Today the readings take on a special significance for me, as it is the Feast of Saint Philip Neri, a saint I have become quite familiar with as our children all attended Saint Philip Neri Grade School, here in Omaha. Saint Philip Neri, like many of us today, had career options, his prayer life along with life events lead him to a deep, personal relationship with God and to a career in which he developed very loving relationships with the people of Rome. When I first heard about his life I was impressed with his ability to engage people, of all walks of life, in conversation through questions and through suggestions about the meaning of life and how to live life. In the First Reading we hear “Yet even God’s holy ones must fail.” It has been my life experience that tells me that it is our “failings” that teach us, humble us, remind us, and continue to challenge us - in much the same way as Saint Philip Neri did with the people of Rome in the early 1500s. “The Most High possesses all knowledge, and sees from of old the things that are to come: He makes known the past and the future and reveals the deepest secrets.” These lines, for me, bring into question the idea of free will and belief that God is all-knowing and yet I don’t see my life as pre-ordained but rather, I see opportunities to make decisions and choices in living every day. I trust that through prayer, reflection and discernment I will use my free will to make good and God inspired decisions and choices in my life. The line “Perennial is His almighty wisdom” really created an image for me as I have been enjoying my daffodil, tulips, lilac, iris and many more of my “perennial” spring flowers. How comforting and joyous it is to see these never-failing spring flowers and how comforting and joyous it is to know that I can go to God, in prayer, with my troubles, my decisions and my joy, knowing that He too is always there. The First Reading, then ends with the line “ All of them differ”; again my spring flower image. I am filled with joy and reminded to embrace the diversity in my life and to reflect upon a line from the Psalm, “Of the kindness of the Lord the earth is full.” God can truly be found in all things, including my diverse spring flowers and in the diversity of people. The blind man in Mark’s Gospel requests, “Master I want to see.” As I finished reading the Gospel I wondered again about my ability to “see” which choices or decisions I should make. I wondered about “seeing” from another point of view and about truly being open to diversity and “ seeing” which is really loving my fellow men and women as God continues to love me. |