Take off your robes....

Senator Ted Kennedy died a couple of years ago.  He was a professed Catholic; but many of his political views were contrary to Church teaching.  He lived a life most of us cannot imagine and much of it seemed to be made public knowledge, although the truth of these things reported were likely tainted in ways we’ll never know.

I bring up Ted Kennedy so I can remind each of us that we all have something in common with him.  We are all sinners and we are all in need of God’s great mercy.  Our sins may differ, but a fact is a fact; sin takes us away from Jesus Christ. 

A lot of people put on their “judgment robes” after Ted died; especially when he was afforded a Catholic funeral Mass.  Many thought he didn’t deserve a funeral Mass.  He didn’t follow Church teaching and was a sinner, why should the Church afford him a Mass?

We don’t know what happened spiritually to Ted Kennedy at the end of his life.  It is said he attended daily Mass to pray for his daughter when she was diagnosed with a brain tumor.  I am sure our Father in heaven used that time with Ted to His greatest advantage.  I pray he was able to make a good confession and receive the anointing of the sick and maybe even the apostolic pardon before he died.

We are, after all, to desire what God desires and He desires us all to be in heaven with Him for eternity.  We are not supposed to put on our black robes and judge people, that’s God’s place and it’s a good thing, because He is all merciful and all loving – traits we completely lack.

Don’t be jealous because God is generous.  That’s what we read in Matthew 20:1-16.  The landowner goes to town throughout the day and brings in workers to the field and at the end of the day, even those who came at the end and worked only an hour, received the same pay as those who had labored all day. 

Some of us will “labor” all our lives to live the gospel and follow God.  Others will “labor” mere moments at the end of their lives.  The reward is the same for all of us.  In heaven they rejoice when a sinner repents and we should do the same on earth.

Answered Prayer

Garth Brooks did a song years ago about how some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.  I thought about that at Mass this morning during the homily because the deacon was saying that God does not always answer our prayers.  I respectfully disagree with both of them. 

God answers all prayers, He just doesn’t necessarily do it the way we want Him to or when we want Him to.  Our world has moved into an “instant gratification” mind set and that, coupled with our self-centeredness, means we expect everything we want right now.  We need to learn “delayed gratification”, but I’ll talk about that another day.

God does answer each and every prayer, in His way and in His time.  He will either answer “yes,” “no” or “not yet.”  If we truly have a relationship with God, we’ll understand these answers when we get them.  This requires maturity in our spiritual lives, which takes time (delayed gratification).

Just because God doesn’t “grant our wishes” does not mean He has not answered our prayers.  Our Father loves us and He knows what’s best for us; much more than we do.  We may look with our own eyes and see what we need, but He looks with His all knowing eyes and knows what we need.  He is more interested in helping us get to heaven than in getting more prestige, money or whatever we think we want.

The next time you think God has not answered your prayers, spend some quiet time in prayer and ask God what His answer was, you may just find He answered it in a way you didn’t quite expect.  Garth Brooks had it somewhat right, some of God’s greatest gifts are different answers to our prayers than we expected.

“He whose attitude towards Christ is correct does indeed ask ‘in His Name’ and receives what he asks for, if it is something which does not stand in the way of his salvation. He gets it, however, only when he ought to receive it, for certain things are not refused us, but their granting is delayed to a fitting time.” ~Saint Augustine~

Purity of Intention

Paragraph 140 of St. Faustina’s Diary says, “Pure love is capable of great deeds, and it is not broken by difficulty or adversity.”   Only in pure love can you have purity of intention.  What is purity of intention though?  It is action which requires no re-action.  In other words, it is something done for another without expecting anything in return.

When I go to work and complete my work, I turn in a time card and expect a paycheck in return.  In giving me a paycheck, my employer expects me to work.  It is an arrangement which benefits both of us.  This logic applies to many normal day to day situations.   What I’m talking about here is different.

A friend of mine called and asked for a ride to church and I did gave her one without expecting anything in return from her, but I did benefit from giving her the ride.

First, I was able to enjoy her company for the short drive to church.  Second, I was able to be a driver for Christ.  As He has no hands or feet but ours, we must be willing to use our hands and feet for Him.  This was a very small act of kindness, done in the name of Jesus.

There are probably millions of examples of actions done with purity of intention and hopefully, they outnumber the actions done without purity of intention.  I’ve often wondered what our world would be like if every single person on earth did an act of charity for someone else, without expecting anything in return.

Remember the movie, “Pay it Forward?”  Kevin Spacey played a teacher who challenged his students to do a project to make a difference in the world.  His student, played by Haley Joel Osment, does a good deed for a homeless guy.  That homeless guy in turn does a good deed for someone else and the projects takes off, with beautiful results.  All these good deeds done for others without anyone expecting or wanting anything in return.

I think of all the missionaries in the world who travel the globe to help people they have never met.  To help others who can never repay them.  Why?  Because it is what their hearts tell them to do.  They are compelled to help others.

Conversely, I think of all the politicians in the world, especially in our own country, who do whatever they can to help themselves, usually at the cost of others.  Some of them believe they are doing us a favor by “serving” in government and therefore they are “entitled” to whatever they think they “need.”

Have you ever met anyone who just exuded love?  Their actions or deeds are done in the spirit of Christ and they love doing for others and are always willing to do more.   These people are an absolute joy to be around.  Giving, giving and giving and rarely taking.

In a society where everyone wants what they want when they want it, it is refreshing to be around people who love purely, not themselves, but those around them.