March 4, 2023
LISTENING
TO MYSELF
Do I have a same sounding spin
that everyone in the room has
heard from me over and over again?
Same songs – same sounds – same stories -
same spin – same spin – same spin?
Uh oh – I haven’t heard this ongoing
repetition of the same, same stories –
so I might as well do the listening and
make them love songs
– and no more complaint songs.
© Reflections,
Andy Costello
March 4, 2023
Quote for Today
"Why hope to live a long life if we're only going to fill it with self-asorption, body maintenence and image repair? When we die do we want people to exclaim, 'She looked ten years younger,' or do we want them to say, 'She lived a great life?'
Letty Cottin Pogrebin,
Getting Over Getting Older,
Crown
The title of
my homily is, “Do Not Babble”
Jesus says
that in today’s gospel.
When praying,
“Do not babble.”
I believe we
can say that of his preaching as well. “Don’t babble.”
I like the
comments by President Calvin Coolidge
about this theme I want to preach about today.
For example: “Nobody
gets in trouble by listening.”
And Dorothy
Parker once said to Coolidge, “I have a bet with someone that I can get you
to say more than two words and he said
with a smile on his face, “You lose.”
Walter T.
Tatara said, "Surely the shortest commencement addresses - in
history and for me one of the most memorable - was that of Dr. Harold E. Hyde,
president of New Hampshire Plymouth State College. He reduced his message to
the graduating class to these three ideals: 'Know yourself - Socrates. Control
yourself. Cicero. Give yourself. Christ.'"
All this is
triggered by today’s gospel.
Jesus said,
When praying: don’t babble. Not too many words.
See God as our Father.
Hallowed be God’s name.
Pray that God’s kingdom comes about.
Pray that God’s will be done.
Give us our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation.
Deliver us from evil.
Amen
