Last Monday I said a Mass for a group of six novices and their respective novice mistresses. The readings for the day, if you remember, were the beginning of St. Paul’s second letter to Thessalonica and Jesus pronouncing the “woes” to the scribes and Pharisees. As the group did some faith sharing around what they heard in the scripture divergent points of view became obvious. The novice mistresses all focused on the gospel. They heard the “woes” pronounced by Jesus as a challenge to their lives. Were they just going through the motions or were their hearts truly converted? The novices themselves concentrated on the epistle where St. Paul begins with thanksgiving for what God has given in the community being formed. A good reminder that we need the wisdom of the elders challenging our authenticity and the zeal of the young full of gratitude for what God has given us. It reminded me of a saying of Dietrich Bonhoeffer: “Isn’t what God given us enough? Brothers and sisters to forgive and be forgiven by.”
