The Unsung

I have a beautiful print of an oil painting by famed Wisconsin artist David Lenz.  My friend Jack gave it to me a few months ago. David niche was to paint pictures of the ‘unsung’. The picture I have is of a young African American child, with a Milwaukee sunrise as a backdrop. 

Many of David’s subjects have some sort of impairment. His passion was to see people with flaws as beautiful works of God’s creation. (Of course, who of us isn’t flawed?)  

Like Jesus, David also loved unsung people…people who might not be noticed because they’re in the background or on the margins of life.

Who did Jesus notice?  The blind, the lame, people possessed by an evil spirit, the soldiers nailing Him to the cross, lepers begging from a distance, people whose hearts were broken. Jesus recognized them and thereby lifted up their spirits.   

Make a list of unsung people you know. Or pay attention to people on the peripheries of your life today. What simple things could you do or say that might help someone like that feel like they count?      

                                                

                                                Following Our Consciences

When I was about 9 or 10 years old…back in the 1950s, I remember a great lesson I learned from my dad.  I was in scouting at that time and one of the scouts in our troop died.  I didn’t know him well, but he was part of the bigger group.

He was a Lutheran.  And his funeral was at a local Lutheran Church in Waterford. Our Pastor said that no one could go to his funeral because we were Catholic and we couldn’t go into other churches.

My dad disagreed.  He said that it didn’t matter what religion the boy was, we were going to his funeral.  So we went.

In the 1950’s that was a radical thing to do.  Looking back at it, dad’s decision had a significant influence on my conscience.  He taught me that rules aren’t always the most important things. I’m so glad that I had the dad that I did.     

Pope Francis insists that we must follow our consciences even when they put us at odds with others.  (Jesus did that often with the Scribes and Pharisees.) And Pope Francis also makes it clear that our consciences need to be well-formed.   

Name people who helped form your conscience. Do you always follow it?   

                                                              Who Are You?

When people ask me who I am, I usually tell them my name. And then I probably say that I’m a retired priest.  How do you normally respond to the question: “Who are you?”

Our names, occupations, marital status and the number of children we have (if we have them) are typical ways to describe ourselves.  They are broad strokes that define us.

And, if people want to know a little bit more about us, we’d probably tell them some of our hobbies or the names of the sports teams we root for or maybe we’d even tell them where we go to church.

Question: How many things would we tell people about ourselves before we’d even think of saying that we are children of God?  I know it would sound sooo weird to say that! But isn’t that a pretty core truth about us?   

Now, in my personal interest of wanting to try to appear to be ‘normal’, I won’t suggest that we actually tell that to people whom we’re just meeting…because it would be weird. 

But I think it could help our spiritual lives to remember that we are God’s children whenever we say the Lord’s Prayer…which starts with the words: “Our Father”.     

                                                 Mary Ponders and We Ponder Too

Pondering is the art of looking for meaning in experiences, conversations, events and misunderstandings that shape our lives.   

Can you name 3 or 4 key experiences in your life that have left you pondering?  And what do you think God is hoping you will grasp as you ponder those relationships and situations that surprise, baffle or touch your heart?     

Mary pondered her conversation with Gabriel who asked her to be the mother of God’s Son.  And she pondered the message of the angels who announced the birth of a savior, wrapped in swaddling clothes and laying in a manger. And she pondered Jesus' words when she and Joseph found their Son in the temple after He was missing for three days.   

Mary’s pondering led her to a life-long faith and a deep seated trust that God was watching over her and caring for her and Jesus no matter what else happened. 

Where does your pondering lead you?  Who are your companions in your pondering?  In a few words, what advice would Mary give you about the things you ponder?

                                                       Shepherds Represent Us

Every manger scene has some shepherds.  They were the first visitors invited to come and see Jesus, Emmanuel, God-with-us, our Savior.  They are our representatives at the stable.

The shepherds in our mangers appear to be docile and kindly, with at least one of them always carrying a lamb on his shoulders. So we see the shepherds in a positive light. 

But shepherds were seen in a less flattering way during Jesus’ time. They had reputations as rowdy characters who caused a stir when they came to town. They were also thought to dishonest. Local people hid their valuables when the shepherds were around.     

And religious leaders saw them as sinners.  They rarely entered synagogues or the Temple. To be fair, shepherds’ lives didn’t allow much time for religious activity. And it seems that their work left them ‘unclean’ for worship without ritual cleansing. 

So why were the shepherds picked to be the first visitors at the manger? 

Precisely because they were sinners…just like you and me. C. S. Lewis says that “Christmas has no message for people who think they have no sin.  The true message of Christmas comes across when we admit that we are sinners and that we need a Savior.”

                                          Mary Our Model  

 

On this eve of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, I remember Mary as our role model. She is a model Steward, Prophetess, Cross-carrier, Disciple and  Ponderer.

 

Mary, as a model Steward, holds nothing back from God.  She gives her entire self without condition. “I am the handmaid of the Lord…let it be done unto me according to your word.”

Mary is a model Prophetess.  She speaks truth to power. She says: "The Lord has cast the mighty from their thrones and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty.”

Mary is a model Cross-Carrier. Mary faces the doubts of people who suspect her of unfaithfulness. And later she faces the double tragedy of losing her husband and then her son.

Mary is a model Disciple. She remains faithful to her son even when she doesn’t understand Him and His mission. She stands at the foot of the cross. 

Mary is a model Ponderer. She reflects on all that happens and trusts that God is working in everything.  Mary our model, pray for us. 

                                             Vesper Time – A Book Review

Vesper Time is a short book, packed with insights into 5 key areas around the issue of aging. The first chapter deals with memories.  It’s not so much about losing memories as it is to identify the key memories which have led us to become the people we are.

Chapter two raises the subject of Intimacy.  What kind of intimacy really helps us as we age?  How do we maintain relationships that sustain us and keep us connected as we face the future? And, of course, facing it with others is more life-giving than facing it alone.

The third chapter treats the huge issue of diminishment.  What things can’t we do as well as we used to? Can we admit that?  And are there some things that we can actually do better now, in spite of the physical and mental changes we are experiencing? 

And the last 2 chapters deal with acceptance and gratitude. They help us age with hope. They encourage us to see aging not only as a challenge but also as a gift.  The goal is to become loving and grateful people and to avoid the grumpy old men or women syndrome!

I’ve read four or five other books about aging and this one is my favorite.  It’s written by Frank Cunningham and published by Orbis Books, Maryknoll New York.