ON  BEING  OVERHEARD

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “On Being Overheard.”

QUESTION

If someone overheard us, what would they hear?

I think that’s a great examination of conscience  as well as consciousness.

I know when I think about my answers to that question, I’m a little bit more careful of what I say about others that day.

There’s are less digs, gossip, and more respect for others – coming out of my mouth.

I’m more aware of the Golden Rule:  would I want someone to be talking about me this way?  No! Of course not.

I’m aware that conversations and comments about other people are  the #1 topic of conversation in life.  Sports and weather pale and fail in comparison.  So much of life is reporting about people – one’s kids, one’s spouse, one’s neighbors,  one’s friends. No problem – till we start to kill one another – with digs and words that hurt another

WHERE’S THIS TOPIC COMING FROM?

Every Monday morning I make time to read the Metropolitan Section of  The New York Times.

It presents  4 or 5 moments – vignettes – scenes - of life in New York City. People  send in  things that hit them as they walk the streets and travel the subways of New York.

There was an example from yesterday’s paper that grabbed me. I said to myself. “That would make a strong example  for a homily.”

I don’t know about you, but often stuff written in the paper  or a magazine hit me harder than the scriptures.

A Matthew Baigell  sent this little story in. It’s entitled, “Mind Your Own Business.”

“Dear Diary: Overhearing a visitor, apparently from the South, in Times Square making a disparaging comment to his companion about a same-sex couple holding hands, I also overheard an obviously irate New Yorker telling them: ‘This is New York. We don’t do guns here. EVERYTHING  else is nobody’s business.’”

TODAY’S FEAST

To me  -  compared to the clarity in that story – today’s gospel  is tricky to unravel.  Sometimes these statements what Jesus said at the Last Supper can be like spaghetti. So I’m saying that  today’s gospel  doesn’t  have the grab of that little story in the New York Times.

Besides the message of minding my own business and not going around complaining,  the Metropolitan Diary story got me thinking and wondering: “Is it true that ‘Everything else is nobody’s business”.”

As I was thinking about  all this,  I read about today’s saints -  St. Charles Lwanga and Companions.  They are the Uganda martyrs who were murdered and massacred back in 1885 to 1887

The King – the head of their section of Uganda  - was a pedophile abusing boys and others. Charles Lwanga and various other leaders in the Christian community – spoke up about all this and all paid with their life.

Were they martyrs because they were Christian – or because they challenged those in power – or because they screamed out about what was wrong – or all of the above.  Christians: Catholics, Anglicans and others were martyred.

CONCLUSION

Still thinking about all this and not sure just how to conclude, here are 4 short prayers:

   Lord, give me a deep respect for all people.

   Lord help my words make life sweeter in the conversations I find myself in today.

   Lord give me the strength to challenge others in the best possible way when others need to be challenged.

   Lord help me to remember the old saying, “So live that you wouldn’t be scared to sell your parrot to the town gossip.”