A Reply to Love

from the foot of the cross

 

An outcast. An outsider. An unwanted. Unattractive, repulsive, disgusting. The leper Francis meets early in his conversion might appear like something out of a fairy tale or a legend. How could Francis possibly find Jesus in a person like this? How could what was "bitter" become "sweet" for him, as the biographers write? It must have been candy-coated, or there must have been something angelic about the leper for Francis to be able to come down from his horse, reach out and kiss him.

I recently sat with a friend whose father lay critically ill in an intensive care unit. It was difficult to see the suffering of her father, and the pain and helplessness of my friend and her family. Then I thought how much harder it would be if we didn’t have the light of faith.

The most adorable, extroverted and winsome little two-year-old in Ireland just happens to be my nephew, Daniel. He lives in Dublin, Ireland with his mom and dad and in utero sibling. I went home to Dublin in July and had the privilege of spending a lot of time in Daniel’s company. 

Have you ever sat in adoration, waiting for Jesus to say something to you, to make himself known? Have you ever just needed to know he loves you, and in desperation you felt like shouting, "Please, tell me!"?

I've had the opportunity to visit many, many churches during my first semester serving Franciscan University in Gaming, Austria. Every time I walked in, my goal was to find the tabernacle and pay a visit to Jesus, if only for a moment.

"Jesus loves you!"

The room, filled with more than 100 college students, was absolutely still. All listened with rapt attention as the sister with her Polish accent told us of the greatness of the Lord's mercy and love

Silk died, early on the morning of the feast of the Triumph of the Cross. I appreciate that to most people that sentence probably seems funny, like a typo or a strange grammatical error. It isn’t. Silk was my friend, and more than that – he was Christ for me, in a very unique way.

 This year's mission shirts say, "Discover the Beauty," printed boldly under a silhouette of the skyline of Steubenville. Looking back at the week I spent with Franciscan University students spending their spring break in prayer