I WISH SO AND SO
HEARD THIS
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 21st Monday in
Ordinary Time is, “I Wish So and So
Heard This.”
One of the
experiences every preacher has is the following: someone comes up to a
preacher or speaker and says, ‘I wish my daughter-in-law heard what you said
today.”
THE PREACHER’S REACTION
For starters, it’s a compliment in a way. Someone heard something and it has a grab of
importance for them.
Sometimes the preacher has a second experience. They say to themselves. I wasn’t preaching to
those absent, but to those present. Maybe this person should apply what was
said not to others, but to themselves for starters.
TODAY’S GOSPEL
Today’s gospel -
Matthew 23: 13-22 - has the first 3 of Matthew’s 7 Woes of Jesus. Scripture
scholars like to point out that in Matthew they are a teaching technique. He
does the same thing with the 7 Beatitudes in Matthew 5: 3-12. Sometimes it’s listed as the 8 Beatitudes.
Tomorrow we’ll have 2 more woes and Wednesday we should
have the last 2 woes, but we have a feast day on Wednesday, August 29th, for John the Baptist -
so there is a different gospel for that day.
Question: when we hear these 7 warnings, these 7 blasts,
these 7 criticisms, these 7 woes, of the
Pharisees and the Scribes, do we think of others, or do we apply them to
others?
If there is anything I learned from the Jesuit Exercises
from Saint Ignatius of Loyola, it’s to apply all these readings to self - not
others.
I read a Bible text, I put a finger on it, and say, “Now
this if for me!”
It’s to see myself in the gospel stories and the
scripture texts, not others.
How am I a hypocrite? How am I a Pharisee or a Scribe?
When preachers are preaching and everyone listening is
screaming inwardly at the preacher, “Practice what you preach!” it would great
if the preacher knew what everyone was thinking about him at that moment.
Ouch!
It’s a good sign - in a way - if the person being corrected
- at least said the following, “Do what I say, don’t do what I do?” If they say that much, they might have half
of the problem correct.
The Pharisees and the scribes were always trying to
correct others - and they didn’t look into the proverbial mirror - at
themselves.
As preacher I know I’m guilty of doing this at times.
Sometimes after I finish a homily, I go through it and change all the you’s to we’s or I’s.
SPECK OR 2 BY 4
Jesus knew this
and said all this very clearly when he said, “Remove the 2 by 4’s in your own eye first - instead
of spending your energy seeing the tiny specks in your brother’s eye.”
People even did this to Jesus when he challenged him by
yelling back at him, “Physician heal yourself.”
People got this message when they dropped their rocks
when Jesus said at them, “Those without sin, cast the first stone.”
Jesus told us to stop judging each other.
TODAY’S FIRST READING
In today’s first reading Jesus tells us what to see in
the other.
See the good stuff. To live with peace and in “grace” with each other.
Here in 2 Thessalonians, we are called to be thankful for
the others around us.
We’re called to have faith - a faith that is growing.
CONCLUSION
I’m not saying in
this homily that we can’t say something to another.
Today we’re celebrating the Feast of St. Monica who
challenged her son Augustine to straighten his life out.
She succeeded - her tears and her prayers worked - and we have the great St. Augustine.
