Sunday Homily 9-25-11, 26th Ordinary Time

Readings:  Jonah 3, 1-10, Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed; Psalm 25, Teach me your ways, O Lord; 1 Corinthians 7, 29-31, The time is running out; Mark 1, 14-20, I will make you fishers of people.

Jonah: This little book of 4 chapters is a gem and tells a delightful short story.   It is so good I would like to read it all, but will read chapter 1 and all of chapter 3. 

Background: Jonah has been asked by Yahweh to go to Nineveh in Assyria to tell the people & leaders that they are evil and will be punished shortly by Yahweh.  Trouble is, Nineveh is the enemy, like me going to Houston or Philadelphia. 

So he runs away, catches a boat headed for Spain, is blamed by the sailors for causing a big storm on the sea, and is dumped overboard.  The whale swallows him and for three days Jonah is constrained to reflect on what he is doing.  When, after 3 days, the whale dumps him on shore, Jonah is more willing to listen.  We arrive at this point and I will have all of chapter 3 read.

Author: For centuries, while people took this story as factual, Jonah was considered author of his own story.  Once it was seen as a fable or allegory, the story probably has some unknown ancient as the author.

Date of composition: no one really knows, but educated guesses put it ca. 800 BCE.

Note: the story of Jonah and the story of Jesus' interaction with his future apostles are both about The Call. 

A Call Story

    Because the Jonah story and the story about Jesus relating to his future apostles all talk about The Call, I have a short contemporary story.

    The girl’s name is Susan.  Blond hair, green eyes, vivacious, a cheer leader at Skyline and at S.M.U.  In fact, she was the head cheerleader at S.M.U.  She was fun to be around and full of zest for life.  

    While Susan presented herself so positively at school, At this point in her life three horrible events had taken place.   

    First, the summer Susan was 10 she and her mother were at the lake on the 4^th of July.  They were on the boat dock when a man came up and whispered in her mother’s ear that their 18 year old son had just committed suicide back at their home.  Susan watched as her mother was carried off the pier.   

    The suicide drove her parents to drink and eventually divorce.  Susan was left to care take the house and her drunk mother while she finished grade school and high school.  This was the second horrible event. 

    When Susan graduated with honors from high school, no one was there to clap for her or support her.  She went home, raged at her mother, and told her she wished she were dead.   The next morning Susan found her mother dead.  Her mother was 49 when she drank herself to death.  This was the third tragedy.  She was just entering S.M.U.

    Some years later one more tragedy struck her.  Her older sister Kathy, upon whom she depended, died of cancer at the same age as their mom, 49, on the same holiday as her mom, Memorial Day. 

    This final event did it.  Despite having kids and a career as a special ed coordinator, Susan entered the world of drug addiction.  Within about a year CPS had taken her kids away and Susan went to prison.  

    In about a year Susan came out of the belly of the prison and two things happened.  First, she heard The Call.  Secondly, and interconnected with The Call she watched two parents react to the tragic death of their child.  The parents inspired her and she answered The Call to come back to life.  Today Susan gives talks about her life to strengthen others.

    If you are like me, you think that The Call is to do something usually significant.  Maybe it is, but it can be simply an invitation to come back to life or to be more fully alive.  

    Today the Mass is all about Call.  What is yours today?

Resource, Dallas Morning News, 1-21-12, Kristie Smith, Viewpoints section, Educator Fell far but found God.

Picture 1:    Offertory, Mary Ellen & Grace

Picture 2:    Brooklyn with Joanie & Erin

Picture 3:    Ray & Claire celebrating 41 years

Picture 4:    Tom, Bill, & Ron

Picture 5:    Someone has come to visit, no fear!

Picture 6:    It's Sienna!

Readings: 

 Exodus 32, 7-11, 13-14,   I see how stiff necked this people is.

Psalm 51,  I will rise and go to my father.

1 Timothy 1, 11-17, I am grateful to him who has strengthened me.

Luke 15, 1-32, The Prodigal Son (The Best).

Kevin and his mom, Connie, arriving.

Exodus observations :

What : a story, a long parable.  It has 2 parts, the exodus or exit from Egypt
and the years wandering in the desert.

Who: the work is all about Moses, but he
did not compose it.  Rather, it was put
together by a committee during the Babylonian Captivity, 555 before Christ.

Subject: it appears that the purpose of the
work was to encourage the people during the Babylonian Captivity.  It is not history and borrows stories from
other cultures.  For instance, the
parting of the Red Sea comes from a Mesopotamian creation myth and the 10
Commandments resemble the Code of Hammurabi.

Our Subject: The people have been bad, God is
mad at them, and Moses defends the people.

Sources: Good News Bible,
The New Interpreter’s Study Bible, Wikipedia

Emma arriving prepared.

The Prodigal Son: A Work of Art

 This story is my favorite parable of the whole Bible.  Note one thing: this is story, not
history.   The author carefully crafts
his work of art to show how much God loves us unconditionally.  Let me give you three observations about the
son, three about the father, and an extra three to show you how astounding this
story is. 

The Beautiful Torri.

First, the younger son:

        1.  He has no right to ask for inheritance.  None. 
By asking he is saying he wishes the father and the older son dead.  A symbolic murder.  Father can kill him for this.

        2.  He works feeding pigs instead of asking for
help from the temple.  This means he
rejects the religious tradition and is considered a traitor not only to the
family, but to the religion.  

    3.  So, as a horrible failure as a son of the
family and a son of the religious tradition, he decides to return.  He makes up his little speech and heads
home.  He is hungry to the point of
dying.  Do this or die.  Many listening Jews would say, Die.  

Buddy is ready, too.

The Father: he actually commits as many crimes and sins as
the son.

    1.    
He runs down the road to
the son when he sees him coming.  A very
undignified action.  Outrageous.  People who emphasize conditional love point
out that the son at least came back. 
Despite this point, all the other elements of the parable point to a
father with unconditional love.

        2.  He embraced and kissed the son.  Huge violation of Jewish religious custom and
law.  By doing this the father positions
himself outside of the religious & cultural community.  He is a reject like the son. 

        3.  He cuts the son’s speech off before he can finish, eliminating the last sentence, “treat me as you would one of your
hired workers.”  And to make it worse, he
orders the servants to bring the finest robe, ring, and sandals. 

Zoe with her granddad, Gil.

The robe, the ring, and the sandals:

        1.  The robe: restores the son’s dignity. 

        2.  The ring: gives authority to the son, even
equal to the father and certainly more than before he left.

        3.  The sandals: gives the son freedom.  Slaves were not given sandals so they would
not run away.  The father is doubling the
message he gave when he cut the son’s speech off before he could say the third
part about being treated as a servant.  

Toy World open with Cowboy Cole, Emma, Zoe, and Torri.

A word about the older son, because we so often identify
with him.  Two additional and final
points.

        1.  That he tells his father how he feels.  Great. 
In those days, it meant the father can kill him.  Today: communication. 

        2.  What is his challenge: acceptance of his
brother, his father, and himself; focus on gratitude for all he has; move from
trying to be a good boy to loving?  Any
one of these?  Or all?  All.  

I apologize for so much data.  There is even more.  The point is that the story is a carefully
crafted literary work of art that attempts to describe how totally unconditionally
loving our God is.

How does this image of God reflect your image of God? 

Cupcake of the Week to Bethany on the 2nd week anniversary of her marriage.

Source: The
Liberating Stories of Jesus, Francis Vanderwall (Dallas’ Open Window will
present Francis Saturday, September 28, for an all day seminar.  Welcome. 
More info below.  Sunday he will
be with us at Vines.  He is an ex-Jesuit
and one of my best old Jesuit buddies.)  
Download Fall 2013 Conference 9-20-13

Cupcake of The Week to Lynda and Tom on 31 years,

 Readings:

Genesis 2, 7-9, 3, 1-7,   The Lord planted a garden in Eden.

Psalm 62,  Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Romans  5,  12-19,  Through one man sin entered the world.

Matthew  4, 1-11,  Jesus was led by the spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.

Leo says, "Welcome, Everybody, it is great fun here."

 Romans observations :

What :  Paul writes this letter to the Roman community before he travels there.  It is one of the most dense and difficult books in the New Testament.  It is the longest letter.  I find about 8-10 lines in the whole letter that touch me.  Usually I dread seeing the letter as one of our readings.  Today is one of those days.

Date: around the year 55

Likewise, Patricia says, "Come in, Folks, it is delightful here."

Genesis observations:

What: a great marvelous book about the origins of us people.  It includes Creation, Adam & Eve, Cain & Abel, Noah & the flood, the tower of Babel, the Patriarchs of the Jewish tribe, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and finally Joseph, the favorite son of Jacob, and how Joseph ends up in Egypt, leading to the next book, The Exodus.

Note: the book is folk tale, myth, and fable.  It is not literal.

Date:  guess.  It seems to have been put together from at least 4 oral streams that were combined during the Babylonian Captivity, 555, before Christ. These stories were orally passed down, generation after generation for 900 years. 

Authors:  these people are shrouded ancient history.  Some stories reflect folk tales of other groups of people, like the creation stories of Babylon.

Subject today: the second creation story, the one with the snake & apple tree.  It was from this story that Paul came up with the original sin notion, a notion that Augustine picked up and gave it legs.

Buddy, the pet dragon.

Matthew:  Even today's gospel is mythical. 

Sources: Good News Bible, Bishop John Shelby Spong, Wikipedia

Lent, Fully Alive

This first Sunday of Lent I want to talk about how to have a fully alive Lent in light of an event that took place this past Thursday in the lives of Rosemary and me.

Thursday morning about noon our postman, Doug, rang the doorbell.  Rosemary went.  Doug said that across the street and down one house the guy who lived there had not collected his mail in a few days and the garage had been open with the car inside all that same time. 

Tori says, "Whose picture is that?"

I had noticed the newspapers piling up near the curb and driveway, but this guy who was really reclusive occasionally let them pile up before he would pick them up.  I had also noticed the garage open a couple of days, but that, too, the guy did occasionally.  From our house I could not see his garage because of a bush. 

I had thought in the past years that this guy has no one that I can see.  He is totally alone.  He has never had a job, did not take great care of his house and property, but always drove a new Jaguar.  Just in the last year I mentioned to Rosemary that the guy actually waved at me from his car on occasion.

Cowboy Cole and Leo, it doesn't get better.

So I decided to call the neighborhood police who patrol our large neighborhood. 

Fifteen minutes later I see the police car.  Then I see the fire truck.  “This could be bad,” I mention to Rosemary.  “Go see what is going on.  I have a 1:30 luncheon with Kathey, my sister.” 

Sunday Ashes for Erin, Leo, Cowboy Cole, Mary, and others.

Before I can even get into the car and back it out of the drive, she returns to tell me the guy is dead. 

I am stunned.  I feel horrible.  How could I have lived for years across from a reclusive guy, not even know his name, and let him lie dead in his house for who knows how many days?  Moreover, Rosemary & I are the Tulip Lane coordinators for the neighborhood organization.   He is on Camellia, but he is just across from us, we being on the corner.

Cathy and John having too much fun.

This all happened the day after Ash Wednesday and I thought to myself, ‘Is this a Lenten invitation to me?’

I’m thinking it is.  I found out the guy was called Gary.  Even his next door neighbors did not know his name.  Our neighborhood coordinator knew it and gave me an emergency number to call, which I did.  We are now in touch with his brother and the brother’s wife, both of whom said they knew this dreaded day would come some day.  They, too, had not had contact with Gary in a bunch of years.

Cupcakes of The Week, John and Dee.

What this is saying to me is, in my life and in our community I will not leave any Garys to die alone, if I can help it. 

I even asked my sister if she would like me to phone her the nights of her days off from work.  She declined, saying she is in touch enough.

So, during this Lent, 2 challenges for me:

1. Who are the Garys in our community, my neighborhood, or in my life anywhere?  Keep in touch.
2. No Fear Lent. 

I figure you are not a Gary if you are here. 

Therefore, who are the Gary’s in your life? 

Buddy may be yawning, but the Pastry Shoppe is the Best according to Tori and Georgie.

Readings: Isaiah 60, 1-6; Psalm 72; Ephesians 3, 2-6; Matthew 2, 1-12.

Isaiah

When you hear the writer of Isaiah say this morning, “Jerusalem, Rise up in Splendor,” think of Tony Romo, who just lost that game last night.  He & all Cowboy fans are depressed this morning.  Tony is Jerusalem and Yahweh is telling him that his day has really come, that he will win.

The Jews are depressed because they have been defeated by the Babylonians.  Their whole town has been defeated and they are captives, paying for their sinful ways.  The Isaiah writer is saying to the Jewish people, and by extension to all of us, winning is on the horizon. 

For us Christians, we are looking back and saying we have won, won redemption with the arrival of our savior.

Ephesians

Paul writes to the people Ephesian people to let them know that God’s plan for redemption includes the Gentiles, not just the Jews.  In the gospel the magi come.  They, as Gentiles, represent us non-Jews.

A week ago Saturday Rosemary & I arrived by bus at one of the most beautiful colonial towns in southern Mexico, Oaxaca. The town has had trouble since the summer and especially in November.  Teachers went on strike during the summer and when the government seemed to attack them aggressively, a spark ignited a broader based demonstration.  As a result tourism, the life blood of many in the town especially around Christmas, was wiped out.  No one came, except Rosemary & me & a few other hearty souls.

The evening we arrived we went down to the town square, a jewel with giant shade trees, sidewalk cafes on three sides, Christmas lights, kids, families, balloons, perfect weather, and a beautiful gazebo in the middle. A band was playing at the gazebo. Lined up in front of the band were a hundred or so chairs. People were dancing. We danced. It was enchanting. At one point as we stood listening to the music, a woman walked up to us and said in English, “Thank you for coming to Oaxaca this year.”

I was stunned almost into silence and struck by two things.

First, that she came forward and thanked us. The gift of thanks again.

Secondly, that our presence was a gift to her and the people. 

This is what the three kings did. They came, they shared their presence and each shared a special gift, gold, frankincense, & myrrh.

I would suggest that we, too, are challenged to present ourselves to others with our special gifts.  What are the gifts? 

I think our presence in that magical town square brought at least support & encouragement.  If I ask myself what I want to give to another it is peace, acceptance, and fun.

What special gifts do you want to give to your people? (Please feel free to post a comment answering the question.)

For reading, Jean Atwood & Scott Shaw

For the Altar Bread, Ray & Claire Occhipinti

For Serving, Carmen & Ashley

For the Altar & donuts, Margie Dugan & Jackie Ritter

For the Books & Communion Cups, Roy & Carol Strom, & Beth Robinson                        

For ushering & all sorts of jobs, Cliff Wright

For the music, Ray & Shonda, Roy, Hue, Rick & Jackie

Download the homily as an mp3 file.

Readings:

Acts 1,  15—17, 20-26,  They proposed two, Judas, called Barsabbas, and Matthias.

Psalm 103,    The Lord has set his throne in heaven.

1 John 4, 11-16,   If God so loved us, we also must love one another.

 John 17, 11-19, So that they may be one.

Levi & Rich say, "Hi, Folks, Welcome in."

Acts: a review–

Author:  Luke, the author of The Acts & The Gospel

Date: ca. 50 years after the death of Jesus

Our Selection: Believe it or not, on this the last Sunday we read from Acts, we are now back to chapter 1 after getting as far as chapters 9 & 10.  What is going on is this.  The chapter opens with an introduction and then a description of the Ascension, Jesus going up in the sky.  Apparently the event took place about a half mile outside Jerusalem on the Mt. of Olives. 

Afterward, all the community come together in the room they had been hiding in. About 120 are present and Peter gets up to speak.  We read Peter's words. 

Victoria, also, says, "Come in, Folks."

John's letter: There is a great line in this selection.  See if you can spot it when you hear it.  I'll tell you after the reading, but a hint, it is the last line.

Sources: Good News Bible; The New Interpreter's Study Bible

And Annabelle says, "Guess where I came from, Everybody. I came from Seattle to see where my mommy grew up."

Our World, Good or Bad?

I like the line in 1 John which says that God is love.  This seems to go contrary to what our ancestors believed because they present a vision of a god who is certainly not into unconditional love.   I would like to believe God is loving.

However, there is another line in John’s gospel that I want to talk about this morning, the line that says we do not belong to this world.  Like, is the world bad?  What do you think?  Is the world bad or good and do we belong or not?

John, The Baby Whisperer, working his magic on Genevieve.

I propose that we do belong and that the world is good.  We make it better because we belong.  A story.

One morning recently I walked into the J (Jewish Community Center) at 5:30 to do my spin class.  As I walk in, another rider whom I like, Mike, comes in and we walk together down a long hallway to the room with the 25 stationary bikes. 

Somehow we get talking about his dad.  Mike is one of 12 kids and the family has done well.  The family came from Europe during the time of Hitler.  

When you live in Seattle, you know how to light candles, Annabelle & Oscar, Gloria and Eric.

At one point he tells me that during the holocaust his dad lost 70 to 80 first cousins.

I am stunned and shocked.  I have never known a person who has this experience in their family.  In fact, I have never known in my life so many Jewish people.  It is privilege and a pleasure. 

Mike’s story gave me two thoughts.  First, I was reminded of how horrible a time it was during the reign of Hitler and the 3^rd Reich.  A person living then, especially a Jewish person, could easily see the world as bad.

When you swim and dance, you can do anything. Georgie is ready.

My second thought was that Mike was an amazement, not bitter, not seeking revenge, but a person who presents himself as peaceful, friendly, and accepting of the events that took place in his family.  You know me, I actually got choked up with him when we talked a bit more after the spin class.  Mike chooses to see the world as good. 

Despite all the evidence to the contrary, I propose that the world is good, is beautiful, because of three phenomena, people, nature, and events.

Cole, What are you doing up here this morning? Oh, yes, it is cupcake time for birthday boys.

Mike makes the world good, Romeos make the world good (sometimes, maybe), you people make the world good and beautiful.  The people I go camping with in Yosemite also make the world good and beautiful, at least some of them.

Nature?  I find the beauty of Yosemite so overwhelming I have to go back every year.  I can find a beautiful world sitting in a rocking chair on our back porch having a cup of coffee early in the morning, while I gaze at the grass & trees in our yard.

Cupcakes of The Week line-up, Lily & Scot, Cowboy Cole, Gloria, and Maureen.

Events?  What about the marvel of our Sunday get togethers?  I go crazy over the beauty of Ragbrai, that bike ride I make the end of July west to east across Iowa, along with 15 thousand other crazies.  Talk about a people event.

What do you think?  Bad or good?  If good, what is your data? 

The Special Community Blessing for Oscar and Annabelle and the family.

Sister Act, while Zoe lights our candles for the celebration, Georgie reads the blessing for the candles.

Readings: 

 Acts of the Apostles 4, 32-35 ,  The community was of one heart & mind

Psalm 118,  Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love is everlasting.

 1 John 5, 1-6,  Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by Bod.

John  20, 19-31,  Thomas doubts.

Father & Son Act, Cody and Ben.

Acts of the Apostles observations:

Again like was explained last week, this work is basically the story of the development & growth of the Christian community after the death of Jesus up to Paul's arrival in Rome.

It is considered more idealistic than factual.  This passage is a good example of this  idealism.  The socialistic life style presented is what we lived as Jesuits.  Any money we earned went into the community.  Any needs we had for money came from the community.    Some communities I lived in had a cash drawer.  You took what you needed.  Other communities I went to the brother.   He may be on a tractor pulling a gang mower on the football field.   I would wave to him & he would pull a wad of cash out of his pocked and give me whatever I needed.    There was a mutual trust.

Offertory Act, Bill & Ron, Richard & Carol, & Barb.

Today's homily was a reading by Beth of The Fall of Freddie the Leaf By Leo Buscaglia. 

Is not the worker worthy of a reward?  Ask Beth.  Thanks, Beth, for the touching reading of The Fall of Freddy the Leaf.

Ugh, ogh, Folks, She is back.  Watch out, You Girls.