You are the Salt of the Earth; you are the light of the world!
When we break open the word at Mass, or any time we read our bible, we must always remember that it is not a historical book, it is the “Living Word of God”. Each time we hear the Word, it speaks to each of us in different ways. In the homily, each of us hear what the Lord intends us to hear, as in today’s readings I will share what they mean to me today, and hopefully you will hear what is intended for each of you!
Share your bread with the hungry; shelter the oppressed and the homeless. Clothe the naked when you see them, and do not turn your back on your own. We need to remember these lines from Isaiah, and apply them daily in our lives. But, most of us will leave and not remember these words, nor apply them.
We have members here in our own family that are hurting in some way, but do we take the time to call and ask, “Is there anything that you need?” It can be as simple as driving someone for his or her doctor’s appointment, or picking up a bottle of milk or loaf of bread. Do not turn your back on your own!
“To thine on self be true.” Polonius advises his son in Act I of Hamlet. How difficult is this for us sometimes! We are so often caught up in social, peer and religious pressures that it is easy to lose sight of our identity and what we are about. Yet these words of Shakespeare, written over 500 years ago, echo what Jesus said over 2000 years ago “To thine on self be true.”
In today’s Gospel Jesus uses the examples of salt and light to help us understand how vital it is for us to be faithful to who we are. We are salt – we enhance others; we are light – we shine for others. But salt eaten by its self is bitter, it is meant to be in relation with something else; for example when we put it on our meat or vegetables, it enhances the flavor. A lighthouse shines always, but its purpose is fulfilled when it is seen by a ship and guides it safely home.
The underlying meaning of all this is that we as disciples find our deepest meaning of who we are in our relationship with God and to others. Just as salt and light are no good by themselves, so the good that we do as disciples is measured in our relationship to others. First we must foster a relationship with Christ, and then we can know that the salt and light we share with others is from Him, and not a matter of our on doing.
Rebecca Pippert wrote a delightful and inspiring story about an unusual young man. As I relate this story, you’ll see why I particularly like it.
It’s about Bill, a senior in college. He was brilliant and a new Christian, and a bit different from other students. His entire wardrobe consisted of T-shirts, blue jeans and no shoes.
Across the street from the campus was a very conservative church, attended by well dressed parishioners.
One Sunday, Bill padded through the front door. Service had already begun; so Bill walked slowly down the aisle, looking for a seat.
As he neared the front, it became clear that no empty seat was available. So Bill squatted on the floor in front of the pulpit.
This would be acceptable in a dorm setting, but hardly in a conservative church. You could feel the people glare. Even the preacher stopped and wondered what to say or do.
Just then, a deacon in his seventies – dressed in a tailored suit and using a cane – began to walk from the back of the church down to where Bill was seated on the floor.
All eyes were focused on the deacon. His cane clicking with each slow step. He was a godly man, silver hair, dignified, respected by all. How could someone of his age and stature understand a student like Bill?
As the deacon reached the spot where Bill sat, everyone stop breathing. What he was about to do was a thankless job, but it had to be done. Even the preacher stopped preaching until the deacon completed his task.
Looking down at Bill, the deacon dropped his cane to the floor. Then with great difficulty, he eased down onto the carpet and sat beside Bill. He wanted to make him feel welcome and not to have to worship alone.
When the pastor gained control of himself, he said, in a voice choked with emotion. “What I have prepared to preach to you you’ll never remember. But what you saw, you’ll never forget.
This story fits beautifully with today’s Gospel where Jesus says:
No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lamp stand, where it gives light to all in the house.
In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.
There are three motives why people do good things – such as the deacon did: pleasure, practicality, or pure love. Let’s look at each: first, there is pleasure.
Pleasure is what we feel when we volunteer to help out in prisons, soup kitchens, nursing homes or here at parish functions. So our first motive is “because it makes us feel good. It brings us pleasure.
Our second motive why we do good things is out of practicality. Lyndon Johnson once said “Love your enemies, because someday you will need them as friends.” Clearly a practical motive.
Martin Niemoller, a Lutheran pastor was quoted and printed in the United States Congressional Record: He said.
“When the Nazis came for the communists, I didn’t speak out…because I wasn’t a communist.
When they came for the Jews, I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Jew…
Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn’t speak out because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me… and by that time there was no one left to speak for me.”
So our second reason for doing good is practicality: If I want others to help me, I must help them.
And now, for the final reason: pure love: the reason the deacon sat on the floor with the college student. He probably got no pleasure out the difficult task of getting down on the floor, nor was there much Bill could do for him.
He simply did it because it was right. He wanted Bill to feel welcome and loved.
There are many ways for us to express the love of God to others, but we must always remember, “To thine own self be true.”