Reflection on the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

When I read the first reading the first thing that came to my mind was the number of people from the U.S. who came to Haiti and asked why we didn’t have a soup kitchen or a brown-bag lunch give-away program. I could easily see myself as the doubtful Andrew in these readings. We had to explain that thousands of people would show up and it would be very difficult to keep it orderly and dispense the food, even if we had it. And then I thought about the scenes of refugees swarming a relief truck when assistance finally arrives, and how difficult it can be to create an orderly distribution of much needed aid. I wonder if Jesus knew how important it was to give people food before they became desperate. Desperate people do things that they otherwise would not do. People who are addicted to something will go to great lengths to satisfy their need. Desperation can bring out the worst in people. People who feel like they have nothing to lose will take actions they might otherwise never consider. People who are taught to believe that every time someone else receives something they lose something in this zero-sum game of economics can be very reticent to see anyone who needs assistance receiving it.

So I think that in addition to faith and trust in God, we are called to see what is happening around us and try to take some action to prevent desperation and cutthroat competition, especially as we sit in our privileged place in the United States of America. We do that through systemic change and forward-thinking action. “An ounce of prevention is  better than a pound of cure” saying seems very appropriate. 

We work for true rehabilitation in prisons so convicts leaving prison have a better chance to build a new life, one that is very different from the one that landed them in prison. And we work to educate people to create new opportunities to thrive and flourish in adulthood. And we work to prevent the use of nuclear weapons, the criminalization of homelessness and violence against Earth and all its inhabitants.

And we work to prevent desperation in community and in all our relationships. Our connections to each other keep us grounded in faith and trust and prevent us from isolation and the creeping anxiety that might overwhelm us if we are facing this world alone. 

I believe there are ways for us to be in new relationships with others that will open our eyes to new possibilities, the kind of possibilities that were created in the first reading and the Gospel. And what might seem impossible with what we have will then become enough to meet a need in a new partnership or collaboration. 

I am reminded of the thousands of trees that were planted in one day at the Motherhouse with volunteers, and the thousands of trees planted in one day in Lebanon at the Toyota facility. In both cases people came together to make an impact. While we have to care for the trees planted at the Motherhouse, our volunteer efforts in Lebanon amounted to a half day commitment of our time. And when I used to drive by and see those trees flourishing in Lebanon, I felt encouraged to volunteer for more collaborative efforts that make such a noticeable difference. 

And we are now looking at the 10^th anniversary of the collaboration that prevented the Bluegrass Pipeline in Kentucky. What a consequential collaboration that was. We worked with farmers, non-profit groups, individuals and anyone who had a reason to keep that dangerous pipeline off our lands and out of our state.

Compassion combined with collaboration makes such a difference. And we are called to make a difference each and every day. This is how we live according to the letter to the Ephesians that calls us to “live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.”