WHAT A WASTE!

[For the sake of  transparency I’m preaching this sermon to myself for starters….]

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily  for this 25 Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year C - is, “What a Waste!”

I better spell our waste. WASTE   not   WAIST.

HOMEWORK: A QUESTIONNAIRE

This week - while driving - or waiting on some line - or when alone - or with your spouse or family or friends, come up five instances when someone might say, “What a waste!”

Here are a quick five I came up with last night:

A gigantic and expensive meal is put together and it rains or snows or nobody shows and the food is thrown out. Someone says, “What a waste!”

An athlete - an obvious first round pick - gets addicted to heroin - and ends up homeless - on the streets - and someone says, “What a waste!”

I heard this about a priest. It wasn’t me. The guy was handsome - smart - great priest - and someone said of him becoming a priest, “What a waste!”

I heard the same thing about a nun once. Gorgeous. Thin. What a waist! W A I S T. Talented. Great high school teacher. And someone seeing her and being told she was a nun, the person said, “What a waste!”

A man is managing several stores for this other guy - and is very successful at it - and he starts dipping into his boss’ funds - hears he’s about to get fired - calls up some of his contacts - and contracts - and gives them sweet deals - with the idea - after he loses his job - they will hire him. And his boss says, “You’re smart. You’re talented. You’re gifted. You’re fired. But what a waste!”

TODAY’S GOSPEL

I’m assuming that fifth example sounds familiar - that you recognize it’s a variation on today’s gospel. The conniving steward is a sharp guy - but he’s dishonest - and loses his job. And the rich man - his boss -  is shaking his head and basically saying, “What a waste!”

Jesus in today’s gospel is challenging all of us to look at our lives and our families and our jobs - and our thoughts - and our morality - and our values.

Jesus in today’s gospel is also challenging us to look at ourselves and ask: am I honest or dishonest with my wealth - and by wealth - I mean my skills, my gifts and my talents.

A quote I once read - but can’t find again   - has always challenged me. I think it was Ted Roethke, the poet, who said it. It goes something like this: “Oh the lies I have told my energies.”

I have been interested in writing ever since the 8^th grade in grammar school - and from time to time - I get going with that talent - but “Oh the lies I have told my energies.”

Lies and laziness can lay waste to a lot of our energies.  I’m sure you’ve heard from time to time that we only use something like 10% of our brain.  I don’t know if that’s true - and how that’s measured - but whenever we hear it - I’m sure we say, “Yeah, that’s right. I got  to get moving. I got to get such and such a thing done or cleaned up or finished.” “Oh the lies I have told my energies.”

Jesus in this gospel tells us how difficult it is to be divided - how tricky it is to serve two masters. We either hate one and love the other or we’re devoted to one and we despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon. A good translation for mammon is “stuff”.

Hopefully anyone who  is cheating on his or her spouse or company or government or time with one’s kids - feels it. Hopefully anyone who is cheating on themselves - down deep - knows it. There’s hope when we feel divided - when we feel the pulls and the “Uh oh’s” inside us,  when we’re cheating others or when we’re wasting our lives - our time - our talents - on the wrong things.

THE MIRROR METAPHOR OR MIRROR IMAGE

The mirror metaphor has always been a great metaphor - because we have mirrors in our bathrooms, bedrooms, cars, etc.

It’s always smart to look in the mirror - not just to see spinach or caraway seeds stuck between our teeth - but to look into our eye - and check in on ourselves with honesty questions.

It’s always smart to take a pad or iPad - and type in or jot down our job description and expectations and hopes which we have for ourselves - as well as  taking and making an honest inventory of our wealth - that is, our talents - our calls to be the best we can be.

Some people have a pad by the side of their bed to jot down their dreams from the middle of the night!

It’s good to jot down our day dreams - our hopes - those “some day I’m going to’s”.

How many people do we know who can paint or play the guitar or piano or banjo or violin - and the only instrument they play is the TV remote?

We point a finger at them and say or think: “You’re wasting your time and your life on meaningless pursuits.”  Then we lie to ourselves and say, “If I could play the banjo or if I could paint, I’d be in a band or painting on Saturday or Sunday afternoons.”

In the meanwhile we know the old saying, “Every time we point one finger towards another - three fingers are pointing back at us”

What are those 3 gifts and talents we have - that are sitting in a box in our brain. So it’s good to look at what I’m doing with my gifts and my talents and my skills. It’s good to know  my failures and weaknesses. It’s good when we admit at least to ourselves  when and where I am lazy - where I’m being dishonest with my energies.

The one skill I keep telling myself - when I look into myself - is to work on the skill of getting things done in between getting things done. I can have an appointment from 1 to 2 and then another from 3 to 4. It’s the skill of learning how to get going on that  2 to 3 time slot that I am lazy at. That’s a skill I keep saying, “I’m going to get going on that - and get doing those things I know I got to get done - but without being too compulsive.”

TODAY’S FIRST READING FROM THE PROPHET AMOS

Today’s first reading is from the prophet Amos. I don’t know if he had a brother named Andy. He’s a shepherd. Well, we hear from him today and next Sunday in the first reading.

Amos challenges us not just to get going with our gifts - whether it’s playing the banjo or bridge - or paint or writing poetry - or taking care of sheep - but on not being a waste with our lives.

He sees what all of us see every day - the good, the bad, and the ugly - out there. Jesus will challenge us to also see in here - inside ourselves as well - the good, the bad and the ugly.

Amos must have done a lot of talking and thinking with God out there in the hills while caring for his sheep. It’s called prayer. He must have got in touch with what he didn’t like was happening in town - in the marketplace. People fixed scales and manipulated money - and cheated the poor or anyone they could steal from in selling grain or wheat or what have you.

And he spoke up. That makes him a prophet. That’s one of those calls we all are given in our baptism - when the deacon or priest anoints us in the Baptismal ceremony as prophet, priest and king or queen. That’s us.

Now nobody likes whistle blowers or people who when they walk into a room, everybody goes, “Oh no not her again!”

As we’re learning from our new pope, action speaks louder than words - but of course, words sometimes work, but we can be prophets by living life to the full - with deep concern for all.

Others will pick up on us. Okay, sometimes we’ll be crucified - and sometimes we have to crucify ourselves if we want to live life to the full - as Jesus calls us to.

CONCLUSION

How to conclude this. I’m not sure.

I know that Erik Erikson says that the 8^th Stage of life is the Meaning stage - when we are pulling together our life - to see if it makes sense. He says some people get there and go into despair.

I would assume what they are doing is looking at their life and making a final judgment and saying, “What a waste!”

I would assume some go into death with a great fear that God is going to say the same thing at a final judgment: “What a waste!”  Matthew 25: 31-46 has that powerful scene of the end of the world being a separation of the sheep from the goats - can certainly lead to that way of thinking and worrying. Luke 15 - last Sunday’s gospel - certainly leans towards a God who doesn’t voice those big time eternal punishment threats - but welcomes us into the banquet - no matter what.

I would assume in the meanwhile, if we have been lying to our energies much of our lives,  there’s always time to head for the vineyards - to get to work - to get going - even if it’s the last hour.

Ooops: How do we make this practical?  

4 minutes is all it takes.

Two minutes in the morning: what do I want to do today? A daily log on paper or some kind of gadget can give creditability to self - not others  - or if you’re married - make your plans  for your day with your spouse - and then at the end of the day - to look at the list. Then answer the question: Was today a waste or a wow! And I’m not talking about all work and no play - that can lead to craziness - but to living a giving, a balanced, and gracious life each day.  Amen.

THE WASTE LAND

Quote for Today - September 22, 2013

"A heap of broken images, 
              where the sun beats,
And the dead tree gives no shelter, 
              the cricket no relief,
And the dry stone 
              no sound of water. Only
There is shadow under this red rock,
(Come in under 
              the shadow of this red rock),
And I will show you something 
             different from either
Your shadow at morning 
            striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening 
           rising to meet you;
I will show you fear 
           in a handful of dust.” 

T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land

ACTION: 

GET MOVING

Quote for Today - September 21, 2013

"Action is the antidote to despair."

Joan Baez, Rolling Stone, 1983

YOU'VE  GOT  TALENTS

Quote for Today - September 20, 2013

"There are two kinds of talents, man-made talent and God-given talent.  With man-made talent you have to work very hard.  With God-given talent you just touch it up once in a while."

Pearl Bailey, Newsweek, December 4, 1967

Questions: 

What's your take on that comment?

Name your # 1 God-given talent?

Name your # 1 you've worked to have talent?

RELIGION

Quote for Today - September 19, 2013

"Religion is not an opiate, for religion does not help people to forget, but to remember.It does not dull people. It does not say Take, but Give."

Bede Jarrett, The Catholic Mother, 1956

MUSIC

Quote for Today - September 18, 2013

"I know what these people want; I have seen them pick up my violin and turn it over in their hands. They may not know it themselves, but they want music, not by the ticketful, the purseful, but music as it should be had, music at home, a part of daily life, a thing as necessary, as satisfying, as the midday meal.  They want to play.  And they are kept back by the absurd, the mistaken, the wicked notion that in order to play an instrument one must be possessed by that bogey called Talent."

Catherine Drinker Brown, Friends and Fiddlers, 1934

PICK ME OUT 

A WINNER, BOBBY

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 24 Tuesday in Ordinary Time is, “Pick Me Out A Winner, Bobby.”

If you saw the 1984 baseball  movie, “The Natural,” starring Robert Redford as Roy Hobbs, you’ll remember the big scene near the end of the movie when Roy Hobbs breaks his bat  in the ninth inning - his favorite and only bat - and says to the batboy, Bobby Savoy, “Pick Me Out A Winner, Bobby.”  “Pick me out a winner, Bobby!”

And Bobby does.  He hands him his Savoy Special - and Roy Hobbs hits this big time, - big hit - home run -  and they win the pennant and Roy Hobbs saves the team from being gobbled up by the bad guys.

“Pick Me Out A Winner, Bobby.”

TODAY’S FIRST READING: QUALIFICATIONS FOR BISHOPS AND DEACONS - HOPING FOR A WINNER!

Today’s first reading has this great text from 1^st Timothy - on the qualifications necessary for a bishop and a deacon as well as being an outstanding woman in the community. [Cf. 3: 1-13]

I’m sure as you listened to today’s 1^st reading - a document from around the year 100 more or less - you had a thought or two about church and bishops - maybe priests - who aren’t mentioned - as well as deacons - who are mentioned.

Paul in this pastoral letter to Timothy gives a great bucket wish list for the ideal bishop or pastor:

              - A bishop must be irreproachable,
                 married only once, temperate, 
                 self-controlled, decent, hospitable,
                 able to teach, not a drunkard, 
                 not aggressive, but gentle
                 not contentious, not a lover 
                 of money.
               - He has to be able to control and
                  manage his own house well.
               - He should not be a recent convert.
               - He must have a good reputation.

The qualifications 1^st Timothy lists for deacons are similar:

             - They be dignified, not deceitful,
             - They are not addicted to drink
                [There must have been a lot 
                  of drinking going on ...],
              -They are not greedy for sordid gain,
              - They have faith and a 
                clear conscience,
              - They too should be married 
                only once.

Women in the local community are also given a list of qualifications:

            - They too should be dignified,
            - They should not be slanderers,
            - They too should manage their 
               house and children well.

I assume that the key behind these lists is the hope of picking a winner - choosing a good pastor - choosing a good leader.

When the bat is broken - the athlete looks for a new bat…. When a pope, a bishop, a pastor, a leader dies or steps down or retires or is changed or is broken, the group moves to come up with a new person to put in charge.  I assume  the members of the group, in this case the Church, are crying out: “Pick us a winner, Bobby. Pick us a winner.”

In our lifetime we have seen popes, bishops, pastors, priests, principals, deacons, heads of committees, leaders, officials, come and go. We have a primary election here in Annapolis today - and elections all around the place.

Pick us a winner, Bobby.

When it comes to Church - besides your comments and observations - what are your hopes and qualifications for leaders? We all have them - more or less. 

It’s a good topic for breakfast or a coffee break.

Last night I wrote down the following first draft comments about all this.

Paul has a great list here in 1^st Timothy. It tells us that the Church has developed and changed and grown since its beginnings.  The gospels talk about apostles, disciples, prophets and followers. In time we hear about bishops, deacons and priests. There is mention from time to time of women in leadership positions. There is scholarship and articles and books on whether there were women deacons in the church - and what they did. First observation: there is development.

Next there are lists of qualifications down through our 2000 years of history. Evidently - this is the obvious thing to do. What does your list look like?

Besides spoken or written qualifications necessary in a leader, I assume that there are also unwritten qualifications and things going on when it comes to replacements: hidden agendas - pay backs - lobbying - etc. Transparency helps!

An obvious comment to make is this: when it comes to picking a pope or bishop or pastor, the pool is not that big. We have to deal with the people we have - not the non-existent super heroes - that people want and hope for. There are only so many 300 hitters. Some parishes and some dioceses might not get Bishop Supergreat!

Next comment: most of us are not in on the pick. We don’t get a vote. Sometimes we get a voice - or some folks get a voice. Few get a vote - before the white smoke tells us we have a new pope.  Tuesday is the usual day for listings from the Vatican of a new bishop for Venice or Vienna or Venezuela. We only read about it. The Church is not that democratic.

I’ve discovered the 1/3 rule - when it comes to being a priest. 1/3 like you; 1/3 don’t like you; 1/3 really don’t care. Our new pope seems to be saying presence and reaching out to folks with TLC is more important for priests and bishops than academic achievements. St. Teresa if Avila said something to the effect that she likes smart priests much more than stupid holy priests.

And this new pope of ours is certainly different than the last pope and the one before that and one before that and the one before that. Some are comparing him however, to Pope John XXIII.

This pope is talking about the attitudes he’d like to see in bishops: that they don’t want the job, that they smell like sheep, that they are listeners, that they are servants, less pomp, and please find yourself in more circumstances on the margins with the poor and isolated. He certainly is for less words and more action. Take the bus. Visit prisons. Wash feet. Don’t eat alone - eat with the community. Shake hands and mix and be with the crowd. Simplicity. Simplicity. More simplicity.

When people ask me my take on the new pope: I always say, “We’ll see. We’ll see.”  I say that because time will tell - like 100 years after his death - how he did - who he was. Moreover,  who knows, perhaps  500 years from now - when talking about a pope, someone might say, “Well, it was only after her death, we realized ….”

I assume the following: if there is anything we can be sure about it’s this: death and change.

If there is anything we have faith about,  it’s this: Jesus is Lord and he keeps saying to us as he says to the young man in today’s gospel: “Rise! Stop being dead!”