The title of my homily for this 5th Sunday in
Ordinary Time [C] is, “My Net Worth.”
Before we die, do we look at our life - the life we lead
- and make a judgment on our net worth?
How do people standing there in the funeral parlor or
sitting there in the church judge us when we die? What do they see we netted in our life?
What are those who do our obituary and those who give our
eulogy - trying to say about our life - and how they see our net worth?
TODAY’S GOSPEL
In today’s gospel Jesus says to Simon Peter, “Put out
into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”
Simon Peter says to Jesus, “Master we have worked hard
all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.”
And we all heard this morning in the gospel of Luke that
they went out to the deeper waters and lowered their nets and caught a great
number of fish and their nets were tearing.
We heard that they signaled to their partners in the
other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats - so that the
boats were in danger of sinking.
And when Simon Peter sees all this he falls at the knees
of Jesus and says, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
And everyone that day was astonished and Jesus says to
Simon Peter, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.”
And they brought their boats to shore - left everything -
and followed Jesus.
Is this the story of life? Sailing through life -
lowering and then lifting and then lowering our nets and then lifting them to
see what we caught - what is our net worth?
I think Jesus did some deep thinking about sorting out
what we are catching in our nets - and making significant switches in our life
as we cross the waters of life - in what we [Cf. Matthew 13:47-48]
CLEMENT JEDRZEWSKI
Whenever we read today’s gospel at Mass, I think
of a man named Clement Jedrzewski.
He told me he went to Paris for his University - at the
Sorbonne. He was a young man - all alone - and that first month there he saw a
notice on a bulletin board about a retreat for young men at a retreat center.
The retreat was given by a famous French Dominican priest, Pere Redinald Marie Garrigou-Lagrange. The first talk began with the reading of today’s gospel Luke 5:1-11.
Then Pere Lagrange paused and looked out at all of us
young men and said, “Your whole life is front of you. Launch out into the deep
and lower your nets for a catch.”
That memory, that story, today’s gospel, is what
triggered my thoughts for this homily. Clement told me that became his goal in life!
As I look at my nets, I see all the many people whom I
caught in my nets. I think of all the people I have met. I think of all those
who influenced my life.
So that’s why I see a man named Clement Jedrzewski when I hear this gospel read.
He was an old man when I met him in the early 1970’s. He
was retired and living in a spare room in a retreat house on the Jersey Shore -
a place called Stella Maris - Elberon, New Jersey.
I’d say morning Mass there at times and I’d meet Clement
and we would chat while enjoying breakfast. He didn’t have a car so I’d bring
him shopping now and then. He was from Warsaw, Poland - got his degrees from
the Sorbonne in Paris. He worked in a branch of the United Nations or some
group like that. He was a poet. He was also a Sociology Professor for years at St. Francis
College, Brooklyn New York. What I became interested in was his theories of how
to teach - how to teach future teachers.
Since I was doing high school retreats just up the road
at our Retreat House, I asked Clement how
he would give a high school retreat. It was from Clement I learned the value of
questions.
He would say, “Everyone has questions. You have to find
them out. Teachers, preachers are always answering questions people are not
asking.”
This morning are you asking what have you caught in your
nets - your life? Are you asking, “How have I changed as life goes on?”
Clement taught me
to ask people on retreat to jot down on paper all their questions they have
right now. He’d add, “Say there are no stupid questions only stupid answers.”
Then he said, “First - starting with each
individual, ask the folks on retreat to write
down all their questions and then narrow them down to three?”
Then he said, “Put your questions in your pocket and ask
everyone to sit with just one other person and jot down all your questions
you’re both asking and then narrow them down to 3.”
Then he said, “Put all those questions in your pocket and
ask everyone to sit in small groups - but make sure they are people, kids,
others, you regularly hang with. Write down all your questions and then narrow
them down to three.”
This took a bit of time, but it was worth it.
Then he said, “Have everyone do this as the large group
making the retreat - and then narrow down your questions to three? There now you have three questions from the
whole group and that’s the retreat material.”
It was hard work, but it has stayed with me for life.
I stand here in the pulpit, Mass after Mass - knowing you
have questions and you might not hear anything about your questions. Sorry.
At least I know that and we both hear the scripture
readings - and I wonder what questions they might trigger in your minds and
lives.
Today I’m asking, “What are you trying to catch? What’s
your net worth so far?”
FURTHER
QUESTIONS
In today’s first reading from Isaiah, we have the story
of a man who went to the temple and he had a God experience.
Evidently, one of his top 3 questions in life was “What
is God like?”
And he’s knocked off his moorings with a God Experience.
He hears the words we say at every Mass, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of
Hosts. All the earth is filled with his glory.”
Then he has the same experience Simon Peter has in
today’s gospel: he feels his sinfulness compared to God’s greatness. He puts
his hand to his lips realizing the unclean words that come out of his mouth.
Then God, the King, the Lord of Hosts sends an angle with burning ember, that
he had taken from the altar and touches Isaiah’s lips and his wickedness is
removed, his sin is purged.
Then he hears a question from God. Is it one of God’s
three questions, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” And Isiah says, “Here I am. Send me.”
Is one of my three life questions, “What does God want me to do? Do I have a
calling?”
Are we all like Paul in today’s second reading - who had
to dump - empty out of his net - his whole fanaticism about life - and religion
can make fanatics of us all. Then on the Road to Damascus he had his God, his
Jesus experience, and then he went from there trying to catch people in the net
called Jesus.
CONCLUSION
Heavy duty stuff -
this religious stuff - and there are so many more questions. Ash Wednesday is
this week. The first Sunday of Lent is next Sunday. Lent is a good time to get
hooked by questions. What are yours?
This week reflect on the image of nets. Think of your
networks. Think of your net worth.
A of the key feelings you’ll get if you do this is the
feelings of unworthiness - sinfulness. You’ll be hit by regrets - as well as
unfinished business.
Relax God is a God of Mercy - forgiveness - and God is a
fisherman - trying to catch us in his nets. Relax. We’re fish - you know that’s
a key Christian Symbol. Each letter of the Greek word for fish - ichthus - stands for a title for Christ. "Jesus Christ - Theos [God] - Uios [Son] Savior."
Fish is part of our Lenten heritage. And sometimes fish
stink. And sometimes fish make a great meal. Is that the story of our life?
Become delicious fish. Become a great
meal for others.
February 7, 2016
WHAT
STATE DO I LIVE IN? [Self Test # 20]
From time to time, we fill out questionnaires.
Name___________, Address___________,
City_____________, State ____________,
Phone Number__________, Age________
Sitting there in a doctor’s waiting room I began
wondering about moods, states of mind, trying
to be steady in my mind in how I am - not just
who I am - realizing sometimes I am nervous.
Sometimes I am kind. Sometimes I’m playful.
And sometimes I am weird.
Angry? Frustrated?
Sometimes I need to be with others to figure
out what state I’m living in? Do I really know?
Delaware? Arizona? Minnesota? Ohio? Iowa?
Those states would be easy to check off.
Is there a mood map? Is there a state of mind map? Is there a list somewhere of possibles?
Circle one: angry, anxious, accusatory, nervous, giving, frustrated, forgiving, understanding, content, joyful, antsy, bored, quiet, lonely, judgmental, itchy, avoiding, tired, lazy, proud - to name a few.
Or would it be better to come up with scales - like 1 to 10, 10 being really bored or angry or content?
Would it help to do some kind of mood or general state of being test for everyone in the house?
What would have the most impact, my answer to what state I’m in or what state I’m in most of the time and what others who know me - would have the courage to list?
When I walk into the room, what do people feel, say in their mind, “Oh yes!” or “Oh no, not again!”?
If I’m a PITA, would anyone have the courage to tell me?
I don’t know about you, but I found out that the results of self-tests can have quite a lasting impact on people.
Ten years ago or so I read that the Church celebrates 4
great women in these 4 colder months: Cecilia [November], Lucy [December],
Agnes [January] and today Agatha [February].
Cecilia - is the patron saint
of music,
Lucy - is the patron saint of
eyes and light,
Agnes - is the patron saint of
gentleness
Agatha - is the patron saint of
breast cancer and earthquakes
They are all Italians - but way before Italy became
Italy.
·Cecilia - Born Rome - dies in Sicily.
·Lucy - From Syracuse - Southeast Corner of
Sicily
·Agnes - From Rome -
·Agatha - From Palermo - Sicily
THIS HOMILY
This homily I want to ask the question: “Who are your
favorite four women?”
Today’s gospel - Mark 6:14-29 - we have these women:
Herod’s daughter and Herodias, who is Herod’s second wife - who was his
brother’s Philip’s wife.
Intrigue and slippery sin and nasty manipulations and
lust run rampant in Herod’s history.
There is better history - closer to factual - about
Herod’s life - than there is about David’s life.
David benefitted from a lot of re-writes. I even heard a
Rabbi talk about David not necessarily being the one who killed a giant of a
man named Goliath. There is evidence in the scriptures about someone else being
the actual killer - but the story is transferred to David.
The Bible is loaded with stories about a lot of people.
So too Christianity.
So too our lives.
FOUR WOMEN
If you were asked to come up with your four favorite
women saints or holy people, who would you come up with?
Here’s a possible four: Mother Cabrini, Mother Teresa,
St. Theresa of Lisieux, Saint Teresa of Avila.
If you were asked to list four women who
did outstanding things for others, would anyone list these 4? Dorothy Day, Rosa
Parks, Barbara Jordan, and how about the British Nurse, Edith Cavell shot by
the Germans Oct. 12, 1915.
Wouldn’t it be something if Dorothy Day made it to
sainthood - for her tremendous work with the poor? I heard that when this said in the presence
of Cardinal Spellman, he said, “Over my dead body.”
I can’t but think about the impact her canonization would
have - her having had an abortion. Wouldn’t that give great hope to countless women
and men?
How about 4 women writers, or 4 women painters, or 4
women world leaders, etc. etc. etc.
How about 4 women in our own lives: our moms or grandmas
or neighbors or some parish woman. I would certainly add my sister Peggy, who
had a great life as an IHM Scranton Nun.
CONCLUSION
That’s your homework. Discuss all this with yourselves
and each other.
February 5, 2016
BLAME, BLAME, BLAME
Once again I’m playing the blame game -
even naming names. I do it all the time -
but there always seems to be one name I leave off the list. Of course, it’s my name.
