February 24, 2019

MEASURING  GENEROSITY

  

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 7^th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year C - is, “Meauring Generosity.”

It’s a theme right there at the end of today’s gospel: Luke 6: 27-38.

So I would like to reflect upon the theme of generosity - being generous. I believe that’s what today’s gospel is calling us to be - to be generous, copious - prodigal in our love for each other.

Today’s gospel ends with the words, “The measure you use is the measure God will use.”

What are your standards? What does being generous mean to you? Do you have a limit when it comes to begin generous with your stuff, your time, your forgiveness?

Some people’s standard is this big: stretch out your arms about one foot.  Now with those same arms stretch out your arms about two fee. Which is more you when it comes to love and forgiveness?

What is your standard? I believe Jesus is saying that we are called to be this generous (360 degrees) becoming a circle, without beginning and without end - being like God - whose image we are created in. It will break our back to be that generous. We will be crucified. So what else is new? It will drive the other crazy when we turn the other cheek, go the extra mile, give them the shirt off our back.

Remember Oscar Wilde's Quote: "Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much."

$1.00 FOR ICE CREAM

When we were kids my dad used to give us a $1.00 every Sunday night to go over to the corner drug store on 61^st and 4^th Avenue in Brooklyn to get ice cream. I used to love it: Breyers ice cream -  Chocolate, vanilla and strawberry.

You would walk in the drug store. Every thing on the right side was for  old people or big people. That would be prescriptions and ace bandages and canes. My goal was straight ahead  to the soda counter. We would get up on the round twirly stools and spin around till the druggist came.

He once said, “Loose or brick?” I thought that was a type of ice cream. My brother and two sisters  killed me for that question.

Brick was the prepackaged ice cream.  We wanted loose of course.

We would sit there and watched the druggist packing ice cream into a while box. He would pack it in with one of those heavy duty steel spoons or shovels and we would watch hoping he would put in extra.

A couple of times we would say, “More” and it often worked.

Those days are gone. It’s brick now. But no. You can still get ice cream in Baskin Robbins and cone places and it’s up to the server to give you the amount they are going to give you.

My brother Billy taught us, “When you go into Baskin-Robins, always go to the big girl.” He was right. I’ve quoted my brother and people came back and told me, “Your brother was right. The big girls give more.”

TODAY’S GOSPEL

In today’s gospel Jesus uses an moment from the market place. The the seller would shake the bag 4 times, so that you saw yourself getting a good deal. He would shake it. He would cone it. He would shake it. He would shake it again. And each time he would get more into the bag or garment.

That’s the image that Jesus asks us to keep in mind when it comes to being generous.

Turn the other cheek. Go the extra mile. Give the shirt off your back. Forgive and you will change the world.

The world’s standards are and eye for an eye. Strike while the iron is hot. Get the sucker. Get yours first. Win! That’s what Paul is getting at in that middle reading.

FIRST READING

I think the first reading is put here to get across the point that David could have killed Saul but didn’t. So too us, so many times. Choice.

CONCLUSION

That’s enough.

So the call is to be generous with time and energy. To give ourselves to the others, to the community, etc.