CHAIR: 

WHAT ARE YOUR 
THOUGHTS ABOUT CHAIRS?

INTRODUCTION

Today is the feast of the Chair of Saint Peter – a very interesting topic and theme  and image to think about.

So, I entitled my thoughts, “Chair: What Are Your Thoughts About Chairs?”

I began working and thinking about this last night and I came up with 3 pages – so by putting thoughts down on paper – maybe you will do likewise.

I assume that’s one of the purposes of this feast: to get us thinking about it.

THE CHAIR

Whenever  we have a meeting about some issue – or  we form a committee about some local problem – often one of the first steps is to elect a chair – to choose or vote for a person to be in charge.

So that’s a key meaning for this feast: Who’s in charge?  Who’s the chair?

In the gospel for today we have an early Christian text – establishing that Jesus puts Peter in charge of our church.

He’s the chair.  Pope Francis is number 266.

We use terms like chairman, pope, president, boss, leader, shepherd  for the person in charge.  Then depending on the type of group we have – someone is called the chair by that or some other title – and then what follows is a table of organization – rules and regulations – how the group is organized and governed. In the U.S. for government on all levels there are constitutions, legislation, plans and proposals.

CHAIR OBSERVATIONS

At weddings there is often a head table – or a small table for two – up front – often in the center. We’ve all seen variations on the theme.

At board meetings the president is often at the head of a long wooden table – sometimes the only one with arms on his or her chair – or he or she is in the center.

At debates – if there is a crowd - the speakers go to 6, 10 , or 12 podiums. If they are are equal - who stands where?  If they are not, there is agreement ahead of time based of predetermined  or voted on factors. Plus, there might be traditions or precedents.

I remember hearing a story about Cardinal Cooke of New York.  At a dinner in big hall, some lady was standing there talking to him. The Master of Ceremonies announced  3 or 4 times, “We’re about to begin!” However, Cookie was caught and so too were the big shot monsignors who had to wait till he sat down at the big round table. They knew their spot in the pecking order – closer or further away from him.

Priests and others off to side on other tables were already seated and were laughing at the dance these 7 monsignors were dancing. Finally, the lady moved towards the lesser tables. Cardinal Cooke took a seat at the big round head table.  Then the monsignors popped into their places.

Where is the head seat at a round table?

Growing up where did you sit? Where did mom sit? Who was more prominent: mom or dad?  Was there a kids’  table at thanksgiving?

In the gospels we have various instances of this human phenomenon. 

In Matthew 20: 28 the mother of James and John – tries to get her boys top seats next to Jesus - whereas in Mark 10:40 it's the boys who make the request to sit on Jesus’ right and left when he established his kingdom.

At the last supper Jesus is pictured front and center. Was he?  He surprised them all by getting up and washing their feet.

In Mark 10:42 Jesus said that the powerful  make their presence felt – lording it over others.   

How did Jesus make people feel?

Has anyone ever told you: "What are you doing sitting up here?  Go back there."

In the gospel of Luke 14:7-11,  Jesus says take the last seat till someone says, “Come sit higher in the pecking order?”

What’s it like to be pope – in the popemobile – which replaced the old sedia  gestatoria.   I loved it when Pope Francis in April of 2014 had two 5^th graders from Perugia ride along with him in the popemobile - as he rode through St. Peter's Square.

CONCLUSION

What have you learned about chairs?  I learned to sit in the back, if at all possible.  I learned not to judge about where people sit in church. 

A lady once told me that she always sits on the side – preferably under the 6th station – Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus -  because that has been her life experience – learning humility by allowing others to care and do for her. She added something that I could relate to. “I find it very easy to be the one who does the serving, but I find  it difficult to be helped – to be served – to be sick and someone has to help me.”

When my brother was in his last year of life with cancer, he would love to say, “Wait till I become incontinent!?” And his 7 daughters would go, “Ooooooooooh!  Ooooooooh! ”  His two sons-in-law told me that it was an honor for them to take care of him and clean him up in his last two weeks of life.

A man in a retreat house I worked in up in Pennsylvania once said to me, “I guess you’re wondering why I’m always sitting in the last row of the chapel - over in the right hand corner.”

I lied and said, “No.”  But I did see him, but it didn’t bother me. Most were up closer – and he was all by himself in the back row.

But I did say, “Why?” and I’m so glad I did. He said, “I had left the church for about 25 years and that’s where my mother would sit every afternoon praying for me to come back home to God.”

Chairs? What are your thoughts about chairs and where people sit?

February  22,  2020

PANACHE, GUSTO,  

AND ÉLAN VITAL

When God created man and woman

out of the clay of this muddy brown earth,

there’s no mention of it, but it seems

that God didn’t sprinkle into everyone,

enough panache, gusto and élan vital.

When babies are born nowadays – many

of them in hospitals, they give them a needle

of this and a needle of that, and rub in some

sweet smelling oil, but not everyone gets

enough panache, gusto and élan vital.

When I think about today, Lord,

When I think about all I have to do,

When I think about the challenges ahead,

I would like as my gift for today,

more panache, gusto and élan vital. 

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

February  22,  2020

Thought  for  Today 

“Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly.”

Langston Hughes

February   21,   2020

GRR!

Grumble, grumble, grumble ….

Gripe, gripe, gripe, gripe ….

Grr, grr, grrrrrrrrrrrrrroul….

Grudges, grovel, grouch ....

Groan, grace, gift, God, grab ….

Gruesome, grumpy,  grunt ….

Gross,  grotesque,  greed ….

Gruff,  gloom, grouch, gross ….

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

February   21,  2020

Thought for Today

“Diversity  is  not  about  how  we  differ.  Diversity  is  about  embracing  one  another’s  uniqueness.” 

Ola Joseph

February 20, 2020

DACTYLOLOGY

I miss my older brother Billy.

He once bought the book,

30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary,

and then for the next month he drove

us all crazy with big words.

So I got a dictionary.
did some research,
and then said to him,

“You’re obfuscating

instead of elucidating.”

He then asked me if I wanted to be

a sesquipedalian. I asked him

what that meant?

He answered, “It’s being

a person who uses big words,

dummy.”

“Oh!”

I wish he was still alive –

because I would now tell him that I was

hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobic?

I’m sure he would then say,

“So you have a fear of hippos?”

"No', I would say, “It’s fear of big words.”

He’d would  then say,

“You just have to learn to flob?”

I’d then say,
“Oh, ok, now what does it mean to flob?”

He’d then say,

“Flob is both a noun and a verb.

It means to just spit or flob it out!”

He’d then say,

“Okay. Quid pro quo.

Use smaller words and

I’ll speak in English.”

“Oh!”

I miss my brother Billy.

He died too soon.

51 - from skin cancer.

He’d say, “Melanoma.”

I went to his grave

at Gate of Heaven Cemetery 
near Washington D.C. several times 
with his best friend,

a Jewish guy named Marty Goldberger.

In dactylology we were both

saying by being there, “We miss you.”

“Dactylology? Dactylology?

I could hear him saying,

"Why can’t you just say, 'Sign language'”?

©  Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

February  20,  2020

Thought for Today

“We have learned to fly the air like birds and swim the sea like fish, but we have not learned the simple art of living together as brothers. Our abundance has brought us neither peace of mind nor serenity of spirit.”

Martin Luther King, Jr.

ANGER

INTRODUCTION

The title and topic for my homily is just one word: “Anger.”

So a few words about anger on this 6^th Wednesday in Ordinary Time.

FIRST READING: JAMES

James in today’s first reading says to be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, for anger does not accomplish the righteousness of God.

James is very practical – and talks about issues we’re all aware of.

He says a lot in today’s first reading -  but I stopped at anger – as a topic to think and pray about for today.

ANGER

Anger is a strong feeling  of annoyance – irritation – displeasure.

James tells us to be slow to speak, to scream, to yell.

A better use of time is to ask: “What’s the trigger?”

If it’s us who is angry – we might be able to name the trigger.

If it’s another who is angry, we might not know what triggered another’s anger.

I’ve lived in community for over 50 years – so I know some of the things that get me angry or frustrated: noisy people – especially when I’m trying to sleep, people who are too early for things – and as a result they expect me to be early as well.

For example, at the last place I was stationed, we had confessions on Saturday afternoon at 3:45 and then Mass at 4:30. Well, two guys would get there at 3 PM. When it was my turn I’d get there at 3:35 or 3:40 – that’s 5 or 10 minutes early – but if myself or the other guy -  2 were scheduled every Saturday  - were close to 3:45 we’d get the complaints or the watch tappers when we came in. That got me angry.

Anger managers teach people to take the time to appraise – to figure out - why certain things get us angry.  Appraisal is the key world.

My appraisal why I didn’t like these guys who went out for confessions too early was: I don’t want to look late or lazy.

What do you get angry about?

Everyone has their buttons.

Is it “pasta again” or cold food  or every time I want to tell a story, I get cut off by so and so.   Is it control issues?  Is it a fairness issue?

All the specialists about anger say anger can be good – when injustice is taking place – or someone is hurting someone else.

All the specialists about anger say there is always the “It all depends” situation when it comes to anger. People get more angry when driving in traffic – and they are behind schedule and they got to be somewhere and traffic is extra heavy – compared to if there is no rush.

Aristotle wrote,  “Anybody can become angry — that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way — that is not within everybody's power and is not easy.”

TODAY’S GOSPEL FROM MARK

As we all know Jesus got angry when he saw all the buying  and selling going on in the temple.

We’re in Mark 8 today – when Jesus heals a blind man. Remember in Chapter 3 of Mark, Jesus gets angry with the Pharisees and the Herodians who attack him for healing a man with a bad hand on the Sabbath.

The Pharisees should have come to Jesus to have him heal their blindness – like this blind man in today’s gospel  - so they could see Jesus and people in a new way – not spending life being picky, picky, picky people.

Once upon a time, there was this lady in a parish where I was saying Mass. She turned me in the bishop for breaking the bread near the consecration -when the priest says the words of Jesus, “he took bread and, giving thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples saying …” I would do that at times – most of the time unconsciously – but now I don’t do it – lest it get someone angry.

CONCLUSION: 

An old priest I knew from somewhere else would say about pesty ladies, “I’d give that lady a wide berth” – as in docking a boat.

February  19,  2020

EYEWITNESS

I was taught by a photographer, 

“If you want to take good pictures 

get out there an hour after sunrise 

or an hour before sunset.” 

I was taught by Jesus to pray, 

“Today  Lord, I want to see who 

and what I was looking at 

yesterday,  but I didn’t see them.” 

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

February  19,  2020

Thought  for  Today

“The best way to make  dreams  come true is to wake up.”

Mae C. Jemison

February 18, 2020

EPILOGUE

No, not yet …. 

I have more to say. 

I see you have your car keys in hand. 

I see your hands are grasping the 

arm rests of your chair 
as if to leave. 

I can see your feet are starting to move. 

No, not yet ….

I have  a lot more to say.

I’m still in my second act.

Hold off with the eulogy

and the epilogue.

Sorry you’re not going to see

“The End” of this movie yet.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

February  18, 2020

Thought   for  Today

“It’s important for us to also understand that the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ simply refers to  the  notion that there’s a specific vulnerability for African Americans that needs to be addressed. It’s not meant to suggest that other lives don’t matter. It’s to suggest that other folks aren’t experiencing this particular vulnerability.” 

Barack Obama

A TEXT OUT  OF  CONTEXT  IS  A  PRETEXT

INTRODUCTION

There is an old saying to keep in mind when reading and understanding the Bible. It  goes like this, "A text out of context is a pretext." 

The classic example of this is:  “The Bible says,  ‘There is no God.’”

It says that. It is a text in the first verse of Psalm 14. 

But if someone says only that part of the text, it’s pulling the text out of context.

The whole text goes like this:  “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’”

PRETEXT

In my title -  I’d say we all know the meaning of “text”.  We know the meaning of “context”.  It’s the word  “pretext” that could be fuzzy – yet we use the word at times – as in the sentence,  “This is a pretext. It’s fake news.”

In Webster’s Dictionary – the word pretext has only one meaning: “to cloak the real meaning or intention of a text or a situation.”

People do this to us at times.

They say things that we said, but we say, “Wait a minute. I might have said that, but you’re taking me out of context.”

People hear what they want to hear. People cherry pick – to further their agenda.

Since twitter and texting have to  be short – things said with texts or twitter can be both cherry picked and picked apart – especially because there is not that much context.

TV

If we listen to the TV coverage of people running for office we hear people going after another candidate for something she or he said.  It might be from last week or last year or 8 years ago.  If they have changed their position they will be screaming in some form or other, “A text out of context is a pretext.”

TODAY’S FIRST READING

Now why am I bringing up this topic?

Well, here is where I have another saying, “If we’re going to read the first reading at Mass, please say something about it once and a while.”

We’ve been having these readings from Samuel and Kings at Mass for a while now – and that’s when I remembered the principle that is the title of my homily: “A text out of context is a pretext.”

As I listen to them – being at daily Mass every day – I keep in mind a question: “When did what is being described here happen and when was this text written?”

For  example, what is being described in this  first reading for this 5th Saturday in Ordinary Time is from 1 Kings 12: 26-32; 13: 33-34. It takes place in the 900’s – but the final copy which we have - was written or finalized 400 years later – perhaps before - as well as during the Exile [597-540].

This stuff has been written and rewritten over and over again. And why rewrite – if not to get your message and your agenda across.  We’re not getting our kind of history in the Bible, but the way history was told way, way back when.

So, we’re not getting exact history. But we’re getting how the author of Kings saw what happened to his country and to his religion – way after the events took place.

Today’s first reading tells us that looking back we Israelites messed everything up when we started to worship false gods.  We messed up when our country divided itself up - north and south.  Jeroboam split off from the south and started the Northern Kingdom as its first king. 

  

Meanwhile Rehoboam was king of Judah – the South – with Jerusalem as the key city.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

I understand the New Testament with the same principle and understandings.

The authors of the gospels – for example – use what Jesus said and did around 30 to 33 – but they especially write about what Christian communities were dealing with between 60 to 100 – all more or less.  

For example, whenever we hear about Samaritans – especially in Luke, we’re dealing with how the church were dealing with all these foreigners who are showing up in our communities.  

For example, on Thursday we heard about Jesus struggling with a Greek woman of Syro-Phoenician background.  I was taught by scripture commentators who would say, “That might be in there for Christians dealing with Greeks of various backgrounds becoming Christian. If Jesus struggled with them, come on, be nice to the strangers in our midst.”

CONCLUSION

The title of my homily was, “A text out of context is a pretext.”

Next time you’re confused or concerned or in conflict with something someone said, say, “”I’m trying to get what you’re getting at, so please give me some more context? Thank you.”

 February 17, 2020

CLING 

Static cling is invisible, 

yet it's there. 

Say something nasty 

about Joe and it clings.  

So too  - certain  words.  

They pick up lots of cling.  

So too the day on the calendar 
a spouse or a parent or a child dies.  

As I said, “Cling is invisible,   

but check it out."   

E.E. Cummings told us to be  

a little more careful about love.*  

I’d say: “Be careful about what  

we say about each other.”  

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2020

* Be of love a little more careful

than of anything."

February 17,  2020

Thought  for  Today

"I shall never forget hearing my mother speak of the night she fled. She went to bed where her two boys were sleeping - kissed them - consigned them into the hands of God and took her departure for the land of liberty."  

William Still

COMMANDMENTS,  LAWS, 

RULES  AND  REGULATIONS 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 6^th Sunday in Ordinary Time [A]  is, “Commandments,  Laws,  Rules and Regulations.”

Today’s 3 readings  - from Sirach, Paul and from Matthew - feature the theme of Commandments, Laws, Rules and Regulations.

Is there a rule that we ought to preach on the readings of the day?

In general, I suppose,  it’s a supposed to.  At least I hear that rule or rubric  in books and articles about preaching. And it has become an expectation for many.

What’s your take on the topic – of commandments, laws rules and  regulations?

What are your expectations and inner rules about meals and noise and common courtesy?

A  FEW  QUESTIONS 

What was it like growing up with your parents – in your home?

Was one parent stricter than the other parent?

The schools you went to, what was the atmosphere in the classrooms? Did anyone have a teacher with the nickname, “Gestapo”?

In life as a Catholic  were you conscious, when changes after 1960? came

Are you strict, scrupulous, severe, or a piece of cake and a teddy bear?

If you were ever the boss, what were you like?

The church: how has it changed for you?

What have been your experiences about commandments, laws, rules and regulations?

PERSONAL EXPERIENCES

My sister Peggy was a nun and she told me an older nun said to her when they started the practice of getting an allowance each month, “Finally, I’ve been doing this all my life already.”

My aunt was a nun in Portland, Maine, and she came down to New York for the World’s Fair in 1964.  It was summer and it was hot. She was still wearing full habit.  She said, “Now I see why  these young nuns are yelling for  a change of habit.”

I had the job of novice master for 9 years – had 9 classes – and I guessed right. To many guys their novice year was the worst year of their life - and they complained about their novice year and their novice master for the rest of their life.  I chose not to go that way. I guessed most would choose to leave in the long run, so why not make this one of the best years of their life – no crazy rules. Foster human development – challenge them for healthy independence and good life choices. Life takes time for people to “Go figure.”

DEEPER QUESTIONS

Scripture means written.  I hold that we need to get to the pre-written – the unwritten assumptions – expectations – we all have -  and that’s where primary communication needs to take place.

Does every person have a whole bunch of inner commandments – chiseled into our  stony hearts – by life’s experiences? I’m sure we’ve all heard the classic:  “Eat dessert first! You never know when you’re going to die.”

I have a theory that there are 10 real commandments and they rule the roost. Years ago, cynically I wrote them out – with abbreviations – and got them published somewhere. Here are mine. What are yours?

THE REAL

TEN  COMMANDMENTS

        

1)     Protect your turf.                       (PYT)

           2)      Cover your ass.                              (CYA)

           3)      Mind your own business.              (MYOB)

           4)      It’s whom you know.                       (IWYK)       

           5)      Volunteer the other person.    (VTOP)

           6)      Me first.                                             (M#1)

           7)      Don’t trust anyone.                      (DTA)

           8)      Blame the other person.            (BTOP)

           9)      Everybody does it.                        (EDI)

           10)    Money talks.                                    (MT)

               

                                                                                                                     

                                                                                                                                       ©  2014  by Andrew Costello

                    

I hold those should be looked at first. 

Oops! That's a commandment!

Haven’t we expressed an expectation and another says to us: “Who says so?”

I also think we should think about the  established 10 commandments in the Bible.

We can also type into Google:  “3 Rules for Life”  or “10 Ways to Be a Better Driver”  or “10 Rules for the Road” or 7 Secrets for Success!”

Moses and Mohammed like characters down through history have come up with rules for life.

To get extra weight they might say: “God  gave me these rules and regulations.”

Then like the people in the scriptures and the people in our lives – we realize people  break those commandments. We sin. Sometimes we then experience ambivalence and confusion. 

Where are you when it comes to “Have to’s” or “Thou shalts”? Matthew’s Jesus – as in today’s gospel – suits us when we’re in our strict mode – keeping the smallest letter and the smallest part of a letter, of the law.

Then we also run into a different sounding Jesus summing up the whole law – with the commandment to love.  Does everyone have to meet and experience that Jesus? 

Does every person need  to have a Paul experience – fall on our face – realize we were all wrong when it comes to the Law – and discover the freedom of not killing ourselves and others – because of our rigid righteousness – and end up saying with Paul in Galatians 6:2, “Bear one another’s burdens and then when we do this, we fulfill the law of Christ.”

Does every person discover one of life’s great commandments: KISS – Keep It Simple, Stupid.

Does everyone have to discover the first and last sentence in today’s gospel from Matthew?  Notice how simple some laws and rules can be.

The first sentence: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets, I have come to abolish but to fulfill?”

So: yes, we need laws  - when they are for our benefit – like when driving, “Use your blinkers.”   “Keep the speed limit.”

Or when walking, “Don’t litter!” “Curb your dog!”

Or when living, “Don’t pollute!” “Keep the water clean!” .

And notice the last sentence in today’s gospel – the Yes and No rule for life: “Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes’ and your ‘No” mean “No”!

How simple a rule for life that can be?

CONCLUSION

Someone said the secret of happiness is the ability to say 3 words: Yes, No and Wow.