NOT SURE

Quote for Today - October 14, 2013

"When we are not sure, we are alive."

Graham Green [1904-1991]

.... and surprise Columbus discovered America ....

Painting of Christopher Columbus by Sebastiano del Piombo [1485-1547]

TWINS

[The following is a story for this 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time C - which I wrote after reflecting on today's first reading about Naaman the Syrian in the 2nd Book of Kings - Chapter 5 - who had a skin disease - and the 10 people in the gospel of Luke - Chapter 17 - who had skin diseases as well - and all are healed - and then the theme of thankfulness erupts.]

You wouldn’t know they were brothers.

You wouldn’t know they were twins.

But they were - they were brothers and they were twins.

But as I am about to  indicate in this story, they were different - as different as night and day - as different as blue and yellow - as different as sugar and pepper. They were different.

And their nicknames were “Think” and “Thank”. They picked them up - somewhere along the line - while traveling the time line of their lives. Interesting nicknames to say the least - Think and Thank - but like some nicknames they contained a deep truth.

So their nicknames fit each other, fit each brother, to the T.

But oops!  I’m getting ahead of the story - the story of  why  they picked up their nick names - and what kind of personality each was - in the first place.

In college - Tom - who became “Thank” - was tall and thin - 6 foot 2 - only 173 pounds - skin and bones. And to be honest - not that good looking. He could be gawky. He had  a big nose and big ears.

In college  - Terrence - who became “Think” - was the good looking one - 6 foot tall - 210 pounds  - smooth and savvy - who excelled in math. He was also an excellent running back - both in high school and now in playing college football.

You wouldn’t know they were brothers.

You wouldn’t know they were twins.

But they were: Terrence and Thomas - Think and Thank.

Tom’s face skin was quite scared - from a long serious season of teenage acne. At times in his teenage years,  classmates called him, “Leper!”

But aren’t we - really - who we really are - inside our skin? Yet  our face - our skin - our look - can define us - who we are - for a time. So it took time for Tom to become Tom - the thankful one.

But it really wasn’t till he spent time in college - that he realized - nicknames like “Leper” or “Ears” or “Nose” - really didn’t bug him that big. In fact Tom began to flourish in college. This happened somewhere along his Junior or Senior year at the same state college he and Terrence went to together. He learned that big groups really didn’t matter. Close friends did. He knew that those who knew him - loved and appreciated him whenever he walked into a room or a situation. He became Tom simply becoming Tom.

His friends discovered that Tom had this great gift of being thankful.  Once you caught that - you caught his personality. The big sparkle in his eyes - was bigger than his ears and his nose and the pockmarks on his cheeks and forehead from his acne.  The fun - the delight - the joy - the quick or cute comments he made about life and the passing scene - brought joy to the conversations he was part of. You might say the words he spoke or used were covered with a smooth skin.

So it was somewhere in the midst of the mix of many moments that his basic attitude towards life earned him the nickname, “Thank.”

Every meal - every cup of coffee - every trip  - every game - was always “a great time” - and he would always say, “Thank you.”

In fact, he was always the last one out of every restaurant - or pub - because he would track down the waiter or waitress - who served them and he would look them in the eye and say, “Thank you!”  And that “Thank you” was  better than any tip left on a restaurant table.

That was - and kept on getting stronger - the essence of this guy named “Tom” that I’m trying to describe for you today.

Terrence was different. It took time for him to acquire his nickname of “Think”. He sort of had an itch and edge in him.

So Terrence was just the opposite. He wasn’t the type to put butter on the bread of human relationships. The waiter or waitress, the coach - the musician, the teacher - better be the best - if they were to get a basic “Thank you!” from Terrence.

Terrence never became Terry. Thomas became Tom or Tommy by his very close friends - as well as “Thank” - in God’s good time.

If time is of the essence in all this, it took time for Terrence to become Think - but I better tell you now - it was never to his face. It was always just behind his back - in contrast to his twin brother “Thank” - who heard people call him that - out loud and to his face.

Terrence was the logical one. He had to figure everything out - especially motive. He could be suspicious - or “standbackish” at times.

If you’re not a twin - and I’m not one - so I’m not that sure about all this - but Think or Terrence - spent a lot of time trying to think just why his brother Tom was so different from him. Maybe it was because Tom was 7 minutes older than him - but come to think about that - it couldn’t be that. It had to be something else - so he kept on thinking about that one - on and off - much of his life. And much of his life comparing himself to his brother - made him feel uneasy - and uncomfortable. Something seemed unfair.

Tom - in contrast - never thought that much about their differences - just the joy - the comments that came up - whenever others found out he was a Terrence’s twin . “You guys are brothers!  You guys are twins! You’re kidding!”

[PAUSE - LONG PAUSE]

Life went on….

Terrence got married three times - and he was divorced three times. His wives couldn’t live up to his standards of perfection. He thought it was vice versa - but they knew it was vice versa - when they finally broke away from him and got the divorce.

In fact, this is something - luckily - Terrence never found out about - but all three ex-wives - got together for lunch once - and then dinner - and then lunch again - and what they put together - were learnings for their own lives - that no college could teach. Each said they were relieved when the deal called “marriage” finally fell through - and when they finally figured some things out about their life choices.

And also - quietly behind Terrence’s back - his parents - Tom and Terrence’s parents - finally said to each other, “It’s sad - but Thank God our daughter-in-law’s got smart and got out from under Terrence.” This happened somewhere there - when their sons were in their mid 30’s. And they added, “Thank God Terrence had no kids.”

But they added, “Thank God Tommy had 3 kids” - their 3 grandkids who were a delight - and a joy - and gave them great meaning as they moved into  the autumn and winter seasons of their lives.

Sad to say Terrence’s face become somewhat sullen - even though he was always the handsome one.  But at family weddings or what have you - everyone without being conscious of it - knew Tommy or Thank or Tom was the happy one.

But sometimes good news - happens - healings start to happen. Hey, aren’t we all people of hope? Who wants to hear a story with a unhappy ending? So here’s the good news that began to happen.

Terrence accidently overheard someone describing him and his brother as “Think” and “Thank” - and he knew immediately who was who. 

The more he thought about that - the more he realized his twin brother was his gift to him. 

So they would go out to dinner from time to time - actually at least once a month. 

They were now in their early fifties. 

Think slowly began to become more and more like Thank. 

And so he would thank his brother Tom for being such a great twin brother and a great gift to him. 

Ooops, in fact, both would stop to find the waiter and waitress - after a long meal together - and say together, “Thank you!”

THANK YOU, GOD

Quote for Today - Sunday October 13, 2013

"I thank You God

for this most amazing day;

for the leaping greenly spirits of  trees

and a blue true dream of sky;

and for everything which is natural

which is infinite

which is yes."

e.e. cummings [1894-1962]

HEARING ISN’T ENOUGH!

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 27^th Saturday in Ordinary Time  is, “Hearing Isn’t Enough!”

That’s a basic theme we know and have heard many, many times.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

Last night when I heard today’s short gospel, my first reaction was, “Uh, not enough - not enough for a homily.”

So I read the gospel again - and the second time around the word near the end of the  gospel intrigued me: “observe” - as opposed to just “hearing” the word of God.

This woman from a crowd of listeners to Jesus is grabbed or fascinated with what Jesus is saying - so she praises his mother.

Isn’t that fascinating? Was she thinking of her own children - wishing they could speak and teach and say the wise and wonderful things Jesus was saying?  Was she thinking: wow his mother must be so proud of her son?

Jesus is not putting down his mother - nor this woman - but he’s simply saying, “Hearing isn’t enough!” You have to do more than just listen. You have to go beyond the hearing - to the next step - the next level.  But how to describe that?

RESEARCH

I began trying to remember the different translations and ways this message has been presented that I have heard down through the years.

In today’s gospel, Jesus replied to the admiring woman, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

Instead of  the word “observe” - I’ve heard other English words,  “keep” or “obey” as well as “put it into practice.”

I looked up what the Greek word was that is used to translate “observe” and found it to be “phulasso” - P H U L A S S O. 

That Greek word is also used in Luke 2:28 - when the shepherds -  who come to Bethlehem to see the new born baby - those shepherds are said to “P H U L A S S O” - the sheep - translated usually “to watch over them, to keep watch, to protect the sheep.”

That certainly is more than just saying observe.  “I watch over the sheep” or “I guard the sheep - and Jesus will even say, “I’ll lay down my life for my sheep.” That’s more than just observe.

AN OPENING

By that tiny bit of research this Gospel text opened up for me. Then it hit me loud and clear that hearing is not enough.

We all know the person who is very noisy or they leave the milk out or they don’t pick up after themselves or they never empty the dishwasher and we voice our complaint to them. Then they say, “I hear you.” But then they don’t do anything about it.

How many times has the always late person said, “I’m sorry!” And the family or group complains or the other complains, “You’re always late and you keep me or us waiting.” And they say, “I hear you.” Then they are late the next time and the time after that and the time after that ad nauseam.

Hearing is not enough. An “I’m sorry” is not enough. A smile is not enough.

CONCLUSION

Back to Mary - the woman who gave Jesus birth, milk, life and wisdom, she hears the word of God - questions it - ponders it.

Then she says, “Yes - be it done to me according to your word.” 

Mary models the message of this homily - “Hearing is not enough!” Mary becomes pregnant with it. Mary - when she hears her cousin Elizabeth is pregnant and is older - Mary goes into the hill country - south - in haste to help her cousin.

Hearing is not enough. Talk is easy. Words can demand work. Words must become flesh. It’s the old song line: “Don’t talk about love. Show me.”

UNLESS YOU BE 

LIKE LITTLE CHILDREN!

Quote for Today - Saturday October 11, 2013

"Everyone knows a good deal about one child - himself [or herself]"

Sidney M.B. Coulling, professor of English, Washington and Lee University, in The Privilege of Teaching, Morehouse-Barlow, 1962

ON BEING MANIPULATED

Quote for Today - October 11, 2013

“She had once been a Catholic, but discovering that priests were infinitely more attentive when she was in process of losing or regaining faith in Mother Church, she maintained an enchantingly wavering attitude.” 

F. Scott Fitzgerald [1896-1940], This Side of Paradise (1921), Book 1, Chapter 1.

IS THE ONLY PLOT, 

THE GRAVE?

Quote for Today - October 10, 2013

“As regards plots I find real life no help at all.  Real life seems to have no plots.”

Dame Ivy Compton-Burnett [1844-1969] In R. Lehmann et. al. Orion I (1945) page 25.