WHAT’S THE NAME
OF THE HOUSE
YOU LIVE IN?
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 2nd Wednesday after Easter is, “What’s The Name of the House You Live In?”
We’re standing there on the sidewalk and there are all these houses on both sides of the street. And I say to you, “Which house do you live in?” And before you can answer, I add a variation to my opening question, “Or what’s the name of the house you live in?”
That gives you pause, because you’re not sure just what or where I’m going with my question. Then I say, “Houses have different names. Let me give you a few names for starters:
- Jealousy,
- Worry,
- Envy,
- Complaining
- Competition
- Control,
- Anger,
- Freedom,
- Fun,
- Peace
Then you say, “Ooh! Uh! Oooh Uh! If you put it that way, I’m not sure. Let me think about what name to give our house?
YOU THINK ABOUT IT
You think about it. You smile because you figure the curtains of the house of jealousy, worry, envy, competition, are always being pulled aside to peek at what’s happening in other houses and driveways and who’s got what kind of a lawn or car or lawnmower or visitors.
You think about it. The house of complaining – has people who are not happy with anything – that life is not fair. They are always getting the red light. The bridge is always up. The neighbors are too nosey or too uppity or what have you.
You think about it. The house of anger always has screams coming out the windows and going up and down the street.
You think about it. The fun house has kids on the lawn playing with puff footballs or big red plastic bats and bright white plastic whiffle balls or kids rolling on the lawn.
The house of control has the owner with a scowly face because the kids of the fun house are always going on his lawn to retrieve their white plastic whiffle ball.
The house of freedom has people sitting in their backyard a lot – people have a drink in hand or they are playing a card game together or someone is reading a book by themselves – or someone is chipping a golf ball on the back lawn and we hear some soft music coming out the windows in mid-May or October of mid-November – but it never bothers the neighbors.
PRAYER
You become more and more intrigued with the original question: “What’s The Name of the House You Live In?”
You bring it to prayer.
You ponder the readings at Mass for today about the apostles being in jail and they are freed by the Spirit and the jail keeper is filled with fear and the Sadducees are filled with fear and frustration – and you say, “I don’t want our house to be filled with fear and frustration and that it feel like a jail all the time.” [Cf. Acts 5:17-26 and John 3:16-21.]
You think about the disciples when they were in the Upper Room filled with panic and worry – and then Jesus comes and gives them a Spirit of Peace and they become free and are not scared to proclaim Jesus as Light and Salvation – and you feel a great sense of peace.
CONCLUSION
And so you make a decision for the name of your house. You know naming it is only the first step. The steps after that are to make it for real.
So you talk with your family and you tell them about the question and what your thoughts are and they say, “Great idea!” And so all of you go to a river not too far from your house and you find a nice smooth stone. You bring it back home. Then you get a Black Magic Marker pen and the whole family work on writing on the stone: “Welcome! This is a House of Peace.” And you place it right outside your front door.
Then you have on the wall just inside your front door a copy of the Peace Prayer of St. Francis and as a family you all agree to say this prayer every morning – together or with one or two other persons and then to try to make it happen.
And you do! And you become more and more a House of Peace.
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MORNING PRAYER
Lord,
make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love,
Where there is injury, pardon,
Where there is doubt, faith,
Where there is despair, hope,
Where there is darkness, light,
Where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love;
for it is in giving
that we receive,
it is in pardoning
that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying
that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
(St. Francis)
