SEEING  THE  STUMP 

OR 

SEEING  THE  SHOOT? 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Seeing the Stump or Seeing the Shoot?”

Did you hear the opening sentence in today’s first reading for this Tuesday in the First Week of Advent, “On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom”?  [Cf. Isaiah 11: 1-10.]

Say that 10 times and say it fast….

It’s the optimist - pessimist question: seeing the glass half empty or seeing the glass half full.

We’re walking through the woods.  We spot  a stump. It must have been at least a 3 feet  thick tree.  It’s gone. It’s been cut down. And all that is left is the stump. The rough, varying, circles tell us that the tree must have been around 100 years old. If we look at and study the concentric circles in the stump long enough, it tells us the good years and the bad years - thick and thin years.

What do we see when we see a stump?

Do we see and feel an “Ooooh!” or an “Aah!” Do we sense an emptiness? A stately tree was here and now it’s gone. Does the stump feel like a tombstone made of wood? Or are we more a romantic - and picture the wood from this tree is now a chair or a table or part of a house - maybe even a church bench or two?

ISAIAH THE DREAMER

Or do we see what Isaiah saw?  He saw a shoot  sprouting from the stump.  He saw the cut down tree as a symbol of Israel. We had our losses  - our failures - our bad days - but we have hope for new days -  a new life - a new future - a new hope.  He saw a future.

He saw the Spirit of the Lord rest upon stump - that was still alive - still sprouting a shoot - of new life.

He sensed the Spirit - the presence of God - giving off  a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord.

Isaiah saw that stump - with its shoot and its new life.

He saw a new way to judge - not by appearance -  but by justice - fairness - what is right.

He saw creation - in the  great scenes of nature - all around him - in a new way. The wolf will be the guest of the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the young lion will browse together - and a little child will guide them. He saw The Peaceable Kingdom - just as Edward Hicks [1780-1849] would see it in his time: the cow and the bear shall be neighbors - the little child shall play by the cobra’s den.

What do you see when you see a tree stump? Do you see the dead stump of death or do you see the tiny green shoot sprouting off the dead stump?

Today’s gospel gives us another beatitude: “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see…."
[Cf.  Luke 10: 21-24.]

WHAT DO YOU SEE?

Sometimes if someone sees they are dead, finished, just a stump, then they stay as is.

Sometimes when someone sees something small and good sprouting new life in another. they experience  hope. Then if they express that wonderful surprise they see in another to that person, the other starts to sprout wings and they fly.

A grandmother gives a great compliment to a granddaughter - whose mother and father are disgusted with her - and never encourage her -  and the granddaughter wakes up - she loves doing craft art and she who has dropped out of high school - gets her GED - and gets a job in a co-op that    not only puts out great work - but also allows for apprentices to learn crafts and skills that the old folks know and teach.

A 45 year old welder loses his job - and thanks to a friend who knew he did great work - he started a new job - with a third more pay - and better benefits - and he starts turning out even better work.

A 25 year older dropped out of the family’s religion for centuries - being a Catholic - didn’t think our religion makes sense - etc. etc. etc. - stays with his grandfather for a year - because Nana had died - and starts to see in his grandfather that some religious practices  and God make sense.

A couple are on drugs - get married, get pregnant, and get serious. The thought of having a new baby - wakes them both up - big time - and their parents can’t believe the change.

CONCLUSION

The title of my homily for today was, “Seeing the Stump or Seeing the Shoot?”

New life can sprout from what was thought to be dead stumps.

Advent is a season of these kinds of hopes.   It’s a time to see how Jesus sees.