Dear Friend,

Reflection by Dianne M. Traflet, J.D., S.T.D.

"He Passed By" (Lk. 19:4)

In yesterday’s meditation about Zacchaeus in the sycamore tree, Msgr. James Turro, Professor Emeritus, ICSST, invited us to consider the story of Jesus as being summarized “in just three words:  ‘He passed by.’”

This Lent, I’ve been considering the people who have passed by in my life and who have pointed me very definitely to God’s presence. There have been unexpected and beautiful sycamore trees on my journey.

I remember distinctly such a time and place—it was a May Monday morning as I drove to work; I had been quietly pensive during my 40-minute commute. I was almost to Seton Hall,  near South Orange Avenue in Newark,  when I glimpsed an older homeless woman. I had seen her sporadically over the year, and on occasion would talk with her briefly. On that Monday, she suddenly flagged me down, as she excitedly clapped her hands.

I rolled down my car window, and she reached in and grabbed my left arm. “I’m so happy!” The words came rushing out as she smiled broadly with a semi-toothless grin. “Yesterday was Mother’s Day,” she said, “and I wanted to spend the day thinking and praying for someone. I thought of YOU!”  She continued, “I kept praying for you yesterday, asking God to bless you!”  

She exclaimed again, “I’m so happy!” She explained, “I asked God to let me see you today so I can tell you of my prayer, and here you are!”

I must have been holding up traffic as I held her hand in gratitude. The people behind me may have been watching the scene, thinking that the homeless person was bothering me. They may have heard “thank you” multiple times, and assumed it was the homeless person thanking me.  No, I was being spiritually nourished by this woman, and I was—and remain—grateful.

Since COVID I have not seen her—but I still look for her, wondering if she’ll pass by. May God bless her.

I’m welling up again remembering that sycamore moment, and I realize that in our lives we have Secret Admirers and Secret Santa’s, but there also are Secret “Pray-ers.” Today, there may be people praying for you and me; we might not know their names, but we are in their debt. I sincerely believe our lives are better because of them.

Dear Lord, thank you for the people who pass by our lives and please shower your blessings on them.  Please take special care of the nameless people we briefly glimpse on our journey. May we remember to pray for friends and strangers alike. Amen.

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Dianne M. Traflet, J.D., S.T.D., Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Administration and Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology, earned a J.D. from Seton Hall University School of Law, an M.A. in Catholic Theology and Pastoral Ministry from The Institute of Advanced Studies of Catholic Doctrine, St. John's University, and an S.T.L. and an S.T.D. from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (The Angelicum), Rome. Dr. Traflet is a key leader in the Center for Diaconal Formation, and she gives numerous lectures, retreats, and days of recollection, including some specific to wives of deacons and deacon candidates. She is the author of Edith Stein: A Spiritual Portrait (Pauline Media, 2008).