As much as Jesus had to leave Nazareth (home and
comfort, familiarity and family) to come to the Jordan (last Sunday) to be
baptized, the disciples too have got to "leave" in order to
"come" (No arrival without a departure). We are used to checking out
a product before buying or a person before hiring or we "see" and
choose (come). We check it out before stepping out. Abraham and other prophets
have to leave for an uncertain task and territory; Abraham must first accept to
sacrifice his only son, then he will see God's plan. He didn't doubt in God's
promise of progenies like the sands and the stars even though the only son was
going to be sacrificed! Joseph had to first accept Mary pregnant as she was and
then he will see God's plan. Come so that you may see. Step in, walk in, follow
me, leave behind ....so that you may see plans, actions, results for you.
"Come" is an invitation and "see" is the promise. You can
trust the Lord for his promises.
Then the uncertain, doubtful, denying Simons will have to
become Cephases and solid rocks on which the Lord can build his
Church.
What does it mean to bear witness to Christ? It means like
Samuel first to listen to God speaking to us and then to show, by our
deeds and words, that Jesus is truly alive in our lives. Let us see how God
often speaks to us.
Speak to me, O God: Come and See
I begged the May
flower tree: "Speak to me of God.” and the May flower tree showed herself
to me in full bloom.
I asked a poor man: "Please, speak to me of God.” and the poor man
shared his tea with me.
I entreated the house; "Speak to me of God." and the door opened
welcoming me.
I asked a child: "Speak to me of God" and the child smiled at
me.
I told a farmer: "Speak to me of God.” and the farmer showed me his
standing crops.
I begged nature: "Speak to me of God.” and nature decked herself with
luscious beauty.
I asked my friend: "Speak to me of God.” and my friend caressed me
warmly.
I asked a nightingale: "Speak to me of God.” and she filled the air
with silvery tunes.
I asked a soldier: "Speak to me of God.” and in shame, the soldier
threw away his weaponry.
I besought a suffering man: "Speak to me of God.” and I saw in his
eyes a quivering tear of accepting joy.
I asked a fountain: "Speak to me of God.” and the fountain merrily
spilled out its crystal water.
I begged my mother: "Please, speak to me of God. " and she stamped
a soothing kiss on my forehead.
I entreated my enemy: "Speak to me of God. " and he, in
forgiveness, stretched out his hand to me.
I asked the voice: "Speak to me of God.” but the voice could not find
words. It remained silent.
At last, I asked the setting sun: "Speak to me of God.” and the sun
mysteriously set down and left me in darkness.
But next day, at dawn, when I opened the window of my room, mischievously
with his warmth he kissed me on both my cheeks.(Adapted from a poem of Maria Luisa Brey)
These are testing revelations. Are we not also like the
people who have often heard God speaking to them but who failed to share that
experience with others? Come, and you shall see!!!
And finally as the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore put in his poem so
beautifully and touchingly the Lord comes to knock at our doors, at our hearts,
at our lives not only to invite us to share his mission, to wake us up from our
slumbers, but also to soothe and comfort us, to wipe away our tears and to sit
with us in our losses and grieving.
Silent Steps
Have you not heard his
silent steps?
He comes, comes, ever
comes.
Every moment and every age,
Every day and every night he comes, comes, ever comes.
Many a song have I sung in many a mood of mind,
but all their notes have always proclaimed,
`He comes, comes, ever comes.'
In the fragrant days of sunny April through the forest path he comes, comes, ever
comes.
In the rainy gloom of July nights on the thundering chariot of clouds he comes,
comes, ever comes.
In sorrow after sorrow it is his steps that press upon my heart,
and it is the golden touch of his feet that makes my joy to shine.
Many of us have questions that trouble us from time to
time and we seek answers to them from significant people in our lives. Of
course there are superficial questions and others that sometimes are a matter
of life and death. Have we brought our questions to the Lord and have we ever
tried to listen to Him as he answers us? Or would we rather not ask him for
fear of the answer? For that matter, have we listened to what the Lord is
saying to us, asking of us? Could our prayer be: ‘Speak Lord, I’m really
listening!’
Have an attentive weekend, listening to Him!
The first reading narrates the call of young Samuel while he
was serving in the temple. Samuel had no way of recognizing the voice of the
Lord, and thought it was Eli the High priest that was calling him. But the call
of the Lord is persistent and finally Samuel is alert and has been trained to
respond: “Speak Lord your servant is listening.” How different from our
modern-day prayer which often says: “Listen Lord, for your servant is
speaking!” While prayer is a conversation with God, we need to realize
that to enter into prayer we have to listen, and our attitude has to be:
“Please speak Lord, I want to listen to you.” We cannot command the Lord to
speak, and the initiative of prayer is always with God. We cannot tell God when
he has to speak. On the contrary we have to humbly wait on him and be available
to him. The response psalm of today confirms the same attitude: “Here I am
Lord, I come to do your will!”
Someone is always listening...
In St. Paul’s Cathedral in London there is a circular
gallery where any spoken sound bounces back from the hard smooth stone walls.
If you put your ear close to the wall, you can hear what is even whispered on
the other side of the wall, many meters away. Many years ago a poor shoemaker
whispered to his beloved that he could not marry her because he could not
afford to buy any raw material for his work and his business was on the verge
of ruin. The poor girl wept as she listened to the sad news. A gentleman on the
other side of the gallery more than sixty meters away heard the story and the
shoe maker’s whispered prayer, and decided to do something about it. The
gentleman followed the shoemaker out of St. Pauls and after finding where he
lived, had some leather sent to his shop. Naturally the young man was
delighted. He made good use of the gift, and his business prospered and he was
able to marry the girl of his heart. It was not until a few years later that he
learned the name of his unknown friend. It was Prime Minister William Gladstone
of Great Britain. From –‘The Sunday Liturgy’
The gospel continues the theme of the manifestation or
epiphany of Jesus, as John the Baptist points out and directs his own disciples
to Jesus. “Behold the Lamb of God!” John and Andrew, the disciples with their
teacher, John the Baptist, were at the Jordan river, where the people had long
ago crossed over into the Promised land. When the disciples heard from John the
name of the one passing by –The Lamb of God, they understood enough to follow
Jesus. Their decision to leave John and follow Jesus must have been a struggle.
They followed Jesus respectfully at a distance behind. Jesus turned and asked
what they were looking for. Through history, people have come to Jesus for a
variety of reasons. People still come to Jesus for a variety of reasons. Why
are we looking for Jesus? What do we want from him? Andrew and John followed
Jesus asking where he stayed. They were more than curious, they wanted to know
him and were attracted to him. Jesus’ answer was a kind invitation: “Come and
see.” The experience of staying with Jesus was so memorable that John even adds
the time of the day at which they met Jesus –four in the afternoon. Andrew too
was so taken up with the encounter that he could wait to come home and share
what he had experienced with his brother Simon. “We have found the Messiah” he
said, and took Simon to meet the Lord. Jesus looked hard at Simon and called
him by name. “You are Simon son of John; you will be called Cephas-meaning the
Rock.” The encounter of Simon changed not only his name but his life.
“What’s your profession?”: A stranger once asked a
teacher, “What’s your profession?” The teacher replied, “Christian,” The
stranger continued, “No, that’s not what I mean. What’s your job?” The teacher
asserted, once again, “I’m a Christian!” Puzzled, the stranger clarified,
“Perhaps I should ask, what you do for a living?” The teacher replied, “Well,
I’ve a full-time job as a Christian. But, to support my sick husband and
children, I teach in a school.” That teacher had certainly understood the
meaning of discipleship summarized by the response psalm (40): “Here I am,
Lord, I come to do your will.”
Francis Gonsalves in ‘Sunday Seeds for Daily Deeds’
I need a person who is on the alert…
Waiting in a steamship office to be interviewed for the job
of a wireless operator, a group of applicants filled the room with such a buzz
of conversation that they were oblivious to the dots and dashes that began
coming over the loudspeaker. About that time another man entered and sat down
quietly by himself. Suddenly he snapped to attention, walked into the private
office, and a few minutes later came out smiling with the new job. “Say,” one
of the group called out, “how did you get in ahead of us? We were here first.”
“One of you would have gotten the job,” the successful applicant replied, “if
you had listened to the message from the loudspeaker.” “What message?” they
asked
Anonymous
Called by name
You may remember the story of Helen of Troy. According to
legend this beautiful queen was captured and carried away and became a victim
of amnesia. She became a prostitute in the streets. She didn’t know her name or
the fact that she came from royal blood. But back in her homeland, friends
didn’t give up on her return. An old friend believed she was alive and went to
look for her. He never lost faith. One day while wandering through the streets,
he came to a waterfront and saw a wretched woman in tattered clothes with deep
lines across her face. There was something about her that seemed familiar, so
he walked up to her and said, “What is your name?” She gave a name that was
meaningless to him. “May I see your hands? He pursued. She held out her hands
in front of her, and the young man gasped, “You are Helen! You are Helen! Do
you remember? She looked up at him in astonishment. “Helen!” he yelled out.
Then the fog seemed to clear. There was recognition in her face. The light came
on! She discovered her lost self, put her arms around her friend and wept. She
discarded the tattered clothes and once more became the queen she was born to
be. -God searches for you in the same way. He calls you by name. He uses every
method possible to look for you and try and convince you of your worth to him. Brian
Cavanaugh in ‘The Sower’s Seeds’
An unfamiliar voice: In his sermon, “When God
Speaks,” Dr. Keith Wagner says the following: “I am sure that everyone has seen
the television commercial about E.F. Hutton. There is always a crowd of people
and two people are together when one of them says, “Well my broker is E.F.
Hutton and E.F. Hutton says…..” At that point there is a huge hush over the
crowd and everyone turns to listen. Then the advertisement concludes with the
phrase, “When E.F. Hutton talks, people listen.” What about when God speaks? Is
anyone listening? Does God have the same credibility that E.F. Hutton has when
it comes to important messages? God is actually speaking to us all the time.
The problem is that we are not listening. It was the same in Samuel’s time.
Samuel was a future leader of the faith community. God needed Samuel to listen.
No one else was listening at that time as we hear, “for the word of the Lord
was rare in those days.” Is the word of the Lord rare in these times? Or is God
not heard because no one is listening? Is it difficult to listen to God in
these times simply because there is too much noise? Samuel heard the voice of
God , only because he slept near the arc of the covenant. When we are willing
to stay close to the church, to ‘hang out’ where the word of God is spoken, we
give God an opportunity to speak. John Pichappilly in ‘The Table of the
Lord’
Two disciples follow Jesus
A company advertised an opening in its sales force. It
received more than one thousand applications for the job. But of all those many
letters and resumes, one letter stood out: “I am presently selling furniture at
the address below. You may judge my ability as a salesman if you will stop in
to see me any time, pretending that you are interested in buying furniture.
“When you come in you can identity me by my red hair. I will have no way of
identifying you. That way the sales abilities I exhibit will be no more than my
usual everyday approach and not a special effort to impress a potential
employer.” The sales manager took the applicant up on his challenge and visited
the furniture store. You won’t be surprised to learn that the redhead got the
job.”
Ken Abraham in ‘Designer Genes’
The Quest for Jesus: Albert Schweitzer was a concert
pianist in Europe who gave up his career in music to become a doctor and work
as a missionary in Africa. Albert Schweitzer writes in his book ‘The
Quest for the Historical Jesus’. Jesus comes to us as one unknown, as he
did long ago to the apostles on the seashore. He speaks to us the same words
that he spoke to them: “Follow me!” “And to those who accept his invitation,
whether they be wise or simple, young or old, he will reveal himself to them in
their toils and sufferings. And they shall learn through their own experiences
who he is.” Mark Link in ‘Sunday Homilies’
Discovering God’s plan for me: Coach Grant Teaff of
Baylor University in Texas has written a book called ‘I believe’. In it he
describes an incident that happened earlier in his career at McMurry College.
One Saturday night he and his team had taken off in a chartered plane to return
to Texas. Suddenly the plane developed serious trouble. The pilot announced that
he would attempt a crash landing. The plane was loaded with fuel, so an
explosion was likely. As the plane sped downwards one of the players called
out, “Coach Teaff would you lead us in prayer? We’re all pretty frightened.”
Teaff prayed aloud for everyone. Seconds later the plane bellied across the
ground. A shower of sparks engulfed it. Miraculously, however, it didn’t
explode and no one was hurt. The next night Teaff and his family were in the
Church together. Right in the middle of the services Teaff got up and left the
church and went to the McMurry Fieldhouse about a mile away. He went directly
to the team’s dressing room and knelt down and prayed: “God, I know you have a
plan, a purpose, and a will for my life and the lives of these young men. I do not
know what it is but I’ll…. try to impress upon the young men I coach this year
and forever that there is more to life than playing football; that you do have
a purpose for our lives.” Mark Link in ‘Sunday Homilies’
May we discover the hidden purpose of our lives by
listening to Him!
From Fr. Tony Kadavil’s Collection:
1: “Eureka, Eureka.” According to legend,
Hieros II (the king of the Greek City State Syracuse on the island of Sicily)
asked Archimedes (a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and
astronomer, (287-212 BC) to find a method for determining whether a crown was
made of pure gold or of gold mixed with silver. One day when Archimedes stepped
into his bath and noticed that the water rose as he sat down, he ran out of the
house naked shouting, “Eureka! Eureka!” (= “I have found it!”) The
method to determine whether or not a crown was pure gold, discovered by
Archimedes in his bathtub, was to compare its weight to its volume. If one had
one pound of gold and one pound of silver and submerged them in water, the
silver would make the water rise higher than the gold, because it is less dense
than gold, and therefore, larger in volume, it takes up more space by
displacing more water. Archimedes compared the volume of water displaced by the
suspect crown with that displaced by a pure gold crown of equal weight to
identify successfully the pure gold crown. Archimedes did not “find” this
truth by searching after it — although he might have spent days thinking about
a solution to the problem. His “find” came as an unexpected surprise.
He had probably noticed the water in the bathtub
rising hundreds of times before, but its significance didn’t “click” in
his brain until that “eureka” moment. Today’s Gospel describes how John
discovered Jesus as “the Lamb of God,” and how Andrew, Simon, and Nathaniel
discovered him as the “Promised Messiah” quite unexpectedly. Jesus
was their “Eureka.” Fr. Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
# 2: A lamb on the roof: In the city of Werden,
Germany, there stands a Catholic Church with a lamb carved out
of stone and placed on its roof. It was said that when the Church was being
built, a stone-carving mason fell from a high scaffold. His co-workers rushed
down, expecting to find him dead. But to their surprise and joy, he was alive
and only slightly injured. How did he survive? A flock of sheep was passing
beneath the tower at that time, and he landed on top of a lamb. The lamb broke
his fall and was crushed to death, but the man was saved. To commemorate that
miraculous escape, he carved a lamb in stone and placed it on the tower, in
gratitude for the lamb that saved his life. Today we are here at this Liturgy
to remember and salute another Lamb Who died a cruel death to save not just one
man, but all mankind. In today’s Gospel, John the Baptist introduces Jesus as
the “Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world.” Peter said
that the full weight of our sins fell upon Jesus (1 Pet. 2:24). And
the apostle Paul explained, “For our sake [God] made [His Son
Incarnate] to be sin who did not know sin so that we might become the
righteousness of God in [Jesus]” (2 Cor. 5:21). We all have fallen in sin,
but on the cross Jesus took the punishment for our sin upon Himself. He now
offers eternal life to all who personally put their Faith in Him (Jn. 3:1-16).
(Msgr. Arthur Tonne).
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
3) “I asked 300,000 to support me, but only 140 to affirm
Jesus.” Former President Jimmy Carter is not shy about sharing the
Faith. He and wife Rosalynn have been on numerous Faith-sharing missions in
America and overseas. In his book Living Faith, Jimmy Carter
recounts a humbling experience. He says that when he was preparing to run for
governor a second time, he was invited to speak to a Christian men’s group
about his activities as a Christian witness. In preparation for that talk, he
took account of the witnessing he had done. He added up the times when he had
shared the faith with other people, one-on-one, and they had made commitments
to Christ. The total number came to 140. But then, said Carter, “The Lord must
have been looking over my shoulder because immediately I remembered my 1966
political campaign when Rosalynn and I had traveled the state and had shaken
hands with 300,000 Georgians, extolling my good points, and asking them to vote
for me. I had asked 300,000 to support me, but only 140 to affirm Jesus. The
terrible difference in those numbers brought me to my knees.” Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
4. A little boy was listening to a long and
excessively boring sermon in Church on vocation to priesthood and religious
life. Suddenly the red sanctuary lamp caught his eye. Tugging his father’s
sleeve, he said, “Daddy, when the light turns green can we go home?”
5. A Catholic boy and a Jewish boy were talking, and the
Catholic boy said, “My priest knows more than your rabbi.” The Jewish boy said,
“Of course he does! That is because you tell him everything in confession.”
6. The son-in-law’s testimony: A rich Jewish
businessman named Raymond went to meet Ben, his new son-in-law to be. He said
to Ben, “So, tell me, Ben, my boy, what you do?” “I study the
Theology,” Ben replied. “But Ben, you are going to marry my daughter! How
are you going to feed and house her?” “No problem,” says Ben, “I study
Theology, and it says God will provide.” “But you will have children; how will
you educate them?” asked Raymond. “No problem,” says Ben, “I study Theology,
and it says God will provide.” When Raymond returned home, his wife anxiously
asked him what Ben was like. “Well,” said Raymond, “he’s a lovely boy. I
only just met him, and he already thinks I’m God.” (Source: Jewish
Jokes)
7. Worse pastors: At morning Mass, the pastor announced to
the congregation that the bishop had just appointed him to another parish.
After the Mass, a woman came up to him and expressed her dismay at his leaving.
“Oh, I’m sure the bishop will send you someone who’s far better than I am,” The
pastor tried to console her. “No,” the woman replied, “that won’t happen, and
that can’t happen.” “Why not?” asked the priest, unable to resist the
temptation to hear a compliment in the superlative about himself. “Because,”
the woman said, “I’ve seen five pastors now in this parish, and each new pastor
was worse than the last.”
23- Additional anecdotes
1) “Evangelism – Andrew style”: Shaquille O’Neal
played in the NBA for the Los Angeles Lakers. He loved coming up with nicknames
for himself. When he received his first Most Valuable Player award, Shaq gave
himself a new nickname. He said, “From this day on I want to be known as ‘The Big
Apostle’ because Aristotle once said that excellence is not a singular act; it
is a habit – you are what you repeatedly do.” Shaq was right… and Aristotle was
right. Excellence is not one single act. It is found in what we repeatedly do
well… and here is where we see the excellence of Andrew. He repeatedly
introduced people to Jesus. He repeatedly brought people into the presence of
Jesus. He repeatedly included people in the circle of his love and Christ’s
love. This was the greatness of Andrew. Today’s Gospel challenges us to bring
our friends to Christ. Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
2) “Evangelization – St. Francis of Assisi style”: One
day, Francis of Assisi invited one of the young friars to join him on a trip
into town to preach. The young friar was so honored at receiving such an
invitation from St. Francis that he quickly accepted. They paused beneath a
tree and Francis stooped to return a young bird to its nest. They went on and
stopped in a field crowded with reapers and Francis bent his back to help load
the hay onto a cart. From there they went to the town square where Francis
lifted a bucket of water from the well for an old woman and carried it home for
her. All day long he and St. Francis walked through the streets and byways,
alleys and, suburbs, and they rubbed shoulders with hundreds of people. Each
time they stopped, the young friar was sure that St. Francis would stop and
preach. But no words of great truth or wise discourse issued from the saint’s
mouth. Finally, they went into the Church, but Francis only knelt silently to
pray. At the end of the day, the two headed back home. Not once had St. Francis
addressed a crowd, nor had he talked to anyone about the Gospel. The young monk
was greatly disappointed, and he said to St. Francis, “I thought we were going
into town to preach?” St. Francis responded, “My son, we have preached. We were
preaching while we were walking and in everything we did. We were seen by many
and our behavior was closely watched. It’s of no use to walk anywhere to preach
unless we preach everywhere as we walk! Preach the Gospel at all times. Use
words only if necessary.” Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
3) The be-all and end-all of a dog’s life: In
the book, No Bad Dogs, British dog trainer Barbara Woodhouse
says dogs understand love better than we do. She writes, “In a dog’s mind, a
master or a mistress to love, honor, and obey is an absolute necessity.
Love is dormant in the dog until brought into full bloom by an understanding
owner. Thousands of dogs appear to love their owners, they welcome them home
with enthusiastic wagging of the tail and jumping up, they follow them about
their houses happily and, to the normal person seeing the dog, the affection is
true and deep. But to the experienced dog trainer this outward show is not
enough. The true test of love takes place when the dog has got the opportunity
to go out on its own as soon as the door is left open by mistake, and it goes
off and often doesn’t return home for hours. That shows that the dog loves only
its home comforts and the attention it gets from its family; it doesn’t truly
love the master or mistress as they fondly think. True love in dogs is apparent
when a door is left open and the dog still stays happily within earshot of its
owner. For the owner must be the be-all and end-all of a dog’s life.” The
real meaning of our Divine call and the test of our walk of Faith is not to be
seen in our work or activity, or even in our theological purity. It is found in
our desire to remain with God. This is the essence of our call to
Christian discipleship as shown by Andrew and the other disciples described in
today’s Gospel. It means that when we have an opportunity to wander away, to
disobey, to leave His presence, we choose instead to stay close to Him, to
abide in Christ, and to obey Him.
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
4) “Operation Andrew.” Popular talk show hostess
Oprah Winfrey has lots of influence. She has 15 to 20 million daily viewers.
Evidently, she has the power to create a best-seller. Since she has started
recommending books on her show, sales of the titles chosen have skyrocketed.
For example, the first book she recommended, a novel entitled The Deep
End of the Ocean, had only sold about 100,000 copies. After being featured
on her program, the book sold 850,000 copies propelling it to the top of
the New York Times best-seller list. Though none of us has the
influence of an Oprah Winfrey, each of us has influence with some people. My
big question today is this – Are you using your influence for Jesus Christ? Are
you commending him openly, by word and deed, when you have opportunities? Have
you ever introduced another person to Jesus Christ, and helped him or her claim
Christ as Savior and Lord? If not, why not?
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
5) “Come and see:” George Barna, in his
book Marketing the Church, writes: “The most effective means
of getting people to experience what a Church has to offer is having someone
they know who belongs to the Church simply invite them to try it. Call it
whatever you wish – word-of-mouth, personal invitation, friendship, evangelism
– this is indisputably the most effective means of increasing the church
rolls.” [George Barna, Marketing the Church (NavPress,
Colorado Springs, 1988), p. 109.] I don’t want to bore you with statistics, but
these are not boring statistics. There are 160 million Americans who are
unchurched. If invited to attend Church, 31% said they would be very likely to
come – 51% said they would be somewhat likely to come. That means 82% of the
people who do not go to Church in America are likely to attend if they are
invited – Only 21% of active Church goers ever invite anyone to Church. Only 2%
of active Church-goers invite the unchurched. Do you know what Jesus needs more
than anything else? He needs more fishing buddies. Do you know what fishing
buddies need? They need a Church that will be fish friendly.
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
6) “Come and see.” There’s a beautiful instance
of Jesus’ inviting style in the book, The Horse and his Boy (p.
79), one of C. S. Lewis’ stories of Narnia. Aslan, the great lion, is the
Christ-figure in those stories. The lad Shasta is walking on a steep mountain
pass in the middle of a dense night fog. He senses a huge presence walking
beside him. Shasta finally gets the courage to whisper out, “Who are you?” The
resonant golden voice of Asian answers, “One who has waited long for you to
speak.” That’s Jesus’ style: “Come and see,” he invites us.
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
7) “We are a family, so love each other, help each other,
support each other.” Basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski wrote a book
called Leading with the Heart. Coach K was the highly successful
basketball coach at Duke University, who led his team to back-to-back national
championships in 1991 and 1992, and to eight Final Four appearances, beginning
in 1986. In his book, Coach K speaks out of his own experiences of what he has
learned about leadership in basketball, business, and life. His philosophy at
Duke is very simple, but very profound. In essence, he says to his team: “We
are a family, so love each other, help each other, support each other. We are a
family, so use plural pronouns. It’s not about ‘me,’ it’s about ‘us’ and what
we can do together… so don’t do anything detrimental to our family.” If two
freshmen oversleep and miss the team bus… he doesn’t just deal with the two
freshmen, he deals with the whole team. “Why didn’t someone miss them? Why
didn’t someone check on them? Why didn’t someone wake them up? If one of us is
late, all of us are late! What happens to one of us… it happens to all of us…
because we are a family.” Isn’t that a great philosophy for a basketball team…
and a Church? We learn it from Andrew! It is our responsibility, our privilege,
our joy, to bring our brothers and our sisters into the presence of Christ.
That’s number one… Andrew brought his brother.
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
8) “Evangelism –Jesus’ Style”: In a book
entitled, The View From a Hearse, Joe Bayly, who lost three of his
children, tells this story. He was sitting, torn by grief, over his wrenching
loss. Someone came and talked to him about God’s dealings, of why it happened,
of hope beyond the grave, the fellow talked constantly, saying things that
Bayly knew were true. But Bayly said, “I was unmoved, except to wish he would
go away. He finally did.” Then said Bayly, “Another came and sat beside me. He
didn’t talk. He didn’t ask me leading questions. He sat beside me for an hour
or more, listened when I said some thing, answered briefly, prayed simply,
left. I was moved, I was comforted. I hated to see him go.” (Charles Swindoll
in Killing Giants and Pulling Thorns, p. 39). Most people don’t
need advice from us — they get plenty of that. They don’t need us to preach to
them, or to argue with them, or try to convince them of some theological proof.
Most people don’t need advice from us – they need love — and isn’t that the
Gospel?
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
9) “I just climbed up on her lap and cried with her.” Chuck
Swindoll, in his book, Killing Giants and Pulling Thorns, tells
about a little girl who “lost a playmate in death and one day reported to her
family that she had gone to comfort the sorrowing mother. ‘What did you say?’
asked her father. ‘Nothing,’ she replied. ‘I just climbed up on her lap and
cried with her.’ [Charles R. Swindoll, Killing Giants and Pulling
Thorns (Portland, Oregon: Multnomah Press, l979), pp. 39-40.] That
little girl had the right idea — be a caring person who majors in
encouragement. Lonely, hurting, suffering people need a friend who cares. Fr.
Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
10) Redhead got the job: A company advertised an
opening in its sales force. It received more than 1000 applications for the
job. But of those many letters and resumes, one letter stood out: “I am
presently selling furniture at the address below. You may judge my ability as a
salesman if you will stop in to see me any time, pretending that you are
interested in buying furniture. When you come in, you can identify me by my red
hair. I will have no way of identifying you. That way, the sales abilities I
exhibit will be no more than my usual everyday approach and not a special
effort to impress a potential employer.” The sales manager took the
applicant up on his challenge and visited the furniture store. You won’t be
surprised to learn that the redhead got the job. Today’s Gospel tells us that
Jesus’ criteria for the selection of his apostles were different. He chose the weak
and the least qualified and made them his strong and powerful witnesses. Fr.
Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
11) “We are here to help each other. That’s what it’s all
about.” Some years ago, a fifth grade school teacher named Diane
Williams had a dramatic experience while sky-diving. Skydiving was one of her
hobbies. One Saturday morning, she met her sky-diving group for a jump, but
this day was different from all the rest. Apparently, Diane was trying to join
three other divers in a hand-holding formation when she accidentally slammed
into the backpack of another skydiver and she was knocked unconscious. This
caused her to hurtle head over heels like a rag doll toward the ground at a
speed of 150 miles per hour. Fellow skydiver, Gregory Robertson, saw that Diane
was in big trouble. Immediately, he straightened himself into a vertical dart,
arms pinned to his body, ankles crossed, head aimed at the ground in what
parachutists call a no list dive. In effect, he became a human dive bomber
plummeting toward the earth and Diane at 200 miles per hour. At 3500 feet,
about ten seconds from impact, Gregory caught up with Diane. He managed to pull
the rip cord on her emergency chute, as well as his own… and they both floated
safely to the ground. Greg’s heroic efforts saved Diane’s life. When asked
later about his incredible feat, he said simply, “We are here to help each
other. That’s what it’s all about.” He paused for a moment, and then he said,
“Someone tried to die in my drop-zone this morning. No one dies in my
drop-zone!” I suppose at that moment somewhere in Heaven God was smiling…
because nothing pleases God more than to see us helping and serving one
another, our sisters and brothers, in unselfish, sacrificial, self-giving ways.
Andrew found the Christ… and immediately ran to get his brother. This is a
beautiful mountain-peak moment in the Bible. He brought his brother into the
presence of Christ. Andrew’s simple, thoughtful act of sharing with his brother
is a poignant reminder to us that we in the world are not isolated individuals
just existing alongside each other, selfishly hoarding whatever we can
accumulate. No, we are family… and life is better when we act like a family…
loving each other, supporting each other, helping each other, respecting each
other, treasuring each other… and, like Andrew, bringing each other into the
presence of Christ and the circle of Christ’s love.
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
12) “The Praying Hands” by Albrecht Durer: We
are incredibly indebted to Simon Peter’s brother, Andrew, for the gift of Peter
to the Church and to the world. Andrew was the one who brought his brother,
Simon Peter, into the presence of Jesus. Andrew was the one who encouraged
Simon Peter. Andrew was the one who presented Peter to Jesus. It’s recorded in
the first chapter of John’s Gospel. Andrew, finding the Messiah, immediately
brings Simon to Him. Back in the 15th century in a tiny village near Nuremberg,
Germany there lived a family with eighteen children. That’s right… eighteen! In
order merely to keep food on the table for this large family, the father (who
was a goldsmith by profession), worked almost eighteen hours a day at this
trade and any other paying job he could find in the neighborhood. Despite their
seemingly hopeless condition, two of the older children had a dream. They both
wanted to pursue their talent for art, but they knew full well that their
father, with all that he had on him, would never be financially able to send
either of them to Nuremberg to study at the Art Academy there. After much
discussion, the two boys finally worked out a plan. They would toss a coin. The
loser would go down into the nearby mines and with his earnings, support his
brother while he attended the Art Academy. Then, when that brother who won the
toss completed his studies in four years, he would in turn support the other
brother at the academy either with sales of his artwork, or, if necessary, also
by working in the mines. So, one Sunday morning after Church, they tossed a
coin. Albrecht Durer won the toss and went off to Nuremberg to study art. His
brother, Albert, went down into the dangerous mines and for the next four
years, financed his brother whose work at the Art Academy was almost an
immediate sensation. Albrecht Durer’s etchings, his woodworks, and his oils
were far better than those of most of his professors, and by the time he
graduated, he was beginning to earn considerable fees for his commissioned
works. When the young artist returned home to his village, the Durer family
held a festive dinner on their lawn to celebrate Albrecht’s triumphant homecoming.
After a delightful meal with lots of music and laughter, Albrecht Durer rose
from his honored position at the head of the table to express his deep
appreciation to his beloved brother, Albert, for the years of sacrifice he had
put in that had enabled Albrecht to fulfill his ambition. His closing words
were: “And now, Albert, blessed brother of mine, now it is your turn. Now you
can go to Nuremberg to pursue your dream and I will take care of you.” All
heads turned in love and eager expectation to the far end of the table where
Albert sat. Tears were streaming down his face. Slowly, Albert stood to his
feet and softly he said, “Thank you, my brother, but no, I cannot go to
Nuremberg. It is too late for me. Look, look what four years in the mine have
done to my hands. The bones in every finger have been smashed at least once,
and lately, I have been suffering from arthritis so badly in my right hand that
I cannot even hold a glass to return your toast, much less, make delicate lines
on parchment or canvas with a pen or a brush. No, my brother, for me it is too
late.”
More than 450 years have passed. By now, Albrecht Durer’s
hundreds of masterful portraits, pen and silver-point sketches, watercolors,
charcoals, woodcuts, and copper engravings hang in every great museum in the
world, but the odds are great that you, like most people, are familiar with
only one of Albrecht Durer’s works. More than merely being familiar with it,
you very well may have a reproduction hanging in your home or office. One day,
to pay homage to Albert for all that he had sacrificed, Albrecht Durer
painstakingly drew his brother’s abused hands with palms together and thin
fingers stretched skyward. He called his powerful drawing simply “Hands”, but
the entire world almost immediately opened their hearts to this great
masterpiece and renamed his tribute of love, “The Praying Hands.” The next time
you see a copy of this touching creation, take a second look; let it be a
reminder that no one– no one — ever makes it alone! Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
13) “Come and see.” Two men, who had been
business partners for over twenty years, met one Sunday morning as they were
leaving a restaurant. One of them asked, “Where are you going this morning?”
“I’m going to play golf. What about you?” The first man responded rather apologetically,
“I’m going to Church.” The other man said, “Why don’t you give up that Church
stuff?” The first man asked, “What do you mean?” His partner said: “Well, we
have been partners for twenty years. We have worked together, attended board
meetings together, and had lunch together, and all of these twenty years you
have never asked me about going to Church. You have never invited me to go with
you. Obviously, it doesn’t mean that much to you.” (John A. Stroman, God’s
Downward Mobility, CSS Publishing Company) Don’t get yourself in that fix.
Don’t let others think your Faith doesn’t matter that much to you.
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
14) Gone With the Wind. I imagine
most of you have seen the film, Gone With the Wind. If not, you
have a treat waiting for you. It is interesting how Director David O. Selznick
chose the leading lady. Everyone knew that no one but Clark Gable could be
Rhett Butler, but who should play Scarlett O’Hara? David Selznick considered a
few dozen actresses for the role of the Southern belle. Finally, he made a
surprising selection: not a girl born in the South or even in America, she had
been born in India of British parents. Her name was Vivien Leigh. Almost
everyone agrees that she played a superb, unforgettable Scarlett O’Hara. David
Selznick took great care in picking just the right person for that famous role.
Similarly, but with infinitely greater care, God selects us for a part in the
Divine drama. We see it today in the call of the prophet, Samuel. Bottom
line: Like a great director, selecting exactly the right person for a part, God
chooses you or me! (Fr. Phil Bloom).
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
15) Someone is always listening: In
St. Paul’s Cathedral in London there is a circular gallery where any spoken
sound bounces back from the hard smooth stone walls. If you put your ear close
to the wall, you can hear what is even whispered on the other side of the wall,
many meters away. Many years ago a poor shoemaker whispered to his beloved that
he could not marry her because he could not afford to buy any raw material for
his work and his business was on the verge of ruin. The poor girl wept as she
listened to the sad news. A gentleman on the other side of the gallery more
than sixty meters away heard the story and the shoemaker’s whispered prayer and
decided to do something about it. The gentleman followed the shoemaker out of
St. Paul’s and after finding where he lived, had some leather sent to his shop.
Naturally the young man was delighted. He made good use of the gift, and his
business prospered, and he was able to marry the girl of his heart. It was not
until a few years later that he learned the name of his unknown friend. It was
Prime Minister William Gladstone of Great Britain. Today’s Gospel tells us that
God is calling each one of us giving him or her a unique mission. Do you listen
to God’s call? (From The Sunday Liturgy; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
16) “What’s your profession?” A stranger once asked
a teacher, “What’s your profession?” The teacher replied, “Christian,” The
stranger continued, “No, that’s not what I mean. What’s your job?” The teacher
asserted, once again, “I’m a Christian!” Puzzled, the stranger clarified,
“Perhaps I should ask, what you do for a living?” The teacher replied, “Well,
I’ve a full-time job as a Christian. But, to support my sick husband and
children, I teach in a school.” That teacher had certainly understood the
meaning of discipleship summarized by today’s Responsorial Psalm (40): “Here I
am, Lord, I come to do Your will.” (Fr. Botelho). Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
17) “I need a person who is on the alert!”: Waiting
in a steamship office to be interviewed for the job of a wireless operator, a
group of applicants filled the room with such a buzz of conversation that they
were oblivious to the dots and dashes that began coming over the loudspeaker.
About that time another man entered and sat down quietly by himself. Suddenly
he snapped to attention, walked into the private office, and a few minutes
later came out smiling with the new job. “Say,” one of the group called out,
“how did you get in ahead of us? We were here first.” “One of you would have
gotten the job,” the successful applicant replied, “if you had listened to the
message from the loudspeaker.” “What message?” they asked. — Do we listen to
God? (Fr. Botelho).
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
18) Called by name: You may remember the
story of Helen of Troy. According to legend this beautiful queen was captured
and carried away and became a victim of amnesia. She became a prostitute in the
streets. She didn’t know her name or the fact that she came from royal blood.
But back in her homeland, friends didn’t give up on her return. An old friend
believed she was alive and went to look for her. He never lost faith. One day
while wandering through the streets, he came to a waterfront and saw a wretched
woman in tattered clothes with deep lines across her face. There was something
about her that seemed familiar, so he walked up to her and said, “What is your
name?” She gave a name that was meaningless to him. “May I see your hands? He
pursued. She held out her hands in front of her, and the young man gasped, “You
are Helen! You are Helen! Do you remember? She looked up at him in
astonishment. “Helen!” he yelled out. Then the fog seemed to clear. There was
recognition in her face. The light came on! She discovered her lost self, put
her arms around her friend and wept. She discarded the tattered clothes and
once more became the queen she was born to be. –God searches for you in the
same way. He calls you by name. He uses every method possible to look for you
and try and convince you of your worth to him. (Brian Cavanaugh in The Sower’s
Seeds; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
19) “Follow me!” Albert Schweitzer was a concert
pianist in Europe who gave up his career in music to become a doctor and work
as a missionary in Africa. Albert Schweitzer writes in his book The Quest for
the Historical Jesus, “Jesus comes to us as one unknown, as he did long ago to
the apostles on the seashore. He speaks to us the same words that he spoke to
them: ‘Follow me!’ And to those who accept his invitation, whether they be wise
or simple, young or old, he will reveal himself to them in their toils and
sufferings. And they shall learn through their own experiences who he is.”
(Mark Link in Sunday Homilies; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
20) “Discovering God’s plan for me”: Coach Grant
Teaff of Baylor University in Texas has written a book called I
Believe. In it he describes an incident that happened earlier in his
career at McMurry College. One Saturday night, he and his team had taken off in
a chartered plane to return to Texas. Suddenly the plane developed serious
trouble. The pilot announced that he would attempt a crash landing. The plane
was loaded with fuel, so an explosion was likely. As the plane sped downwards
one of the players called out, “Coach Teaff would you lead us in prayer? We’re
all pretty frightened.” Teaff prayed aloud for everyone. Seconds later the
plane bellied across the ground. A shower of sparks engulfed it. Miraculously,
however, it didn’t explode and no one was hurt. The next night Teaff and his
family were in the Church together. Right in the middle of the services Teaff
got up and left the church and went to the McMurry Fieldhouse about a mile
away. He went directly to the team’s dressing room and knelt down and prayed:
“God, I know You have a plan, a purpose, and a will for my life and the lives
of these young men. I do not know what it is but I’ll…. try to impress upon the
young men I coach this year and forever that there is more to life than playing
football; that You do have a purpose for our lives.” (Mark Link in Sunday
Homilies; quoted by Fr. Botelho). Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
21) St. Marcellus’s sleepless search for God: Saints
are the ones who discovered the true value of this intimate, personal
relationship, and refused to compromise it. St Marcellus [march-EHL-oose] the
Righteous is a prime example. He came from a good family in Syria and lived in
the 400s. He received a good education, and reached adulthood with a bright
future. Then his parents died, and he inherited their considerable fortune. He
had to decide what to do with it. Most people wouldn’t think twice! They would
simply enjoy it. But Marcellus was a man of reflection, and he detected
something unsatisfying about an existence dedicated unthinkingly to the affairs
and enjoyments of the world. He thought: “If everything in this world is going
to pass away, myself included what’s the point?” As he prayed and studied the
Faith in order to work through this dilemma, the following analogy came to him.
Little kids make a big deal out of their toys, but adults recognize the
paltriness of toys. They, instead, make a big deal out of money, success, and
pleasure. But, reasoned Marcellus, what do such things look like from God’s
perspective if not foolish toys? And so, in pursuit of lasting values, he moved
to Ephesus (in modern day Turkey) and put himself under the direction of some
well-known Christians. He grew in holiness and wisdom, and eventually became
the revered abbot of a gigantic monastery near Constantinople and an
influential adviser to emperors, bishops, and Church councils. In his
monastery, the monks were divided into many different small choirs, so that at
every hour of the day and night, at least one choir could be
singing God’s praise. For this reason, the monastery was called “Akimetes”
[ah-KEY-meh-tehz], which meant “sleepless.” It was a living testimony to the
source of life’s true meaning: an ongoing, personal relationship with Jesus
Christ. (E-Priest) Fr. Tony (http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
22) A Quiet Nun Is Heard around the World: St.
Catherine Laboure is an example showing that God likes to use messengers,
especially messengers who stay focused on the message. St Catherine was born to
a large family in central France in the 1800s. When her mother died and her
older sister entered the convent, she took over the housekeeping
responsibilities for her father, until she too felt a call to the religious
life. She joined the Sisters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul in Paris, where
she was graced with a series of visions in which the Blessed Virgin Mary asked
her to have a medal struck for the benefit of the faithful throughout the
world. The medal was later known as the “miraculous medal” because of its
origin in these miraculous visions. The Blessed Virgin explained in detail
everything that was to appear on the medal. St Catherine confided the Heavenly
task to her confessor, who went and carried it out. But Catherine made him
promise not to reveal her identity. She herself didn’t mention the visions to
anyone else. And she was persistently unwilling to appear before ecclesiastical
authorities, even when the bishop of Paris was questioning the authenticity of
the visions. A first batch of medals was eventually made, and since then it has
become a sign of hope and Faith for millions of Catholics throughout the entire
world. (E-Priest). Fr. Tony(http://frtonyshomilies.com/).
************
From Fr. Munachi: The Bible Society has assumed
the mission of placing the Bible in the hands of any who would read. Behind
this impressive Bible distribution project is the belief that if people would
read the Bible, they would hear the word of God as it applies to their lives.
There is a case in one African city where people wanted copies of the New
Testament not because they wanted to read them but because the Bible paper was
great for wrapping and smoking tobacco and other stuff. When the missionaries
discovered this they reached an agreement with the youths that they could
continue to use the pages of the Bible for their smoking on the condition that
they would read each page before they smoke it. Within a few weeks many of
these youths were beginning to ask questions about the pages they had read.
Some of them eventually turned to the Lord, got baptised and gave up smoking.
God works in strange ways. Nevertheless, when we ask the question whether
people, alone without any spiritual guidance, are generally able to recognize
the word of God when they hear it, we find that the answer is no. The readings
today show the need for spiritual guidance to help people discern the word of
God that they hear or read.
***************
From Sermons.com
1. Come and see souls
redeemed.
2. Come and see lives
transformed.
3. Come and see the heavens opened.
_______________________
How many parents have blessed the invention of the
"Swing’N’Sway?" Can I get a witness?!
There are actually two versions of this battery operated
baby care gizmo. For newborns there is a Swing’N’Sway bassinet that gently
rocks from side-to-side and back-to-front to simulate the infant being held and
walked and rocked. This enables new Moms and Dads to catch some desperately
needed shut-eye. For babies old enough to sit up there is a Swing’N’Sway rocker
— an infant seat secured in a kind of swing-set stand that allows the child to
happily rock back and forth while parents keep an eye out, but keeps their
hands free to accomplish other tasks.
Both these "Swing’N’Sway gadgets satisfy the baby by
giving the child the illusion that they are moving forward or being taken for a
walk when in reality they are staying safely in one place.
By the time our children can walk on their own, these
devices are done for. The tiniest, shakiest, clumsiest first "baby
steps" are far more exciting to toddlers than any stationary
"pretend" movement offered by a Swing’N’Sway. Our very first steps,
no matter how halting and weak, are not only the ones most anticipated, most
praised, most celebrated by our parents. They give us our first taste of
self-reliance. Learn to take those first baby steps and, baby, you’re on your
way to . . . wherever you want to go. The time for swinging and swaying in one
spot is over.
When Jesus started his public ministry it was from the
outset an "on-the-road" show. Jesus’ first invitation to his first
disciples was "Follow me" or "Come and see." Notice, it was
not "sit down and listen," or "kneel and pray." It was an
invitation to movement, motion, and mission…
___________________________
Martin Luther King, Jr., A Servant of Christ
This weekend is the Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. I
think, therefore, it is appropriate to look at his life in this regard. In the
Union Tribune there was an article about him, which included an interview with
Vincent Harding, a professor at the Iliff School of Theology in Denver, a
Methodist seminary.
Harding said that King's detractors like to point out that
he was a human being, that he had faults, human foibles. He was certainly not a
saint, Harding points out. He made mistakes in judgment. He put his marriage to
the test. He also suffered from human frailties, like anxiety and depression.
But Christianity proclaims a God who came to us as we are,
accepted us as we are, forgave us and gave us new life, and thus revealed that
we do not have to be righteous in order to be loved by God. We don't have to
have a pure life in order to follow Jesus. We just have to be faithful.
He comes to us as he came to his disciples, and says to us,
"Follow me." To "follow me" means, identifying with the
poor and the oppressed, loving the sinner, and living sacrificially for others
in this world, taking up your cross. That is the sole qualification for
everybody to be his disciple - that you will take up your cross.
Martin Luther King understood that, I think, probably better
than anybody else in our time. Like all historical figures, he will be
interpreted from different perspectives. But the way he would want to be
interpreted is that he was a "servant of Christ."
Mark Trotter
_____________________
A Fig Tree Retreat
A fig tree is about fifteen feet tall and its branches
spread out about 25 feet in width like an umbrella, creating a space that is
almost like a private room. If someone wanted to get away from the chaos of a
one-room house, he or she would sit under the fig tree. They would sit there to
read scripture or to reflect or to pray. Sitting under a fig tree was a sign of
seeking and praying for God's living presence. Now,
I realize that this church looks nothing like a fig tree. But isn't that why
we're here? We have come together here with the yearning to know the touch of
the living God. We come to "retreat" from the chaos of the world
around us so we can read scripture, reflect, and pray. I hope you will see
that, despite his relative anonymity, we do have much in common with Nathaniel.
Paul E. Flesner,
_____________________
Ordinary and Humble Princes
Most everybody has a soft spot in their hearts for fairy
tales. There is just something about a fairy tale's reversal of expectations
that intrigues us. There is something delicious about finding out that the frog
is really a handsome prince, that the ugly duckling is the one that grows into
the most resplendent of all swans. We enjoy it when the moment of truth comes
for the characters in a story as they discover that the scruffy-looking
character they never quite trusted is actually the true king of the realm. In
the classic The Wizard of Oz we get a double treat at the end of the story:
first, the great and powerful Oz turns out to be nothing but the man behind the
curtain, a puller of levers and switches who looks like a humbug of a
charlatan. But then, almost before the dust of that reversal of expectation
settles, we get jolted yet again: as it turns out, the humble man behind the
curtain is a pretty good wizard after all.
Fairy tales are stories of transformation, and that's what
happened to these simple people we call the disciples. If you took the
disciples and brought them all together into one room, you would never in your
wildest imagination guess by looking at them that this weak-looking pack of
ordinary folks could change the world. But they did. The disciples changed the
world because it was to them that the secret of the universe was first
revealed.
That's why Jesus called them in the first place. If you're
going to save the world, you've got to start somewhere. And if in the end
you're going to save the world through humility, gentleness, compassion, and
sacrifice, it makes sense to begin with a bunch of fellows who couldn't get
much more humble if they tried! The messengers fit the message. In fact, over
the course of his ministry if Jesus had any significant struggles with his
disciples, it was the struggle to keep them humble and ordinary-looking. Every
time a couple of them started angling for power or arguing amongst themselves
as to who was the greatest, Jesus slapped them back down to the street level of
service. When Peter tried to wield a sword, Jesus told him to put it back in
its sheath.
The disciples needed to be common, ordinary, and above all
humble if they were going to do Jesus any good and so change the world. But as
it turned out, each one of them was the frog who was really a prince!
Scott Hoezee
________________________
Anyone You Recognize?
Fred Everybody, Thomas Somebody, Peter Anybody, and
Joe Nobody were neighbors, but not the type that most would want to know. They
were odd people, troublesome, and difficult to understand. The way they lived
their lives was a shame. These men all went to the same church, but most would
not have wanted them as parishioners. Everybody went fishing on Sundays or
stayed home and spoke with his friends. Anybody wanted to worship, but he was
afraid that Somebody would speak with him. Thus, guess who went to church -
that's right, Nobody. Actually, Nobody was the only decent one of the lot.
Nobody did the parish census; Nobody joined the parish council. One day there
was a call in the bulletin for people to apply for a position as a teacher in
the religious education program. Everybody thought Anybody would apply; Anybody
thought Somebody would apply. So, guess who applied? You are right - Nobody! My
friends, let's not be an everybody, somebody, or anybody. Rather, let us truly
strive to be a nobody. In such a way we empty ourselves so we can be filled
with the amazing power of Christ, who died to set us free and, thus, will
always be our brother, friend, and Lord.
Richard Gribble, CSC,
Evangelical Attitude
One day St. Francis of Assisi, invited a young monk to join
him on a trip into town to preach. The young monk was so honored to get such an
invitation from St. Francis that he quickly accepted. All day long he and St.
Francis walked through the streets and byways, alleys and suburbs, and they
rubbed shoulders with hundreds of people.
At the end of the day, the two headed back home, however,
not even once had St. Francis addressed a crowd, nor had he talked to anyone
about the gospel. The young monk was greatly disappointed, and he said to St.
Francis, "I thought we were going into town to preach?" St. Francis
responded, "My son, we have preached. We were preaching while we were
walking. We were seen by many and our behavior was closely watched. It is of no
use to walk anywhere to preach unless we preach everywhere as we walk!"
It’s no secret that we, the church, have forgotten what it
means to preach the gospel, what it means to bring to others the good news,
what it means to evangelize. The word evangelism has become a dirty word in
some churches, and if it isn’t outright dismissed altogether, then it is
relegated as a task for only those who have been ordained, or for those who are
the professional speakers, who make a living giving their testimonials and
asking for altar calls, or for those who are missionaries overseas.
Author Unknown
_____________________________________
Prayer Changes Things
I remember a story about a woman who brought home a
plaque that said, "Prayer changes things." She put it in her kitchen,
above her sink. Her husband came home, and said, "Take that down,
please." She said, "Why? Don't you believe in prayer?" He said,
"Yes, but I don't believe in change."
That is the problem with big, establishment-type institutions. But recently
there has been, in fact, a rush to change, almost a panic on the part of some
churches. There have been some changes around here, too. I hope that you have
noticed that. There will be more. But change should be determined by what our
mission is. Mission is what ought to drive the change. We should not do things
because other churches do them, not even if they are successful in other
churches. Change should come only to enhance our mission. Mark Trotter,
________________________________________
Come and See: You Just Have to Be There
A few years ago a church located in a large city
decided to turn its gymnasium into a night shelter for homeless people. Every
winter there were reports that some of these people, condemned to sleep out in
the open, had frozen to death, and so the church made the warmth and safety of
its building available without charge. Each evening during the winter,
volunteers from the church would spend the night in the shelter, providing
food, clothing, and lodging for as many of the homeless as the building would
hold. Almost without exception, the volunteers reported that the experience of
spending the night with these people from the streets had been far more than an
act of dutiful charity. The volunteers had found their own faith strengthened,
their own reliance upon the grace of Christ reinforced by the experience.
Several months after the shelter was opened, one of the
pastors of the church was being interviewed on a radio talk program. The
interviewer was an opinionated fundamentalist whose biases were quite strong.
It became clear during the interview that he felt that the church ought to
stick to the business of preaching the old-time gospel and stay away from
meddlesome activities like shelters for homeless people. "Now just tell
me," he jeered at one point, "where is Jesus in all this?" For a
moment the pastor considered silently how to respond, then said calmly,
"You just have to be there."
"Come and see," said Philip to Nathaniel, and some
people do not see because they will not come to those places where one can get
an angle of vision, where one can see the grace of Christ at work in the world.
Thomas G. Long,
________________________________
The Man with Two Umbrellas
Now, let me close with the story of the man with two
umbrellas. Dr. Gordon Targerson, a Baptist pastor in Worcester, Massachusetts,
was crossing the Atlantic by ship some years ago. He noticed on several
occasions a dark-skinned man sitting in a deck chair reading a Bible. One day
Dr. Targerson sat down beside him and said, "Forgive my curiosity. I'm a
Baptist minister. I notice you are a faithful Bible reader. I'd like to meet
you." After introductions, the dark-skinned man said, "I am Filipino.
I was born into a good Catholic home. I went to the United States as a young
man to study in one of your fine universities, intending to become a lawyer. On
my first day on campus, a student dropped by to visit. He welcomed me and
offered to help in any way he could. Then he asked me where I went to church. I
told him I was Catholic. He explained that the Catholic church was quite a
distance away, but he sat down and drew me a map. I thanked him and he left.
"On the following Sunday morning it was raining. I
decided to just skip church. But then there was a knock on my door. There stood
my new friend and he was holding two umbrellas. He said that he worried that I
might not be able to read his map. So, he said he would escort me to the
Catholic church. I hurriedly dressed, thinking all the while what an unusually
thoughtful person he was. I wondered what church he belonged to.
"As we walked along I asked him about his church. He
said that his church was just around the corner. So, I suggested that we go to
his church this Sunday, and then to mine the following Sunday. He agreed…
However, somehow I felt so much at home in his church that I
never got around to finding mine. After four years, I felt that Almighty God
was leading me into the ordained ministry; rather than, the law! I went to Drew
University Seminary and was ordained a Methodist minister. Then, I returned to
the Philippines to serve in a Methodist parish. My name is Valencius - Bishop
Valencius - Bishop of the Methodist Church in the Philippines."
As I start to take my seat, now, understand that the hero of that story is not
the Methodist Bishop - important as he is - the hero is that anonymous young
man with "Twin Umbrellas!" Whether they had ended up in the Methodist
or the Catholic Church didn’t really matter! Go all the way back to the
beginning of Christian and church history - and, you will find that unamed
woman or man with "Twin Umbrellas" behind almost every Christian
convert - that person with a winsome faith who builds a bridge of friendship
with another person - and, across that bridge walks a "Living Christ"
who claims another soul as His own!
Finally, as I sit down, know that you too can be that person
with "Twin Umbrellas" - you can be like Andrew - you can be like
Philip - you can tell someone else to "come and see" - just come and
see - that is all that I ask - and, my brothers and sisters, you will learn
that something
*******
I like the story of the young woman who wanted to go to
college, but her heart sank when she read the question on the application blank
that asked, "Are you a leader?" Being both honest and conscientious,
she wrote, "No," and returned the application, expecting the worst.
To her surprise, she received this letter from the college: "Dear
Applicant: A study of the application forms reveals that this year our college
will have 1,452 new leaders. We are accepting you because we feel it is
imperative that they have at least one follower."
In our text for this morning, Phillip comes to Nathanael and
proclaims that he has found the one whom Moses wrote about. He is Jesus of
Nazareth. While we do not know what expression Nathanael had on his face when
he responded, I think that it is safe to say that his response revealed a
cynical sneer. "Can anything good come from Nazareth?" Answered
Phillip: "Come and see."
You see, the church has the same problem. The church is full
of those sure of themselves. We may even get to the point where we believe very
little that we are told. We sit back under the fig tree with the sneer of a
Nathanael and we ask, "Can anything good come from , Can anything good
come from our Youth Group; can anything good come from ." People come in
and out the doors of this church with a critical eye. Skepticism is not a
modern virtue. Doubting Thomases have been around since the dawn of time. By
nature we don't want to be led. We want to lead. But, in the church, it is
imperative that we have followers. In fact it is imperative for all of us to be
followers.
Nathanael learned this. He was skeptical at first but he was
transformed. He became a follower because Phillip invited him.
Let me ask you: What was it that Phillip saw in Christ that moved him to follow, that stirred him so to invite his friend Nathanael. Come and see what? What did Phillip see in Jesus of Nazareth? I want to attempt to answer that question this morning. Come and see what?
