Remember the Marvels the Lord Has Done

Today, March 17th, is Friday of the Second Week of Lent and/or St. Patrick's Day.  It is also the third anniversary of the death of my teacher and friend, Fr.Egon Sendler SJ (aka Pere Igor).  

Reflecting on the daily readings for today, I was struck by the ways in which God's redemptive purpose is able to to be found even in circumstances of  great suffering and injustice.  In the first reading is the familiar story of Joseph, and how his brothers, out of jealousy and hatred, throw him into a cistern to die and then, when the opportunity presents itself, sell him into bondage in Egpt.  In the gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the vineyard, in which the wicked tenants beat and kill the servants of the owner of the vineyard and then in their greed, kill his son.

/But God's redemptive purpose cannot be thwarted, even by the intransigence and violence of sinners.  Joseph forgives his brothers and reconciles with them.  Jesus, from the Cross, forgives those who are putting him to death and even excuses their actions before God, "because they know not what they are doing."

St. Patrick was kidnapped by Irish pirates and enslaved in Ireland.  Yet after his escape from bondage he returned and shared Christ with the people of Ireland.  In a similar way, my friend Pere Igor, conscripted into the war with Russia, was a German prisoner of war in Siberia for three years, where he worked as slave laborer.  He vowed, if he survived his imprisonment, to devote the rest of his life to the service of the Church in Russia and to work for Christian unity.  Which he did, for the rest of his long life.

Like Joseph and like Patrick,  Igor, (the name the Russian inmates gave him in the labor camp) had to chose whether or not to be consumed by hatred and bitterness towards those who mistreated and enslaved him.  It would have been understandable, reasonable even, for each of them to have responded that way to undeserved suffering.  

But grace and a willingness to be open to grace made it possible to chose to live and act in a different way. That they chose to love and not to hate allowed God to use their suffering for his own mysterious but always redemptive purpose.

Memory eternal, Pere Igor!

St. Patrick, Apostle to the Irish, pray for us!     

Day of Prayer for Peace in Syria

Pope Francis has asked Christians and other men and women of faith to fervently pray on October 31st for an end to the war in Syria.

As modest aid to prayer I'm offering once again this rosary, which meditates on the Flight to Egypt by the Holy Family.  This way of praying the rosary has enabled me to meditate on how Jesus and his family were refugees; to intercede in prayer for peace and for Syrian (and Iraqi) refugees and to ask God to attune my heart in mercy to their plight. 

Below are how I’ve ordered the five meditations and prayer intentions. You may wish to pray the Holy Father’s Prayer for Peace in Syria and the conclusion of each decade or at the end of the rosary.

A Rosary for Syrian and Iraqi Refugees

1. Herod Orders the Massacre of the Innocents.

When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi, he became furious.  He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under.  Mt.2.16a  

Prayer Intention

     -- for an end to the war in Syria and for all of the victims and perpetrators of violence in Syria and Iraq

2. In a Dream the Angel Warns Joseph to Flee with his Family.

Behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you.  Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.” Mt.2:13

Prayer Intention

    -- for all those forced to abandon their families, friends and  neighbors, homes, livelihoods and homelands.

3. The Holy Family Make the Perilous Journey to Egypt

 Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt Mt.14

 Prayer Intention

-- for all those are risking their lives crossing the conflict zones, deserts and the open ocean.

4. Jesus, Mary and Joseph Find Refuge Among the Egyptians

He stayed there until the death of Herod, that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” Mt.2:15   

Prayer Intention

-- for all those who have opened their countries and homes to refugees or working to comfort, assist and welcome them.

5. The Holy Family Are Able to Return to Nazareth

 When Herod had died, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.”  He rose, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. Mt.2:1-21  

Prayer Intention

-- for an end to the conflicts in Syria and Iraq and peace with reconciliation between all of the parties to the conflict.

This is just a way that works for me in prayer.  You may or may not find it useful for your own prayer.  But in whatever way you choose to pray, please  join the Holy Father tomorrow in praying for the refugees and for an end to the war in Syria.