December 12, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“Be yourself is the worst advice you can give to some people.”  

Tom  Masson

COMFORT

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Second Tuesday in Advent is “Comfort.”

Today’s first reading from Isaiah begins with the word  “comfort” and with that theme: “Comfort, give comfort to my people.”

THE COMFORTER

Growing up we had this neat big down - light brown - blanket - which was called, “The comforter.”

After the radiator, It was the most important thing in the living room - from  December till March.

First come, first serve, unless my older brother could grab and steal it from us. It was one of a kind - and hung around our living room on the couch - rarely folded - because everyone wanted it and used it all the time.

There were also two big dull yellow white wool blankets that were second choices. Besides that they were itchy - but on a cold evening - they were a good choice. We’d be there with the radio on. This was before TV - black and white TV.

PROVIDING COMFORT FOR OTHERS

Providing comfort for others is a specific - non-verbal - act of charity.

Isn’t it neat to see an airline steward or stewardess providing blankets to folks - after 11 PM - 30,000 feet up - even tucking a dark blue blanket on an old man or old lady in the night?

So too in nursing homes or for  babies in carriages - on cold winter days.

So too hot chocolate in winter or ice cream on summer nights.

Isaiah is saying, “Comfort, give comfort to my people.”

I wonder if the concentration camp bullies - and killers - at Auschwitz - and Buchenwald - never had  parents and grandparents - or families who provided comfort to each other when they were growing up.

How could they make life so horrible for the Jews, the gays, the misfits - made to sleep on wood slats in the concentration camps.

BENCHES HERE AT ST.  JOHN  NEUMANN

The benches at St. Mary’s are rather uncomfortable.  The pillows here at St. John Neumann have improved. The pillows you’re on now don’t have buttons on them like the ones that we just replaced

Speaking of benches and uncomfortable chairs, I’m waiting for airlines to provide more chair room - rather than less - bigger bathrooms - and then using  those two factors in advertising for that airline.  “Our seats have 37.6 % more seat room than any other airline.”  “Our bathrooms - you can’t take a shower in them - but they have 42.6% more comfort room than any other bathroom in any other airline.”

TODAY’S GOSPEL - THE LOST SHEEP

Think of the lost sheep in today’s gospel. That lost sheep was the 1 in 99 - who has disappeared - and the Good Shepherd - leaves the 99 and goes in search of his lost sheep.

I notice Father Tiz has several doggie blankets for Wilbur.  I don’t know if Wilbur his pug appreciates that TLC - more than treats  - but I would sense that the dog or cat owner - who takes good care of their pets - that that care carries over to how they see homeless and people in the cold.

I hope that carries over to providing hot chocolate in cold weather and oreos and chocolate chip cookies - year round.

CONCLUSION

My theme has been comfort. I talked mainly about human everyday comforts - but hopefully in doing them for each other, they will  carry over to doing more comforting and caring of each other.

December 11, 2018

BELLS

Bells ringing….  Phones ringing ….
Someone wants someone ….

Or sometimes it’s church bells and

someone has been called to a new life -

please God - heaven -  on the other side

of this life - and sometimes their voice -

remains on someone’s phone - heaven ….

sometimes for a long, long, long, time….

Reverberations can last a long, long time.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 11, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“Sometimes I think just not thinking of oneself is a form of prayer.”  

Barbara Grizzuti Harrison

December 10, 2018

A  STORY

I was doing something else 

when a story came to me. 

I liked it.  It will work. 

Stupid me didn’t stop to  

write it down or type it out. 

Now I can’t remember it. 

Is it gone forever?  

I’ll never know because  

I can’t remember what it 

was in the first place. Does 

this ever happen to you? 

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 10, 2018

Thought for today: 

“Stories are medicine.”  

Clarissa Pinkota Esters

SIN  AS  PARALYSIS

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 2^nd Monday in Advent is, “Sin As Paralysis.”

Sin can paralyze us. Sin can cripple us.  Sin can cause spiritual strokes and misses.  Sin can weigh us down. 

Say the wrong thing. Do the wrong thing. Don’t do the right thing…. Well then when these things happen we can feel the nag of sin and dumb for days, weeks, and for years….

TODAY’S GOSPEL

This is a message from today’s gospel - Luke 5: 17-26.

This man in today’s gospel is paralyzed.  His buddies hear about Jesus as a healer and they bring him to Jesus for healing. They get to the house where Jesus is - and the crowd is blocking them from getting to Jesus - so they climb up on the roof - remove some tiles. Then they lower him in his stretcher right through the hole in the roof into the presence of Jesus.

It’s quite a scene.

Luke makes the story even better and more dramatic by connecting it with sin - as well as the Scribes and the Pharisees - who have no use for Jesus.

PENANCE SERVICES

This gospel story from Luke 5 is often chosen for Penance Services.

We just had the kids making their first confession last Saturday - and the text every year is the story of Zacchaeus being invited into Jesus house by Jesus himself.

And the crowd whispers: “This man dines with sinners and eats with them.”

I prefer today’s story that describes sin as paralysis.

SIN AS STONES

I like to talk about sins as stones which we can hold onto by putting them into a pack on our back.

We can even ball point pen what our sins are.

They weigh us down. They slow us down. They are heavy.

At times we can throw them at others.

We can throw them at the Lamb - who takes away the sins of our world.

Jesus said, “Let him or her without sin cast the first stone.”

Our sins can hurt others - as well as ourselves.

Yet Jesus can take them away.

CONCLUSION

Today’s gospel tells us this basic message.

Ooops …. Better give some good news as well.

Today’s first reading from Isaiah 35: 1-10 gives us the opposite.

Instead of gathering sins, we can gather flowers. We can  become a beautiful orchard. We can bloom.  We can then run better. We can then be better as a human being. Amen.