LOST SHEEP: 

THE LITTLE ONES 

ON THE PLANET

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 2^nd Tuesday in Advent  is, “Lost Sheep: The Little Ones on the Planet.”

ADVENT READING

One of the recommendations for Advent is that we do some Advent Spiritual Reading. So we have those blue books in the back of church the past few years and some other Advent pamphlets. People take them and people give feedback saying they appreciate them.

Just at the beginning of Advent, I noticed an Advent Sourcebook - from Liturgy Training publications in Chicago. It gives lots of prayers and some interesting quotes from all over. This week I’m reading the material for the Second Week, entitled, “Wealth of the Poor”.  

Last night I spotted a piece by Eduardo Galeano - a Uruguayan journalist and writer. I had never heard of him - and I know nothing about Uruguay - except that its capital is Montevideo. He’s around my age. I’m born in 1939. He’s born in 1940. He wanted to be a soccer player. He says every boy in Uruguay wanted to be a soccer player. He becomes a journalist and a writer.

HE WRITES ABOUT THE LITTLE GUY AND LITTLE GAL

I looked up on line last night just who this Eduardo Galeano is. He writes about the poor of the earth - especially the unnoticed - the nobodies of our world. This does not go down well at times with the big guys.

In 1973 there was a military coup in Uruguay and Eduardo Galeano is arrested and his book, Open Veins of Latin America is banned in that country - as well as Chile and Argentina. He escapes and settles in Argentina - till there is a military coup there a short time after he gets there. His name is on the list of those to be killed. So he goes to Spain. He returns to Uruguay and Montevideo in 1985 - when the country has elections and goes the opposite direction.

Here’s the quote and the story that I found in the Advent Book.

The Uruguayan political prisoners may not talk without permission, or whistle, smile, sing, walk fast, or greet other prisoners; nor may they make or receive drawings of pregnant women, couples, butterflies, stars or birds.

One Sunday, Didsasko Perez, school teacher, tortured and jailed “for having ideological ideas,” is visited by his daughter Milay, aged five. She brings him a drawing of birds. The guards destroy it at the entrance of the jail.

On the following Sunday, Milay brings him a drawing of trees. Trees are not forbidden, and the drawings get through. Didasko praises her work and asks about the colored circles scattered in the treetops, many small circles half-hidden among the branches: “Are they oranges? What fruit is it?”  The child puts her fingers to her mouth: “Ssssshhh.”

And she whispers in his ear: “Silly. Don’t you see they’re eyes? They’re the eyes of the birds that I smuggled in for you.”

That’s the story. Till I read up on the life of Eduardo Galeano I didn’t really get the story - other than it being interesting and puzzling.

TODAY’S READINGS

Combining it with today’s readings I got this out of it.

Today’s first reading is from Isaiah 40: 1-11. It’s the beginning of Second Isaiah. The Israelites are in exile - in the prison of Babylon - and Second Isaiah draws pictures of hope in words for this people. Right now we’re in a wasteland - but the Lord is going to lead us out by a brand new road - lowering the mountains and filling up the valleys to get us home. It’s a picture of hope. He’s saying, “Enough already. See the way out of this. Open your eyes to a better future.”

Today’s gospel from Matthew 18: 12-14 has Jesus telling us he cares for the little ones. He paints a picture in words of a  lost sheep - and see how he leaves the 99 to find the little one. He doesn’t worry about the 99 who are doing okay.

CONCLUSION

The message is to open up our eyes and see and then care for the lost ones - for those who feel like they are in exile - for those in prison - for those in nursing homes - for the children - especially the poor who are neglected and hurting. We need to be like that little girl and draw pictures for those who need  eyes to see how to escape from their littleness - and their poverty.

I plan to check out more about Eduardo Galeano - because I picked up on the little research I did on him last night. I see that he’s labeled a “Leftist”. I see that he challenges the First World foreign policies - including the United States - since the 1970’s - and before that. I see that he gets people thinking outside of their boxes - especially if they are narrow. He doesn’t like borders. He sees us as citizens of the earth. Caesar Chavez at a meeting of the countries of the Americas publicly handed Barack Obama Eduardo Galeano’s book, Open Veins of Latin America - which made it a best seller. In his writings about the poor of the planet - the lost sheep - people like the Somali Pirates and those in prison, I picked up that he upset lots of folks - and challenges lots of folks.

I  assume that the writers of the Advent book I picked up think that  is something we need for Advent - as Christians - to understand why Christ came in the first place - and why he drew us the picture of him looking for that 100^th sheep that was lost - and let’s hope we do as well - noticing each other - especially when we’re lost.