Mary van Balen

But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me.”
Can a mother forget her infant,
be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you.

Is 49,14-15



"No, my mother is bringing my lunch over," my second grade daughter told the boy who had offered to share a sandwich. We had been running late that morning, and I didn't have time to pack her lunch.

"Don't worry, honey. I will bring it over before you head to the cafeteria," I said when I dropped her off at school.

I am not sure what waited for me at home, but the hours passed and I completely forgot about taking over a lunch.

"No thank you," my daughter said with a smile when one of her teachers offered to buy a lunch for her. "My mother said she would bring my lunch over. She won't forget."

I don't remember if I completely missed her lunch hour or if I made it during the last five minutes, but suddenly, I remembered my promise, threw together a lunch, and rushed it over to the school which was across town. Read More 

Along the bank of the river I saw very many trees on both sides. Wherever the river flows,every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live,and there shall be abundant fish, for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh. Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow...
Ez 47,7;9

Therefore we fear not, though the earth be shaken
and mountains plunge into the depths of the sea.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
Ps 46,3



The water that feeds the river in the first reading comes from the sanctuary and restores arid land to fertility. What lives in the water and what grows on its banks will never fail. God is its source.

The responsorial psalm speaks of disasters. While the images used are meant to represent all types of calamities, verse three brought the recent earthquake and tsunami to mind.

One reading presents an idyllic picture of fecundity and peace. The other, destruction beyond imagining. What do they have in common? The Presence of God. Read More 

Thus says the LORD:
Lo, I am about to create new heavens
and a new earth;
Is 65,17




Yesterday I read an AP article Tweaking the climate to save it: Who decides?about a group of scholars, scientists, philosophers, lawyers, and politicians who gathered in Chicheley Hall in a remote English countryside to discuss the possibility of reflecting sunlight away from earth in order to counteract global warming.

As Kenyan earth scientist Richard Odingo said, playing God can be tempting. Another countered with the remark that the whole idea was unsettling. The problem is that not enough is being done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and unless that changes rapidly, disaster could result if a "Plan B" is not in place. Read More 

The man answered and said to them,
“This is what is so amazing,
that you do not know where he is from, yet he opened my eyes.
We know that God does not listen to sinners,
but if one is devout and does his will, he listens to him.
It is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a person born blind.
If this man were not from God,
he would not be able to do anything.”
They answered and said to him,
“You were born totally in sin,
and are you trying to teach us?”
Then they threw him out.
Jn 9,30-34



How dare a sinful man try to teach anything to the Pharisees? After expressing their outrage, the Pharisees threw the man out. What little regard they had for the miraculous that stood before them! What blindness they exhibited; those who claimed to see!

The man cured of blindness stuck to his story and refused to repeat it again when it was met with unbelief. He was unbowed by the authority of those in positions of power not because of his learning or holiness. He stood unflinching before them because he knew what he had experienced: Jesus rubbed mud on his eyes, commanded him to wash it off, and now, blind from birth, he could see. Who can argue with that?

Pharisees, evidently. Those so caught up in rules (can't heal on the Sabbath) or threatened by what they cannot control or understand.

The blind man has something to teach all of us.  Read More 

"The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself,‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity — greedy, dishonest, adulterous — or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week...But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed,‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’
I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former;for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled,and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Lk 18, 11-14

Still, you insist on sincerity of heart; in my inmost being teach me wisdom.
Ps 51,8


Attributed to King David, this penitential psalm asks for forgiveness after David's affair with Bathsheba. David recognized his sinfulness and offered his broken heart, asking God to wash away his guilt and to allow him to remain in the Divine Presence.

Recognition of personal sins and brokenness need not bring despair, but can allow one to open his heart and accept God's mercy and Grace.

The Pharisee in the gospel reading presents a heart very different from that of David.  Read More