Friday of the 29th Week of Ordinary Time
Earlier this week, I visited the National Weather Association convention here in St. Louis. It was a meeting of meteorologists and meteorology students. I was there because our youngest son, Patrick, is studying meteorology at the University of Missouri and he was making a presentation. And, you know how parents are. It doesn’t matter how old they get, if I get a chance to see them do something, I’m there.
So, when I saw today’s Gospel, I thought it was pretty interesting. What is Jesus trying to tell us? The technology is a lot more advanced, but today’s weather scientists are doing the twenty-first century equivalent of looking at the clouds and checking out the wind. They certainly know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and sky. Does that make them hypocrites?
No, I think what the Lord is saying to us is that we spend way too much time worrying about what’s going to happen and not enough time focusing on what’s happening today. It’s fun to speculate on the future, but we really need to take care of today.
A lot of us are disappointed at the outcome of the National League Championship Series. We were all sure that the Cardinals were going to the World Series. We’ve been expecting it since April. But, if we’d been paying attention, we’d have noticed that the Astros were the better team in the second half of the season. It was a pretty even series, but the Astros had just a little bit more when they needed it.
What about our journey of faith? Are we so sure that we’re going to Heaven that we don’t take care of today? I think that’s the message we’re supposed to take from this Gospel. Pay attention to what’s going on around us. If we see a brother or sister in need, do something about it. Don’t walk on by, thinking someone else will take care of it.
A patient at the hospital Tuesday night was telling me that Catholics don’t do enough to help people in need. She’s a Catholic, by the way. I tried to explain to her that most of us follow Jesus’ example of not making a big production out of helping others. She told me that some Jehovah’s Witnesses had made some repairs around her house. Why don’t Catholics do that. Of course, I was there visiting her in the hospital. Most of us help in small, non-flashy, ways. That’s what Jesus has asked us to do.
So let the meteorologists worry about what the weather’s going to be like tomorrow. Please. Patrick will be looking for a job pretty soon. They can watch the clouds in the west and measure the speed and direction of the wind. Let them focus on their area of expertise while we worry about what’s going on in our own little world today. Or we might end up like the Cardinals, so sure of final victory and so disappointed at the outcome.
So, when I saw today’s Gospel, I thought it was pretty interesting. What is Jesus trying to tell us? The technology is a lot more advanced, but today’s weather scientists are doing the twenty-first century equivalent of looking at the clouds and checking out the wind. They certainly know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and sky. Does that make them hypocrites?
No, I think what the Lord is saying to us is that we spend way too much time worrying about what’s going to happen and not enough time focusing on what’s happening today. It’s fun to speculate on the future, but we really need to take care of today.
A lot of us are disappointed at the outcome of the National League Championship Series. We were all sure that the Cardinals were going to the World Series. We’ve been expecting it since April. But, if we’d been paying attention, we’d have noticed that the Astros were the better team in the second half of the season. It was a pretty even series, but the Astros had just a little bit more when they needed it.
What about our journey of faith? Are we so sure that we’re going to Heaven that we don’t take care of today? I think that’s the message we’re supposed to take from this Gospel. Pay attention to what’s going on around us. If we see a brother or sister in need, do something about it. Don’t walk on by, thinking someone else will take care of it.
A patient at the hospital Tuesday night was telling me that Catholics don’t do enough to help people in need. She’s a Catholic, by the way. I tried to explain to her that most of us follow Jesus’ example of not making a big production out of helping others. She told me that some Jehovah’s Witnesses had made some repairs around her house. Why don’t Catholics do that. Of course, I was there visiting her in the hospital. Most of us help in small, non-flashy, ways. That’s what Jesus has asked us to do.
So let the meteorologists worry about what the weather’s going to be like tomorrow. Please. Patrick will be looking for a job pretty soon. They can watch the clouds in the west and measure the speed and direction of the wind. Let them focus on their area of expertise while we worry about what’s going on in our own little world today. Or we might end up like the Cardinals, so sure of final victory and so disappointed at the outcome.
posted by Mike at 7:54 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home