June 23, 2017

SELF TEST  # 27

Some people are catchy.

They bedazzle the crowd

upon every entrance.

Some people are ugly.

They pit-bull the crowd

if allowed to come near.

Some people are sweet.
They smile the crowd

into liking them immediately.

Some people are you and me.
By the way, what do people do

when we come into a room?

© Andy Costello, Reflections  2017

June 22, 2017

ICE  CREAM  CONES 

There are seven ways,

and only seven ways

to enjoy an ice cream cone.

First:  top down lick, consuming the first cold

          sucks of a just bought ice cream cone;       

second: sideways licks around the sides

          but above the cone’s edge;

next: when outside on the summer sidewalk

         quick licks of melting drips

   and leaking ice cream;

next: bites - good teeth grabbing bites

         of small slabs of cold ice cream;

five:  slow, very slow, sucking and pulling

         into one’s mouth of mostly liquid

   ice cream - but with at least

   two paper napkins in hand;

sixth: sharing the same cone - but with

          two scoops to begin - with one’s beloved;

and seventh: sharing part two of one’s cone

          with one’s little kids. Ooooh good!

© Andy Costello, Reflections  2017

NUMB

It’s not smart to become numb -

to become inoculated by self -

so as to not notice the person

right next to us - who is hurting,

who is hungry, who is poor, who
is reaching out to us, who wants 
to say something - because when 
we become numb to others, we are 
not receiving holy communion 
with the rest of the body - and 
Christ remains  - just is in the dark -
not being eaten up - just stuck in too
many metal or wooden tabernacles.

Christ no longer walks our streets.

Christ no longer talks at our tables.

© Andy Costello, Reflections  2017

June 21, 2017

One never knows

who and what's out there -

that is, till we launch

out into the deep for a catch.


[Now read Luke 5: 1-11.]

              

I  HATE  YOU! 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 11^th Monday in Ordinary Time is, “I Hate You.”

Have we ever heard someone say those three words in our lifetime?

Have we ever said them?

Has anyone ever said those three words at us?

CHILDREN AND ADULTS

We might have heard a little kid screaming those words at a parent. They want ice cream or candy or to stay up late and they are not getting their way - and so they scream, “I hate you.”

And once a kid learns those words - especially the hate word - they might then say it at another kid in the family or some kid in a game.

It’s a different  sentence - when adults scream out those three words.

Teen agers - in the midst of a fight with parents - for example when it comes to whom they are dating or hanging with - or when privileges are taken away - those 3 words have more power than that of a tiny kid - but when adults say those 3 words - then we’re in serious territory.

If they come  home - back home - and they hear “I love you!” - that’s a thunder storm moment - and “I love you” after a horrible “I hate you”  experience - is so much more powerful than before.

 TODAY’S GOSPEL

We’re moving along each day now in the Sermon on the Mount - for our weekday Mass gospel text.

Today Jesus uses the word, “hate” when he says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’”

The verb used for hate is miseo!

Bruce Malina and Richard Rohrbaugh - in their book, Social-Science Commentary on the Synoptic Gospels - tell us that when the people of the Mediterranean world used the words “love” and “hate” it was a bit different than the way we would use those two words today.

We would think of these two words more in psychological terms, especially in one to one terms. In Jesus’  world, we’d be thinking more in group terms - and especially “attachment” - “group attachment” - terms.  So if I love someone -  I’m attached to this other person’s family - and family is one’s big circles.  If I hate someone I want to be separate from another or from the group or family they belong to.

So the elder  brother of the Prodigal Son - doesn’t want to go into the house - into the celebration for the returned son and brother - into the whole family who is celebrating his return.

ONE TO ONE ADULT HATRED OF ANOTHER

Jesus sees all this. When he heals someone - he  tells them to go home to their family to celebrate the recovery and the healing - of being part of the family once again.

So the stress in Jesus’ time is community, the group, attachment to the group -  more than just one to one.

The stress for today, hopefully would have that - seeing hatred in how Jesus saw hatred - how it destroys community. We need to learn how to forgive one’s brother or sister from the heart - seeing family all together again - as it was in the past.

But we have learned that hatred - hurts the hater - besides hurting the person who hears, “I hate you.”  We need to see how hatred boomerangs back to the thrower - the screamer.

So in one-to-one hatred screams - we need to realize both the other and ourselves - are in on the impact. Sometimes we forget  how hatred or anger or what have you grips and grabs us as well.

I noticed this quote last night. It’s from Jose Marti [1853-1895] who said in his, Manifesto of Montechristi [1895]  “Only  those who hate the Negro see hatred in the Negro.”

It’s called projection and transference in psychology.

Once we realize these kinds of things we can grow.

Jonathan Swift [1667-1745]  said, “We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another.” [Cf: "Thoughts on Various Subjects"; from Miscellanies [1711]

CONCLUSION

So that’s why we come to Mass - come to church, mosque, synagogue and temple - we come for more religion. We come to move for more love and the lessening of hatred.

June 20, 2017

IT  HAPPENS

It happens.

Honestly it really happens….

He knew the sounds of

all the birds:  crows and doves,

robins, cardinals, blue jays,

orioles, ravens and mocking birds.

But he couldn’t hear the sound

of loneliness and desire, fear

and hurt in the voices of his

wife and their two kids.

He forgot it was their anniversary….

She gave enough hints - and it

didn’t hurt him enough to blurt
out an "Uh oh!" sound when he

found a card from her when he

got home that evening at 10 PM.

It happens.

Honestly. It really happens.

  

© Andy Costello, Reflections  2017

GOING THE EXTRA MILE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 11^th Monday in Ordinary time is, “Going the Extra Mile.”

We’ve all heard that phrase from time to time.

I’m underlining it in this short homily.

It comes from today’s gospel. It comes from the Sermon on the Mount, when Jesus says, “Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles.” [Matthew 5:41]

William Barclay in his commentary on Matthew gives evidence that in the time of Jesus - foreign soldiers - whom one often met on the roads or towns of  Palestine would be bossy and pushy - and push people to do more than the pushed person would expect.

So Jesus says, “Go the extra mile.”

POSITIVES OR NEGATIVES?

The benefits of going the extra mile is that it can make us better workers.

It can get us to give better service.

It can get  us to work with a smile more than a scowl.

Of course, it could also make us angry people - and set us up to being passive aggressors.

We’ve all seen fellow workers who do the minimum - and we’ve see co-workers who do the maximum.

We’ve probably noticed co-workers who go the extra mile - who go out of the way - to help someone - and others criticize them for this - mostly because they are thinking, “People will expect more from me - that I want to give.”

We’ve all been impressed with a store worker who sees us coming into the store just as it’s closing and they say, “How can I help you?” instead of saying, “Sorry. We’re closing.”

When I drive back from my sister’s in Doylestown, PA. I often hit the DQ on Route 896 - near Middletown, Delaware - just as it’s closing and every time they are wonderful. Not only do they let me get into the bathroom - but they let me get my Sugarless Dilly Bar.

I know a couple who longed for their last kid to move out. She finally did, but their other daughter, with 2 little kids moved in - right at that moment. Her husband took off without her.

THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF PEOPLE

There are two kinds of people: the minimalist and the maximalist.

Every kid in every school knows which teacher, which coach, which janitor, is a minimalist - does as little as possible - and which is a maximalist.

I remember an English teacher who took forever to mark our tests - and all that was on the back was an A, B, C or D. That’s it. That’s all.

I remember an English teacher who had our tests back within 2 weeks, and they were covered with red.  This teacher put in suggestions - suggestions about words. Make shorter sentences. Use more familiar words.

I’ve heard teachers say they love tests than can be marked that much easier and they hate essay questions. I’ve heard teachers say they love essay questions, because they really help kids learn better to express themselves.

I love waiters and waitresses who double check 3 times at a meal, if we want water - because I always get just water. I like it when they pause to see where the boss is  - and they tell us not to get something.

CONCLUSION

The title and theme of this homily is, “Going the Extra Mile.”

Go for it.