Mary van Balen

PHOTO: MAURICE FLOOD


Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
Lk 11:23



This verse reminds me of another, two chapters earlier in Luke’s gospel. Jesus’ disciples saw someone casting out demons in Jesus’ name, and they tried unsuccessfully to stop the exorcist who was not one of their group. They told Jesus about it and he said, “Do not prevent him, for whoever is not against you is for you” (Lk 9,50).

The temptation of the world is to divide its people into “them” and “us,” and that process begins early. As children we are quick to point our finger at someone else as deserving of blame: “I didn’t do it; they did!” I remember one day years ago, sitting on the floor with my younger sister in the large bedroom we shared with another sister, a brother, and a grandmother. We must have been making too much noise playing because mom had called up and in her no-nonsense tone told us we had better quiet down.

We leaned against the footboard of one bed, touched our toes to the sideboard of another, and made a pact: We will NEVER forget what it was like being a child as our mother obviously had. My own children would say I had forgotten long before they were born. What is natural bonding and response to growing up is different from the hateful divisions that are purposely created by adults.  Read More 

Photo: News One

However, take care and be earnestly on your guard not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen, nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live, but teach them to your children and your children’s children.
Dt 4, 9

In today’s Old Testament reading, these and the verses that follow tell of Moses reminding the Israelites of the day God gave the Ten Commandments and the instruction to observe them in the Promised Land. Moses tells the people to remember and to teach their children not only about the wondrous way the commandments were given, but also about the responsibility to live by them.

We teach more by our actions than by our words. What are mine teaching?  Read More 

PHOTO: MARY VAN BALEN


Make known to me your ways, Lord:
teach me your paths.
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
For you I wait all the long day,
because of your goodness, Lord.
Ps 25, 4-5




How do we learn God's ways or discern God's paths? How do we learn Divine truth and allow it to guide us through life's daily challenges as well as times of life-changing choices?

For me, quiet prayer is the answer. I read and pray Scripture, practice Lectio Divina that is not only prayer, but also informs my writing. I try to use my gifts in service of God and others. But, even those activities, well intentioned as they are, are not the same as sitting quietly with my Compassionate Friend and being drawn deeper into the relationship that gives me life and purpose.  Read More 

PHOTO: MARY VAN BALEN
Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house. The prophet sent him the message: "Go ad wash seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean." But Naaman went away angry, saying, "I thought that he would surely come out and stand there to invoke the Lord his God, and would move his hand over the spot, and thus cure the leprosy. But his servants came up and reasoned with him. "My father," they said," if the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary, would you not have done it? All the more now, since he said to you, 'Wash and be clean,' should you do as he said" So Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times at the word of the man of God. His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
2Kg 5, 9-11; 13-14

As I write, I hear the Oscars on the downstairs television and am struck by the irony. Many people are glued to the television screen watching the annual glamourous awards for high profile achievement while I sit in my office, reflecting on the expectation of a man for a dramatic miracle but who is instructed instead to perform a common action: bathe in the river. Naaman was incensed. Had he journeyed so far only to be told to do what he did routinely in his homeland? Elisha's instructions were insulting.

Our society values celebrity, as evidenced by tonight's television extravaganza. Importance is often equated with wealth, fame, and good looks. Our heroes and heroines are stars of sports, movie, music and we like splash and pizzazz.. So did Naaman.

We also value great achievements. They might be accomplished by a pilot like Scully, who landed a plane on the Hudson without losing a life, or a scientist who develops some new procedure to treat illness. Our heroes are usually bigger than life people who do extraordinary things. Read More 

BYZANTINE MOSAIC: MOSES AND THE BURNING BUSH
Meanwhile Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. Leading the flock across the desert, he came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There and angel of the Lord appeared to him in the fire flaming out of a bush. As he looked on, he was surprised to see that the bush, though on fire, was not consumed. So, Moses decided, "I must go over to look at this remarkable sight, and see why the bush is not burned."

When the Lord saw him coming over to look at it more closely, God called out to him from the bush, "Moses! Moses!" He answered, "Here I am.: God said, "Come no nearer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground."
Ex 3, 1-5

This story is so familiar that Moses seeing a burning bush does not surprise. He is Moses, after all, and those kinds of things happened to him. A close reading of the verses paint a different picture. Moses was doing a very ordinary thing: Leading his father-in-law's flock of sheep across the desert. This is like your driving to work, filling out reports, teaching students, doing laundry, going to the grocery store. Moses was doing what he always did.

He was not in a special place. Not doing something unusual. Not expecting to find God around the corner, or in this case, hiding in a bush. Moses was not so different from us getting up every day, making a living and taking care of family. So why did I Am Who Am talk to him from a miraculously flaming shrub? Read More 

PHOTO: MARY VAN BALEN OF SILVER GELATIN PRINT BY RAYMOND MEEKS: JOSE' ESTUARDO SOTZ ALVAREZ, BOSTON MA 1992 FOR AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL



My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to live again; he was lost and has been found.
LK 15, 31-31




Sometimes when reading Scripture, I am tempted to hurry over or skim passages that are as familiar as this story of the prodigal son. This parable is often used to illustrate God's willingness to forgive when one is repentant or the importance of conversion of heart. Both, of course, are valid interpretations, but what struck me today was the joy of the father. He didn't question his son about wisdom he might have acquired as a result of his licentious activity or even his unsavory work for Gentiles. The son may have had a change of heart or a repentant spirit, but in the story, none of that is discussed. The younger son barely managed his rehearsed statement before his father had servants putting sandals on his feet, a ring on his finger, and a robe around his dirty, skinny shoulders. Read More 

PHOTO: MARY VAN BALEN


Rely on the mighty Lord;
constantly seek his face.
Recall the wondrous deeds he has done…
Ps 105, 4-5a


My spiritual director has to remind me from time to time to reflect on the history of God’s Presence in my past. This usually is necessary when I am struggling with my present. The Holy Mystery remains so mysterious that I cannot catch even a glimpse. My life, while interesting, is in chaos and I cannot discern a path. I am stuck in the midst of a plethora of possibilities or languishing for lack of any.

During these times I don’t feel much like rejoicing or proclaiming God’s wondrous deeds as the Psalmist suggests a few verses before these. The rest of the Psalm recounts God’s providential care of Israel until, in the end; God’s people had possession of the land and its wealth and could shout “Hallelujah!”

As I read and reread this Psalm, the plight of Joseph resonated with me. Not his final triumph, becoming the king’s right hand man, but the time of betrayal and imprisonment that preceded it.  Read More 

Blessed in the one who trusts in the Lord,
whose hope is the Lord.
That one is like a tree planted beside the waters
That stretches out its roots to the stream:
It fears not the heat when it comes,
Its leaves stay green;
In the year of drought it shows no distress,
but still bears fruit.
Jer 17, 7-8

Years ago, someone gave me two pussy willow stems. They rooted quickly in a water-filled vase and after just a few weeks they were ready to plant. I put them beside the garage where a future bush would be visible from the kitchen window. That was a mistake. A water pipe ran not far from the pussy willow and became clogged over the years by willow roots doing just what the tree did in Jeremiah’s metaphor: They stretched out to water, finding every tiny crack until the pipe was full and the bathtub upstairs wouldn’t drain.

How can roots be so smart? And what happened to my spiritual “smarts” when it comes to seeking out the “water” that gives me life? Read More 

Photo: Gabbra Wooden Cup - Sueno Studio

He said to her, “What do you wish?” She answered him, “Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus said to her in reply, “You do not know what your are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” They said to him, “We can.”


When I was nine or ten, I knew I wanted to be especially close to God. That was my desire, and in my innocence and naiveté, I thought that closeness would make me special to God. I remembered that as I read today’s gospel. Unlike James and John, I wasn’t hoping for power, but like them, I didn’t understand what being close to God and doing Jesus work would mean in my life. Read More 

PHOTO:MARY VAN BALEN


I need no bullock from your house,
no goats from your fold.
For every animal of the forest is mine,
beasts by the thousands on my mountains.
I know every bird of the heavens;
the creatures of the field belong to me.
Offer praise as your sacrifice to God;
fulfill your vows to the Most High.
Ps 50 9-11; 14


What could the Maker of All That Is possibly desire? Not the sacrifices of the Israelites. The earth, the sky, every creature, every star, every universe belongs to the Creator. There is but one thing: Our hearts. And we give it by praising God with our lives. We reverence our sisters and brothers. We care for the earth and its creatures. We share the gifts we have been given as servants. We work for peace. We follow the example of Jesus. What could the Maker of All That Is possibly desire? Our love. © 2010 Mary van Balen Read More