no complaints

1 Peter 4:7-13; Ps 96 The Lord comes to judge the earth; Mark 11:11-26


"Be hospitable to one another without complaining."

I don't know about you, but I find this to be sometimes very difficult.

I fail at this several times a day.  In fact, I catch myself complaining and I seek to begin anew immediately.  But there are time when the complaints are just to darn easy to overlook.

My guess, in regards to the above exhortation from St. Peter, is that complaining doesn't help much unless there is a solution at hand.  Also, complaining often involves complaining to someone about someone and perhaps this can be considered uncharitable since another's reputation is on the line, whether it be a legitimate complaint or not.

Rather than complaining, we should look for a solution and put it in place.

I often wonder what it would be like to go through the day without voicing a complaint, but allowing the friction on the soul to intensify the lope in one's heart.

As St. Peter continues, "do not be surprised that atrial by fire is occurring among you...but rejoice to the extent that you share int he sufferings of Christ, so that when his glory is revealed you may also rejoice exultantly."


Yet, We encounter Jesus in the gospel coming to the fig tree and finding the tree barren for it was out of season, he curses the tree.

Then he continues to clean house in the temple.  Certainly, it seems Jesus had a bone to pick with the money changers.  It appears at least he had a complaint against the abuse that was going on, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples?  But you have made it a den of thieves."

Then at the end of the gospel we have that great warning and exhortation, "When you stand to pray, forgive anyone against whom you have a grievance, so that your heavenly father may in turn forgive your transgressions."

Here is a question was the cleansing of the temple and act of forgiveness?

If so it certainly changes our understanding of what it means to forgive.  Forgiveness is not passive but active.

Today we celebrate the feast of Justin Martyr.  He was martyred for defending the faith in the 2nd century.

Here is a snippet from his writing as he describes the worship service of the Christians:

"And on the day called SUnday there is a meeting in one place who live in cities or country, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read as long as time permits. when the reader has finished, the president in a discourse urges and invites us to imitation of these noble things. then we all stand up together and offer prayers. And bread is brought forth, and wine and water, and the presider similarly sends up prayers and thanksgivings to the best of his ability, and the congregation assents, saying Amen; the distribution and reception of the consecrated elements by each one takes place."

"This food we call Eucharist, in which no one is allowed to partake except one who believes that the things we teach are true, and has received the washing of forgiveness of sins and for rebirth, and who lives as Christ handed down to us."

"We have been taught that the food consecrated by the word of prayer which comes from him, from which our flesh and blood are nourished by transformation, is the flesh and blood of that incarnate Jesus."


Sounds a lot like today's mass doesn't it!
Well, it is.  Somethings are ever ancient, ever new.