MISJUDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

The title and theme of my homily for this first Tuesday in Ordinary Time is, “Misjudgments.”

Misjudgments are missed judgments.

It’s something people do on a regular basis. It’s something people confess on a regular basis. It’s something we hear about in scriptures on a regular basis.

Misjudgments.

LADY IN TODAY’S FIRST READING

It happens to Hannah in today’s first reading.

Eli the priest in this reading from 1 Samuel thinks she’s drunk.

She wants to have a baby. She wants to get pregnant. She wants a son - and her mouth is moving in prayer - but not out loud.  Eli is watching her and goes over to her and says, “How long will you make a drunken show of yourself. Sober up from your wine.”

Hannah answers, “It isn’t that my lord. I am an unhappy woman. I have had neither wine nor liquor. I was only pouring out my troubles to the LORD. Do not think your handmaid a ne’re do well; my prayer has been prompted by my deep sorrow and misery.”

Eli answers like a priest, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.”

Too bad he didn’t say, “Ooops I’m sorry for misjudging you.”

Anyway, she goes home and she gets pregnant - and she and her husband Elkanah have a son, Samuel.

MS LADY

I know a gal who got stopped for weaving while driving.  The police asked her to walk a straight line. She couldn’t - so they gave her a ticket and told her to be in court  for the charge of drunken driving.

She hadn’t taken anything to drink and luckily she told someone who told her to check with her doctor.  They discovered she had MS and nobody knew it. Her dad had it. And her sister got tested after that and she too had it - and they found out pregnancies can exacerbate the MS.

I once got tested for an enlarged liver and the doctor asked if I was drinking too much. I said to the doctor, “Not me. I have never drunk ever in my life except for the small sip of mass wine.”

And he said, “You’re lying. All priests drink.” 

I responded, “Not me.”  Then I added, “If you want to think that way - you can think that way - but welcome to the world of misjudgments.

CONCLUSION: THREE SOLUTIONS

Three solutions.

First solution: One of my favorite sayings is from the Talmud, “Teach thy tongue to say, ‘I do not know.’” We don’t know. We have not walked in another’s shoes. We just don’t know - so instead of judging others, simply say, “I don’t know.”

Second solution: have a sense of humor.

Here’s one of my favorite stories. Every day a man in Ireland walks to and from work pushing a wheelbarrow. He works in a cemetery and he keeps his shovel and his gloves in his wheelbarrow.

And on his way home from work, he stops at his favorite pub. He leaves his wheelbarrow outside in front.

Well this one day it starts to pour rain while he’s inside chatting with the boys. A buddy says,  Paddy, it’s pouring rain. I’ll drive you home. Come on. My car is out back.” Well, Paddy says, “I guess I can leave my wheelbarrow out front and pick it up in the morning on my way to work.

So the next morning he picks up his wheelbarrow and goes to work.

Well Maude - the town gossip - who lives just across the street from the pub spreads the rumor that Paddy spent the night on the floor of the pub drunk. She said I looked out the window a few times and his wheelbarrow was outside the pub all night.

Well, Paddy heard the gossip.

That night he put his wheelbarrow outside Maude’s bedroom window  - for all the town to see.

Third solution: follow the golden rule. Would we want someone to do this to us?