Frank Sinatra made his fans happy when he sang, “I did it my way.” When Old Blue Eyes sang these words: “I planned each charted course, each careful step along the way, and more than this, I did it my way.” His fans clapped and cheered. Frank Sinatra is telling us how he survived in life. He urges others: If you want to be successful, you must live exactly the same way. What Sinatra is asking in this song is for us to make certain our needs are considered first before anyone else, and then go for it.
Jesus offered another way to be successful which differs radically from “I did it my way.” Jesus preaches, “That all may be one!” With these words, Jesus insists that living our lives apart and separated from others is simply erroneous.
Jesus offered two easy, everyday images to help us be a neighbor to others. He says we can either be salt or light. As salt adds flavor to our food, we can reach out to our neighbors who struggle in life and seem stuck and help. Our gift can be the salt that savors what he lacks and moves him along on his life path. Or we can help by placing the gift of our light on a lampstand from where it can shine light into his darkness. This light dispels her darkness and helps her to find the pathway that she lost.
With these images of salt and light, Jesus shows His followers how to help others in need. We help our brothers and sisters because everyone is made in God’s image and likeness.
At our Baptism, we received Jesus’ spirit and we are asked not to hide it, but rather to share it with those who lost it. This spirit is that light on our lampstand and the salt that is savory. Saint Francis de Sales writes: “Be who you are and be that well. So that you may bring honor to the Master Craftsman whose handiwork you are.”
When we add savor to others who lack flavor and shine a light on those who roam in darkness, we are feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and quenching others’ thirst. Jesus comes alive at that instance through us.
This act of goodness’s effect can never be truly known because the results of goodness or any kind act is unable to be measured. Its goodness silently manifests the glory of God for all to see.
An example is Saint Teresa of Calcutta’s excellent work with the poor and rejected in India. She eagerly welcomed all those who volunteered from everywhere to collaborate with her. However, she cautioned them with this helpful advice: “Stay where you are. Find your own Calcutta. Find the sick, the suffering, and the lonely, right where you are — in your own homes and in your own families, in homes and in your workplaces and in your schools.”
Years ago, my mother, an immigrant from Italy, and the best cook in the entire world, had her own Calcutta Moment! After I entered the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, the seminarians’ parents were asked to contribute items or donate to the Oblates’ annual Christmas Bazaar. My mother said: “I don’t know what to do. I don’t have extra money or gifts to share! My sisters and I responded: “Mom you can cook. Your sauce is the best. Offer that!”
She cooked her sauce, advertised in the parish bulletin the neighborhood, and sold it in mason jars. Would you believe it? She made several thousand dollars from her sauce plus a few generous donations. My mom found her Calcutta! The Oblates were happy and so were the buyers who enjoyed her sauce.
Like Saint Teresa of Calcutta, Jesus asks us all to find our Calcutta. Go into our world every day, seeking ways to give flavor and light to someone who is needy. When we do this, we manifest God’s glory while finding our own Calcutta. If we respond little by little doing it Jesus’ way, we might slowly change our world.
Fr. Richard DeLillio, OSFS
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