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L’Alphabet du Carême – Lettre Z

21 mars 2024
Nicole Gregoire
2 Comments
Catégories: À bien y penser... blogue
Mots-clés: accueillir le Christ, détermination, honnêté, Luc 19:1-10, reputation, salut, Zachée

Z pour Zachée

Il était petit de taille mais il avait une détermination sans pareil.
Il savait ce qu’il voulait et… ce qu’il ne voulait pas!
Il voulait voir l’homme de Nazareth et il ne voulait pas que rien ni personne ne l’en empêche!

  Il a utilisé une astuce qui lui a bien réussi: il est monté dans un arbre, un sycomore faisait l’affaire.
Il a vu mais plutôt… il a été vu!
Il a été vu et il a été interpelé par celui qu’il désirait apercevoir.
Désormais, sa vie n’a plus été la même (Luc 19:1-10).

Plusieurs d’entre vous qui lisez ces lignes avait déjà à l’esprit le nom de ce personnage original.
Zachée, oui, Zachée l’homme à la réputation plus que douteuse aux yeux de plusieurs.
Mais aussi l’homme qui a su accueillir ce que son visiteur lui offrait: le salut, rien de moins!

Sa vie de fourberie est devenue une vie d’honnêteté et de générosité exemplaires.
Accueillir le Christ chez soi – non pas une fois mais en permanence – cela peut opérer une telle transformation!

Le ‘salut’ pour chacun/e de nous prendra un aspect personnalisé se réalisant au fil des jours.
La période de Carême qui s’achève nous a peut-être permis de le découvrir…

 

Note: Dans la vidéo qui suit, Zachée personnifié par Gabriel Couture nous partage son expérience avec l’Homme de Nazareth: https://youtu.be/SQ5QvJCl0Z0?si=A2684dki_L3C1k9C

 

Source: Image: https://thingspaulandluke.wordpress.com

The Alphabet of Lent – Letter Z

21 mars 2024
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: détermination, Luke 19:1-10, Man of Nazareth, reputation, salvation, sycamore, welcoming Christ, Zacchaeus

Z pour Zacchaeus

He was small of stature but determined as no one else.
He knew what he wanted and… what he did not want!
He wanted to see the Man of Nazareth, and he did not want anything, or anyone, to prevent him from doing so!

He used a trick which served him well: he climbed a tree, a sycamore was there for his purpose.
He has seen, or rather… he has been seen!
He was seen, and he was challenged by the one he wanted to catch sight of.
From then on, his life was never the same again (Luke 19:1-10).

Many of you reading these lines recall the name of this original fellow.
Zacchaeus, yes, Zacchaeus, the man with a more than doubtful reputation in the eyes of many.
But, also, the man who has received what his visitor was offering him: salvation, nothing less!

His life of duplicity became an example of a life of honesty and generosity.
Welcoming Christ in our lives – non once only but permanently – can achieve such a transformation!

For each one of us, ‘salvation’ will take on a personalized form and will be realized from day to day.
This period of Lent, coming to an end, may have allowed us to discover this…

 

Note: In the following video Zachaeus, personified by Augustine Sellam, shares with us his experience of meeting the Man of Nazareth: https://youtu.be/7TIwA1YgPII?si=oifyPpVawnYhEKWX

 

Source: Image: freebibleimages.org

7th Sunday of Year A – 2020

21 février 2020
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: 1 Cor.3:16-23, fake news, foolishness, gossip, paranoiac, pseudo-values, reputation, succeed, wisdom

Most people like to be seen… at their best!
In general, people want to have a reputation that can bring them praise.
We like to be known for our good qualities, our generous actions, our inspiring attitude in any given situation.
We wish people to appreciate who we are and what we do.

I expect that the Corinthians to whom the apostle Paul was writing (2nd reading: 1 Cor.3:16-23)
were quite the same as we are.
The words that Paul addressed them may have come rather as a shock, an unpleasant one at that!

“Do not deceive yourselves.
If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, 
you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. 
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight.
As it is written: ‘The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile’.”

In other words: our human wisdom is short-sighted, narrow-minded, incomplete,
in fact: not really wise at all.
I doubt whether any of us will accept this easily…
Whenever we make a good resolution, it would be surprising to find it worded as:
“From now on, I’ll be a fool.”

But Paul makes it clear that we should become fool in order to become wise.
We can ask ourselves: What is the foolishness we need to abandon?

It comes in many guises:

– the ‘fake news’ so popular nowadays;
– the malicious gossip;
– the hopeless plans;
– the foolhardy ventures;
– the futile pursuit of pseudo-values;
– the misguided attempts to succeed without effort;
– the empty boasting of one’s qualities;
– the erroneous belief that one is always right;
– the paranoiac attitude claiming that people are always against us;
   and you can add to the list…

God’s wisdom granted to us by God’s own Spirit is one of genuine trust and hope.
It makes us go through life at peace with God, with others and with ourselves.

It is worth becoming a fool to gain it, is it not?! 

 

Note: Another reflection is available on a different theme in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/7e-dimanche-de-lannee-a-2020/

 

Source: Image: Calvary Chapel of Emmet

 

18è dimanche de l’année C – 2019

2 août 2019
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Trésor ancien et nouveau
Mots-clés: cendres, esclave, gloire du monde, influence, Lc.11:1-13, Lc.12:13-21), préoccupations, reputation, richesse

La semaine dernière, le texte de l’évangile nous présentait Martha qui voulait gagner Jésus à sa cause contre sa sœur, Marie (Lc.11:1-13).
Cette semaine, un scénario semblable nous est offert alors qu’un homme approche Jésus pour qu’il prenne sa défense
contre son frère qui refuse de partager un héritage (Lc.12:13-21).

Dans les deux cas, Jésus aide la personne qui l’approche à changer de perspective.
La ‘méthode’ de Jésus demeure la même :
il nous aide à nous libérer des tracas, des soucis et des préoccupations qui nous accaparent
et nous privent de ce que la vie a de meilleur à nous offrir!

Ce que Jésus désire nous faire découvrir c’est que :
« La vie de quelqu’un, même dans l’abondance,
ne dépend pas de ce qu’il possède. »
 
C’est là un principe de sagesse qu’il nous est parfois bien difficile d’accepter.
Il semble qu’un désir compulsif nous rend esclave – le désir de posséder :

  • des biens matériels, de la richesse, oui,
  • mais aussi une réputation enviable,
  • un pouvoir qui s’exerce avec autorité sur les gens,
  • de l’influence indéniable sur les personnes qui nous entourent.

Et, non contents de posséder, nous voulons posséder toujours davantage !
Ce qui mérite l’apostrophe de Dieu et en terme bien clair : « Fous ! »
 
Si ce soir, on venait nous informer que notre nuit ne débouchera pas sur l’aube de demain…
Qu’en serait-il de nos possessions chèrement acquises ?…

On raconte qu’à partir du 13è siècle, lors de l’élection d’un pape, avant son couronnement,*
à trois reprises un moine se présentait devant lui et, faisant brûler une pièce d’étoffe, il répétait :
« Sic transit gloria mundi » ainsi passe la gloire du monde. »

De toute la richesse et la gloriole dûrement acquises, il ne reste que… des cendres !
À moins que nous n’ayons appris à… « être riche en vue de Dieu », comme le dit Jésus.

 

* N.B. Cette coutume s’est terminée en 1978 avec le Pape Jean Paul 1er qui a aboli le couronnement.

Note : Une autre réflexion est disponible sur un thème différent en anglais à : https://image-i-nations.com/18th-sunday-of-year-c-2019/

Et, dans une vidéo, Rachel (personnifiée par Nathalie Ménard) se pose la question: ‘Est-ce tout ce qu’il y a dans la vie?’  https://youtu.be/k6wStCaBH6U

Source : Image : fr.wikipedia.org

 

 

14th Sunday of Year C – 2019

5 juillet 2019
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: aim of life, fame, Is.49:16, Lk.10:1-12, Lk.10:17-20, names, reputation, social media

Many people long to be well-known and popular.
Eager to be famous, they want their reputation to spread far and wide.
They want their names to appear in newspapers or important publications.
They expect their realisations to be broadcast and their names acknowledged in social media.
For them, being forgotten, worse still being ignored, is a disaster and they cannot accept not to be in the limelight.

And yet… yet… is people’s opinion that important?
Being considered famous, even being recognised as a genius, is this the aim of life?

This reflection came to me as the last line of today’s gospel (Lk.10:1-12,17-20) was read.
To his apostles, overjoyed with the miracles they have been able to perform, Jesus says:

“Do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you,
but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
 
Long before, through the prophet Isaiah, God had said:
“See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands”. (Is.49:16)

Does the rest really count for that much?
This is how close we are to God – someone he simply cannot forget!
If only the reverse were true!…

Note: Another reflection is available on a different theme in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/14e-dimanche-de-lannee-c-2019/

Source: Image: thechurchinmalta.org

5th Sunday of Lent, Year B

15 mars 2018
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: choice, detachment, disciple of Christ, dying, dying to oneself, Jn.12:20-33, modern parable, possessions, real self, realizations, reputation

Among the gospel texts, there are some which are more than a little demanding…
And, when it is Jesus himself who speaks to us, there is no trying to escape.
Some may try to pretend they do not understand, but somehow they know they are deceiving themselves.

On this 5th Sunday of Lent (Year B – Jn.12:20-33) we are told:

“Anyone who loves his life loses it;
anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” (v.25)
(Text also found in Luke 9:24)
 
Some may discuss on the real meaning of ‘losing one’s life’.
Some may argue about what it entails.
Some may wonder what it demands from each one of us.

Most people will admit that it is about detachment.
But what is it ‘to be detached’?
Detached from what and… detached for what?

A modern parable makes it quite clear.
A man on pilgrimage to a renowned shrine was passing through a remote area where a poor man was living who had a reputation of holiness.
The pilgrim happened to reach the hut of the holy man at lunch time.
The poor man quickly opened a small bag and he took out a slice of bread which he broke into two pieces giving one half to his visitor.
As he did this, a precious stone also came out of the bag.
The traveler was amazed at the jewel sparkling in the noon sun.
He asked the poor man for the stone and the holy man gave it to him without hesitation.
On his return journey, the traveler brought back the jewel to the poor man saying:
“Now, give me rather what enabled you to give me so readily the only thing you possessed!”
 
This holy man was truly detached – he did possess something and something very precious –
yet, he was ready to give it without the slightest hesitation.

Perhaps it is a question of NOT being possessed by our possessions…
Someone has given a very simple definition of ‘detachment’ saying :
‘If I have something I like, it’s fine;
if I don’t have it, it’s also fine!’

Detachment of our possessions, our realizations, our reputation –
our real self is so much deeper!

In general, dying is something people do not like to think about and even less so to speak about.
Dying to … oneself, is no easier to envisage and yet…
It is essential to one who calls himself, or herself, a disciple of Christ.

Of such is discipleship made of, but the choice to be and a disciple of Christ is and remains ours…

Note: Another reflection on a different theme is available in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/5e-dimanche-careme-annee-b/

Source: Image: Pinterest