Homily: Feast of St. Cecelia
Feast of St. Cecelia (Luke 19:11-28) “Who is Successful?”
The Parable that Jesus tells in the Gospel of Luke reminds us of the one we heard last Sunday from the Gospel of Matthew. The king in this story sounds even harsher than his counterpart in Matthew.
We are once again confronted with the feeling that if the King represents God than God does not seem to be a very merciful deity. God is ready to destroy his enemies. God is ready to punish his servants.
But does the King represent God? Or does the King represent a worldly monarch? Does Jesus’ story describe the realities of life? The world is about competition. The servants compete with one another. The ones that were successful reaped a reward. The ones who failed with their investments were relegated to lesser roles.
The story reminds me of a saying I heard once and which has proven true in my experience many times. “If you want something done ask a busy person.” There are successful people in life and one success leads to the next. Another saying is, “it takes money to make money.” People who have money make more money.
But are these the values of God? We are reminded that this parable follows the story of Zacchaeus the tax collector. Zacchaeus is successful in a worldly way. He has plenty of money, but he also was the most hated man in his community. We must relook at how we define success.
Zacchaeus found joy when he made friends with Jesus. He found friendship when he started to forgive his debtors. He found solace when he started to distribute his wealth to the poor. This would not constitute success in the eyes of the world.
We are reminded that it is alright to succeed in worldly things but is that the end game. The end game is to use our abilities to benefit those who are in most need. If we do, we will achieve great things in the eyes of God and that is what counts.
Reflection Questions:
1. How do I picture God? Is God a demanding task master?
2. Are people driven to be successful, happy? What constitutes a good life?
Dear Parishioners,
My next Post will be Sunday. Do not forget Thanksgiving Mass at 8 a.m. Thursday. This is a wonderful way to start this holiday. Maybe you can use this prayer for your Thanksgiving Grace.
“O God when I have food, help me to remember the hungry; when I have work help me to remember the jobless; when I have a home, help me to remember those who have no home at all; when I am without pain, help; me to remember those who suffer. And remembering help me destroy my complacency, bestir my compassion, and be concerned enough to help, by word and deed, those who cry out for what we take for granted. (Samuel F. Pugh)
Fr. Mark