GIVING A VOICE
TO THE OBSERVANT SELF
TO THE OBSERVANT SELF
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily is, “Giving A Voice To The Observant Self.”
LAST EVENING
Last evening I was giving a talk on the Mass to about 40 Middies from the Naval Academy. They were making a weekend retreat at Camp Letts down in Edgewater – at the YMCA camp there. There were some Catholics and some who were in the RCIA program to become Catholics.
In an informal Question and Answer period after my talk a young man voiced a question, “How do priests or preachers come up with what they are going to talk about?”
Now that's a regular question that folks ask. I answered that I spoke about the Mass this evening because that was the topic one of you called up and gave me. On Sundays, I read the readings, say a prayer, see what they are challenging me with – and then I begin to try to come up with possible themes or ideas. Then I think about them. Sometimes I say to myself, “No, that won’t fly.” Or, “That’s not practical.” Then I might pray another, “Come Holy Spirit.” Then I hope for a practical possible homily theme.
Then he followed up with another question on the same question, so I was missing something.
Afterwards, only afterwards, while driving back here to St. Mary’s – to get to the auction – and make an appearance there – I was thinking, “What was that young man asking?” Then I said to myself, “You should have used your old line, “Are you asking [or saying] what you are asking [or saying] or are you asking [or saying] something else?”
This talking to myself and listening and becoming aware of what I talking to myself about is, “Giving A Voice to My Observant Self.”
If I began really listening to this young man, I might have found out that this guy was saying, “Sermons don’t grab me. You guys are not being practical or helpful. You are not helping me in my life with God and as a young person at the Naval Academy.” Or, “I go to Mass – but I wonder how this priest got this out of this.”
Unfortunately, I didn’t find out - because I didn't figure this out till afterwards.
But I did say that a guy named Greg Pierce out in Chicago told us priests: “I check homilies and spiritual reading books and articles and very few talk about the two main areas where most people spend most of their lives: work and relationships.”
I would add “sleep” – and that sometimes happens during a homily.
GIVING A VOICE TO MY OBSERVANT SELF
The title of my homily is, “Giving A Voice To My Observant Self.”
A voice ….
Finding one’s voice….
A little child starts to get their voice – screaming, laughing, crying, pointing, banging a spoon. Sometimes it’s cute; sometimes it’s not – especially at 2 AM.
But we want a child to talk: “Ma Ma, Da Da, dog, cat, meow.”
In high school sometimes some kid says something out of the blue in class and all the other kids are amazed that this kid who always seemed to be in the clouds or was drawing in his text books or was in Zombie Land – had a profound thought.
Now that kid might have been thinking all along about what he or she was observing – and this might have been the first time they voiced their observations out loud in school – or it might have been the first time they voiced an observation out loud and they observed their own observation.
Finding one’s voice … especially in afterthoughts.
Using that phrase, “finding one’s voice,” is something we say of singers, writers, preachers, public speakers, teachers, etc. etc. etc.
Have you found your voice yet?
Have you voiced your voice to yourself yet?
Have you spoken out yet with your voice?
Do you know your values, your comforts, what makes you angry, what makes you sad, what you love, and what you hate?
Can you voice them?
N. P. R. RADIO
So last evening while driving back here to St. Mary's, I observed my thoughts and voiced them in a car to myself. I didn’t turn on the radio or anything else – just my inner voices.
However, driving down to Camp Letts was a different experience.
It was 4:15 in the afternoon and I turned on NPR from WAMU at American University in Washington and caught a program entitled, “The State We're In” - from Radio Netherlands.
With hindsight, more than today's readings, it was those two pieces that triggered this homily.
The first story on this program was about a woman in Northern Ireland named Eimear O’Callaghan. She’s married and has 3 kids – and she said she is someone who never throws anything away – so she has lots of stuff in her house. Recently while stuffing a paper flyer from a program in a packed leather pouch, she came upon her diaries from when she was a teenager.
She began reading her observations about life in Derry, Ireland – especially at the time of Bloody Sunday back in 1972. She talked about the vast chasm between Catholics and Protestants – and the fighting going on back then. She read a few excerpts out loud on the radio. In the same paragraph in one entry, she talked about getting free ice cream and a British solider who was just killed. In another entry she talked about going to a dance and about the violence in the streets coming home from the dance.
The reporter on the radio asked if she is sharing her diaries with her kids and she said, “Just one kid. The other 2 are not interested.”
She also told about the tears and the celebration in Northern Ireland when David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, recently said we the British Government were wrong. We committed an injustice back in 1972. She told about how a vast crowd in the streets of Derry were watching the Prime Minister's speech on a big screen and then screamed for joy.
I found myself in the car crying as well – with my Irish roots and having parents both of whom came to American from Galway because of poverty.
This lady, Eimear O’Callaghan, could read and listen to her voice and her observations from nearly 40 years ago – the voice of what a teenage girl was observing. She added, “And I expect to find several more diaries from my younger years somewhere in the house.”
This story was followed up with a story about a philosopher, Theodore Zeldin, in England who has what is called, “Feast With Strangers” once a year in Hyde Park in London. It’s advertised and you show up and look at the menu: food for thought. If you want to talk about travels and trips, here’s the spot to sit and talk. If you’re interested in “Family,” here’s the spot to sit and talk. If you’re interested in “My prejudices” here’s the spot to sit and talk – and on and on and on.
People would find one part of the menu boring or not tasty and move onto another. One lady observed, “This was the first time in two years that I had a decent conversation. The last time was a talk I had with my brother two years ago.”
That’s the observant self talking. That’s giving voice to the observant self.
WEDDING RECEPTION
While listening to this in the car yesterday evening, a moment at a wedding reception I was at came back to me. I was at a table with people whom I never met before. They are not from around here. The music in the background was rather loud. My observant self said, “It’s great to be on this table in the back – far from the music.” The girl to my right was texting much of the meal. Her brother next to her was also texting much of the meal. His brother next to him was playing games with a small something the whole meal. His mother next to him was on the cell phone – from time to time. Their dad was out in the lobby talking with other men. The young couple on my left were talking to themselves and the older couple next to them were too far away to talk or listen to.
I was screaming inwardly. “Help! Get me out of here.”
I heard that voice – a voice inside me – because I‘ve heard that scream many times before.
I've seen a group of teenage boys coming into a get together or a dance, check out the territory and head for the door.
Well, here I was trapped – in unknown territory. I found myself making the best of it by saying to myself, “There’s a homily here somewhere.”
How many people in church, in meetings, in marriages, in jobs, are screaming inwardly, “Help! Get me out of here!”?
TODAY’S READINGS
Before you scream that – or in case you are already screaming that, I want to make a few observations about today’s readings and head for the rest of the Mass.
The readings at Mass are voices from the past….
Today’s first reading is from an anonymous someone from after 515 B.C. because it mentions the temple. Imagine if we just found this document like a found diary? We would have in hand a voice from the past. What did this Malachi – a name which simply means “My Messenger” – observe and voice. He didn’t like the priests of his time because they were doing a horrible job. He would be for the second collection – the restoration and maintenance fund – because he calls for the congregation to help expenses and pay for those who care for the temple. He spoke up for wives who were dumped. He told those who doubted God’s love for them – that God does love you. And he warns – as we heard in today’s reading - those who are evil doers, you’re going to be burned like stubble – leaving “neither root nor branch.”
Today’s second reading from Second Thessalonians is from between 51 and 100 A.D. It gives Paul’s voice saying that in spite of comments, we’re paying our dues. We’re not freeloading. When we were with you, we were trying to give good example – so as to model how Christ wants us to work and live – so enough with your complaining.
Today’s gospel gives Luke’s voice from some point after the City of Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Romans – wiped out. It looks like the world is going to end. Luke is dated from around 80 A.D. He gives voice to anyone ever since – who thinks their world has been destroyed – by a hurricane – a fire – a broken marriage – or what have you. It isn’t. Not yet. Have hope.
CONCLUSION
These are other people’s voices. Observing voices is the theme I’m pushing in this homily and it’s twofold.
First what am I observing and can I voice what I’m picking up to myself – inwardly or in a diary or journal or talking with someone? I guarantee that your observations will be far more valuable, deep, than the 1 zillion texts and twitters flying around this church space and this world this very moment.
Secondly, am I listening and observing what those around me are voicing? As that lady in London said, “I haven’t had a conversation like this with anyone in the last two years.” This week have at least one memorable conversation.
