I fear no evil; for you are at my side. With your rod and your staff that
give me courage.
2 SAMUEL, Chapter
23, Verse 3-4
3 The God of Israel spoke; of me the Rock of
Israel said, “One who rules over humankind with justice, who rules in the fear of God, 4 Is like the light at sunrise on a cloudless
morning, making the land’s vegetation glisten after rain.”
The Rock of Israel (Hebrew: צור ישראל, Tzur Yisrael)
is a concept in Judaism that alludes to God, and in Zionism and politics, to
the cultural and historical heritage of the Jewish people and the foundation of
the State of Israel.[1]
God fearing leaders are
life giving and not life taking for they have a Holy Fear of God. Traditionally
in Judaism there are seven names given for God. The seven names of God that,
once written, cannot be erased because of their holiness are the Tetragrammaton,
El, Elohim, Eloah, Elohai, El Shaddai, Tzevaot.
Tetragrammaton is YHWH
or I am that I am.
El simply means God and
is used in the names of IsraEL, AngEL.
Elohim means He is power
of powers Eloah is the singular form of Elohim.
Elohai mean “My God”.
El Shaddai means “God
Almighty”
Tzevaot means “God the
armies of Israel”.
Names are important. Most of us
remember the elementary school playground and the mean names kids called each
other. Author and speaker, Kary Oberbrunner[2],
states that we all have a secret name that the One who made us gives us.
Oberbrunner said, “My name is Kary, and I have a girl’s name.” He was no
stranger to mean names on the playground. He went on to say that each of us has
three names:
1.
Our birth name – the name assigned to us when we arrive
in this world
2.
Our given names – the names assigned to us as we walk
through the world. These names can be positive and negative, ranging from
successful, beautiful, star athlete to those names assigned by mean kids, like
concentration camp victim, stupid, addict.
3.
Our secret name – the name granted to us by God
Oberbrunner said the problem is our birth names and given names don’t ever fill
up the void inside us. We pretend and wear masks.
What would God call you?
When Christ called his apostles; He revealed to some of them God’s name for them.
Sons of Thunder for John and James and for Simon son of John, He called him
Peter which means “Rock”.
Good Shepherd Sunday-World
Day of Prayer for Vocations[3]
Today reflect on what it took to
make Christ the gentle shepherd of our souls.
"Pray the Lord of the
harvest to send laborers into his harvest" (Mt 9:38; Lk 10:2). The Church
concentrates its attention this day on vocations to the ordained ministries
(priesthood and diaconate), to the Religious life in all its forms
(male and female, contemplative and apostolic), to societies of apostolic
life, to secular institutes in their diversity of services and
membership, and to the missionary life, in the particular sense of mission
"ad gentes". To be a missionary disciple means to share actively
in the mission of Christ. Jesus himself described that mission in the synagogue
of Nazareth in these words: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has
anointed to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to
the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Lk4:18-19). This is also our mission:
to be anointed by the Spirit, and to go out to our brothers and sisters in
order to proclaim the word and to be for them a means of salvation. Jesus is at
our side every step of the way. The questions lurking in human hearts and the
real challenges of life can make us feel bewildered, inadequate and hopeless.
The Christian mission might appear to be mere utopian illusion or at least
something beyond our reach. Yet if we contemplate the risen Jesus walking
alongside the disciples of Emmaus (cf. Lk 24:13-15), we can be filled with new
confidence. In that Gospel scene, we have a true “liturgy of the street”, preceding
that of the word and the breaking of the bread. We see that, at every step of
the way, Jesus is at our side! The two disciples, overwhelmed by the scandal of
the cross, return home on the path of defeat. Their hearts are broken, their
hopes dashed and their dreams shattered. The joy of the Gospel has yielded to
sadness. What does Jesus do? He does not judge them, but walks with them.
Instead of raising a wall, he opens a breach. Gradually he transforms their discouragement.
He makes their hearts burn within them, and he opens their eyes by proclaiming the
word and breaking the bread. In the same way, a Christian does not bear the
burden of mission alone, but realizes, even amid weariness and
misunderstanding, that “Jesus walks with him, speaks to him, breathes with him,
and works with him. He senses Jesus alive with him in the midst of the
missionary enterprise” (Evangelii Gaudium, 266). Jesus makes the seed grow.
Finally, it is important to let the Gospel teach us the way of proclamation. At
times, even with the best intentions, we can indulge in a certain hunger for
power, proselytism or intolerant fanaticism. Yet the Gospel tells us to reject
the idolatry of power and success, undue concern for structures, and a kind of
anxiety that has more to do with the spirit of conquest than that of service.
The seed of the Kingdom, however tiny, unseen and at times insignificant,
silently continues to grow, thanks to God’s tireless activity. “The kingdom of
God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep or rise
night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how” (Mk4:26-27).
This is our first reason for confidence: God surpasses all our expectations and
constantly surprises us by his generosity. He makes our efforts bear fruit
beyond all human calculation.
Prayer for Vocations
God our Father, we thank you for
calling men and women to serve in your Son’s Kingdom as priests, deacons, religious,
and consecrated persons. Send your Holy Spirit to help us respond generously
and courageously to your call. May our community of faith support vocations of
sacrificial love in our youth. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, who
lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Daily
Devotions/Prayers
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