Word to the Wise
Thursday, November 3, 2022 - Thursday in the 31th Week in Ordinary Time
[Phil 3:3-8a and Luke 15:1-10]But whatever gains I had, these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ. More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. [Philippians]
NOVEMBER 3 ST. MARTIN DE PORRES, OP
[Philippians 3:3-8 and Luke 15:1-10 - These scriptures may vary at Dominican locations because of the importance of St. Martin De Porres in our calendar.]
St. Paul wrote these words from prison. They reflect the depth of his faith under terrible conditions. Prison was only one of his challenges. In his Second Letter to the Corinthians 11:24-29, we are given a list of things he endured up to the time of writing those words: scourgings, stonings, imprisonments, shipwreck, etc.. He was one very focused missionary! Preaching the news of Christ crucified and risen was everything to him. The fruit of his labors is in the fact that we still hear his words in the letters he wrote.
St. Martin De Porres did not go on missionary journeys. He lived exclusively in the Dominican Priory in Lima, Peru in a closet near the front door of the priory, where he served as doorkeeper and cared for everyone who came to that door. He is pictured often with a broom in his hand and mice at his feet. (Supposedly he made a deal with the mice that he would feed them if they would stay out of the house!). In short, he was a "missionary in place."
The media guru, Marshall McLuhan, coined the expression: "The medium is the message." A missionary preaches as much by who they are as by the words or activities they use or do. Pope Francis has challenged all the baptized to become "missionary disciples!" The youthful college student missionaries of organizations like FOCUS and CHRIST IN THE CITY preach first by their presence. What makes the difference is the intentional faith that is expressed in small or large actions. A dear friend of mine once told me the story of a little girl who was not at the usual place her mother would meet her after school. So Mom gets out of the car to look for her and finds her nearby with another little girl who is holding a broken doll and crying. Mom, very relieved, chides her daughter for not being in the usual place. Her daughter replies, "I was here with my friend. Her dolly is broken!" Mom replies, "That is very sad, but you can't fix her dolly, can you?" Daughter responds, "No, Mama, but I can help her cry!" That little girl was a true missionary. So was St. Martin De Porres. So can we. AMEN
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