32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time are:

1. Wisdom 6: 12-16
2. Psalms 63: 2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8
3. 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18
4. Matthew 25: 1-13

• An unfading love
• A true friend is the one who inspires you to be your best self, the one who helps you find courage when you need it, to draw on strength you never knew that you had, to persevere when you were ready to give up.
• I would say that Wisdom is just another name for the Holy Spirit, the author and finisher of all truly great friendships.  How have friends in your life inspired you to go "above and beyond" what you thought yourself capable of?
• How did they manage that?
• How do your truest friends inspire trust in you?
• Does God have your trust?
• Why or why not?

• Wants, desires and longings
• The world around us conditions to want lots of things: fame, affirmation, appreciation, security, the next iphone, whatever the model might be.  Satisfaction from these things lasts awhile, but never for very long.
• What satisfies you, really meets your longings, and keeps satisfying you?
• When did you discover that about yourself?
• How has that longing, and its satisfaction changed you?

• The ultimate diversity
• Much has been said of late about solidarity, that we are all one by nature of our shared humanity.  I would like to humbly posit that one divide that we don't talk about much has nothing to do with gender identity, skin color, culture, but the divide between the quick and the dead.
• Think of someone that you have lost, someone who inspired you when they were alive.  Say that they were, by some means, to appear before you right now, and that they were totally up to date on how you have lived your life since they passed.  What expression would be on their face when they see you?
• If you knew that they were here to stay and not just an apparition, would you live any differently?
• What would you say to them?
• What makes you think that they are not here?

• Sprint, marathon, or journey?
• Most of us spend a good deal of our time preparing for the future.  You read briefings ahead of a meeting, you talk to friends to prepare to vote, you attend college to prepare for a career.
• What is it that you feel your life has prepared you for?
• Is that very much different from what you are doing now?
• Why or why not?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Do I have the courage to let Wisdom guide me?
2. Where is my treasure in this life?
3. How am I honoring those who truly love me?
4. How am I preparing for the rest of my life?

Pilgrimage

The old man on the trail almost blended in with his surroundings.

His boots scuffed and worn, his backpack clearly an old model.

Yet he made his slow, deliberate way with his head high.

His eyes taking in every inch of the scene before him.

Instead of passing him, I settled in behind him, matched pace.

And I asked him what brought him to this lonely stretch of wilderness.

"Memory, and sure death" he said, daring me to continue.

Taking my cue from his response, I asked "Memory of what?"

"When I was a teenager, I used to hike here with friends.

We would pit our strength, our equipment, our resolve

Against the inclines of these mountains, 

Against the uncertainty of this weather.

And we told ourselves in guarded whispers,

That if we were strong enough to meet the mountains on their terms

And come home safely, that we would have the strength

The strength to face whatever lay before us in life.

All of those old friends are gone, I stand alone of that company,

The one member on this side of eternity to mourn and remember.

I can only hope that they too have learned

That life is not so much about overcoming things

As it is about letting them go."

"And what of certain death?"  I asked, not sure what he would say.

"Death, in its proper time, is gift.  But to properly appreciate it,

You need to train a bit before you get there.

On this hike, I have no schedule, I camp where sunset finds me.

I carry just enough water for the day, trusting God to provide.

If I see a trail that I've not explored before, and it calls me

I walk it, wide eyed, full of awe and expectation.

Never knowing where it might take, nor how long I'll be."

"But," I said, "you could get lost, or hurt, 

And no one would know how to find you."

He stopped there, and turned to face me.

"To let fear of the unknown govern your life is to die before your time.

If you only go where you have gone before, you are lost before you begin."

Shalom!