Psalm Reflection: Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle B)

“Whoever walks without blame, doing what is right, speaking truth from the heart.” - Psalm 15:2

I get frustrated when I read lines in Scripture like this. I ask myself, “how can I be without blame or always do what is right? I am a sinner and I am far from perfect.” I read lines like this and I feel like a failure. But that is not what these lines in Scripture ever mean. This tells us we are right and without blame when we speak truth from the heart. However, in our competitive and merit-based world, we are quick to hide our vulnerabilities, put on a filtered, “perfect” exterior, and place blame on others rather than claim our failures as our own. As a result, we bottle up our emotions, have increased anxiety and stress because we cannot process them, or we can even lash out or dive into bad habits and behaviors to try and cope with them. We want to encourage you this week, if you don’t have someone already, to find a community, accountability partner or a spiritual director who you can confide in, not simply to grow closer to each other, but ultimately to grow closer to Jesus as your authentic self, rather than a fake or filtered version of you. No one can walk on this journey alone, so set aside whatever pride, fear or worry that is causing you to wait, and find a friend or a mentor who can encourage you on your walk with the Lord to speak with truth from your heart. Meet with them monthly or even weekly so you can be the broken and vulnerable person that God made you and each one of us to be. We are praying for you!

See you in the Eucharist.