The Tuesday before Thanksgiving finds many folks in the USA preparing on multiple levels. While some are getting grocery shopping done so a feast may be readied, others are cleaning in order to welcome family and friends into their homes. I will travel to be with family this evening, as my adult children have more families and friends to visit within the upcoming days. I count myself blessed to be able to share some time with each of these special people and thank God for placing them in my life.
There are many who are not as blessed. They do not have a bed to call their own, nor do they know where or when the next meal will come. They do not have warm clothing or shelter to keep the chill of winter at bay. They may not have a family to help or the means to assist them in their current situation. They may be too proud to ask for assistance, as I myself am prone to be. They may not be aware of how to get assistance that is there for the asking. There are many who grumble that people need assistance. There are some who feel those in need haven’t done enough for themselves and that’s why they are in need.
The readings today stir all that in me. We find in the first reading those who are good, but not always aware of what’s going on around them, not having the ears to hear the Spirit. Also noted are those who are lukewarm, who do not realize they are wretched and will be spit from God’s mouth unless they repent. Lastly, the Lord tells us that he is knocking at the door. It says those who hear his voice he will join in their home and dine with them. It ends with, “Whoever has ears ought to hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” The Gospel tells the story of Zacchaeus in the tree wanting to see Jesus and next welcoming Jesus into his home after being told by Jesus that he would be dining with Zacchaeus that evening. Those around grumbled amongst themselves, knowing the kind of person Zacchaeus was. Jesus closes with, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and save the lost.”
Ya, so what’s your point, you ask? My point is for we who grumble, who are lukewarm. God wants us to hear His voice. He wants us to repent and do the right thing. He wants us to stop grumbling, to stop playing it safe while taking care of our immediate surroundings. We are all connected through Him: all peoples, nations, all of creation. I hear St. Teresa of Avila, Doctor of the Church saying:
Christ Has No Body
Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.
Beth Price is a Secular Franciscan (OFS) and spiritual director who has worked in several parish ministry roles during the last 20 years. She is a proud mother of 3 adult children. Beth currently works at Diocesan. You can contact her at bprice@diocesan.com.
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