Set The World On Fire

Today is the feast of St. Catherine of Siena and I am going to use one of her favorite quotes in regards to today’s gospel: “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Unless you are born from above, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” This of course confused the literal-minded Pharisee, “How can a man once grown old be born again? Surely he cannot reenter his mother’s womb and be born again, can he?” This just makes me smile because I know some pretty shallow thinkers and they just can’t see beyond the literal as easily as the deep thinkers. Jesus was constantly trying to get people to look beyond. Being born again means to awaken ourselves to a life with Christ (living water) and to a life in the Spirit. We have probably all had a significant moment, encounter, anointing, awakening, or conversion that set our hearts on fire in some powerful way. These are our own being “born from above” and “what is born of spirit is spirit” touchstones. The spirit is the love between the Father and the Son and when we reside there we will flow from there, and when we flow from love, we will be who God meant for us to be, and we will be setting the world on fire. If we live in the spirit, we will look different, act different, be different, and these will be magnets or lighthouses or beacons for others to come and also be born in the spirit. This is the very essence of what the apostles thrived on after Pentecost. Their baptism in the Holy Spirit was their launching into the heart of God and they did indeed set the world on fire. Jesus told them that they would do so much more than he ever did and that commissioning remains with each and every one of us. Ponder your own rebirth in the Spirit today. What is your touchstone moment(s) of entry into that new life? What was your life like before? Do you need a refresher course on getting in touch with whom God meant you to be?

I had a Catherine of Siena moment yesterday at work. I was on a break and simply picked up my ukulele to play some music in the activities room to relax a bit. All my sweet memory care friends were in watching a movie and so I had some time to steal away. As I was playing music, three of my non-verbal (for the most part) friends came wandering in one by one because they heard me playing faintly down the hallway and simply needed to be in the music. They each sat by themselves spread throughout the room and as I sang, they closed their eyes and entered into the melody. I sang their favorites, Somewhere Over The Rainbow, How Great Thou Art, Love Me Tender, Smile, You Are My Sunshine. These three in particular have the hardest time piecing words together while talking and they each have their own way of expressing their emotions or thoughts through hand movements or facial expressions. Something special happens, however, when they hear music. There is a melting away of the tension that they seem to constantly live in. There is a shedding of the confusion that rests like a fog over them. There is a fluidity that moves gracefully through their soul as they begin to sway to the tune and the rhythm. It’s a special kind of anointing to witness and I do not take it lightly or for granted. In those moments I know that I am who God meant me to be because the fire of Pentecost rests on each one of us. The atmosphere is different, the fragrance is lovely, and heaven mingles with earth. The language of love through music pierces their frozen minds for one moment in time and this is what it means to be born from above. I feel that my words are so inadequate at capturing the preciousness of this moment, but if you can picture what it looks like to savor something; a perfect bite, a perfect kiss, a perfect sunrise, a perfect harmony, a perfect moment in time, then you would know what my sweet friends look like when a song washes over them. It is a glimpse into glory and it is what Jesus talks about in today’s gospel, “The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born in the Spirit.” I cannot orchestrate these moments, I can simply show up with what God has meant me to be, and let the Spirit blow where it wills. Set the world on fire today. It is well with my soul.

Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church
Lectionary: 267

Reading 1 ACTS 4:23-31

After their release Peter and John went back to their own people
and reported what the chief priests and elders had told them.
And when they heard it,
they raised their voices to God with one accord
and said, "Sovereign Lord, maker of heaven and earth
and the sea and all that is in them,
you said by the Holy Spirit
through the mouth of our father David, your servant:

Why did the Gentiles rage
and the peoples entertain folly?
The kings of the earth took their stand
and the princes gathered together
against the Lord and against his anointed.

Indeed they gathered in this city
against your holy servant Jesus whom you anointed,
Herod and Pontius Pilate,
together with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,
to do what your hand and your will
had long ago planned to take place.
And now, Lord, take note of their threats,
and enable your servants to speak your word
with all boldness, as you stretch forth your hand to heal,
and signs and wonders are done
through the name of your holy servant Jesus."
As they prayed, the place where they were gathered shook,
and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

Responsorial Psalm PS 2:1-3, 4-7A, 7B-9

R. (see 11d) Blessed are all who take refuge in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Why do the nations rage
and the peoples utter folly?
The kings of the earth rise up,
and the princes conspire together
against the LORD and against his anointed:
"Let us break their fetters
and cast their bonds from us!"
R. Blessed are all who take refuge in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He who is throned in heaven laughs;
the LORD derides them.
Then in anger he speaks to them;
he terrifies them in his wrath:
"I myself have set up my king
on Zion, my holy mountain."
I will proclaim the decree of the LORD.
R. Blessed are all who take refuge in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD said to me, "You are my Son;
this day I have begotten you.
Ask of me and I will give you
the nations for an inheritance
and the ends of the earth for your possession.
You shall rule them with an iron rod;
you shall shatter them like an earthen dish."
R. Blessed are all who take refuge in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.

AlleluiaCOL 3:1

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If then you were raised with Christ,
seek what is above,
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel JN 3:1-8

There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
He came to Jesus at night and said to him,
"Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God,
for no one can do these signs that you are doing
unless God is with him."
Jesus answered and said to him,
"Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless one is born from above, he cannot see the Kingdom of God." 
Nicodemus said to him,
"How can a man once grown old be born again?
Surely he cannot reenter his mother's womb and be born again, can he?"
Jesus answered,
"Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless one is born of water and Spirit
he cannot enter the Kingdom of God.
What is born of flesh is flesh
and what is born of spirit is spirit.
Do not be amazed that I told you,
'You must be born from above.'
The wind blows where it wills,
and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."