The Servant of Charity
must go to bed each night
so tired from work
that he will think
he has been beaten!
-- St. Louis Guanella
The Servant of Charity
must go to bed each night
so tired from work
that he will think
he has been beaten!
-- St. Louis Guanella
June 28, 2021
Memorial of Saint Irenaeus, Bishop and Martyr
Lectionary: 377
Reading 1
Abraham and the men who had visited him by the Terebinth of Mamre
set out from there and looked down toward Sodom;
Abraham was walking with them, to see them on their way.
The LORD reflected: “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do,
now that he is to become a great and populous nation,
and all the nations of the earth are to find blessing in him?
Indeed, I have singled him out
that he may direct his children and his household after him
to keep the way of the LORD
by doing what is right and just,
so that the LORD may carry into effect for Abraham
the promises he made about him.”
Then the LORD said:
“The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great,
and their sin so grave,
that I must go down and see whether or not their actions
fully correspond to the cry against them that comes to me.
I mean to find out.”
While the two men walked on farther toward Sodom,
the LORD remained standing before Abraham.
Then Abraham drew nearer to him and said:
“Will you sweep away the innocent with the guilty?
Suppose there were fifty innocent people in the city;
would you wipe out the place, rather than spare it
for the sake of the fifty innocent people within it?
Far be it from you to do such a thing,
to make the innocent die with the guilty,
so that the innocent and the guilty would be treated alike!
Should not the judge of all the world act with justice?”
The LORD replied,
“If I find fifty innocent people in the city of Sodom,
I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
Abraham spoke up again:
“See how I am presuming to speak to my Lord,
though I am but dust and ashes!
What if there are five less than fifty innocent people?
Will you destroy the whole city because of those five?”
He answered, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
But Abraham persisted, saying, “What if only forty are found there?”
He replied, “I will forbear doing it for the sake of forty.”
Then Abraham said, “Let not my Lord grow impatient if I go on.
What if only thirty are found there?”
He replied, “I will forbear doing it if I can find but thirty there.”
Still Abraham went on,
“Since I have thus dared to speak to my Lord,
what if there are no more than twenty?”
He answered, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”
But he still persisted:
“Please, let not my Lord grow angry if I speak up this last time.
What if there are at least ten there?”
He replied, “For the sake of those ten, I will not destroy it.”
The LORD departed as soon as he had finished speaking with Abraham,
and Abraham returned home.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (8a) The Lord is kind and merciful.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
He pardons all your iniquities,
he heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
he crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Merciful and gracious is the LORD,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
He will not always chide,
nor does he keep his wrath forever.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so surpassing is his kindness toward those who fear him.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
When Jesus saw a crowd around him,
he gave orders to cross to the other shore.
A scribe approached and said to him,
“Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”
Another of his disciples said to him,
“Lord, let me go first and bury my father.”
But Jesus answered him, “Follow me,
and let the dead bury their dead.”
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Letting Go of Excuses
In our Gospel reading today, we see a scribe who's very excited about Jesus. Do you know the feeling? We get charged up while hearing a parish mission priest or a conference speaker or a stirring homily. But how long does that feeling last?
If you're still experiencing the thrill of growing spiritually, and if it's still producing good fruits, congratulate yourself. God is very pleased with you. He's admiring you, appreciating the work you're doing for his kingdom, and pointing you out to the angels and saints in heaven, saying, "Look at what my beloved child is doing!"
But --. Ahhh yes, the but. We sit on our buts far too often. Jesus is continually inviting us to produce more good fruits. Too many Christians do way too little for the kingdom of God, allowing evil to grow more of its own bitter fruits. But we have lots of buts, lots of excuses for why we're not doing more for the Lord and his Church.
Was Jesus complaining when he said he had no place to rest his head? I think not. He was no whiner. Listen closely: "The birds have nests, the foxes have lairs, Peter has a house where his mother-in-law cooks his favorite foods, and you have a spacious home in the suburbs, and I'm not always welcome there."
"But Jesus, when did you come to me and I did not feed you or shelter you or clothe you or give you a drink?"
One of his disciples said, "I want to go wherever you go, Lord, and do whatever you ask of me, but first let me bury my father." The reply Jesus gave him seems to be unsympathetic about the man's sorrow and loss. Was he really telling him to ignore his family and skip the grieving process? I think not. Jesus knows we can do important ministry in the family gatherings of funerals. He also knows when we're making excuses to avoid being sincere and whole-hearted about a life of holiness.
Following Jesus is never convenient. What's on your list of tasks that you're hoping God will not ask you to do? What are your buts? When you hear about a need that's going unmet and you could do something about it (with God's help, of course), do you say, "Sure, I'd do that if only -- but first -- later when --"?
You've heard the question: "If God is real, why is there so much evil in the world?" The answer is: It's not God's fault. There are still too few of us producing enough of the good fruits that defeat those evils.
"Let the dead bury their dead" is God's way of letting go of those who are not willing to join him in his work. He surrenders us to our deadness, but if we surrender to him, we become truly and excitedly alive as he works through us in mighty and amazing ways!
Today's Prayer
Jesus, forgive me for all the excuses I have given for not following You just so I don't have to abandon my own will. Help me with Your Spirit to always give You my heartfelt 'yes'. Amen.
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God Bless You.....
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