FROM A DISTANCE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 33 Tuesday in Ordinary Time is, “From A Distance….”

This morning I’d like to make a few comments about the advantage of hindsight - history -  distance - Monday morning quarterbacking….

Hindsight  should help foresight!

Review can bring renew.

TODAY’S READINGS

We’ve heard these readings many a time - but what do we hear this time - this year - this day.

Last night the theme of “From a Distance” hit me.

The old man - Eleazar -  in the first reading from 2^nd  Maccabees 6: 18-31 -  makes his decision not to eat forbidden food - pork - based on the implications and consequences - if he goes against his religious practices.  His decision would mean death - but for the sake of transparency - he has seen a lot and lived a lot - and most of his life is behind him.

In the gospel, Zacchaeus goes on ahead of the crowd - till he found a tree - climbed it  - and saw Jesus and Jesus saw him - from a distance.

 HISTORY

And the rest is history and the mystery of history.

What do I see now that I wasn’t seeing 20 years ago?

How many times have we heard and then said ourselves, “If I knew back then, what I know now ….”?

 What do I know now - that I didn’t know back then?

Around 4 PM in the afternoon I like to take a 45 minute walk from St. Mary’s front door - down Newman Street - past the playground at the bottom of  our street with all those little kids playing there - and their moms talking - then move across to Ego Alley and then go through the Naval Academy - see all those young men and women running past me - exercising - practicing football, football, football - lacrosse, lacrosse, lacrosse - and Frisbee, Frisbee, Frisbee, etc. etc. etc.

I’m looking at everything through fences and off to the side - and from not being in the middle of it all.

At the practice football field they have these big platforms way up in the air - with people up there with cameras - videoing the football team  as they practice, practice, practice. What do they see from way up there that folks are not seeing from the ground?

Zacchaeus climbed the tree and saw Christ and Christ saw him - and the rest is history and mystery.

I would assume coming to church - helps us see our life - from the edge - from the outside - from a platform.

I would assume that age gives wisdom - but like experience - as someone said: We can have 20 years experience or 1 years experience 20 times.

I remember a speaker saying somewhere along the line - a lady named Pat Livingston - keep asking: What’s the lesson here? What’s the learning here?

CONCLUSION

The title of my homily is, “From A Distance….”

Today some learnings are: Take walks. Step back. See the big picture. Talk with others about one’s experiences. Write your autobiography. Distance yourself from yourself. Let’s go to the videotape. Check things out - and learn the lessons from all around us.

It’s always been my take that Jesus got his wisdom from not just going to the mountain but also from his walking around town - especially listening to people in the marketplace. 

Surprise! Check out today’s gospel again and again. See what Zacchaeus saw when he climbed a tree. Listen to what he says. He saw more. He saw the poor. He saw his life in a new way - its implications and its possibilities.

Surprise! Jesus ended up getting a meal out of the deal. I wonder if he served pork!