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24th Sunday of Year C – 2022

9 septembre 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: enjoy, Father, freedom, illusion, Luke 15:11-32, situation, son

A gospel text – THE gospel text so well known! (Luke 15:11-32).
Too well known, perhaps… to the point that we fail to recognize the real identity of the people –
those presented in Jesus’ parable.

A son like… many other…
Cherished by a loving father…
Unaware of all that the father’s love does lavish on him…
Dreaming of other places where freedom should be found…
Clinging to the illusion that no bonds or boundaries is liberty…
Wanting to enjoy life in his own way…
Suddenly aware of all that has been lost…
Making the experience of need, real need…
Realizing that what he had was the answer to this need…

 

 

 

 

 

 

A son like many… of us…
We may try not to notice our situation as it is…
We may use different means to deceive ourselves…
We may say that all is well while knowing it is not…
We may cling to the illusion that being free is all that matters…
We may pretend that we do not need anybody…
We may protest any intervention of those near to us seeing it as interference…
We may claim that we do not need ‘a god’ and all that it means…
We may have gone far… far away indeed… far from our true selves…

Shall we, at long last, “come to our senses” as the young man in the parable did?
Shall we have the courage to “leave this place” of pseudo-freedom and start on the way to return ‘home’?
Shall we dare to acknowledge to ourselves, and to our Father, that we have not been what he and we want most?

Then, the festive spirit that will be ours can hardly be described – it needs to be experienced!

 

Note: Another reflection is available on a different theme in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/24e-dimanche-de-lannee-c-2022/

 

Source: Images: freebibleimages.org

25th Sunday of Year B – 2021

17 septembre 2021
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Children, God's words, Mark 9:30-37, situation, task, welcome

To move from the written words to what they express…
To go beyond images to perceive what they describe…
To understand situations to the point of perceiving the reality they suggest…

This is the task that we are faced with in trying to understand the texts of Scripture, especially those of the gospel.
 
In simple words it means: to appropriate a text, to make it my own.
It demands of me that I try to discover what it really means in my own life.
The gospel text of this Sunday (Mark 9:30-37) can serve as an example.
The last verse mentions the words of Jesus:
 
“Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me;
and whoever welcomes me
does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”   

If someone were to ask you: ‘Did you ever welcome God?’,
you would probably hesitate to say ‘Yes’, or ‘No’.
But, did you ever welcome a child… in the name of Jesus?
If so, you have indeed welcomed God!

We should NOT see this reflection as some grammatical exercise, it is so much more than that!
It leads us to read the words of Scripture no longer as simply some sacred writings that we should understand and remember.

It enables us to receive the word of God addressed to us personally.
God’s message wants to reach us in our here-and-now situation, whatever it is at any given time.

If we allowed God’s words – God’s Word Himself in Jesus – to address us in such a personal way…
what a change this would make!

You need not take my word for it but… try it!

 

Note: Another reflection is available on a different theme in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/25e-dimanche-de-lannee-b-2021/

 

Source: Image: www.daily-prayers.org

22nd Sunday of Year B – 2021

27 août 2021
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Dt.4:1-2, Dt.4:6-8, feeling, God is near, prayer, sinful, situation, weak

GOD… High above?… Far away?…
Unreachable?… Unconcerned?…
Some believe this… the opposite – the reality – is so extraordinary!

The leader of God’s people, Moses, assures them that God is very near to them whenever they pray to him.
In the text of today’s 1st reading (Dt.4:1-2,6-8), he states this as a fact:

“The Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him.”
 
This was more than 12 centuries before Jesus came to live among us.
I ask myself, are we today as convinced as Moses was that God is indeed near to us
whenever we turn to him in prayer?

I say ‘when WE turn to him’ –
we do not need to ask him to come near us, he is always with us, but…
Are we convinced of his nearness?
Are we sure that he listens to us and is concerned about us?
 
Whenever –
no matter what situation we are in,
no matter what we feel like,
no matter how long we may have been away from him,
no matter how weak, sinful, desperate, we may judge ourselves to be…

Moses’ words are still valid to this day:
“The Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him.”
 
And, if ever we feel we do not have the faith to trust these words…
He can give even that faith!

 

Note: Another reflection is available on a different theme in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/22e-dimanche-de-lannee-b-2021/

 

 

Source: Image: pinterest.com  

Fête de l’Épiphanie, année B – 2021

2 janvier 2021
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Trésor ancien et nouveau
Mots-clés: 'trésors', conte, étoile, guide, légende, les Rois, mages, nationalité, recherche, sens, signification, situation, symboles

« La Fête de Rois, » dit-on et, après un moment de silence une question surgit:
« Est-ce bien vrai, cette histoire-là? 
Est-ce que ce n’est pas une légende, tout simplement?»

Et d’autres questions s’ajoutent à la première:
« Les choses se sont-elles passées vraiment comme on le raconte?
Et, il y avait bien trois Rois, pas quatre?
On dit que c’était ‘des Mages’, des gens qui étudiaient les étoiles, vous croyez à tout cela? »
vous demande-t-on?

Plusieurs affirmeront avec conviction qu’il s’agit là d’un conte pour les enfants,
libre à vous d’y croire si cela a un sens pour vous.

Voilà ce qu’il fallait considérer depuis le début:
le sens de ce que l’on présente comme un événement.

L’apparition d’une étoile,
la recherche,
la quête d’information,
la découverte d’un nouveau-né,
l’offrande de trésors –

tous ces éléments doivent être perçus et reçus comme des symboles –
des symboles dont la signification se manifeste à quiconque est prêt à s’ouvrir à une révélation –
la révélations que:

Dieu éclaire ceux/celles qui le cherchent,
il guide leur marche et leur désir de le connaître,
il se manifeste à eux
il accepte ce qu’ils/elles offrent – pour Lui toute offrande est un trésor
et lui-même se donne alors à chacun/e – quelles que soient leur origine, nationalité, langue ou situation.

Un conte? Il n’y en a pas de plus vrai!
Une légende? Nulle n’est plus signifiante!

Note : Une autre réflexion est disponible sur un thème différent en anglais à: https://image-i-nations.com/feast-of-the-epiphany-year-b-2021/

 

Source : Image : Vector4free

1st Sunday of Advent, Year B – 2020

27 novembre 2020
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Advent, awake, death, encouragement, Mark 13:33-37, situation, strength, understanding, wait for the Lord

All kinds of things and situations can keep us awake.
For some people, caffeine will do this.
Other substances with some stimulant will do the same.

But anxiety, fear and worry, will have the same effect: prevent us from sleeping.
On the other hand, a phone call announcing some unexpected good news or the anticipation of a pleasant event will probably keep sleep away.

The gospel text of this 1st Sunday of Advent (Year B: Mark 13:33-37) is short
and yet we are told four times to keep awake, to stay awake!

Stay awake not to watch a good movie on the screen, or play a video game.
Not to work on the computer, or read a novel.
But then, to do what?

Stay awake to wait for the Lord.
For many people, these words evoke the end of the world, or perhaps the moment of death.
This understanding is correct but, to my mind, incomplete.

Personally, I am convinced that the Lord can come at any moment, in every situation –
Not necessarily at the end of time, or the end of our lives.

His coming is discreet, gentle… it come under the form of

  • a word of praise from a colleague
  • a new idea for a project
  • an additional supply of patience in a trying situation
  • some encouragement from a friend who sees I am at my wit’s end
  • an increase of strength when I just can’t go on
  • the sudden understanding of the puzzling reaction of a loved one…

His presence can become close and very real in whatever happens if only we are alert,
AWAKE to his being there with us.
If only…

The period of Advent starting today is a good time to do this from day to day.

Note: Another reflection on a different theme is available in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/1er-dimanche-de-lavent-annee-b-2020/

 

Source: Images: human life   AppleGate Recovery   Stockfreeimages   SoundCloud

En besoin continu de réapprendre cette leçon…

22 mars 2018
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: On m'a parlé de...
Mots-clés: aider les gens, besoins, drogue, être interpellé, Jn.12:47, ne pas juger, sauver le monde, situation, vie quotidienne

Il y a des leçons qu’il nous faut constamment ré-apprendre…
NE PAS JUGER en est une.
Andrea Cloutier en est bien convaincue et s’y exerce.
L’évangile du jeudi de la 5è semaine du Carême (Jn.8:51-59)
nous montrent les Juifs accusant Jésus d’être possédé.
Ils n’avaient pas appris cette leçon.
 

4è dimanche de l’année B

25 janvier 2018
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Trésor ancien et nouveau
Mots-clés: Ami, coeur, conversaton, découragement, distration, essentiel, événement, indifférence, lassitude, livre, occupations, Psaume 94(95), routine, situation, voisine, voix de Dieu

De tous temps, les messagers de Dieu ont exhorté son peuple à faire bien des choses.
Leurs paroles et leurs écrits présentent le message de Dieu dans toute son exigence.
À temps et à contretemps, ils rappellent ce que l’on doit faire… et ne PAS faire!

En ce dimanche (4è dimanche de l’année B) l’auteur du Psaume (Ps.94(95):1-2,6-7,9) redit avec insistance :
« Aujourd’hui, ne fermez pas votre cœur,
mais écoutez la voix du Seigneur.»
 
Un conseil? Un commandement? Une mise en garde? Une ligne de conduite à suivre?
Sans doute un peu de tout cela, mais surtout une règle de vie qui peut favoriser une rencontre –
la rencontre de Dieu lui-même dont la voix nous rejoint au plus intime.

De nos jours, ils sont probablement peu nombreux les gens qui pensent qu’ils, ou elles, entendront la voix de Dieu d’une manière tangible.
Mais peut-être sont-ils aussi peu nombreux – malheureusement – à croire qu’on peut pas entendre la voix de Dieu de quelle que manière que ce soit!

Fermer son cœur? On le fait de bien des manières…
Distraction… Indifférence… Lassitude… Routine… Découragement… et quoi encore?
Ah oui, manque de temps!
Nos occupations et nos préoccupations multiples ferment notre cœur à tout ce qui n’est pas… immédiatement présent et… essentiel!
Et si nous manquions ainsi l’Essentiel?!

La voix de Dieu peut prendre bien des formes et des nuances…

Oui, bien des formes et des nuances.
Ne PAS fermer son cœur, surtout pas!

Source : Image : YouTube

Note: Un autre texte de réflexion est disponible en anglais sur un thème différent à:  https://image-i-nations.com/4th-sunday-of-year-b/

16th Sunday of Year A

20 juillet 2017
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: advice, enemy, evil, God, good, harvest, injustice, lenient, Mt.13:24-43, poor, powerful, présence, real, rich, right, seed, selfish, separate, situation, sort out, suffering, wait, way of God, weak, weeds, wisdom, wrong

There is so much that is wrong in our world today, is it not so?
The powerful bring suffering to the weak.
The selfish – legions of them – grab all they can.
The rich keep adding to their share while the poor have to manage on what they can scrape together.

It seems that evil spreads far and wide, and goodness has a hard time existing at all.
Examples we see every day are only too many and too easy to find.

Poverty, sickness, injustice, suffering – evil under all its forms – everywhere we turn it seems that we see only more of that!
Some people mutter to themselves: “Not much sign of God in a world like this…”
Others get really angry, and yes, angry with God: Why does he not do something to right all that is wrong?
They whisper under their breath: “If I were God, things would be different!”

We have to admit it: we are troubled by the presence of evil in our world, in people…
Perhaps today’s gospel (16th Sunday of Year A – Mt.13:24-43) can bring light to this situation.
At first sight, some would think: ‘More of the same!’
Good seed has been planted and there comes an enemy who spoils the whole thing as the weeds in plenty show.
The workers question the owner of the field about it and they are ready to put things right.

The owner shows wisdom: removing the weeds may destroy the good plants as well.
So, his advice is… to wait.
WAIT – waiting… till the harvest, waiting till all has grown and then… then will be the time to sort out and to separate.

For many of us, this is not our preferred mode of operating.
Yet, surprisingly perhaps, this is the way… of God!
He waits, and waits… for us!
He waits that we change…

The 1st reading (Wis.12:13,16-19) says it beautifully:
“Your sovereignty makes you lenient to all…
You are mild in judgement,
You govern us with great leniency.”

He waits that we recognize him, accept his ways, see him as REAL – really present in our lives.
How much longer will he have to wait for this to happen?…

Source: Images: Wikipedia, Experimental Theology – blogger