Today’s Gospel poses two questions that are surprisingly hard for
many of us to answer.
First: What are we good at?
None of us is a total disaster; we aren’t completely devoid of any
skills or (to use the Gospel word) “talents”. We may not be able to
perform brain surgery, but we can comfort a child just stung by a bee.
We may not be able to paint beautiful watercolors, but we can roast a
chicken and bake a pie that brings the family together on Sunday nights.
We may not be a CEO, but when customers leave our checkout line,
they’re a bit happier and lighter in spirit because of the warm way we
treated them.
So never mind the false modesty – answer the question: What are
we good at? What do we do well? What’s the most meaningful
contribution we can make to our family or church or community: the
compassion to encourage and support others? The discipline to manage
people? The patience to listen?
The second question: What are we doing with that talent?
If we can make a living off our talent and skill, terrific – but how
are we contributing the good we possess to make the Kingdom of God a
reality here and now? To keep our “talents” to ourselves is a betrayal of
God’s trust; to act as if we have nothing to contribute is an act of
ingratitude to the God who gave those skills and abilities to us.
So, what has God entrusted to you – and that’s the word: entrusted.
What has God invested in you for the good of the world? We seldom
see the question that way. We’re taught how to monetize whatever
talents and skills we possess, translating our knowledge and abilities into
successful careers. Or we’re overwhelmed with a false sense of
humility: We don’t think our gifts are worth all that much to begin with,
so we keep them to ourselves for our own amusement or diversion. But
today’s parable challenges us to see whatever “talents” we possess – be
they the ability to manage a big organization or the quiet patience to heal
a hurting child – as a sacred trust. And our lives will be judged by how
we used our “talents”, whether earth moving or quietly healing, to
realize God’s Kingdom of mercy and justice in our time and place.
Archive for the ‘Ordinary Time’ Category
Skill Set 11-19-2023
Wednesday, November 15th, 2023Ya Buts 11-12-2023
Friday, November 3rd, 2023This gospel reminds me of two special stories.
The first story:
There is a town that has four separate neighborhoods. The first
neighborhood is called, “Yabuts.” The people who live there think they
know what needs to be done. As a matter of fact, they talk about it quite
convincingly – up to a point. When told they have an opportunity for
something, the conversation goes something like this: “Ya, but…” The
“Yabuts” have the answer. It just happens to be the wrong answer.
The next neighborhood is known as the “Gunnados.” Now they
are some of the best-intentioned folks you could ever meet. They really
understand what needs to be done, and they would have done it, if they
had only followed through. They study everything that is required very
carefully, and just as an opportunity drifts past them, they realize what
they were “gunnado.” If only they had done what they were “gunnado.”
Another neighborhood is known as the “Wishawoodas.” These
people have an excellent perspective on life – hindsight. They say, “I
‘wishawooda’ this, or ‘wishawooda’ that…” They know everything that
should be done, only it’s after the fact.
The last neighborhood is known as the “Gladidids.” They are a
truly special group of people. The “Wishawoodas” drive by the
“Gladidids” homes and admire them. The “Gunnados” want to join
them, but just cannot quite get around to it. The “Yabuts” could have
been “Gladidids,” but destiny just did not smile on them. The
“Gladidids” are pleased that they are disciplined enough to do what they
know they should do instead of always doing what they wanted to do.
These are the four neighborhoods. In which neighborhood do you
live? In which one would you rather live? 1) Yabuts 2) Gunnados 3)
Wishawoodas 4) Gladidids.
The second story:
There is an ancient story about three demons who were arguing
over the best way to destroy the Christian mission in the world. The first
demon says, “Let’s tell all the Christians there is no heaven. Take away
the reward incentive and the mission will collapse.” The second demon
says, “Let’s tell all the Christians there is no hell. Take away the fear of
punishment and the mission will collapse.” The third demon says,
“There is one better way. Let’s tell all the Christians that there is no
hurry” and all three immediately say, “That’s it! All we have to do is
tell them there’s no hurry and the whole Christian enterprise will
collapse.”
Some things can’t be put off to the last minute- the foolish
bridesmaids needed to be reminded of this. We are reminded – happy is
the person who takes to heart this message and does something about it
today.
What is the best way to become a Saint? 11-5-2023
Thursday, November 2nd, 2023
I realize a lot of you will not be able to be at Mass tomorrow on the
Feast of All Saints, so I thought I would share a reflection of All Saints
with you.
Phyllis McGinley is a modern American poet. She wrote a book
called Saint Watching. In it she says:
“When I was seven years old, I wanted to be a tight-rope dancer
and broke my collarbone practicing on a child’s-size high wire. At
twelve, I planned to become an international spy. At fifteen, my
ambition was the stage. Now in my sensible declining years, I would
give anything…..to be a saint.”
As we celebrate the Feast of All Saints, we are reminded that every
one of us—without exception—is called to be a saint. Not one of us in
this church today is called to be anything less than a saint.
This poses a knotty question: What is the best way to become a
saint in 2023?
Is it to do what St. Anthony did in the fourth century: turn our
backs on the pleasures of this world and live apart from society?
Is it to do what St. Francis did in the thirteenth century: turn our
backs on material wealth and preach the Gospel wherever we can find a
crowd and a soapbox?
Or is it to do something like St. Elizabeth Seton did in the
nineteenth century: raise a family and spend the rest of our lives working
with societies sick and needy?
The answer to these questions is no. And the reason that its no is
obvious.
You don’t become a saint by doing what God made somebody else
to do. You become a saint by doing what God made you do.
Practically speaking, this means that if you are a parent at this
moment in your life, that’s exactly the way God intends you to become a
saint: by being the best parent you can be – not perfect – just the best.
And, practically speaking, if you are a student at this moment in
your life, that’s exactly the way God intends you to become a saint: by
being the best student you can be.
Or, if you are an elderly couple or single person at this moment in
your life, that’s exactly the way God intends you to become a saint: by
being the best elderly couple or best single person you can be.
Let me illustrate what I mean with an example. Some years ago,
an elderly couple lived on a large corner lot near an elementary school.
The children from the school had the habit of cutting across the corner of
their lawn, wearing an ugly path through it. At first this merely annoyed
the couple, but after a while it angered them. The couple realized that
something had to be done. The situation was poisoning their attitude
toward the children and destroying their peace of mind. The couple hit
upon a solution. First they put crushed gravel on the path. Then they
lined it with flowers. After that they set a bench along the path. On
afternoons when school let out, the couple sat on the bench and greeted
the children as they passed by.
The response of the children was amazing. They stopped and
thanked the couple for the path. They even asked the names of the
flowers and sometimes, sat down to talk to the couple. In short, the
couple turned an unhappy situation into a happy one.
That charming little story is also a beautiful illustration of what
Jesus meant in today’s gospel when he said, “Blessed are the
peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” It means to turn a
potentially angry situation into a delightfully happy one.
And that leads us to our final point.
If you are still in doubt about what it means to be a saint in today’s
world, reread the Beatitudes in today’s gospel. The Beatitudes spell out
in simple terms the guidelines that we should use to live our lives. And
if we live out these guidelines, as the elderly couple did, Jesus will
someday say to us what he said to the people of his time in the Sermon
on the Mount:
“Blessed are you, the kingdom of God is yours!”
