July 30, 2019

DEAF

Beethoven was deaf, 

when he wrote, “Ode 

to Joy.” OMG - OMG. 

Sometimes we sing 

it in church and I 

don’t hear it. OMG. 

OMG. OMG. OMG. 

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2019

July 29, 2019

MIRA

“Look!”
“Mira!” in Spanish. 

I hear kids in the playground, 

well in the classroom as well, 

well, everywhere and all the time, 

yelling, “Mira!” “Look at me!” 

Why think it’s only kids who say that?

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2019

July  29, 2019 - 

Thought for today: 

"Lord, keep me in the company of those seeking the truth, and spare me from those who have found it".  

Sent to me yesterday by a parishioner - whose wife he said, heard it recently.

ACCENTUATE  THE  POSITIVE 

ELIMINATE  THE  NEGATIVE 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this feast of Saint Martha  is, “Accentuate the Positive; Eliminate the Negative.”

Many people have heard the song, “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive”. It was one of Bing Crosby’s best songs.

A guy named - Harold Arlen - wrote the music.  Johnny Mercer did the  lyrics. Lots of other singers have tackled this 1944 song. It has won many rewards and awards. Johnny Mercer told the story that his agent went to hear Father Divine preach. The agent came back to Johnny  Mercer  and told him  he  had heard a sermon whose  subject was 'you got to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative.'

And Johnny Mercer said, 'Wow, that's a colorful phrase!”

Father Divine (c. 1876-1965) was an African American Spiritual Leader and Preacher - The Messenger - who preached mainly on the East Coast. His full given name was, Reverend Major Jealous Divine. He was born in either Hutchinson Island, Georgia or Rockville, Maryland.

The song was written in 1944 - and really became famous in 1945 - the year World War II ended.

MARTHA MARY STORIES

For today’s first reading we are allowed the first reading for this 17^th Monday in Ordinary Time  -  the Exodus text - we’ve been following.  However, when it comes to the gospel  for today, we are told to use one of the two key Martha-Mary stories in the gospels.  John 11: 11-29 or Luke 10: 38-42.

John 11: 19-29 is put first.

Noticing that choice - I thought of the choice of picking the positive towards Martha story - in contrast with the negative towards Martha story - where Jesus corrects Martha and says, “Martha, Martha, you’re anxious and upset about  many things; one thing is required.  Mary has chosen the better part.”

In the gospel story from John it says Mary was sitting at home - whereas Martha went looking for Jesus when her brother died and we end up hearing wonderful faith words about Martha’s belief in the resurrection of Jesus.

She’s the heroine in the John story - but the Martha story we all know is the negative one from Luke.

EVERY DAY

Every day we have the choice to say good things about another or pick a negative moment about them.

I once heard a talk by a psychologist - in which he said, “If someone says Jack Jones is a nice guy,  nobody responds, but if we  say, ‘Jack Jones is a dirty no good son of a b….’  everyone jumps in with ‘Yeah! Yeah!’ and then they  start giving examples of things they don’t like about Jack Jones.”

Everyone has heard that the only time we hear only good things about another is when they die.

So as the song goes, and it has Bible stuff in it, “accentuate the positive.”  I’ll read it. I can’t sing. Ooops that’s negative. To be positive, I can read - and it sounds like a sermon - well that’s its origin from the famous black preacher,  Father Divine.

Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive

You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate his last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do
Just when everything looked so dark

Man, they said we better, accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, do not mess with Mister In-Between
Do you hear me?

Oh, listen to me children and-a you will hear
About the elininatin' of the negative
And the accent on the positive
And gather 'round me children if you're willin'
And sit tight while I start reviewin'
The…

CONCLUSION

So every day we have the opportunity to choose the negative or the positive when talking about others - and also when talking about ourselves.

Our move.

HOW  DOES  GOD  WORK?

  

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 17^th Sunday in  Ordinary Time [Year C]  is, “How  Does  God  Work?”

That question hit me when I read and thought about what happens in today’s first reading from the Book of Genesis 18: 20-32.

It begins with how God thinks about sin and evil in our world. God hears that there is a lot of evil going on in Sodom and Gomorrah. People are screaming to God about it. So God decides to go down and check it out.

Sure enough, it’s horrible in those 2 towns. Then God wonders whether to tell Abraham and his visitors what he’s going to do about it: God is going to destroy those towns.

So God decides to tell Abraham.

Then we have this bargaining with God by Abraham.  If there are 50 innocent people there, would you still destroy those cities?  God says “Far be it for me to destroy - if you can find me 50 innocent people down there.”

Next Abraham  goes for 45. Then 40.  Then 30. Then 20.  Then 10.

Great story telling ….

Would I be one of the 10?

Is that how God works? Is that how God thinks?

I think a lot of people think that way: that  God works that way. 

I  also think people are bargaining with God all the time.  

And whenever there is an earthquake, or hurricane, or vast  forest fires, I hear people saying and thinking God is doing this.

How does God work?

FOR THIS HOMILY

Is that enough for a homily - to just say that people are trying to bargain with God all the time and people think God zaps people - especially when they sin?  I hear people saying things like this when cancer and sickness and struggle and family stuff - comes pouring  into our lives like a storm.

I’m only on the top of page 2 of this homily,  so I assume that I better add a few more comments.

For starters I would assume we ought to look at how we think.

For starters I would also  add that it would be smart  to  ask myself, “What are my thoughts about God? How God operates?

If I were God, would I give people freedom? Then  how would I deal with the consequences of freedom? There is the possibility of evil?  How would I push goodness?

I also would think it would be wise to come up with other ways of thinking - other scenarios - other ways God could be and life could be.

Then to talk to each other about our takes on God - how God works?

Talk to each other about what we have learned about life - and how life works - how God works.

Try the 3 C’s: Compare. Clarify. Communicate.

I would think it would be wise to make lists of what we have learned so far about God and life and myself.

FOR EXAMPLE: PEOPLE THINK AND WORK DIFFERENTLY

It’s obvious, but I think we all need to state that we often think and see and work differently - and we often forget this and this gets us in trouble.

I don’t know about you, but I forget that - lots of times.

50, 45, 40, 30, 20, 10 people all see the same movie  - surprise we all see it differently. 

We’re watching a baseball game.  It was a strike. No the pitch was way outside. It was a ball.  Safe. Out. Fair ball. Foul ball.  Let’s go to the video tape.

I think realizing this - stating this -  will give us a lot more peace with each other.

FOR EXAMPLE: TEACH THY TONGUE TO SAY I DON’T KNOW

Somewhere along the line I learned to say, “Teach thy tongue to say, ‘I don’t know.’”

It’s from the Talmud - a collection of Jewish writings.

“Teach thy tongue to say, “I don’t know.”

We don’t. I think that’s a great wisdom statement - and the older I get, the more I say it.

I think happy people can say, “I don’t know.”

FOR EXAMPLE:  TO REALIZE WE DO DIFFERENTLY

If anyone should know that people think and do differently it’s married folks.

A couple I know have the following scenario every time they go out to eat at a restaurant.  She always asks for different - something different from what’s on the menu.  I’ve seen her do this every time I’ve been with them.

Most of the time the waiter or waitress says, “No problem!” and they jot something down on their pad.

And it works.

Another couple I know do the following.  The wife tells me she found out a long time ago what his favorite part of any meal is. He cuts a piece of meat or fish or something and puts it off to the side and that’s the last thing he eats.

Yum. Yum.

She learned by watching what he’s thinking and doing.

When it comes to God, do we want God to be different? 

Do we want  the menu, the day, the relationship, life, to go differently than it goes?  Do we get our way?  When we don’t,   what happens next?  Are some people satisfied with whatever comes out of the kitchen and are some people different - and some never  satisfied?

Do we have a say? What’s our favorite part of life?  What do we love?  Do we tell each other? Do we thank each other?

CHANGE

Now I better give something better than that in this homily.

I think of Jack Nicholson - as Lt. Colonel Nathan R. Jessup  -  in the movie, “A Few Good Men” as he says  to Tom Cruise - who plays the part of a JAG officer, Daniel Kaffee. “Don’t tell  me that’s all you got?  Don’t tell me you dragged me all the way up here for just this?  Tell me there’s more.”

Many times when giving a homily I wonder if everyone is saying just that: “Don’t tell  me that’s all you got?  Don’t tell me you dragged me all the way up here for just this?  Tell me there’s more.”

There is. We have today’s gospel: Luke 11: 1-13.

Today’s gospel teaches me that we can change our thoughts about how God is and we can also change ourselves. We can also become more like God.

So  that brings us to today’s gospel - where Jesus tells us what God our Father is like.

First of all Jesus  tells us God is Our Father - and then he tells us how a good father works. Isn’t that the title of my homily?

God gives daily bread. Get it. Work for it. Find it. Take and enjoy daily bread.

My sister Mary told me that she often sat down in the afternoon with my mom - after my mom  got home from work. She would watch my mother take a whole loaf of fresh - still warm - rye bread out of a bag from the Neighbor Bakery. That was the bakery’s actual  name. She would  get out of the refrigerator cold butter. She would - cut the bread - it was not pre-sliced. Then on went cold butter. Hot tea was also part of the ritual.

My mom  loved this ritual - late afternoon - but before supper. She and my sister would be enjoying  the daily bread of life together.

So there’s a great message right there on how God works: God wants us to enjoy the daily bread of life.  

At the beginning of each day to say: Our Father help me to enjoy the daily bread of today.

At the end of each day to look back and say, “Thank you for the daily bread of what I ate and experienced today.

Next God is a forgiver.  If we have gripes against each other, we won’t enjoy  breaking bread with each other.

Sounds like the Mass to me?

Sounds like good moments - like eating together - to me.

Next, if you don’t have bread or forgiveness, get off your butt and start asking, knocking, sharing, giving each other what we hope the other can give us.

CONCLUSION

I think that’s enough. 5 pages. 10 minute homily.  Amen.

July  28, 2019 

Thought for today: 

“Each prayer has its own proper meaning and it is therefore the specific key to the door in the Divine Palace, but a broken heart is an axe which opens all doors.”  

Rabbi Israel Baal Shem-Tov 

(1700-1760),  Judaism.

July 28, 2019

13 WAYS  OF  WONDERING  

ABOUT  A  TISSUE  

A dad saw his brother in

a casket that day - and it

was such a sudden death -

and he reached for a tissue.

A mom saw her oldest - whom

she thought was so selfish - give

her youngest - the last piece of cake

and she reached for a tissue.

A family were at the airport

waiting for their grandmother

whom nobody has seen in 25 years

and each reached for a tissue.

A grandfather never cried in 25 years -

but he did cry at his grandson’s one

year anniversary  of sobriety in AA

and he reached for a tissue.

A great grandmother was at the baptism

of her first great-granddaughter and

she didn’t think she’d make it

and she reached for a tissue.

A guy went to confession for the first

time in 38 years and told it all and

the priest was great and he came out

and he reached for a tissue.

A dad was handed the first chocolate

chip cookie his daughter ever made

and it was burnt and horrible

and he reached for a tissue.

A 55 year old man received

a kidney from a total stranger -

but they were a perfect match

and his wife reached for a tissue.

A son gave his dad’s eulogy

and nobody had a clue how much

he loved his dad till then and

everyone reached for a tissue.

A mom and dad who never went

to church - did this time because

their daughter was the reader and they

sat there and each reached for a tissue.

A brother was at church and the gospel

that Sunday was the story of the prodigal

son and he realized he was the older

brother and he reached for a tissue.

A  dad saw his daughter graduate

from Princeton - and she was the first kid

in the family who went to college

and he reached for a tissue.

A garbage man got his first book

of poems published and at the

book signing at Barnes and Noble

his wife reached for a tissue.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2019