[media presentation below] GospelThink Saturday, March 25, Annunciation of the Lord LUKE 1:26-38 My earthly mother said “Yes” to what God asked of her. Prayerthoughts a. An angel of the Lord has probably not spoken to me directly, but the Holy Spirit has inspired me to certain actions. Where have I seen the Holy Spirit acting in my life directly? b. Mary was troubled by the angel’s greeting. What troubles me the most in my life right now and what can I do about it? c. The angel’s statement to Mary, “Do not be afraid,” is a statement that Jesus would make often in his ministry. I must remember that the Lord is always with me, no matter what the circumstances of my life, and therefore I have no reason to be afraid. Do I find myself too afraid at times? d. The angel tells Mary that Jesus’ Kingdom will have no end. What is most important about Jesus’ Kingdom for me at this time of my life? e. As Mary, we do not always understand how the Lord is working in our lives. In what area of my life do I need to understand more how the Lord is working? f. Where have I seen the Holy Spirit most at work in the world? g. The angel tells Mary about Elizabeth. Who among my acquaintances right now should I reach out to in some way? h. Mary says “yes” to God. In my life, where have I made a commitment to God, and how am I following through on it? i. My prayerthoughts…   Today, I will read Isaiah chapter 7:1-17 and write an important thought from it. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  LISTENING TO GOD  + We consider Mary today and the feast of the Annunciation, exactly nine months before Christmas, and therefore a feast celebrating Mary’s pregnancy           – Mary is someone who has been venerated by our Church since day one                      – why? — it all began with this Gospel, I believe                                – the Gospel is clear that she recognized in some way what God wanted her to do                      – and how did she recognize that?                                – I believe that that is the secret of Mary’s importance in the Church and in our lives—                                          – Mary was open to listening to God                                – there’s the key: if we are open to listen to God, we can hear God direct us                                          – it is a common thought in these Scriptures  + Mary is so important in our Church because of this           – people simply are not listening to what God wants                      – from a negative point of view, that is, what happens when we do not make God part of our lives:                                – look at what selfishness is doing to our world                                – look at what too much love of money has done to us                                – look at what consumerism is doing to the way we act           – and positively, what happens when we really listen to God and what God wants through the words of Jesus, through the words of modern day prophets                                – look at the good things that happen when we accept God/Church/religion as part of our lives                                – look at the good things that happen to our young people when we give them good experiences                                – look at what happens when we make peace with our neighbors                                – look at how much better we can understand suffering if we are attempting to make God real in our lives                      – that is, look at how much better we can be if we let God be part of our lives  + Our problem just may be that we are not open to listening to what God wants—the opposite of Mary in this Gospel           – God truly exists in our world; now we have to really work at listening to God, as Mary did                      – and direct our lives accordingly. MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever” — Zayn & Taylor Swift WORKING FROM THE PRESENT The Gospel MATTHEW 4:18-20 As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee [Jesus] saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come after me and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed him. He walked along from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. He called them, and immediately they left their boat and father and followed him.

Gospelthink: I called the first apostles to be fishers of men. In a sense I am called also to influence others for Christ.  Am I?

“Baby, I feel crazy–up all night, all night and every day. Give me somethin’, but you say nothin’. What is happenin’ to me? I don’t wanna live forever ’cause I know I’ll be livin’ in vain, and I don’t wanna fit wherever; I just wanna keep callin’ your name until you come back home.”

We do not know very much about the background of the Apostles. We know some of them were fishermen, and we know that one at least was married. We may surmise that they had families who were concerned about them, maybe even very close relatives like wives and children. To leave such a family was a very difficult thing to do for all of them, and no doubt the thought crossed their minds that they did not want to give up the past for a future that was as yet unknown. The past is an important part of every one’s life. Our past has shaped us in some way, and we must honor it as a guide who has taught us. But it is useless to try to bring the past back or try to re-live it. Evidently, Jesus felt that the Apostles could give up their past and that they could be part of setting up the kingdom that he wanted. It was probably a little painful for them to make such a sacrifice, but they were able to do it. It is also painful in romantic love lives. Sometimes we do not particularly want to let go of the past. When both people of the relationship want to work it out, as it seems the case in Zayn and Taylor Swift’s song “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever,” then it could possibly work out because both are willing to work at it. But if only one party of the relationship wants the relationship to continue, and the other does not, then the relationship ought to cease because it will never work out well, and probably only cause more pain. What has happened in the past can never be denied, and in too many cases unfortunately it causes immense problems for the future. In general, however, we must learn that we must let go of the past: forgive, learn, and accept what has happened, and we must begin again. We work from the present on–as the Apostles did, to bring about a future that is good.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, your Son’s apostles had a past that they gave up to follow you. Help us learn that sometimes we must forget about the past as much as we can, and begin again to love with a new beginning Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: Dwelling on the past may not be best way to help one’s future. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. Text analysis: “Fishers of men.” What is the meaning of the phrase? 2. Analysis: in the song, it seems evident that the couple are not communicating as they should. What  will bring about true communication between two people? 3.Since both are saying that they want the other to “come back home,” they probably will. What is the first thing that should happen when two people “get back together”? 4. What is the principal reason why it is so difficult to leave home? 5. On a scale of 1-10 where 10 is high, how important is a person’s past life? 6. Do you agree with the meditation that a person should just move on when one of the couple is showing no further interest? Yes or no and why? 7. What can we do about something in the past that is bothering us? 8. What does the song ” I Don’t Wanna Live Forever” teach young people?