This coming Sunday is the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B. The scene is that Jesus and the disciples have been moving around the Sea of Galilee in ministry. They have been at it for a while. Jesus admonishes them: The admonition “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” And so they look to put ashore and to just that. But the crowds follow. “People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat. So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place. People saw them leaving and many came to know about it. They hastened there on foot from all the towns and arrived at the place before them.”
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An Exodus to Rest
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Several weeks ago on my blog, I published “
“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.” (Matthew 10:35-37)
“Off with you, visionary…never again prophecy in Bethel.” (Am 7:12–13) Amaziah, Beth el, Amos, Israel, Judah…. Isn’t it often the case that the first reading from the Old Testament is this jumble of odd names and places – and not enough of the story to really know what is going on? Let me fill you in.
All of us tell stories. Sometimes were are the hero of the stories about ourselves. Stories define us. To know someone well is to know his or her story—the experiences that have shaped them, the trials and turning points that have tested them. When we want someone to know us, we share stories of our childhoods, our families, our school years, our first loves, and so on. And there in milieu are the stories that inspire us. I wrote about 
James Carville, the Ragin’ Cajun, is an American political consultant and author who has strategized for candidates for public office. Carville gained national attention for his work as the lead strategist of the Bill Clinton presidential campaign. Also interesting is that he is married to Mary Matalin, an American political consultant well known for her work with the Republican Party. They don’t talk politics at home. 
In the early summer of 1219, Francis left Assisi and traveled to Egypt, meeting with the Sultan of Egypt, Al-Malik al-Kamil. According to the Franciscan chronicler Jordan of Giano, informed by an eyewitness, a prophetess living in the Holy Land who was known as “the Tongue-that-Proclaims-the-Truth” declared to the friars: “Come back, come back, for the order is troubled by the absence of Brother Francis; it is divided and in the process of destroying itself.” Thus in May of 1220, the Poor Man of Assisi returned to Italy, where problems had been multiplying in his absence. In a prior article we mentioned some of the problems that had arisen, which Francis addressed. He then considered the future of the Franciscan movement. In September, 1220, he formally resigned his role as minister of the brothers. 
In 
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