Eleventh Monday in Ordinary Time

His wife Jezebel came to him and said to him, "Why are you so angry that you will not eat?" He answered her, "Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, 'Sell me your vineyard, or, if you prefer, I will give you a vineyard in exchange.' But he refused to let me have his vineyard." His wife Jezebel said to him, "A fine ruler over Israel you are indeed! Get up. Eat and be cheerful. I will obtain the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite for you."

The sin of jealousy or envy is a devious one. It worms its way into a person's heart slowly eating away at them from inside. It may lead to depression, but also may lead to evil deeds. Ahab may not have asked Jezebel to get rid of Naboth, but he probably could have guessed what she had planned when she told him that she would obtain the vineyard. However, he let his envy silence his conscience and is just as guilty as his wife. In a similar manner, we can sometimes let others come to harm because of our jealousy or our inaction. We might guess trouble is coming to someone, but keep quiet about it instead of warning them. There are times in our lives when we are tempted to ignore an evil done to someone else, especially someone whom we don't like. However, this does not excuse us. After all, God asked us to love others as He loves them... which means loving even our enemies. This means casting off our jealousy and protecting them as Jesus would protect them... from whatever it is that threatens them. This of course isn't easy, but the road to heaven isn't an easy on to walk. It is narrow and only those willing to die to themselves have a chance to make it to the end.

Are we jealous of someone else? How can we turn that jealousy into love? Are we willing to know, love, and serve even those whom we dislike?

O Lord, rid us of all jealousy and give us hearts full of love for all people, even our enemies.

Amen.

Second Friday of Lent

So Joseph went after his brothers and caught up with them in Dothan. They noticed him from a distance, and before he came up to them, they plotted to kill him. They said to one another: "Here comes that master dreamer! Come on, let us kill him and throw him into one of the cisterns here; we could say that a wild beast devoured him. We shall then see what comes of his dreams."

Jealousy is a vice we must always be on guard against. It can worm its way into our hearts and eat away at us. It can devour our virtues and turn our minds, hearts, souls, and strengths against God and His children. When we see something good happen to someone else, we should rejoice, even if that person is an enemy or rival. We should not take their success as an affront, but rather praise God for His Goodness to all. We may feel like we’ve gotten the short end of the stick, but that is only the case if we allow jealousy into our hearts. If instead, we are content and at peace with whatever God gives us, then we shall see our own dreams come true. Perhaps not in the way we expected, but in the way that is best for us and our souls.

Are we jealous of anyone? How can we rid ourselves of this jealousy? What can we do to guard against jealous thoughts and the temptations they bring?

O Lord, give us hearts full of charity and mercy.

Amen.

Second Thursday of Ordinary Time

"Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands." Saul was very angry and resentful of the song, for he thought: "They give David ten thousands, but only thousands to me. All that remains for him is the kingship." And from that day on, Saul was jealous of David.

Jealousy is a sin that creeps up on us, convincing us we are being denied what is rightfully ours by someone else’s success. It is an evil that preys upon our insecurities, fears, and anxieties just as the serpent played upon the insecurities and lack of confidence Eve had in God. It tries to convince us wrong is right and we are being robbed of what’s rightfully ours by someone else. It is a green-eyed monster who always sees the grass as being better on the other side of the fence. It wants to feed our anger and resentment of others and persuade us to take what isn’t ours. It wants us to deny the dignity of other people and lead us to sin against them in thought, word, and deed. Now, we are all tempted to jealousy from time to time, it isn’t the thought that counts, but rather whether we act on our envy. If we give into jealousy, then we sin. However, if we uproot the jealous thoughts and replace them with charitable ones, then we shall discover there is no reason to mourn the success of others. Instead, we should be happy for them and be at peace with them.

Are we jealous of someone? If so, then how can we rid ourselves of such thoughts and replace them with thoughts, words, and works of love? What can we do to celebrate the success of others?

O Lord, cast out the serpent of jealousy from our hearts so we might love more perfectly you and all of your children.

Amen.

Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

He said to one of them in reply, 'My friend, I am not cheating you.  Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous?' Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.

God’s generosity is the reason why we are alive. It is the reason we have been saved. It is the reason we are loved. He holds back nothing that can help us to become the best people we can be. He gives us exactly what we need when we need it. He gives us our just reward for knowing, loving, and serving Him and His children. If we see others who don’t work as hard as us or who do evil and yet succeed in the world, it is not because God is punishing us or treating us unjustly. It is because God loves everyone equally because we are all made in His image. He offers everyone the same payment for a good life... a life everlasting with Him. In His eyes, it doesn’t matter how late or early we come to the faith as long as we come to Him. So let us not envy others whatever good they have in this world or whatever graces God gives them because God is generous and free to do as He wills with His Love and Mercy.

Are we envious of others? How can we uproot our envy and replace it with love and mercy? In what ways can we reflect and magnify God’s generosity through our own thoughts, words, and works?

O Lord, help us to be as generous to others as you are to us.

Amen.

Memorial of Saint Dominic, Priest

“Now listen to the words of the LORD: Should there be a prophet among you, in visions will I reveal myself to him, in dreams will I speak to him; not so with my servant Moses! Throughout my house he bears my trust: face to face I speak to him; plainly and not in riddles. The presence of the LORD he beholds. Why, then, did you not fear to speak against my servant Moses?”

Jealously is a vice we all have to struggle against. Sometimes when we see another person who is prospering or blessed in some way, we start to wonder why they have all the luck. Worse yet, if the person who is doing well is someone we dislike we might feel angry that they are getting all the breaks. We start to grumble about our lot in life and covet what others have in life, love, possessions, and whatever else we see ourselves lacking. This envy of others worms its way into our relationships, making us more and more spiteful, hollowing us out, eating away at all the things we once took pleasure or solace in. When we fall into the temptation to be jealous, this vice slowly but surely whittles away at joys and we find no comfort in anything as long as others are doing better than us. This is why we must nurture within ourselves a spirit of kindness. We should find joy in the joy of others, even our enemies. We should celebrate the successes of others as if they were our own. This empathy for our fellow children of God will help arm us against the vice of envy which can only grow where self love overcomes charity.

Are we jealous of anyone? If so, then how can we ground our relationship with that person or persons in kindness and love? What can we do to keep ourselves from being jealous of others?

O Lord, rid us of our jealousy and in its place give us hearts full of kindness.

Amen.

Thirteenth Wednesday in Ordinary Time

"Drive out that slave and her son! No son of that slave is going to share the inheritance with my son Isaac!" Abraham was greatly distressed, especially on account of his son Ishmael. But God said to Abraham: "Do not be distressed about the boy or about your slave woman. Heed the demands of Sarah, no matter what she is asking of you; for it is through Isaac that descendants shall bear your name. As for the son of the slave woman, I will make a great nation of him also, since he too is your offspring."

Jealousy can corrupt all of us if we let it. It is a sin that worms its way into our hearts and slowly gnaws at us from the inside out. Like all sins, it is best to resist it from the outset. If left to feast on our darker emotions, it can lead us to not only evil thoughts, but evil actions, too. Envying others does us no good. It is a waste of time that only leeches our time and energy and gives us nothing in return. In fact, because the time we spend on envious thoughts leaves us empty, it makes us even more aware of what we lack which in turn leads to more and more jealousy. So, best to resist these harmful thoughts from the beginning and instead always be supportive of others, like God was supportive of Hagar and Ishmael.

Are we jealous of anyone? If so, how can we rid ourselves of our jealousy? What can we do to be more loving and supportive of those we are tempted to envy?

O Lord, uproot all envy in our hearts.

Amen.

Ninth Tuesday of Ordinary Time

I called to my wife and said: “Where did this goat come from? Perhaps it was stolen! Give it back to its owners; we have no right to eat stolen food!” She said to me, “It was given to me as a bonus over and above my wages.” Yet I would not believe her, and told her to give it back to its owners. I became very angry with her over this.  So she retorted: “Where are your charitable deeds now? Where are your virtuous acts? See! Your true character is finally showing itself!”

How quickly we can fall from grace! Tobit, who does so much good for others goes blind and spends years being taken care of by others. Just as he was charitable, so others are treating him with charity. And yet, he becomes suspicious of his wife and instead of dwelling on all the good she has done him, he casts doubt upon her character. He has become like those who mocked him, but worse. He has moved past indifference to envy and self-righteousness. How many of us fall into the same traps and temptations. We see evils in other’s charitable deeds. We see what others have and think they have no right to it. We can build up a treasure house of good works, but spoil them all by casting dispersions on others or not trusting them when they have give us reason to trust.

Have we ever blamed someone for something or thought ill of them and been proven wrong? Have we blinded ourselves with envy and pride? How can we cure our blindness and see others through loving eyes?

O Lord, open our eyes so that we might be charitable in thought, word, and deed.

Amen.

Second Friday of Lent

They then sat down to their meal. Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, their camels laden with gum, balm and resin to be taken down to Egypt. Judah said to his brothers: "What is to be gained by killing our brother and concealing his blood? Rather, let us sell him to these Ishmaelites, instead of doing away with him ourselves. After all, he is our brother, our own flesh." His brothers agreed. They sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver.

Jealousy can lead us to do terrible things. Jealousy is a sin that is subtle and worms its way into our hearts when we focus to much on what other people have and are not satisfied with what we've got. It is a sin that comes from a lack of love and empathy for others. When someone has something we wish we had, we can be tempted to be envious. However, instead of envy, we should be thankful for the other person's good and supportive of them. We all have areas in our lives that are lacking in comparison to others, but one thing we are not lacking is God's Love. He loves all of us as his children and we need to recognize that all though God might seem to love others more than us, that is just our own lack of knowledge and perception. God will always love us because we are each a unique and unrepeatable expression of His Love of others and the world. We all have a unique role to play in Creation and we should be thankful for that above all else and realize jealousy denies this truth by taking away our uniqueness and trying to replace it with someone else's individual good.

Are we jealous of anyone? How can we rid ourselves of our envious thoughts? What can we do to focus on our own uniqueness and how special we are in God's Creation?

O Lord, cleanse us of all jealousy.

Amen.

Sixth Monday of Ordinary Time

The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not. Cain greatly resented this and was crestfallen. So the LORD said to Cain: “Why are you so resentful and crestfallen. If you do well, you can hold up your head; but if not, sin is a demon lurking at the door: his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master.” Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go out in the field.” When they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

Envy is such a difficult sin to avoid. This is because it comes in many subtle forms. It can start out small, but as it burrows into our heart it grows, consuming our ability to love others and replacing it with a hollow hatred that can cause us to do terrible things to those we envy. However, God will always warn us, through our consciences, if we are straying into the realm of envy or sin. He gives us every support and encourages us to do better so we can hold our heads up high while not looking with evil upon others. The only person who can make us envious is ourselves. We have the power to determine who we love and who we hate and it is no one else’s fault when we let hatred seep into our souls. Instead of dwelling on what others have or the praises they are receiving, we should instead focus on all the good things God has given us and on our responsibilities and how we can do better. We are not called to measure ourselves against each other, but rather to celebrate each other’s successes and do God’s Will to the best of our ability.

Are we envious of someone else? If so, then how can we learn to love them? What can we do to open our hearts to the successes of others and celebrate them as if they were our own?

O Lord, help us to hold our heads up high. Not out of pride, but out of a knowledge that we are doing your will.

Amen.

Friday after Ash Wednesday

Why do we and the Pharisees fast much, but your disciples do not fast?

When we see someone else having an easier time of it then us, whether it be physically, financially, emotionally, or otherwise, we start to question God. We ask him, "Why do they have it better than us? Haven’t we done everything right? Don’t we deserve better?" However, these are selfish thoughts filled with pride and envy. They fail to recognize that every good we have comes from God and none of them can be earned through our actions. They are freely given gifts, which God can dispose of however he wants regardless of what we might think. We might pray for these things and hope for them, but we should never expect or demand them. Our God gives us exactly what we need to fulfill His Will and be good and faithful servants. We often focus our thanksgiving on what we have, but we should also be thankful for what we do not have because some things we wish we had would not make us better people. They might even lead us away from God. So the next time we see someone else getting ahead, especially if it is someone we dislike, we should not envy them, but rather be thankful for what we do have because often it is far more than we deserve and far more than many others have.

Who are the people in our lives whom we envy? How can we overcome this envy and be thankful for them and content with what we have? What are the things in our lives which we wanted, but never got and how did failing to receive them bring blessings into our lives?

O Lord, grant us what we need to do your Will and no more.

Amen.