GOD IS LIGHT

GOD IS LIGHT AND THE LIGHT SHINES IN THE DARKNESS

God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say, “We have fellowship with him,” while we continue to walk in darkness, we lie and do not act in truth. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light then we have fellowship with one another and the Blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:5-2:2.

            Every once in awhile I read a scripture passage that takes my breath away; I am awed by the truth of it and at the same time feel a kinship with the author that is hard to describe.  We have all had those so-called ‘aha’ moments in life when we know without doubt that something is right.  In my life, one was the moment when my boy friend and I looked at each other and said almost in unison, “We should get married.”  I don’t think our feet touched the ground for several days.  It felt right from the moment the words were spoken.  It was right for the next 45 years.

So it was this week when I read the passage from John.

                        God is light. God illuminates all.  God drives away the shadows and puts an end to fear and despair.  As if that were not enough, God came to us in the flesh to give us proof of this and to show us the way to live in that light.  What more do we need?  As a child I lived in fear of God.  It was a crime and punishment relationship and it wasn’t until Vatican II when our Pastor, Fr. Livius Paoli, taught us that the goal of  Vatican II was to lead us to see God in a new way. I felt the way a parolee must feel, liberated and facing the future with hope.  John continues…..

                        If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and    cleanse us from every wrongdoing.  

And again…

                        …If anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the           righteous one. He is expiation for our sins, and not for our sins only but for     those of the whole world.

           

                        These words were written by someone whose life was completely changed by the ‘aha’ moment when he believed.  He knew in his heart that what he had come to understand was the absolute truth and he shared it with his fellow believers but I doubt he ever imagined people like us so far in the future would read them and find the truth in them.

                        So many people still fear God, imagining themselves groveling at his throne trying to justify their lives to him and begging forgiveness when the life of Christ and scripture passages like this one contradict that image.  How much time is wasted in fear and worry and guilt?  We say we love God, that we believe, and yet we ignore his words, “I will remember their sins no more.”  (IS 43:25)

                                    There is much talk about evangelizing those who don’t know Christ and how we should be bold and speak out.  But how can we if we actually don’t believe the most basic truth about God?   Where is the joy that comes from knowing that God loves us without reservation? Why should we agonize over our failings?  God doesn’t.  John wrote these words thousands of years ago and they still strengthen the heart and help us renew our commitment to Christ every day and they will continue to do so until Christ comes again.  We must walk in the light as He is in the light.

            With love and hope that the New Year is all you wish it to be.

            Carol Lemelin  OPA

                       

FAMILIES

December 23, 2015

FAMILIES

            So far as anyone knows the public celebration of the Birth of Christ began around 354 AD.  As it has developed over time, especially in this country, it is coupled with the gathering of families.  People come together from around block or around the world just to be together to celebrate and exchange gifts. It’s not all sweetness and light all the time but family is family and is the bedrock of society.  The question is, just what is a family?  Naturally the first definition is people who are related by blood, but the better definition is people who are united in love with the purpose of sharing life and caring for one another.  Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Zechariah, John and Jesus were a family.  Elizabeth caring for Mary and Mary in turn caring for Elizabeth; John paving the way for Jesus and paying for it with his life. Those acts were not done because they shared the same bloodline but because they loved one another.

            In nature we are awed when we see a dog nursing a kitten or a monkey caring for a piglet.  Certainly Facebook has no end of examples.  In agriculture an apple tree can be grafted so that some branches produce Macintosh Apples and another branch on the same tree can produce Jonathans. This generation has embraced the concept of diverse people making a family, changing forever the idea that you must be tied by blood to be one.

            I knew a man whose drinking had separated him from his biological family. He lived in a down and out apartment and scraped together a meager living and drank.   Then he died.  To their credit, his family arranged the funeral. At the wake several men came in who were unmistakably his cronies.  While everyone else gave them a wide berth, the man’s sister spoke to them and they poured out their grief telling her that he was their dear friend, their brother.  He made their lives happier because he was kind and loving and would do anything for them. They were a family.

            First and foremost Christmas is about love.  It’s love that motivates us to shop and cook and plan visits.  It is love that brought Christ to us.  The love of God is made manifest in Christmas and Jesus is the first Christmas gift.  Love is the glue that holds everything together.  Instead of looking for reasons to complain about the commercialism and the lack of religious fervor in Christmas, look for the love.

“For God so loved the world, He sent His only begotten Son.”  (Jn 3:16)

With love and wishes for a Blessed New Year,

Carol Lemelin OPA

IT'S HERE AGAIN!

12/16/15

IT’S HERE AGAIN!

            As of Thursday the dreaded ‘week before Christmas’ begins!  The Saturday before Christmas is the worst.  It’s a really good idea to have all your errands run before Saturday because that is the worst traffic day of the year.  Not necessarily because of the amount of traffic, but because of the way people drive.

Parking lots are especially dangerous for drivers and pedestrians.  No matter how well we plan it seems that Christmas creeps up on us and we are panicked by the things left undone and this makes us cross and self-centered drivers. 

            When the crush builds you hear complaints about what Christmas has become as though someone else is responsible.  But the truth is it isn’t some vague they but as the old comic said, “They is us.”  When this awesome feast becomes a chore it is time to take stock.  How did I let this happen? When did anxiety, worry, bad moods, and dread take the place of joy? 

            I hit on this idea. Everyday of the last week before Christmas I ask myself to imagine where Mary and Joseph were on their journey.  Can you imagine being nine months pregnant and riding a donkey?  For mothers this would be as bad a thing as one can imagine.  How was Joseph holding up?  The whole process is alien to men anyway but this - this was incredible.  When I put myself there beside them the mundane tasks before me seem pretty unimportant.

            Doesn’t it make you wonder about God?  Wonder about your idea of God?

God, the Almighty, the creator, the judge, decides to come to earth in this human way, not just the birth but also the journey, the privation, the loneliness, the confusion and fear.  From its beginning the life of Christ was deeply human and for that we should be eternally grateful.  The joy of the feast is in the knowledge that on that day God became one of us.  Take away the trimmings, the trumpets, the angels, the kings and what remains is magnificent in its simplicity and shows us the loving heart of God.  God made good on His promise and we have Jesus with us all the time.  Take a breath; let the wonder fill your heart.  The joy will return. 

With love and Christmas blessings to you all,

Carol Lemelin OPA

WHAT WE NEED

12/9/15

WHAT WE NEED

            Doesn’t it seem that during the Christmas season when difficulties arise they seem so much worse? Is it really true that there are more of those things in this season or is it that we want this month to be trouble free and peaceful?  It’s probably that. With the words peace, love, joy, friendship and harmony all over the place, even on my Christmas dishes, we expect an oasis to appear where we can rest from the cares of life.  But of course, that isn’t possible and if we stop and think we realize that the original Christmas was anything but trouble free.  A young couple far from home, expecting a baby any minute, strangers in a strange town dependent on an indifferent world for help. The art depicting the Nativity has left a false impression and is pretty far from the actual conditions. They are depicted as supremely serene yet it must have been terrifying. Anyone who has witnessed birth and its immediate aftermath knows the truth. In this case the surroundings were dirty, smelly, likely damp and chilly on top of everything else.  All they had going for them was their trust in God. What the future held they had no idea and they hung on for dear life to the belief that God was at their side.  Sound familiar?  It’s a pretty sure thing that at sometime in our lives we will be in a situation where all we have is our faith in God to sustain us.

            The birth of the Savior had to be in such circumstances because He came to give hope to the world.  He came to proclaim that He is willing to do everything it takes to assure us of his Love.  This is truly what Christmas is about.  All the decorations, gifts, and festivities are just trimming and when things are difficult they are not enough to sustain us.

            Through this extraordinary event and the example of Mary and Joseph, He is telling us that when we have Him we have everything we need. 

With love,

Carol Lemelin OPA

(Order of Preachers Associate)

CHRISTIANS

12/2/15

CHRISTIANS

            We seem to be hearing a lot lately about this being a Christian nation.  I like to think that is true.  Everyone may not profess a belief in Christ but much of our law and custom reflect His message.  Our acceptance and understanding of the old saying, “Your right to swing your arm ends at my nose”, for example. We are offended if someone doesn’t hold a door or say thank you or give way at four way stops because not doing so is against custom.  For most people that stems from the Christian principle to care for one another.  Lately though the concept of a Christian nation is being coupled with some very unchristian ideas.  For example, someone recently said that we don’t want Muslims here because this is a Christian Nation.  Someone else said that if the diners in the Parisian restaurant had weapons the outcome would have been entirely different. Perhaps.  Not better though.  The idea that if everyone carried a gun we would have peace has sent the lawmen of the old west turning over in their graves.

            What is happening to us?  If, as we like to think, we are a Christian nation, why are the Christians silent when these things are said?

            It would be a good idea for everyone who calls him/herself a Christian to go back to the foundation of the faith through The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles and read what those early pioneers believed was required of the followers of Jesus. For example St. Paul’s letter to the Romans (10:9-18):

            “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”

            Christianity is two-fold, both heart and mouth are involved. Living life as a Christian but keeping it secret is just as bad as claiming to be a Christian but not living the life. Christmas is coming and we begin the remembrance of Christ’s life all over again.  The love of God becomes flesh and brings with Him all we need to build a world of peace and justice and his final words to us were; “Go and teach.” If only we had enough faith. 

With love,

Carol Lemelin OPA