Now it springs forth: Do we recognize it?

		Living the Scriptures  with St. Paul University  Catholic Center  Fr. Eric Sternberg

"Remember not the events of long past; the things of long ago consider not."

These are the stirring words that greet us at the beginning of this Sunday's readings. At least they should stir us up a little bit. For within this passage is a call for each and every person to something new and what is new is always exciting, always stirring.

Of course, in our modern day we are obsessed with what is new, what is the latest trend, what is fashionable. In this moment we should remind ourselves that the prophets, the prophet Isaiah above all, are not fashionable.

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (Feb. 19, 2006) Is 43:18-19, 21-22, 24b-25 Ps 41:2-3, 4-5, 13-14 2 Cor 1:18-22 Mk 2:1-12

When we hear the end of this reading - "It is I, I, who wipe out, for my own sake, your offenses; your sins I remember no more." - we realize that the newness is to be within us. That is fulfilled in the person and ministry of Jesus Christ, the one who has power to forgive sins.

In the Gospel reading we might be surprised to see that Jesus is not primarily interested in healing the paralytic from his physical problems. Rather, Jesus is interested in the forgiveness of sins and only uses a physical healing to prove His divine authority and power.

In that moment we recall the words from Isaiah, "I who wipe out, for my own sake, your offenses." It is the power of God, the holiness of God, the authority of God, the love of God that blots out sin. We here on earth, called to the Christian life, are to be reflections of His glory.

These readings should always stir us to look inward, to look deeper at the self and find what is there, the good and the bad. Our sins are not to be ignored or put to the side. Instead we must hold them to the Light, hold them to He who is the Light of the World. And we must never doubt His power to do so and in the way He has chosen.

	Reflection questions • Do I clearly understand that God's mercy is always ready for me, even in my darkest sin? • Do I understand the power of Confession for healing in my own life and the lives of all those around me?

In the Gospel the scribes say, "Who has the power to forgive sins but God alone?" How many times in our day do people question the sacrament of Penance and doubt the power of the priest to bestow divine mercy onto repentant sinners. We must avoid the pride of the scribes and instead humble ourselves before the Lord in the person of His priests.

Mercy flows so greatly from this sacramental source and we should hear the Lord say, "Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" Indeed we do perceive it, and come humbly to that place where a new thing can be done in us, as individuals, parishes, a diocese, the whole Church.

Fr. Eric Sternberg was recently ordained a priest for the Diocese of Madison. He is Parochial Vicar at St. John the Baptist Parish in Waunakee.

St. Paul's Web site is www.stpaulscc.org

Faith Alive!

In a Nutshell Culture is a kind of template by which communities order their lives -- the social skin and bones in which human societies are embodied. Faith at times invites us to honor and utilize culture. Other times, faith calls us to stand in opposition to culture. Jesus is the model of one who maintained harmony between valuing culture's blessings and challenging its dark side. Catholic News Service 3211 Fourth St NE Washington DC 20017 202.541.3250 cns@catholicnews.com	Food for Thought   How -- in what ways -- are Catholic Christians countercultural? How -- to what degree -- are Catholic Christians countercultural? These two questions often are raised in discussions of the stance the church's people should take toward their culture. I mention these questions because I think they help illustrate that there isn't an exact "recipe" for counterculturalism; there is more than one way to go about this. It seems one can be countercultural without being entirely countercultural. Pope John Paul II spoke often about culture's positive strengths. full story   What does it mean to be "countercultural"? By Dan Luby Catholic News Service In a beef cattle town, a couple opens a vegan restaurant. A teenager from a long, proud line of military officers registers as a conscientious objector. A supervisor at a company renowned for collaboration promotes competition among employees in her department. Do actions such as these that buck prevailing values and customs serve as examples of being countercultural, or are they merely contrarian? It's a distinction that matters for followers of Jesus. full story  Christians and conterculturalism By Christopher Carstens, Ph.D. Catholic News Service The term "countercultural" was invented in the '60s to describe hippies. Back then, people liked to say that "Jesus was countercultural." Yes, he had long hair and a beard, but Jesus was not a hippie any more than he was a Democrat or a Republican. He was beyond our ordinary categories. He stood outside the values of his times and named them for what they were -- the good as well as the wicked. Christians are in the world, but not of it. This is hardly easy. We walk around with a bundle of assumptions about how people operate, what is valuable and what things mean. When a bundle of assumptions is shared by a large number of people, you call it a culture. Being "countercultural," in a positive sense, means standing back and evaluating those assumptions rather than just acting upon them. full story  The reshaped life of gratitude and generosity By Leisa Anslinger Catholic News Service On the bulletin board at my desk is a sketch my daughter gave to me a few years ago. It is a picture of bright sunshine, hills and trees, people smiling and a little town with shops and places for people to gather together. The title Carrie gave to her sketch is, "What We Have Without Notice." Alongside her illustration are the simple words of a folk song that often has moved me: "When we are living, we are in the Lord; when we are dying, we are in the Lord; for in our living and in our dying we belong to God." I reflect daily on what Carrie's sketch reminds me about, that we are abundantly blessed in ways we often do not acknowledge and that our lives should reflect Christ's life. full story
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