JOHN 10:10b

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “John 10:10b.”

Have you ever wanted to have a Bible text – that you knew by heart – chapter and verse - and loved that text – and it was your’s?

The last sentence in today’s gospel is a possible candidate for that honor.

John 10:10b goes like this:

“I came

so that

they might have life

and have it more abundantly.”

John 10:10b:

“I came

so that

they might have life

and have it more abundantly.”

Could you please repeat those 13 words. It’s like a Psalm Response.

John 10:10b:

“I came

so that

they might have life

and have it more abundantly.”

Once more:

John 10:10b:

“I came

 so that

they might have life

and have it more abundantly.”

It’s your’s.  Bumper sticker it in your memory bank.

The title of my homily is, “John 10:10b.”

John 10:10a – gives the opposite – what takes away life – what stops the abundance of the good stuff of life – the thieves and slaughterers and destroyers of life.

Once more 10:10b - but with 10:10a first, “A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy. I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”

The way I memorized that text - John 10:10b- for the past 50 years had the pronoun “you” instead of “they” in it. I’ve always heard Jesus saying to me, “I came that you might have life and have it more abundantly.”

QUESTION: IS THAT THE MEANING OF LIFE?

Is that the meaning of life? Is that the secret of life?

That we all want abundance of life?

Are we all like that little kid in Oliver who gets up from his table and goes to the head table and says, “Please sir, could I have some more?”

 Is that every person that ever lived?

“Please .... I want some more.”

Today is Mother’s Day. Isn’t the most basic nature of ever mom – to get more food for her child or children?

Isn’t that what mamma bears and mamma sheep, mamma ravens and mamma orioles, mamma alligators and mamma alley cats, and all our moms do and did for us?

They gave us more!

Food glorious food – for starters.

Please mom, could I have some more – especially some more of those cookies.

Want a cookie? Want a treat?

I notice Father Tizio with his dog Wilbur – who can’t speak – but is forever stating in doggy language and gesture, “Please sir, could I have some more?”

We’re born hungry. We die hungry. And we spend our lives hungry for the More.

Is that the meaning of life? More!

Last Monday – May 5^th, the Supreme Court by a 5-4 decision – allowed prayer – and specific types of prayer in public places like city council meetings.

Talk about Church and State issues -  listen to the following quote from Franklin Delano Roosevelt in an  Address to the Federal Council of Churches of Christ [December 6,1933],  “If I were asked to state the great objective which Church and State are both demanding for the sake of every man and woman and child in this country, I would say that that great objective is, ‘a more abundant life.’” 

Is that the universal hunger – “a more abundant life” - which includes food – as well as all those rights in our Bill of Rights – as well as in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Is abundance what we all want?

Do we all want the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness – and in abundance?

Robert Browning  - the British writer and poet – wrote a poem – from way back in 1883 - that touches and triggers some of this. It begins this way:

“Wanting is--what?
Summer redundant,
Blueness abundant,
--Where is the blot?”

I assume we can ask every human being, “What is it that you want? What do you think blots it out?”

Robert Browning’s answers in his poem: I want summer right now – and lots of it redundant and in abundance. He wants an abundance of blue.

I’m sure kids by now want summer. I'm sure we’ve all said we want bright blue skies overhead - after a long streak of cold grey skies - with rain intermingled.  

Robert Browning says in his poem he looked around outside and saw roses and trees. He realizes they too are incomplete – always in process - always growing towards completion – but dang it – there is also death. Those rose petals will fall and die, so too leaves and the blue skies will become fade and fall and winter will appear.

Incompleteness is in the air....

Life…. Death …. Wanting….

VOICES

Today's gospel brings in the theme of voices.

What are my voices? What are my sounds?

More!

We feel hungry, thirsty, incomplete down deep.

Please mom, please dad, please family, please spouse, please kids, please friends, please neighbors, please relatives – let me tell you down deep – I want more.

If we listen to ourselves, our inner voices – if we listen to each other – what is it that we all want: it’s the more.

More peace, more love, more holding, more appreciation, more “thank you’s”.

Mom’s say today: One day – one weekend – is good for starters.

But what about tomorrow? Monday? Am I still special tomorrow?

Today’s second reading from Saint Peter voices a “be patient.”

We say with our voice, “Okay, for starters, but still I want more.”

Today’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles says, “Change and forgive and accept.” 

We respond, “Okay, also, but I still want more.”

Today’s gospel has Jesus saying with his voice be careful of letting into your life what can rob and steal from your life. Be careful, because you don’t know at times that you are letting through the gate of your life – strange voices – if you really knew them. 

Then he says, “I am the gate.”  He says that twice. “I am the gate.” He is saying, "Take me into your life. Make me your gatekeeper, more and more and more. 

Jesus is saying,  “Learn to recognize my voice in your life.”

CONCLUSION

The title of my homily is, “John 10”:10b”.

Haven’t we all picked up the phone and said after a few moments of listening, “Who’s this?” We don’t  recognize the voice.

Haven’t we all picked up the phone and said after a few moments, “I recognize the voice a bit - you sound familiar a bit – but who are you?”

Haven’t we all picked up on - or heard a voice - in the midst of the messes of our life - as well as our Masses - as well as the joys and wonders of life – the voice of Jesus and we said, “Thank you, Jesus. i know your voice.  I know you have come to me with life and given it to me more abundantly.”

And then we add with a smile in our voice, “And I have only one prayer to make, 'More!'”