Sunday Homily 6-22-08, 12th Ordinary Time
Readings: Jeremiah 20,10-13; Psalm 69; Romans 5, 12-15; Matthew 10, 26-33
Jeremiah: one of the 3 great prophets along with Isaiah & Ezekiel. He lives just before the defeat & destruction of Jerusalem 650 years before Christ. He foretells the catastrophe, warning the Hebrews that their sinful ways will lead to destruction. He lives to see the event, but also prophesies that the exile will be temporary and that one day the people will return to Jerusalem.
Jeremiah was unpopular with the people because of his warnings. Today's reading shows him bitter and complaining about the people.
As Good as Sparrows, as Good as Aviana?
In February, when we put our little dog Naomi to sleep after 15 years, Rosemary & I debated whether we would ever want to get another dog. Putting her to sleep was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life.
Around Memorial Day, however, Rosemary began to look on line just a bit. Shih-tzus were our favorite, but we entertained other types of small dogs. In fact, our vet had recommended a woman in East Texas who occasionally raised a litter of maltipoos, a mixture of maltese & poodle.
Last Wednesday we took a trip to East Texas. We had two ladies to visit, the one recommended by the vet and another who raised shih-tzus. On the way we debated: yes or no. We decided to just look.
Well, so much for looking. In fact, the hardest thing was coming home without one of each.
Behold Aviana, a maltese-poodle mix whose name comes from the air base north east of Venice, where we visited Michael & Lydia on our spring trip. The base is Aviano; we made it feminine.
Do I have any doubts or reservations now that she is part of our family? No, not one. In fact, I am reminded every day why she is a special gift. A couple of observations.
Do you realize that she is not afraid? I think she is like all of us when we are born. When do we begin to be afraid? I know how Aviana could become afraid. If I treated her mean & rough, and abused her. Matthew recommends that we be afraid not of the person who kills the body, but of the person who kills the soul. I would suggest the word spirit instead of soul. Abuse kills the spirit. At the least it wounds the spirit.
Yesterday I was working on line and Aviana was lying under my feet sound asleep. Not on her tummy or on her side. She was lying on her back with her legs and ears splayed out. Talk about trust. Lack of fear.
Matthew says that we need not fear because we are worth more than many sparrows. Am I worth as much as one Aviana?
Second observation is that I see the acceptance of God in the behavior of Aviana. I saw it in Naomi. I walk in the house and receive not just unconditional acceptance. I encounter excited & joyous celebration. I am amazed and touched. We hear a lot about how we will be judged a sheep or a goat at the great roundup. If I am lax, God will come like a thief in the night and hurl me into hell for being caught off guard.
My preference is to see the acceptance of Aviana as reflective of the acceptance of God. She is another of those little creatures we talked about last week. She is another metaphor or parable about God's acceptance of us as we are.
Aviana is not afraid of us. She amazingly trusts us. Moreover, she accepts and celebrates us just as we are.
How does she symbolize or not symbolize your relationship with God?
AUDIO: http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-06-22.mp3