Some People Do Much More with Much Less
October 11, 2004
Monday of the Twenty-Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Luke 11:29-32
While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them,
"This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no
sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah
became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this
generation. At the Judgment the queen of the south will rise with
the men of this generation and she will condemn them, because she
came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and
there is something greater than Solomon here. At the Judgment the
men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it,
because at the preaching of Jonah they repented, and there is
something greater than Jonah here.
Introductory Prayer:Father, give me the grace to know you more
deeply. Dont let me float through life with a superficial
spirituality. I love you with all my heart and ask you to bless
this time of prayer.
Petition:Lord, please help me to not waste any of your precious
graces. I want to be faithful and fruitful.
1. Jonah and Solomon: Not Exactly Stellar Instruments of God. Jesus
speaks in todays reading about Jonah and Solomon. Neither one will
ever be canonized. Jonah had to be dragged kicking and screaming
into his prophetic mission. Solomon, at the end of his life, found
himself building temples to other gods, just to keep the harem
happy. Yet, surprisingly, other people encountered Gods grace
through them. The Ninevites, inhabitants of that infamous city of
the ancient world known for it cruelty, converted after one days
preaching by Jonah, the unenthusiastic and unconvinced prophet. As
for Solomon, his wisdom was legendary among his contemporaries.
Jesus is asking the people, if others listened to Jonah and
Solomon, why are you so slow to accept my message, backed up by
hundreds of miraculous cures?
Very often the same thing happens today. Despite the spiritual
treasures of the Catholic Church, frequently we encounter a lot
more fervor outside the Church. To take one example, look at the
Mormons. They send 60% of their young men to do missionary work for
two years. Their tithing is extensive and their divorce rate is
low. But we Catholics can be hard pressed just to get our youth to
go to Mass, let alone give two years of their lives to voluntary
service. Many of our institutions struggle financially, and our
divorce rate is no better than the national average. As committed
Catholics, we need to enkindle our own personal enthusiasm and our
capacity to sacrifice for the Church.
2. We Have the Fullness of Truth! We are incredibly blessed in the
Catholic Church. We have it all! We dont lack anything. Our souls
are fed with the precious Body and Blood of Our Lord. The sacred
Scriptures continually enlighten our minds. We have a cloud of
witnesses in all the martyrs and saints. Look at all the good
examples we have. If you are struggling with purity, you have a St
Maria Goretti reminding you what a jewel chastity is. If you lack
confidence in God, you have a St Therese of Lisieux showing you
that not even the temptation of atheism should take away your
faith. And what a gift we have in the Magisterium! Truth is never
far away.
If we were to value what we have, we would go so much further in
our spiritual lives. When asked why he wasnt a Christian, Ghandi
replied that if they really believed that Jesus was in the
Eucharist, they would never be able to leave the church. Yes, let
us value what we have received. Let us give Christ the consolation
of seeing that we are making good use of all the incredible
blessings.
3. Its Not Just Our Own Spiritual Lives. A person that has been
truly touched by Christ cant just be routine and lackadaisical
about his faith. It wouldnt even occur to him to miss a Sunday
Mass. In fact, he tries to go as often as possible. The Bible
doesnt sit on the shelf gathering dust; he is continually going to
it to keep his soul nourished. Most importantly, his love for the
Lord is a fire in his soul that is contagious. As Pope John Paul II
writes in Novo Millennio Inuente, At the threshold of the third
millennium, God calls believers, especially lay people, to a
renewed missionary zeal. Mission is not an appendix to the
Christian vocation. Rather, as the Second Vatican Council recalls,
the Christian vocation by its nature is a vocation to the
apostolate. Christ should be proclaimed by word and the witness of
life, and, before being a strategic and organized effort, the
apostolate involves the grateful and joyful communication to all of
the gift of meeting Christ. An evangelically mature person, or
community, is motivated by intense missionary enthusiasm, which
spurs him to bear witness to Christ in every circumstance and
situation, in every social, cultural and political context. We are
blessed in the Church. Lets try to give our best efforts, so that
there will be fruits after all the great gifts we have received. It
would be a shame if we let the Ninevites beat us in the generous
response category.
Dialogue with Christ: Lord, you were frustrated when people
continued to ask for signs without opening their hearts to the
meaning of your words and deeds. I hope that I will never offend
you with a stubborn attitude. Help me to realize that you have
given me incredible gifts to allow me to be spiritually fruitful. I
know that with your grace, I will succeed.
Resolution: I will speak about my faith to someone, so that they
can see how powerful a help it is in my daily life.
By Father Steven Reilly, LC
