[media presentation below] GospelThink Monday, October 16 LUKE 11:29-32 The Scribes and Pharisees always wanted signs of my good intentions, but they would not read them, especially the sign to repent. Prayerthoughts a. People wanted a sign from Jesus that he was God even though he did so many things that proved it. Am I a sign that Jesus is God by the way I act, think and my words? b. Jesus points out the story of Jonah, the part where he finally did do what God wanted him to do, and the people turned to repentance. Do I frequently ask for forgiveness of my sins and faults and want to do something about them? c. Jesus also refers to the Queen of Sheba in first book of Kings. She found the wisdom of Solomon amazing. Do I seek the wisdom of Jesus’s teachings in everything that I do? d. Jesus points out that he is greater than Jonah or Solomon. As I consider the people and things that are influential in my life, do I place Jesus as my principal influence? e. My prayerthoughts…   Today, I will read Romans, chapter 1:1-15, and write an important thought from it. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  REPENTANCE AND WISDOM  + As Luke wrote of how Jesus taught, he presented him as one who brought up the Hebrew Scriptures, and taught from them          – in today’s Gospel, Jesus recalls two stories: one, the story of Jonah and the Ninevites in the Hebrew Scriptures’ book of Jonah, and secondly, the story of the Queen of the South visiting Solomon in the Hebrew Scriptures’ 1 Kings                   – the story of the Ninevites and Jonah was concerned with repentance                   – the story of the Queen of the South and Solomon was concerned with true wisdom                            – and in both: Luke’s comment: Jesus is greater than both Jonah and Solomon are                                     – that is, greater than even the patriarchs and the good people of the Hebrew Scriptures  + There are obviously two applications for the spiritual person, I believe:          1 – Jesus calls our attention to the Jonah story                   – in particular, that part of it that deals with repentance                            – after arguing with God about it, Jonah finally goes to Nineveh, calling for repentance, and the Ninevites do it                            – Jesus is greater than Jonah                                     – if Jonah got the Ninevites to repent, then we are called to repentance by Jesus himself                            – we must see the fact that we sin and really desire to do something about it          2 – Jesus is also greater than Solomon                   – Solomon, whom the Queen of the South praised for his wisdom                            – wisdom incidentally which he asked for from God more than anything else                                     – the story is taken from 1 Kings chapter 10 if you would like to read it some time today                   – the application to our Christian lives is that we must read the Gospels to discover the wisdom of Jesus and continually try to put it into our lives  + The first reading of the Mass begins a set of readings from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, one of the best early theological treatises          – Paul says that we have all received the grace of apostleship                   – calling us to be apostles in the world we live in                            – as an apostle, we are called to present the person and especially the teaching of Jesus to our world in some way. MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: “Broken” — lovelytheband BROKEN LIKE ME The Gospel JOHN 20:11-16 Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet where the body of Jesus had been. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” She thought it was the gardener and said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,” which means Teacher.

Gospelthink: After my Resurrection, I appeared to Mary Magdalene because she was one who loved me completely. Do I show my love for the Lord in the way I live and act?

“I like that you’re broken, broken like me. Maybe that makes me a fool. I like that you’re lonely, lonely like me, I could be lonely with you.” They met at a party, and they sing “These aren’t my people, these aren’t my friends. She grabbed my face and said I like that you’re broken, broken like me, lonely like me.”

A feeling that is often described in popular music is the feeling of loss and despair because of the loss. The songs of our day reflect the situations of our lives, and one of the most common ones is the feeling that things have not or are not going the way the person wants them to. There will be many relationships as one grows. Some of those relationships become close and the two choose a marital life, but eventually one of the spouses will die. And there will be pain. Sometimes relationships become close, but the relationship does not work out. There will be a breakup, and there will be mental pain, as a result. And sometimes as in the song “Broken” from lovelytheband the couple meet after lonely backgrounds and they are hoping that their relationship will blossom. The title of the song captures the feeling exactly. Both people in the eventual relationship feel the  loneliness and brokenness, and at the moment, there is nothing that can be done. About all they can hope for is that both of them will feel lonely together, and that will cure the loneliness, one would guess. Mary Magdalene felt lonely. In her mind, she had lost the one that she loved, lost him in a most brutal way, and she wanted to do what she could do. But even as she wanted to do her simple burial rite, once again, she could not find him, and she felt completely broken. The cure of such a feeling is never easily heard because it always deals with time, allowing time to heal the mental wounds that accompany the brokenness. And during that time, the pain continues. But perhaps the Resurrection story for Mary Magdalene can encourage the people who suffer the pain of brokenness in relationships. The fact is that there will be a resolution to the situation. The couple in lovelytheband’s song could feel that solution coming in that they were hoping that their loneliness would dissipate once they worked at being together. The fact is that we will find an answer at some time. It may take time, but perhaps the end result will be even better than one could ever imagine. Mary Magdalene discovered exactly that.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, there are many times in our lives when we feel broken—the loss of a loved one either in death or a breakup of some relationship that we wanted to last. Help us during those times to look forward to the fact that with your help, things will always get better. Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: There is hope even with broken relationships. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. What does the song “Broken” teach young people? 2. What is your own definition of “loneliness” ? 3. When a person is “broken,” what does it usually imply? 4. Do most young people have mental pain as a result of a breakup? 5  What is the best way to behave when a person has had a breakup? 6. How does “time” heal all relationships? 7. What is the best way to “heal” loneliness?