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A lot of people at this time of year are participating in “office pools” and making selections for each of the NCAA basketball tournament brackets leading up to the Final Four and NCAA Championship team, an annual event called “March Madness.” Mostly for the sake of camaraderie and maybe even a chance at winning some hard, cold cash, most people jump into these pools “feet first” not “head first,” because they don’t ordinarily follow sports of any kind, having only some vague hope of emerging victorious. It’s sort of like playing the Lotto. There are other people, however, who are extremely serious and cautious when they make selections for the brackets. These people carefully study the teams: their strengths and weaknesses, the trajectory of their seasons, the kind of schedule played, as well as arcane statistics which include things like the percentage of shots converted “from the paint,” rebound margin, blocked shots per game, and number of turnovers recovered. Then, there’s the issue of whether a team is a “bubble” team which, of course, throws everything up for grabs. This is all very serious business, indeed. Would that all of us—and especially those among us who are male—were this serious about our spiritual lives! For those who want to be more serious about their spiritual lives—and especially the males among us—the former NFL player and coach, Danny Abramowicz has written Spiritual Workout of a Former Saint. The title reflects Abramowicz’s six years as a player for the New Orleans Saints. He also played one year for the San Francisco 49’ers, coached under Mike Ditka for the Chicago Bears, and was an offensive coordinator for the Saints. In the opening paragraph of his book, Abramowicz confesses:
I am nothing but a
“has been” football player and a fired ex-NFL coach. I was and still am
a sinner who struggles daily to overcome my weaknesses….In other words,
I have been a “lost ball in high weeds.” In spite of all of that, I am
living proof that God can change the life of anyone if we allow Him. If
God can turn my sinful life around, any person has a chance, no matter
the condition of one’s spiritual life right now. What we all need, Abramowicz insists, is a results-oriented training program for spiritual growth. That will only come about, however, if we first seek out a personal trainer who intimately knows our strengths and weaknesses, who will encourage us to move forward, and who will aid us to map out a plan to achieve goals that will enrich our spiritual lives. That personal trainer, Abramowicz says, is the Holy Spirit. Enlisting the help of the Holy Spirit—our “Personal Trainer”—by calling upon Him often is the first step in a results-oriented training program for spiritual growth. The second step is to produce a “scouting report.” However, what we’re scouting and reporting is not another team but the host of enemies out there seeking to break through our defenses and hamper the development of a quality spiritual life. Producing this scouting report requires examining our consciences and understanding better our vulnerabilities so that they can be shored up and transformed into strengths or, at least, successfully defended against. Armed with clearer and more-accurate self-knowledge about ourselves and the challenges we will be encountering, requires a third step: “stretching out” in prayer. Just as we stretch out our muscles before engaging in any vigorous athletic activity so that we do not cause muscle spasms or tears, so too regular, daily prayer is how we stretch out our spiritual muscles. All of this prepares us, Abramowicz notes, for the fourth step in a results-oriented training program for spiritual growth, namely, to “run away” from temptation and sin. Not simply to “turn away,” Abramowicz notes, but to “run away.” Where we’re headed, however, isn’t just in any direction, but in the direction of the Head Coach, Jesus Christ. Participating in the Sacrament of Penance on a regular basis is where we meet the Head Coach who provides us all the guidance we need for continued spiritual growth and to achieve our objective, an enriched spiritual life. The fifth step is to “lift other people up” in prayer. It’s easy to pray about ourselves and everything we need. It’s more difficult, however, to consider everyone around us and everything they need, those people who include our parents, our spouse, and our children. Asking ourselves “What do they need?” is a good way to begin prayer. Perhaps they need the gift of forgiveness that, if we pray for it, God will move us to offer them what they need, namely, the forgiveness that will repair broken relationships. “Spiritual nutrition” is vitally important, too, and provides the sixth step in this program. “You are what you eat,” the nutritionists say, and this is equally important about the spiritual life. Attending Mass as often as is possible, Abramowicz argues, provides this nourishment in the Word of God found in Scripture and in the Sacrament received in the Body and Blood of Christ. Also important for spiritual nourishment is regular reading of Scripture—what Abramowicz calls “the playbook for spiritual growth”—and the Catechism of the Catholic Church—what he calls “the game plan for spiritual growth.” The seventh step to an enriched spiritual life is to “rest in the Holy Spirit.” What this means is to turn off all of those outside distractions, like the television, the computer, the DVD, and the IPod so that we can listen for God’s voice in the silence. One good way to do this is to leave everything behind, including home, and to venture to a chapel of perpetual adoration where we can spend some time in silence before the Blessed Sacrament. You will be amazed at what one-half hour spent in adoration each week can do to enrich your spiritual life. Lastly, make an “action plan.” Many people I know use a “Day Planner” to organize their days, weeks, months, and even years! From a spiritual perspective, Abramowicz’s plan challenges us to organize our day and week so that we will not forget to engage in those behaviors that will make it possible to achieve our goal of enriching our spiritual lives. Danny Abramowicz’s results-oriented plan for a deeper spiritual life makes plain old, common sense. Just think for a moment about someone who doesn’t follow this plan. This person never calls upon the Holy Spirit for guidance, never examines one’s conscience, never stretches out in daily prayer, runs head-long into temptation and sin, never thinks about other people and their needs, does not attend Mass, read Scripture, and knows nothing about what the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, surrounds himself with everything that makes noise, and has no plan to grow spiritually. Now, just what are the chances that this person will grow spiritually? Quite likely, this person would have a better chance of winning the NCAA office pool! But, for those who undertake this eight-step, results-oriented action plan for spiritual growth, it is highly likely they will achieve faith’s goal, namely, eternal salvation. So, what has all of this to do with today’s gospel in which a woman is caught in the middle of adultery? Spiritual growth reveals itself not as we judge others, point out their sins, and condemn them for their failure to grow spiritually. No, spiritual growth reveals itself as we confront our sin and condemn ourselves for not growing spiritually. By engaging in a results-oriented program for spiritual growth, we develop the kind of divine compassion that filled Jesus’ heart so that he could say to the woman caught in adultery, “Go, and from now own, do not sin any more.” Unlike the woman caught in the act of adultery, Danny Abramowicz didn’t have the Scribes and Pharisees wagging their fingers at him and ready to pounce on with harsh words of condemnation. Instead, Danny came to realize that he was a “lost ball in high weeds” and mustered the courage it took to convict himself. “I am nothing but a ‘has been’ football player and a fired ex-NFL coach. I was and still am a sinner who struggles daily to overcome my weaknesses,” he confesses. Formulating an eight-step results-oriented training program for spiritual growth, Danny Abramowicz is “living proof that God can change the life of anyone if we allow Him.” The same is true for each and every one of us. Instead of sitting around and pointing out how imperfect and deserving of condemnation everyone else is, it’s time to convict ourselves and to engage in a results-oriented plan to grow spiritually whose effects will become evident in things like: being more patient and considerate with a spouse; less harsh and short-tempered with the kids; less quarrelsome with my parents; and, more ready to overlook how aggravating everyone else is. Unlike the Scribes and Pharisees who were ready to expose the sins of others and to point the finger of blame at them, we begin our pathway toward spiritual growth by confessing my own sinfulness so that we will hear Jesus say the words that freed the adulterous woman, “I do not condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.” For those of us who are seeking to grow spiritually, the prize is one of eternal worth, union with God. This is the prize—not the NCAA office pool—upon which we set our sights as we continue our spiritual journey this Lenten season.
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HOMILY
