It is very easy to get upset and riled up by reading and listening to news reports. Reporters have their own slant on how we should look at what is happening. Too much anger only makes the walls between us higher and thicker. It might sound naive but one of the best things we can do is get beyond worry and anger and what we cannot do, and embrace the good that is right in front of us. That is exactly what Jesus did. He did not overthrow the Romans occupying Israel during His earthly life nor did He support them. Instead He proclaimed the Good News of God’s love and was the Good News of God’s love. Every day in our homes, community, and parish true love and goodness are seen.

There are many things that we seek and ask for in our lives. We seek good health, strong families, and true wisdom. In the Gospel for today’s Mass (Luke11:1 -13) Jesus says, "And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Before we even think about what we ask for and seek from God, the best thing we can do is see what Jesus asks for and seeks. In the book Ronald Rolheiser, Essential Spiritual Writings, there is this parable from G.K. Chesterton that offers a lot of food for thought: “A man who was entirely careless of spiritual affairs died and went to hell. And he was much missed on earth by his old friends. His business agent went down to the gates of hell to see if there was any chance of bringing him back. But though he pleaded for the gates to be opened, the iron bars never yielded. His priest also went and argued: ‘He was not really a bad fellow, given time he would have matured. Let him out, please!’ The gates remained stubbornly shut against all their voices. Finally, his mother came; she did not beg for his release. Quietly, and with a strange catch in her voice, she said to Satan: ‘Let me in.’ Immediately the great door swung open upon their hinges. For love goes down through the gates of hell and there redeems the dead.”

“You are anxious and worried about many things.” Those are the words of Jesus to Martha who was complaining to Jesus about her sister’s seeming lack of help in welcoming Jesus in their home in today’s Gospel (Luke 10:38-42). Mary simply sat at the feet of Jesus welcoming Him with her joyful and undivided attention. We have much to be anxious and worried about in our personal and communal lives as Americans and inhabitants of the planet earth. The economy is making a great difference with the rising prices of so many of the necessities of life. There is the political and social unrest with protests over the overturning of Roe vs. Wade by the Supreme Court. We are living with relatives and friends who are dealing with same sex attraction. The summer vacation has brought a reprieve from what our children are being taught or exposed to in our schools at very young ages about same sex attraction. The Smithtown Library tried to take down a display in the children’s section and put it back up. Yes, there is much to be anxious and worried about.

Many people come into and go out of our lives over the passage of time. The people who are most intimately part of our lives love us as we are. Marital intimacy is a beautiful gift that brings us into being in our mother’s womb. Our parents choose each other and marry with great joy, hopes, and love. We don’t choose our parents and they don’t choose us. Our birth is time of great joy as we are seen and held in their arms and embraced and kissed by them. They joyfully embrace us and accept us. They have a great deal of influence on us as we grow to adulthood and independence.

One of the joys many of us experience in the summer is to take a trip somewhere. A key part of our trip is packing what we need for where we are going and what we are going to do. Sometimes we over pack and sometimes we find we have left something behind that would be very useful. In today’s Gospel (Luke 19:1-12, 17-20) we see Jesus sending seventy-two of His disciples to places He intended to visit. His instructions are: “Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way.” Their concern is not what they need in terms of luggage, but what they are going to do. They are to prepare for His coming into the various villages. He makes it clear that they will not always experience a warm welcome. If that happens He instructs them to simply walk away.