MEASURING
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 2nd Monday in
Lent is, “Measuring.”
Today’s gospel - Luke 6: 36-38 - is all about measuring!
Jesus says,
·
“Be merciful….”
·
“Stop judging….”
·
“Stop condemning….”
·
“Forgive….”
·
“Give….”
Jesus is challenging us to look at how we measure. Then today’s gospel closes with
this strong message: “For the measure with which you measure will in return be
measured out to you."
Take your pick - what message - do you want
to reflect upon - and pray over for today?
MEASURING
I’m choosing to reflect upon the human
tendency to measure things.
I hold that we’re doing this all the time
- like all the time - and everyday - with everyone and everything.
If there was a camera on us all day long,
we could take the video - study it - and count how many times per day, we wince
our eyes - with a negative vote.
A wince is tiny flinch - a tiny movement
- a tiny squeeze with the top of our nose, the side skin around our eyes,
sometimes with a tiny, tiny sound of disapproval - “uunh” - an impatience - a not-liking something.
What we’re seeing with our wincing eyes
is something or someone that does not measure up to our standard - our
expectation.
Key to this theme of measuring is
comparisons.
We are comparing another’s weight, hair,
shape, clothing, manner, mannerisms, to the ruler - and I mean ruler - inside
our brain.
Comparisons rule us - they can cruel us
- making us cruel judges.
We inwardly think or say or judge, This
is a good look, a good outfit, a good hair due. This isn’t.
IMAGE
I love the image - it fits my standard on
what a good image, metaphor, picture is - that Jesus gives in today’s gospel.
He must have spotted in the market place a
generous, large hearted, big picture, big smiling merchant - who would fill your sack or bag or cloak
with flour or grain or with whatever you were ordering - to the utmost. He would pack it tighter and tighter. He
would tapped it down, shake it up and
down, each time putting and more into your bag or robe.
Jesus is telling us that’s how God is.
God is big time generous with love and forgiveness and mercy.
I wince
whenever I hear narrow minded
judgers - criticizers - moral screamers.
I pinch myself with joy knowing Jesus
said just what he said in today’s gospel.
I’m going to jump into his robes when I
get to heaven.
I love Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story about
the lady who spent her life, “Tch, tch, tching” others. Whenever she heard
someone was sinning or what have you - that was her sound. This other lady said
to her, “Go out and commit a big sin and maybe then you’ll understand the rest
of us.”
I love that the motto of the
Redemptorists is, “Copiosa apud eum redemptio.”
“With him there is fullness of redemption.”
I have learned to love the word “copious”.
With Christ there is copious redemption.”
Of course we have all met grouchy Redemptorists
- that have forgotten the vision of St. Alphonsus.
When they get off judgments that are
tough and narrow and ugly, I wince.
And I’m sure I cause people to wince.
CONCLUSION
The title and theme of my homily was,
“Measuring.”
Check out your rulers today.
