REMEMBER THIS,

YOU WHO NEVER THINK OF GOD!

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 13th Monday in Ordinary Time is today’s Psalm Response, “Remember This, You Who Never Think of God.”

I thought that would be a good thought for today.

ONE OF MY SPIRITUAL PRACTICES

A spiritual practice that I like to stress over and over again is that of using one’s rosary for all kinds of prayers.

Today’s push would be to take your rosary and say on the 59 beads, “Think of God!”

I tried doing that this morning and it took me 1 minute and 15 seconds – to do just that - without rushing – but also without stopping to think.

“Think of God.”

Would that be enough of a tattoo to make that proposal stick to the skin of our soul?

“Think of God.”

Once more, today’s psalm response was, “Remember This, You Who Never Think of God.”

We said that 5 times when we went through today’s psalm, Psalm 50.

Question: “Did anyone here think about that plea? I didn’t.

Today’s Psalm Response “Remember This, You Who Never Think of God.”

I cut those 8 words down to 3 words: “Think of God.”

The question I’m asking and thinking about is: “Would anyone think of God – simply by saying – ‘Think of God.’”

If someone was going out to work or vacation or on a trip, and someone said to a person they love who is leaving or to the person who is staying, “Think of me!” would that person think more of that person that day or during that  trip because of that request?

I don’t know the answer to that question.

Each of us would have to answer that from our own experience.

As I thought about that, my answer would be: “They wouldn’t think about that person they love  - because of the request. I think they might think about the person they love – who is not there – when they need that person to lift something or get something or to share an experience with or a song comes on the radio or they see a couple walking down the street holding hands.”

THE PSALM RESPONSE

Next, I want to make a few comments about the Psalm Response itself.

The Psalm Response and Psalm –  is a part of every Mass – sitting there between the two readings . 

Have you ever thought about the Psalm Response? Has a preacher ever made reference to it?

I think it gets lost in the shuffle most of the time.

I think the words are throw away words – and our minds discard them pretty quickly.

If they are over 10 syllables – and especially if they are over 10 words, I think many of us miss or mess them up or don’t get them.

It think those who use the missalette to see the words are helped with knowing what the Psalm Response is. By doing that I assume they sometimes get something out of it -  because they don’t have to spend energy on trying to hear just what it is before remembering what they just heard the lector say them.

Next, I think Psalm Responses are for singing – and we don’t sing them during the week in most parishes. When sung on Sundays, I look out and I see some people’s lips moving – singing the Psalm Response after the Cantor sings it. I also see some faces praying it – sometimes with eyes closed and apparently pleading with God the contents of the Psalm Response. 

[I couldn't find on YouTube Psalm 50: 16-17, 18-19, 20-21, 22-23 - today's Psalm - so I put at the beginning of this blog piece Psalm 41 - as an example of a sung psalm and psalm response.]

So my conclusion from my experience has been: when sung, much better. When spoken, much chaos.

As to the spoken Psalm Response, I heard a priest say: “In my last parish, we used two or three of the same responses on weekdays for the whole year – ones the people get used to.”  I’ve heard other priests say: “Instead of those long Psalm responses – which are often confusing – we simply say, ‘The response today is, “Alleluia!”’”

BACK TO TODAY’S PSALM RESPONSE

Enough of that ….

Once more today’s Psalms Response is: “Remember This, You Who Never Think of God.”

Looking at the 4 psalm verses the Lector reads out in between that Psalm response I came up with these 4 questions:

Is the song writer saying: “When you forget God, when you don’t think of God, you’ll hate discipline and you won’t be keeping God’s covenant, statutes and commandments.”

Is the song writer saying: “If you forget God you’ll be a thief, an adulterer, and your mouth will be mouthing evil and deceit – lies?”

Is the song writer saying: “If you forget God you’ll speak against your family members, you’ll be spreading rumors, you’ll be thinking God really doesn’t care what you do – and you’ll be thinking less and less of God.”

Is the song writer saying: “If you forget God you’ll forget that God can rescue you and save you in tough situations.”

CONCLUSION

So obviously, all this is one more reason why we come to Mass – come to church – take time to pray. When here we’re less apt to forget God. We’re more apt to remember God.

When we remember God, we’re better people. When we don’t forget God – we’re better people with our mouth, with our behavior, with our attitudes, with our inner conversations.

When we remember God, we’ll be less apt to be like the folks in today’s first reading whom Amos  2:6-10, 13-16 is saying they are not treating one another right – and we’ll be more apt to follow Christ as he is calling these two people in today’s gospel - Matthew 8: 18-22.