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The
story is told about the day ol’ Shamus O’Toole finally went to see the
doc. You see, ol’ Shamus was feeling “oh, so very bad.”
After
examining ol’ Shamus thoroughly and studying the results of his blood
tests in great detail, the doc approached ol’ Shamus, rubbed his chin
with his right hand, and said: “Well, Shamus, I’ve decided to tell you
the truth. I’ll cut straight to the chase. You’re a very sick man,
Shamus. I don’t think you’ll live but a couple more weeks.”
After a
moment or so of awkward silence, the doc then moved in very close to ol’
Shamus—right near his face—and looked ol’ Shamus straight in the eye.
The doc said: “Shamus, old friend, is there someone you ought to call?”
“Glory
be to Jesus, second person of the Blessed Trinity!” ol’ Shamus
exclaimed. “I’d like to call another doctor!”
Just
like ol’ Shamus O’Toole, we also are very quick to reject someone who
tells us something we don’t want to hear or who disagrees with the way
we view things. But, rather than evaluate what they have to say and to
change ourselves as may be necessary—because, after all, no one of us is
perfect—it’s easier to turn a deaf ear, to make that person into a
mortal enemy and drive that person from our midst, or to find something
that will distract us or someone who will tell us exactly what we want
to hear.
“Let’s
get personal for a moment,” the comedienne Joan Rivers says in her stage
routine. It’s easy, isn’t it, to turn a deaf ear, to make someone into
a mortal enemy and drive that person from our midst, or to get something
to distract us or go to someone who will tell us exactly what we want to
hear?
I
suspect it all begins when we’re kids and our brothers, sisters, and
parents point out our shortcomings. Like the comedian, Bill Cosby, who
shouted to his mother concerning his brother, “You always liked Russell
better than me!”, we blame them for telling us the truth. See how we so
easily turn constructive criticism into the other person’s problem?
Think
of all the friends “I used to have.”
Surely,
over the years, we’ve grown apart from many of these “nearest” and
“dearest” and “bestest” of friends simply because of life’s many
changes. But, just for a moment, focus upon those who we’ve grown to
dislike—or maybe even abhor and detest—and have decided we no longer
will associate with. How many of these friends are no long present
because we wouldn’t tolerate them for having corrected us?
Believe
it or not, this attitude and behavior also presents one of the most prominent threats to the
Sacrament of Marriage. We all know the ideal: as married couples,
spouses are obligated not only to bear with and to support but also to
challenge one another to greater growth and maturity, both psychological
and especially spiritual. But, isn’t it so easy to forget that ideal
and, when your spouse rightfully gets after you for your various
shortcomings and failures, to make your spouse the problem? Then, to
compound matters worse, to shut the doors of your heart to your spouse
by seeking refuge in some distracting activity or in someone else who
isn’t honest with you?
See how
easy it is for us to turn a deaf ear? To turn that person into an
enemy, a mortal threat to our false sense of self-efficacy? Or, to
find something or someone else?
Unfortunately, we may well be choosing not to hear God’s word and to
turn our
backs on what is a moment of grace. Where we could mature
psychologically and spiritually so as to enjoy life “to the max,” we
choose instead to remain immature and live what amounts to being a very
minimal existence. It’s really our loss—one that’s quite
sad, “mortal” if you will—because, along the way, we forsake what could be a lifetime of
abiding friendships, close and loving family bonds, as well as strong
and vibrant sacramental marriages.
In
contrast to this sinful attitude and behavior, today’s scripture readings remind
us about our origins. In particular, the prophet Jeremiah reminds us that before we were conceived in our mother’s womb, God knew us and,
furthermore, that God has predestined each of us to bear His word. By breathing
His word into our souls, God has entrusted each of us with a personal
vocation—unique and unrepeatable in all human history—for which we bear
profound responsibility.
This
personal vocation is not, in the traditional sense, one of a “state of
life,” as a spouse, a priest, or a dedicated lay person. No, this
personal vocation is a “way of life” by which we are attentive to God’s word and proclaim it, whether that be to our spouse, our children,
our friends, relatives, neighbors, or co-workers. “Before I formed
you in your mother’s womb,” God tells us through the prophet Jeremiah,
“I knew you and appointed you to preach my word to the nations.”
But,
that’s one half of the call. The other half—and this is the part we
oftentimes all too easily forget—is that God’s word dwells in other people, too.
Because of this, we are obligated to listen to them. A personal
vocation is not just a “one-way street” where I tell everyone else how
God wants them to change so the world can be the way I want it to be. No,
a personal vocation is also a “two-way street” where I also
listen to others who proclaim how God is calling me to change.
However, many people—people just like you and me—don’t want to hear
God’s word and work actively to resist it. Just like Jesus’ relatives and
neighbors who sought to drive him from their midst, we would rather
drive from our midst anyone who challenges us to greater psychological
and spiritual maturity than to take those words to heart and allow
them—the word of God—to change us.
There
really is only one way to rid ourselves of this seemingly innate capacity we have to
reject God’s word as it is made manifest to us in our daily lives. If
you recall, at Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River—and at our baptisms,
too—a cloud descended over Jesus and a voice came from the cloud saying:
“This is my beloved”—and in our baptisms, too, God makes us His
beloved—“listen to him.”
That,
my friends, is the key that unlocks the door to a new and holy life. We need to get beyond all of those hurt
feelings, we’ve got to swallow our pride, and we need to admit our
imperfection. Instead of turning a deaf ear, making enemies, or distracting ourselves by
turning to other things or people, we need listen to
and allow God’s word to upset out little apple cart by changing us.
God
loves us and wants only the best for us. Even when we choose to go our
own way, to sin, and to bring destruction into our lives, God continues
to send prophets—people or things or events—disguised in the garb of our
everyday lives. Sent out of love, God asks only that we listen to these
prophets...for our own good.
Yes, this is
a very tough spiritual lesson. But, it’s the way Jesus showed us. That
is, if we wish to follow him and to savor the fullness of life that can
be ours…by heeding God’s word spoken to us even if it be spoken by the
son of a carpenter hailing from the God-forsaken town of Nazareth.
A brief commercial
break...
Hurry up! Lent is just around the corner,
beginning on Wednesday, February 21st!
Each
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season of Lent. Similar to a what older Catholics may remember as a
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Grandparents might consider purchasing a copy for themselves and copies
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The
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Furthermore, orders are filled in the order received. So, place your
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To place
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email specialissue@intrepidgroup.com for ordering information.
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HOMILY
