*****
Listen to what Francis de Sales has to say on this topic. (Introduction Part III, Chapter 36)
“If we like a certain practice, we despise everyone else and oppose everything that is not to our taste. If someone is poor-looking or if we have taken a dislike to that person, we find fault with everything that person does: we never stop plaguing that person and are always looking for an opportunity to run that person down. On the contrary, if we like someone because of their good looks, there isn’t anything that person does that we aren’t willing to overlook.”
“In general, we prefer the rich to the poor…we even prefer those who are better dressed. We rigorously demand out own rights but want others to be considerate when insisting on theirs. We maintain our rank with exactness, but we want others to be humble and accommodating when it comes to theirs. We complain very easily about our neighbor, but our neighbors must never complain about us. What we do for others always seems like such a big deal, but what others do for us seems like nothing at all.”
“In short, we have two hearts. We have a mild, gracious and courteous attitude toward ourselves and another that is hard, severe, and rigorous toward our neighbor. We have two weights: one to weigh goods to our won greatest possible advantage and another, to weigh to our neighbor’s greatest possible disadvantage.”
This is the essence of discriminating against others “in our hearts:” to live with two hearts, to live by a double standard. As James says, when we set ourselves up as judge (and jury) of our neighbor while failing to use the same standard on ourselves, we “hand down corrupt decisions.”
On the other hand, God shows no partiality. As people made in God’s image and likeness, neither should we. How can we remedy our tendency to prefer some over others? Francis de Sales is crystal clear and unambiguous.
“Be just and equitable in all your actions. Always put yourself in your neighbor’s place and your neighbor in yours and you will judge justly. Imagine yourself the seller when you buy and the buyer when you sell, and you will sell and buy justly…This is the touchstone of all reason.”
Reason enough to do our level best to show no partiality when it comes to the things of God, and in giving our neighbor his or her due.
*****
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:
“God acts in our works, and we co-operate in God’s action. God leaves for our part all the merit and profit of our services and good works; we leave God all the honor and praise thereof, acknowledging that the growth, the progress, and the end of all the good we do depends on God’s mercy, finishing what God had begun. O God, how merciful is God’s goodness to us in thus distributing his bounty!” (TLG, Book XI, Chapter 6, p. 212)
It would be enough if God simply made us the recipients of his mercy and generosity, but in his wisdom, God has also made us the agents or instruments of his mercy and generosity. Our common vocation is not limited to enjoying the gift of creation. We are also called to nurture it, care for it, shepherd it and grow it! God works in and through us; we work in and through God’s action. To us come all of the benefits; to God goes all of the glory.
We are – in word and in deed – God’s co-workers. We celebrate both God’s generosity to ourselves and share that generosity with others. How might God employ our cooperation in both receiving and sharing his bounty, not only on Labor Day, but also on every day?
*****
In his commentary on this selection from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay makes the following observations regarding “the Twelve” (page 75):
“These were ordinary men. There was not a wealthy, nor a famous nor an influential man among them; they had no special education; they were men of the common folk. It is as if Jesus said, ‘Give me twelve ordinary men and I will change the world.’ The work of Jesus is not in the hands of men whom the world calls great, but in the hands of ordinary people like ourselves.”
“They were a strange mixture. To take but two of them – Matthew was a tax collector and, therefore, a traitor and a renegade. Simon was a Zealot, and the Zealots were fanatical nationalists, who were sworn to assassinate every traitor and every Roman they could. It is one of the miracles of the power of Christ that Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot could live at peace in the close company of the apostolic band. When people are truly Christian the most diverse and divergent types can live in peace together. It was said of Gilbert Chesterton and his brother Cecil, ‘They always argued, but they never quarreled.’ It is only in Christ that we can solve the challenges of living together, because even the most opposite people may be united in their love for him. If we genuinely love him, we will also love each other.”
Indeed, “the Twelve” were a pretty motley crew, a mixed bag of imperfect people who did change the world. How might we – ordinary people – continue to change the world for the better in our little corners of it?
(September 8, 2021: Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
*****
When Joachim and Ann welcomed their daughter Mary into the world, who could have known – or imagined – that she was destined to become the mother of the Messiah? Who could have thought that this simple, poor and unassuming woman would be the vehicle through whom God would fulfill his promise of salvation? Who could have anticipated that her simple ‘yes’, as the handmaid of the Lord, would change the course of the world forever? How about you? Who could have thought that God would bring you out of nothingness in order that you might experience the beauty of being someone? Who would have imagined that God would use your ordinary, everyday life to continue his ongoing creative, redemptive and inspiring action? Who could have known that your attempts to say ‘yes’ to God’s will on a daily basis – however imperfectly – could change other peoples’ lives for the better?
God did! God does! And God will continue to do! Forever!
*****
“A contemporary of St. Francis de Sales, St. Peter Claver was born at Verdu, Catalonia, Spain, in 1580, of impoverished parents descended from ancient and distinguished families. He studied at the Jesuit college of Barcelona, entered the Jesuit novitiate at Tarragona in 1602 and took his final vows on August 8th, 1604. While studying philosophy at Majorca, the young religious was influenced by St. Alphonsus Rodriguez to go to the Indies and save ‘millions of perishing souls.’”
“In 1610, he landed at Cartagena (modern Colombia), the principal slave market of the New World, where a thousand slaves were landed every month. After his ordination in 1616, he dedicated himself by special vow to the service of the Negro slaves - a work that was to last for thirty-three years. He labored unceasingly for the salvation of the African slaves and the abolition of the Negro slave trade, and the love he lavished on them was something that transcended the natural order.”
“Boarding the slave ships as they entered the harbor, he would hurry to the revolting inferno of the hold and offer whatever poor refreshments he could afford; he would care for the sick and dying and instruct the slaves through Negro catechists before administering the Sacraments. Through his efforts three hundred thousand souls entered the Church. Furthermore, he did not lose sight of his converts when they left the ships but followed them to the plantations to which they were sent, encouraged them to live as Christians, and prevailed on their masters to treat them humanely. He died in 1654.” (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=94)
Peter Claver seems to have taken Paul’s exhortation to “put on heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience…” quite literally by traveling to a different hemisphere and spending over thirty years of his life ministering to African slaves.
How can we model his example of dedicated service to those with whom we live and work close to home today?
*****
People around the world – and especially in the United States – prepare to observe tomorrow as a day of remembrance on the twentieth anniversary of the terror attack of September 11, 2001.
“In October 2001, the United States Congress passed a joint resolution designating that every September 11th be observed as "Patriot Day." The resolution requests that U.S. government entities and interested organizations and individuals display the flag of the United States at half staff and that the people of the United States observe a moment of silence in honor of the individuals who lost their lives. In 2009, a presidential proclamation declared that Patriot Day is also a ‘National Day of Service.’ The proclamation calls on Americans to ‘participate in community service in honor of those our Nation lost, to observe this day with other ceremonies and activities, including remembrance services ... to honor the innocent victims who perished as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.’” (http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/september-11/)
St. Paul tells us that he is grateful for the ways in which Jesus Christ has strengthened him. Let us ask that same Jesus for the strength we need to work for both justice and peace in our little corners of the world. Let us ask for the strength we need to confront violence and terrorism in all its forms even as we strive to be sources of reconciliation and healing.
(September 11, 2021: Saturday, Twenty-third Week Ordinary Time)
*****
“When he created things, God commanded plants to bring forth their fruits, each one according to its kind. In like manner God commands Christians – the living plants of the Church – to bring forth the fruits of devotion, each according to one’s position and vocation. Devotion must be exercised in different ways by the gentleman, the laborer, the servant, the prince, the young girl and the married woman. Not only is this true but the practice of devotion must also be adapted to the strengths, activities and duties of each particular person.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 1)
We are the living plants of the Church. What kind of fruits can we produce in the lives of others in our attempts to help grow the Good News of Jesus Christ in our own little corners of the world today?
