HUMOR AND HUMILITY

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Second Tuesday in Lent is, “Humor and Humility.”

Father Tizio likes to use props in his homilies - and he uses them very well. They are not the message. They help his message. And they don’t get in the way of his message - which I always find very clear - not just with kids - but with adults.

So I have a prop for my homily this morning. It’s a Whoopee Cushion. Someone gave me a present recently that had 2 Whoopee Cushions in the box. Why? I don’t know. I gave one away and kept this one. One evening last week I filled this one with my hot air and placed it on the cushy chair that Father Joe Krastel uses. However, the cushion of the chair doesn’t lift, so I put this Whoopee Cushing under a blanket on the chair. I’m sitting there watching the evening news when Joe walked to the chair. He grabbed the blanket first and spots the Whoopee Cushion. He laughs and the laugh was on me. My little game didn’t work.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

The reason I mentioned the Whoopee Cushion is because every time we have this gospel, I remember a story I heard it from a bishop telling a story about another bishop.

In South America they had this very, very pompous bishop who was the top guy in the Bishop’s Conference. Well, before he came into this big room for a big meeting of bishops, this one bishop put a Whoopee Cushion under the  cushion of the big shot’s chair and told all the bishops in the room to be ready. All were waiting for the big moment. In marches the bishop, serious as a bishop, in all his regalia. He sits down on the chair and you know what a Whoopee Cushion does. And all laughed except himself - at first. Finally he smiled.

Well, in today’s gospel [Matthew 23: 1-12], Jesus talks about the Scribes and the Pharisees taking their seat on the chair of Moses.

And Jesus says “they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues, greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation 'Rabbi.' As for you, do not be called 'Rabbi.' You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers. Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven. Do not be called 'Master'; you have but one master, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant.” Then Jesus finishes this blast with the message: “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

Tough stuff. The title of my homily is “Humor and Humility.”

Jesus after blasting and ridiculing the scribes and the Pharisees here in Matthew 23 - which is close to the end of his gospel - gives us one more clear reason why they wanted Jesus killed.  I’m sure some of the folks hearing Jesus speak these words laughed - seeing the humor in hypocrisy - seeing those who exalt themselves being humbled.

We priests - as well as bishops and the pope -  are voicing these words from pulpits and podiums around the world today. Obviously, we need to hear these words more than others. These past years we have certainly been humiliated with our sins and our mistakes - especially in the abuse cases - the harming of so many young people. Will we ever learn? [Pause!]  I sense that some good has come out of the horror cases:  more protection for more young people. It also seems that Rome is broadcasting to the dioceses of the world to wake up. Obviously abusing others is wrong. No more cover-ups; much  more vigilance. It hurts as priest to hear comedians use the abuse stories for laughs - but in another sense, may the humor and the humiliation make us better - protecting the innocent everywhere.

Humor and humility are connected. Humility and being human are very connected. In the Book of Genesis we read that God bent down and created us from the clay, the humus, of the earth and then breathed the spirit of life into us. Then we rise - and sometimes we stop being down to earth. We think trappings and titles - seats of honor - will make us better than others. When we start to think that way, it’s a signal we actually down deep think less of ourselves. That’s the paradox of wanting power - seeing it at times as the power to put down others - to humble them - to make ourselves feel better.

If we can laugh at ourselves - when the air is knocked out of us - when our inflated ego is deflated - then we’ll see what we’re really doing and who we really are - just one more human being in the room.

As I thought about this stuff last night preparing this homily, I asked myself, “Should I put this in my homily - say this stuff in church?”  Then it hit me, “Hello! Isn’t this the kind of stuff Jesus is getting at in this gospel - which the church is asking us to listen to today?” So we better laugh and laughter helps us with humility.

CONCLUSION

I’ll close with a Jewish proverb: “Don’t make yourself so big. You are not that small.”