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Memorial of Saint Maximilian Kolbe, priest and martyr
Readings for Monday
Biographical Information about Saint Maximilian Kolbe

Reflection:

We are given food for the soul today that is very difficult to digest. Fortunately, St. Max gives us a phenomenal example of what it means to live the faith consistently. What is especially striking about his story is that when there is an apparently easy road in front of him, he takes advantage and expands his ministry to the limits his physical health will permit. When he is faced with setbacks, either because of his health or the political situation into which he was thrust, he demonstrates the best characteristics of the faith by sharing that adversity. St. Max is a truly heroic figure for us to take as an example today.

In scripture, we start with the Prophet Ezekiel who has a vision of the glory of God surrounded by cherubim (the 4 living creatures) in the clouds of a storm. The significance of this vision may become clear later in his testimony, but for now, assembles images from earlier scripture (Exodus 24 and 33) into a single vision. Given that the reading is not contiguous (Ez 1:2-5, 24-28c) we initially might think there is something in the verses omitted that might give us some practical application. However, what we find is there is a more detailed description of the Cherubim that does not really translate into a meaningful image for us.

Still struggling with the image of God in the clouds, we move to the Psalm where the psalmist takes us back to the vision and directs us to praise the Lord in heaven and on earth. Here we see a glimpse of a message we can take from Ezekiel that perhaps we were resisting – it deals with our prayer.

The Psalm exalts the Lord of Heaven, heaps praise upon Him for no other reason than it is something God deserves from us. How often in prayer to we seriously praise God? I am not talking about thanking God, something we should also do every day. Thanking God comes fairly easily since all we need to do is look around and see the bountiful blessings he has heaped upon us, but praising God, that is something else.

Yesterday afternoon I attended a scouting celebration for two young men I have known for several years. They have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout which is really a challenging and noble accomplishment. The celebration was instructive for the younger scouts who attended in that it extolled the virtues instilled in the young men through the program. It did one other thing, it praised the young men. It praised them for their courage in the face of a daunting task. It praised them for their tenacity and the character they developed. It recounted their journey and the steps they had to go through. In the end, the award was given and the presentation was somehow anticlimactic. It was the praise that had caused them to blush, the accolades that had swelled their hearts. It was the fact that people they cared for were holding them up in pride that was important.

Thinking about the Eagle ceremony, it strikes me that God does not get enough of simple praise. Again, not thanks, but praise. When was the last time we spontaneously prayed; “Praise you God for the glory you have worked upon the earth and in heaven. Praise to you for all your marvelous deeds. The creation you made gives you honor for all you have done.”? (You can say I just did it, but before that.)

When I review my own life of prayer I find that, unless I am reading it from the Psalter in the Liturgy of the Hours, my own spontaneous prayer does not contain a lot of praise to the Father, His Only Son, who gave his life that we might live, and the Holy Spirit which supports and guides us. Given the importance of what the Lord has done for us, some serious praise should be part of each day’s efforts on His behalf.

I would have like to have ended this reflection with the last paragraph, but we have not really spoken to the Gospel today. It starts out right after the “faith of a mustard seed” story we heard on Saturday and gives us the Lord’s prophetic statement to his disciples. They believed him this time because we are told; “And they were overwhelmed with grief.”

The second two thirds of that passage from Matthew is again difficult from a practical vantage. Since we are again going long today, I leave it to you to reflect upon the fishing trip. Pax