. I think I've got a long way to go before that will happen... :-)

~JT~