Mary van Balen

Therefore, let us celebrate the feast,
not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness,
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
1Cor 5,8





Alleluia! He has risen. Let us rejoice.....or be filled with joy!




My sister and brother-in-law joined me for Easter Mass that was celebrated in a mixture of English and Spanish for our ethnically diverse congregation. African drums, flute, clarinet, guitar, organ, piano, bells and tambourines accompanied spirited song. One could feel Joy in the air and in the soul.

What about Easter Joy? It is neither something we can manufacture, nor, as Bishop Rowan Williams stated in his Easter sermon, something we can develop through theory or technique. Rather, Easter Joy comes upon us, grasps our heart, and enters in.

It is the Joy of Presence. Jesus promised to be with us always. The Spirit dwells in us, no matter the situations we face. Violence and hatred fracture our world. The earth groans under the weight of its inhabitants, most of whom are unaware that their lifestyles have a devastating effect on the planet. Personal tragedies, deaths, and suffering do not go away on Easter. So, what made hearts happy and voices strong enough to shake the small building that held our worshipping congregation? What made smiles quick to appear and laughter bubble up from those gathered? Read More 

For just as from the heavens
the rain and snow come down
and do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
so shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
my word shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.
Is 55,10-11



I love the scope of Holy Saturday readings, from creation springing from the Word of God to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary encountering the risen Christ. Immersed in these Scriptures, one may sense the long wait, the movement from matter's beginnings to early life; from epoch to epoch; from early humans to Jesus' ancestors; from the promise of the Messiah to his coming.

While the earth waits for winter thaw and softening ground able to receive seed, we have waited through Lent. It seems long. When my children were younger, we spent the day before Easter coloring eggs, baking hot cross buns to share with neighbors and cleaning the house for the coming celebration. Easter was not yet, but its light and joy was already spreading into our hearts.

With Jesus' death fresh in their hearts and his resurrection unimagined and yet to come, Jesus' followers would have had a different experience. Read More 

So, during supper,
fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power
and that he had come from God and was returning to God,
he rose from supper and took off his outer garments.
He took a towel and tied it around his waist.
Then he poured water into a basin
and began to wash the disciples’ feet
and dry them with the towel around his waist.

I have given you a model to follow,
so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”
Jn 13, 2-5;15

Holy Thursday was a beautiful day here, sunny and cool. I spent part of it with a friend at her home in the country. We took a walk and drank in birdsong, blooms, and buds ready to unfurl. Then we shared a simple meal, breaking bread and remembering the meal Jesus shared with his followers before his death.

As we ate, the sun shimmered on a pond not far from our table. What glorious Love surrounds us in creation. That the maker of all this beauty shares Divine life and glory with us is unimaginable. That God is willing to serve, to "wash our feet," is even more so. Yet, that is what Jesus did, setting the example for all who follow him.

I watched the news this evening and reflect on the time spent with my friend, with the peace and joy that nourished my spirit as we ate together and spoke of God's loving Presence. That quiet day was a gift to me, but on the television screen, I saw a world in turmoil. People are dying in their attempts to end repressive regimes; people are suffer from too much rain and from too little. War, hatred, anger, fear are the daily fare of many.

Why do I have a day of renewal, friendship, and peace while others suffer? A mystery. A gift. But not for me alone. Those of us who have plenty are called to give much. I don't know how this looks exactly. How sufferings "even out" or if they do. Why some people are born in places of constant strife and violence and why others are not. I don't know why some have heavy burdens to carry and others seem to glide though life in a charmed way.

I don't know how my small efforts during a day make a difference to anyone, or how an act of kindness could chip away at suffering anywhere else. I cannot make sense of the big picture. Jesus knew it, as the gospel reading says. He knew who he was and what he was about, even if he didn't know all the details.

I choose to trust him, the God who washes dirty feet. I choose to believe that however I can help another, however I can serve will make some difference. I leave our Servant=God to take care of the details.

 Read More 

Here is my servant whom I uphold,
my chosen one with whom I am pleased,
Upon whom I have put my Spirit;
he shall bring forth justice to the nations,
Not crying out, not shouting,
not making his voice heard in the street.
A bruised reed he shall not break,
and a smoldering wick he shall not quench,
Until he establishes justice on the earth;
the coastlands will wait for his teaching.

Thus says God, the LORD,
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spreads out the earth with its crops,
Who gives breath to its people
and spirit to those who walk on it:
I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice,
I have grasped you by the hand;
I formed you, and set you
as a covenant of the people,
a light for the nations,
To open the eyes of the blind,
to bring out prisoners from confinement,
and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.
Is 47,1-7


Today's first reading eloquently describes the one sent by God to bring justice to the world. The images of gentleness come to mind when I watch a candle holding on to a wavering flame or carefully remove a bent flower stem and preserve the bloom by placing its shortened stalk into a tiny vase of water.

Isaiah does not reveal a blustery savior but one who is self effacing. Verses 6-7 describe the God who sent the Servant in an equally compassionate way: This is the One who created the earth, filled it with crops, and inspirited the people who populate it. This is a God concerned about the poor, the imprisoned, the sick. This is our God, pained by injustice.

As I read this passage today, I lingered over the line "I have grasped you by the hand..."  Read More 

In today's online New York Times, columnist David Brooks wrote about Poetry in Everyday Life," an interesting reflection on the use of metaphor to "capture what is going on." I am in favor of metaphors. Of poetry, too. However, the new translation of the Roman Missal may be, shall I say, "throwing the baby out with the bath water."

In the same NYT edition, an unrelated article questions about the new translation are raised by priests around the globe. For New Mass, Closer to Latin, Critics Voice a Plain Objection."raises questions about what some proponents claim is a more poetic translation, one literally faithful to the older Latin Mass. Metaphors are indispensable, frequently used when human beings grapple with the Divine, but they must connect with those who read or hear them, and they must make sense in today's world. Read More 

How long did Lazarus need before he heard and recognized the command of his God to get up and embrace life once again? Thinking of accounts of those who claim to have had experiences of death and then a return to life, I wonder if Lazarus wanted to come back.

As I sit with the image, I begin to see that small black silhouette of Jesus and know he is calling to me. Calling to me in my dark places, places that need the redeeming touch of Grace. Do I hear? How long has he been calling my name? Do I want to come out or am I comfortable with the habits, feelings, and situations that keep me bound up, unable to live life fully as I am made to do? Sometimes, our darkness offers the comfort of familiarity. It is our darkness after all, and we may feel some sense of control by our freedom to choose to stay in its grip.  Read More 

So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not bring him? ”The guards answered, “Never before has anyone spoken like this man.” So the Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed." Jn 7,45-49


While gathered with friends for a prayerful evening, I listened as one of them read aloud from "Charter of Rights" for Catholics In the Church," based on Vatican I documents, the Social Justice teachings especially as articulated by Pope Paul VI in "The Progress of Peoples." The first right listed was that, "All Catholics have the right to follow their informed consciences in all matters."

I thought of that as I read today's gospel. Those who heard Jesus speak, even those sent to arrest him, were riveted by his words. How could one arrest a man who spoke like that? Jesus spoke Truth, and Truth finds resonance in human hearts enlivened by the indwelling of that same Truth, the Spirit. Read More 

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
Many are the troubles of the just man,
but out of them all the LORD delivers him.
Ps 34,19-20

...But we know where he is from. Jn 7,27a



I once heard a quote, sometimes attributed to Plato that admonished the hearer to be gentle with those she meets because she does not know the battles they are fighting. Today's gospel reminded me of that. Judging someone entails assuming we know a lot more about him or her than we possibly can.

Those who judged Jesus to be an impostor, a blasphemer, assumed they knew where he came from, and in one way they did. They knew where he lived. They knew he was a carpenter from a backwater town. But that was all they knew, and it was not enough. Read More 

In a departure from Lenten reflections, I must address the Federal Budget negotiations. First, cuts to reduce the deficit have been proposed that disproportionately target programs that serve the poor and vulnerable. These programs are not where the big money is found. In the big picture, eliminating them all would do little to reduce federal spending. Many people of many faiths, and some of no particular religious affiliation, are fasting to raise awareness and to pray for responsible decisions regarding the budget.

This morning I read in a NY Times article that one of the sticking points was now a Republican proposals for "...measures that would restrict the regulatory powers of the Environmental Protection Agency, a favorite target of Republicans since they took over the House, by preventing the agency from enforcing significant portions of the Clean Air Act and regulating carbon emissions."

This, after we saw in dramatic fashion in the Gulf oil spill, what can happen when companies are left to regulate themselves?  Read More 

Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, and how you swore to them by your own self, saying,‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land that I promised,I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.’“So the LORD relented in the punishment he had threatened to inflict on his people.
Ez 32,13-14


Today's first reading brings to mind a question that theologians and thoughtful believers have grappled with for centuries: Can God change?

Hebrew Scriptures contain numerous passages where God "changes his mind." In the New Testament, Jesus shows emotion when he weeps over Jerusalem and at the tomb of Lazarus. Can prayers and entreaties for mercy change God's plans?

Part of the dilemma stems from the idea that perfection is unchangeable. If perfection changes, it can only change to less than perfection. So, if God is perfect, God cannot change. This is a static perception of God.

There are other ideas that do not share the static, dualistic (perfect or not) way of approaching God. Read More