“We can imagine Peter manhandling Jesus, pulling him aside with words of consternation. Suggesting an understanding of God’s plan, Peter asserts that heaven won’t allow Jesus to die. Why does Peter do it? What was Peter thinking when he rebukes Jesus? There are a number of possibilities.”
“…Christ is right here beside me, in companionable solidarity. Whatever happens to me as an individual, to my faith community, to my country, Christ is right here. Love accompanies me. Love accompanies me, and for that reason my hands can be busy in the activity of love. Christ pours through me right along with genuine love. In fact, perhaps they are one and the same.”
“John O’Donohue, my spiritual and writing hero, calls hurt and loss “dark gifts.” And I find that intriguing. In order to metabolize disappointment, we need resilience and what psychologists tell us about resilience is that it is like a muscle. It gets stronger as you use it – as you lift heavier and heavier things. And what we know about muscles is that the lifting rips their fibers – and the ripped fibers are what, when healed, build more muscle.”