March 3, 2019

8th Sunday in Ordinary Time C
Sirach 27: 4-7; 1 Corinthians 15: 54-58; Luke 6: 39-45
I look forward to take time away and to look at myself and how I am living with the Lord. My ‘peace’
spot is Holy Cross Abbey with the Trappists at Berryville, Virginia and spending time with my Spiritual
Director. I know how the devil tempts me, sometimes powerfully like an attack, other times subtly. He
also is cunning, powerful, deceitful along with a perpetual distractor away from God’s truth. Life is a
continual process of re-directing my life toward the Lord. Jesus was a constant critic of people’s
hypocrisy because it is rooted in falsehood and deception. Religious leaders were especially susceptible.
So I look at how I am doing in living Christ’s life.
This is a great story from Mark Twain. He was at a dinner party whose guests included a highly
successful businessman. HIs money came by unscrupulously and aggressively squeezing money from
his clients and tenants. At one point, this man cornered Twain and piously stately, ‘Before I die, Mr.
Twain, I intend to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. I want to climb to the top of Mount Sinai and
read the Ten Commandments aloud.’ In his unique wisdom, Twain sarcastically responded,’Why don’t
you stay right here in Boston and keep them.’ Mr Twain knew quite a bit about religion and human
nature as do each of us. This businessman’s worst transgression was making the idol worship of making
money ‘his god.’ Do the words I use coincide with the love God fills me with and must be central in my
heart? Ralph Waldo Emerson said, ‘People are very inclined to set moral standards for others.’ Do I use
the same standards to manage my own life?
The first reading today is from Sirach which in previous generations was known as ‘Ecclesiasticus’
which means ‘Church book’. It is filled with a treasury of wise and helpful teachings. Todays advice is
to be discerning in judging others. Appearances can be deceiving. The author gives three interesting
examples: a sieve filled with fine grain, a beautiful clay handiwork and a fruit bearing tree. All look
impressive but not really because when the sieve is shaken inedible husks appear; when the clay
emerges from the kiln it is broken or cracked; and the fruit from the tree tastes horribly. Sirach the
author cautions against praising people until their speech proves them praiseworthy. My speech reveals
what is going on inside of me.
Do I see clearly or is the beam in my own eye blinding me? My words describe my focus. When people
talk to me, am I concerned and preparing my answer even before they finish? Do I have to tell a bigger
tale, or a more adventurous one, or a more humorous one? What is that telling me about myself? Am I
more concerned with me and miss the tone of the other’s voice which so often contains a cry for help,
comfort and love?
Paul has been addressing a number of needs from the Corinthian community. The footnote in Catholic
Study Bible shows his concern: some are denying the resurrection of the dead. “… apparently because of
their inability to imagine how any kind of bodily existence could be possible after death. It is plausibly supposed
that their attitude stems from Greek anthropology, which looks with contempt upon matter and would be content
with the survival of the soul, and perhaps also from an over realized eschatology of gnostic coloration, which
considers the resurrection a purely spiritual experience already achieved in baptism and in the forgiveness of sins.”
Paul says no: the corruptible will take on incorruptibility and what is mortal will take on immortality.
Since death results from sin, Christ’s defeat of sin means the defeat of death. The Corinthians must
remain steadfast in their faith. For them and us, each person is to be grateful for our redemption by
Jesus and must commit ourselves fully to the service of God. Is God important to me each day or do I
put other ‘idols’ in His place? What are my priorities…what is most important to me…what is most
valuable to me? The old question still fits: ‘If my house is on fire, what would I save first?’
Today’s gospel collects from Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain wisdom sayings, instructions on how to live out
one’s covenantal relationship with God by imitating God in each facet of my life; Jesus shows me how
to do this. A follower of Jesus must be compassionate as Jesus was compassionate, as God is
compassionate to me each and every day. I must follow what Jesus says…but Jesus is always in the
lead, He is to be the most important person in my life. I am a privileged, loved, redeemed sinner.
Gratitude and living the daily life of love, mercy and forgiveness are my task, no exception, and doing
this all the time. Jesus teaches today point blankly on judging others: it is not to be tolerated! Not only
is judging others wrong, but much of time I spend doing this, shows the hypocrisy I am living. The
splinter detected in another’s eye reflects a wooden beam in my eye when I judge. I must look full time
my own deficiencies and wrongdoings. It is a wonderful examen at the end of the day to see what my
day was like: where did I see God, what message was God giving me, was He telling me and showing
me how to love deeper because all He showed me was His love. Did I express gratitude for this? Why
not? Sunday Homily Helps states: “Discipleship is following in the footsteps of the Teacher, realizing
that imitating Him is equal to imitating God. It requires mutual admonition, correction, and
encouragement. All of this is a profile for living in the kingdom of God.”
Some interesting quotes:
• Journalist Mignon McLaughlin: “Children lack morality, but they also lack fake morality.”
• Phillip Yancey, a former editor at Christianity Today: “I know only two alternatives to hypocrisy:
perfection or honesty.”
• William Hazlitt, an essayist: “The only vice that cannot be forgiven is hypocrisy. The repentance of a
hypocrite is itself hypocrisy.”
• An old Latin phrase: Corruptio optima passim est means “The corruption of the best is worst of all.”
So I reflect on:
• What would a verbatim of my interactions with others tell them about me? Do some stand out that I
should reflect on today?
• How do I use my word: to invite healing or inflict harm? How am I showing Jesus’ love, mercy,
forgiveness?
• What things bug me about the people in my daily life? How many ‘specks’ do I focus on in my own
life?
• Who has patiently pruned and trained me? What gratitude have I shown them?
Sacred Space 2019 states:
“It’s a straightforward principle: I won’t help others by pointing out their problems or sins while I am ignoring my
own. In fact, my sins become obstacles to clear sight. May I use my irritation at others’ sins as a prompt to search
my own heart.
Another simple idea: A good heart produces good actions. If I’m not happy with my actions, I tend to focus on the
factions and feel guilty about them. Wouldn’t it make more sense to explore what it is within me that has led to
these actions? Help me, God—I need wisdom.”