Word to the Wise
Sunday, June 1, 2008 - Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
[Deuteronomy 11:18, 26-28; Romans 3:21-25; Matthew 7:21-27]Jesus said to his disciples: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven."
There is an old expression, "Some folks sow wild oats during the week and go to church on Sunday to pray for crop failure!" The tendency to "compartmentalize" life nowadays often leads to a complete division between what we profess at the Eucharist on Sunday and what we do with the rest of our time. This is certainly nothing new. Isaiah and the prophets of the Old Testament denounced all false religion consisting of elaborate sacrifices and rituals which cloaked oppression of the poor, the widowed and orphaned. The scripture from Deuteronomy speaks of choosing between life and death when it comes to keeping God's covenant and commandments. The gospel scripture speaks of the wise person who "listens to these words of mine and acts on them." Such a person is building their house on rock. Each Sunday we hear the word of God proclaimed at the eucharistic liturgy. I know, I know, it isn't always well done. The reading and preaching often leave much to be desired. But that does not excuse any of us from reading those scriptures on our own before attending eucharist (or even during it, unfortunately, if we cannot hear or understand the reader or preacher). It does not excuse us from acting on those words. We have the clear example of Jesus to follow in the way we treat others. We can "fast/forward" in the gospel of Matthew to chapter 25 and see what the Lord expects of us. There he does not ask that we spend all our time in praising him - in saying, "Lord, Lord!" - but that we respond in compassion to the poor, the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the imprisoned and the sick. In short, for our praise and prayer to have any integrity, it must be joined and integrated with our everyday life and relations with our neighbor! Listening and acting go together in Christian life, as the gospel of Matthew tells us. Deuteronomy gives us a good first step: "Take these words of mine into your heart and soul..." AMEN