WON'T CHANGE

Quote for Today - March 11, 2013

"Forgiving the unrepentant is like drawing pictures on water."

Japanese Proverb

Question: Agree or disagree?

THE FATHER 

WHO CRIED A LOT

Once upon a time there was a father - who cried - who cried an awful lot.

His boys  - his two sons - sometimes they saw him wipe a tear or two or three off his upper cheeks - just below his eyes at times - with his knuckles - with a semi-closed fist -  but they never ask the why - the why of the cry.

If they did, they might find out - that their dad cried because they were so, so different - and so, so difficult. He cried at night - at times - because he was praying that they would get along with each other and talk to each other - but no - they rarely did.

The older one - was always so perfect - so right - never, ever, ever doing anything wrong - and squealed and tattled on his younger brother when they was young - and then a wall of ice formed - block by block between the two brothers in their teen age years.

The younger brother - was always so dumb - so stupid - pigging out - messing up - hanging with the wrong crowd - and the father would hear about it - and have to pay for damages and things he broke.

The father forgave him time after time after time - hoping this would change him - but it never seemed to work and the older brother would tell his dad, “I told you so. I told you so! He’ll never change.”

The older brother stopped hearing his father’s cries in the night. He was too into himself - too isolated to feel compassion for his father - whom he secretly thought was stupid - with the way his brother twisted his father around his finger like a ring.

The younger brother was also self centered - figuring the world - the future would come rushing up to him with all its riches.

It killed the father that day - when his youngest son - asked if he could have his inheritance now - as soon as possible - so he could travel to some far county - some great future - and celebrate life in some great foreign enterprise.

Surprise! His father said, “Yes.” After dividing up the property he gave the younger son half the family wealth.

That morning when his son left -  there was the attempted embrace by the father - but the younger son waved it off as he walked into the future with all his stuff - and his new fancy - rather fat - leather money bag.

The older brother - working in the field didn’t even say good bye - didn’t even wave goodbye. He was furious that his father would let his brother take half the family fortune and walk off into nothingness.

Good riddance - but he didn’t dream of great meals now with just he and his dad - laughing, talking, enjoying a sunset over their home and property - together.

Nope - this older brother was a cold fish - a rock - a stump in the ground - that wasn’t too alive.

The father’s tears flowed that day as he watched the back and body of his younger son grow smaller and smaller - walked further and further up the road away from their home.

The older brother never asked about his younger brother. In fact, he tried to change the subject - whenever his father asked him if he heard anything about his brother when he was with his friends.

Every night after supper the father would walk up the road to the top of a small hill and look down the road on the other side to see if his younger son might be heading home.

There were only tears - there - on the top of that hill - and he rarely saw anyone coming his way on the road heading towards him.

Most nights the father had trouble sleeping - tossing and turning where and what his younger son might be and what was happening to him. Life is not supposed to happen this way. Families are supposed to stick together.

If only mom had not died when the boys were so, so small.

The father felt like a total failure - feeling that he didn’t know how to be a father. He didn’t know how to raise his sons.

The younger brother blew his fortune as if there were holes in his fancy leather money bag. Everyone was his friend in every bar he entered.

But the bag soon became empty - and his stomach became empty - and his life became even more empty. He tried a job on a pig farm. The sight of them eating and stuffing themselves with slop - and vegetable pods - only made things worse.

He was in a nightmare - in a foreign land - in tattered clothes  - in wrinkled skin  - all alone.

Finally he woke up. He talked to himself. He came to his senses. He headed home - practicing - rehearsing - his speech. “Father I blew it - I lost it all. I was stupid. Just hire me as a hired servant - because I’m starving and I’m dumb.

That afternoon the father saw him coming over the top of the hill heading towards the house. “It’s my son.”  He screamed to the hired hands, “It’s my son!” And he ran - ran - towards his son - with tears of joy flowing down his face.

He held his son. He hugged him. He didn’t hear his son’s confession. He didn’t hear the, “Sorries!” 

He yelled to his hired hands, “Quick set up the tables. Kill the fatted lamb. Get the best of bread and wine and food. My son is home.”

He blurted out, “Put a ring on his fingers. Get him a new robe. Wash his feet. Get a pair of sandals for him. Invite all the neighbors.”

And the younger son was stunned. Tears of guilt. Tears of joy flowed down his face.”

Then the celebration began.

Meanwhile the older brother was coming from the other direction - coming towards the house and he hears music and dancing and asks one of the hired hands what was happening.

With tears in his eyes the hired hand said, “Good News! Your brother has come home and your father is throwing a great party for him. He has killed the fattest calf for him.”

At that the older brother turned around in fury. His fists became stones - ready to punch the world.

The hired hand seeing all this went and told the father who came out and pleaded with him to come to the celebration.

Lucky for those celebrating they couldn’t hear the angry words and curses the older brother screamed at his father.

“All these years I have been the good son - the perfect son - always loyal to you. All I did was work, work, work. And this son of yours - gets it all  - and wastes it all on booze and women and disasters - and you welcome him home. Are you crazy? Are you nuts? When will you ever learn?”

Tears flowed from the father. 

Silence. 

A silent scream roared through his being.  

Then he said, “My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.”

Silence…..

To be continued.

o o o o o o o

Drawing on top: Return of the Prodigal Son [1642]  Rembrandt, Tyeless Museum, Haarlem

Middle Painting: Rembrandt and Saskia in the Scene of the Prodigal Son, c. 1635, Gemaldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden, Germany

Last Painting: The Prodigal Son [c. 1661-1669], Rembrandt, St. Petersburg, Russia.

THE PRODIGAL SHIP

Quote for Today - March 10, 2013

      "All things that are,
Are with more spirit chased than enjoyed.
How like a younker or a prodigal
the scarfed bark puts from her native bay,
Hugged and embraced by the strumpet wind!
How like the prodigal doth she return,
With over-weathered ribs and ragged sails,
Lean, rent, and beggared by the strumpet wind!

William Shakespeare [1564-1616], The Merchant of Venice, Act II, vi, 1

IT TAKES TWO TO PRAY! 

*

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Saturday in the Third Week of Lent is, “It Takes Two To Pray!” 

At least 2.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

If you want to grow in prayer one of the parables of Jesus to take into prayer is Luke 18:9-14 - the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. We just heard it read again today.

If we like to pray here or in the Eucharistic chapel, pray with Luke 18:9-14. Jesus will get into our mind and challenge us big time about prayer with this parable.  If we like to pray at home with the Bible, don’t forget the Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican.

For starters the Pharisee is not praying. He’s one person show. Jesus shocks people with that truth. The Pharisee is all I, I, I, I, I, I.  I do this. I do this. I do that. And I don’t do that, that, and that.

Then Jesus talks about a second person in the parable, but it’s not God. It’s the Sinner, the publican, the tax collector, he must have spotted in the back of the temple on his way up front to be seen.

Joachim Jeremias in his book on The Parables of Jesus tells of a first century prayer AD that was found in the Talmud. Just listen to how familiar it is with the prayer of the Pharisee.[page 142]

“I thank you, O Lord, my God,

that you have given me my lot

with those who sit in the seat of learning,

and not with those  who sit at the street-corners.

I am early to work and they are early to work;

I am early to work on the words of the Torah,

and they are early to work on things of no moment.
I weary myself, and they weary themselves.
I weary myself and profit as a result,

while they weary themselves to no profit.

I run and they run;

I run towards the life of the Age to Come,

and they run towards the pit of destruction.”

How do we pray? Are we all alone in the temple of our brain - inwardly complaining about others in church - or inwardly giving ourselves all the glory.

So today’s gospel is a key parable to pray with if we want to grow in our prayer life.

Jesus uses a parable and he uses comparison to get us thinking.

The title of my homily is, “It Takes Two To Pray!”

The man in the back, the sinner, the publican, is aware of God being present - and he has a profound humility of himself in comparison.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m saying Mass I have to catch myself - not babbling, not reciting, not parroting, not being in the presence of God - but only myself.

CONVERSATION

It takes two to pray. It takes two to have a conversation. We all have been in conversations when the other is not talking to us - but talking at us - building herself or himself up - complaining about others - and the obvious message is: I’m better than these people. We know the feeling.

It’s deadly when a priest in the pulpit looks at his watch. It seems he’s just reciting his words to an empty church. It’s the same in conversations - when someone peeks at their watch  - and we sense they giving speeches at us - or talking to themselves.

CONCLUSION

Jesus is saying: “Hello! This happens in prayer.” So when praying begin with a few moments of quiet - Realize we’re with another - God. Hear God’s “Hello” before we announce ours. Amen. 



* Painting on top: Le pharisien et le publican - the Pharisee and the Publican [1886-1891] by James Tissot [1836-1902] - Brooklyn Museum

WORMS AND WORRIES

Quote for Today - March 9, 2013

"Verem essen toilerhait un deiges lebedikerhait."

"Worms eat you up when dead and worries eat you up alive."

Yiddish Proverb - from 1001 Yiddish Proverbs, edited by Fred Kogos

Question: Name the 10 top worries you have - that are squirming around inside of you - eating up your life energies?

SERMONS

Quote for Today - March 8, 2013

"The half-baked sermon causes spiritual indigestion."  

Austin O'Malley

Comment: O my God, I am partly sorry....."

DO PEOPLE EVER CHANGE?

Quote for the Day - March 7, 2013

"Frenzy, heresy, and jealousy, seldom cured."

English Proverb

Question: Agree or disagree?