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Breath of the Spirit

Pastoral, Liturgical, Teaching, and Social Justice Moments brought to you by www.DignityUSA.org.

Breath of the Spirit is DignityUSA’s electronic spiritual and liturgical resource for our members and potential members. Nothing can replace your chapter or other faith community, but we hope you will find further support here for integrating your spirituality with your sexuality and all the strands of your life.

We welcome relevant homilies, inspirational writings, social justice opportunities, or theological articles from other sources also — particularly from wise women and men who can help us grow as gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) and allied Catholic/Christians. You may volunteer to help with this program or send your comments by e-mailing info@DignityUSA.org ATTN: Breath of the Spirit.

MARCH 30, 2008: SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER

Readings: 
Acts 2:42-47
I Peter 1:3-9
John 20:1931

Today's first reading provides us with the first of Luke's "summaries:" an idealistic, brief rundown of what's going on in the earliest Jerusalem Christian community. Obviously, every thing's going well. "All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one's need."

MARCH 22, 2008: THE EASTER VIGIL

Readings: 
Exodus 14:15-15:1
Isaiah 55:1-11
Romans 6:3-11
Matthew 28:1-10

(All nine readings should be proclaimed tonight. But because of space limitations, I can only comment on four.)

Bob McClory begins his latest book As It Was in the Beginning, by quoting from the Grand Inquisitor chapter of Dostoevsky's novel The Brothers Karamazov. The Spanish church's 16th century judge of orthodoxy and heresy arrests Jesus who has returned, healing and comforting his people.

MARCH 20, 2008: EUCHARIST OF THE LORD'S SUPPER

Readings: 
Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14
I Corinthians 11:23-26
John 13:1-15

There's a good reason the early church chose this day to officially forgive those sinners who had completed their public penance. Everything about tonight's celebration stresses unity. There's no better occasion to again unite those separated from the church with their communities.

MARCH 16, 2008: SUNDAY OF THE LORD'S PASSION

Readings: 
Isaiah 50:4-7
Philippians 2:6-11
Matthew 26:14-27:66

Many of us have been raised in such a way that after we hear today's Passion Narrative we believe our proper response is simply to say, "Thank you, Jesus! Thank you for dying for me!" Our four evangelists (and all other Christian sacred authors who describe Jesus' suffering and death) are looking for a different response. They anticipate we'll say, "Thank you for showing me how I can die for others."

MARCH 9, 2008: FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT

Readings: 
Ezekiel 37:12-14
Romans 8:8-11
John 11:1-45

No concept is more restricted by the limits of our human nature than the life Jesus offers his followers. What exactly is that life?

In the 1960s epic movie Barabbas, the title character asks Lazarus, years after the event narrated in today's gospel passage, "What's it like being dead?" Jesus' resuscitated friend responds, "How do you explain to a fetus in the womb what it means to be alive?" In such a situation you're talking about two different concepts of life. The second has yet to be experienced in a fetal environment. It's impossible to describe.

MARCH 2, 2008: FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT

Readings: 
I Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, and 10-13a
Ephesians 5:8-14
John 9:1-41

To appreciate Scripture correctly, it's always necessary to know what's happening in the community for which the sacred author writes. No part of the Bible was composed in a vacuum. If one doesn't know the history of the community, one can't write for the community.

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