Word in the Hand

John 11:1-45 There was a man named Lazarus who lived in the village of Bethany with the two sisters, Mary and Martha, and he was ill. It was the same Mary, the sister of the sick man Lazarus, who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair. The sisters sent this message to Jesus, ‘Lord, the man you love is ill.’ On receiving the message, Jesus said, ‘This sickness will end not in death but in God’s glory, and through it the Son of God will be glorified.’ Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, yet when he heard that Lazarus was ill he stayed where he was for two more days before saying to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judaea.’ The disciples said, ‘Rabbi, it is not long since the Jews wanted to stone you; are you going back again?’ Jesus replied: ‘Are there not twelve hours in the day? A man can walk in the daytime without stumbling because he has the light of this world to see by; but if he walks at night he stumbles, because there is no light to gu...

Palm Sunday  Mark 11:1-10 Would n't it be lovely , just one year, not to have the  ho rro r of Good Friday looming over this  event? For some  paradox  of time to switch the end ing of the week to something  less guilt - ridden .  One of the hardest parts of the Gospel for me to read without  shuddering a t what was going to happen ne xt.  Ignatian Spirituality embraces the practice of imaginative meditation as well as contemplative prayer. Placing yourself in the Gospel can teach, heal and inspire.  This year , the thoug ht occurs to me that Pope Francis may well be joining Jesus in having a Palm Sunday moment or two.  For both of them, all t hat time in the desert, the m essage was being passed , believed, ignored , dismissed.  Until the summo ning of the Spirit   brings them  out of the soul thirsting, dryness  and the unending str u ggle  of the d ar ken ed and dr y valleys of hopeless n...