Is This The End?

 

I’ve had a number of people tell me that they felt that these might be the end days.  My usual response is that “I thought only the Father knew the day and the hour.”  And, privately, I thought of all the suffering people I know.  There does seem to be no solution, at least no satisfying one, and no end to the suffering in the world.  We can’t fix our lives, and we are not as happy as we once were, and pray to be again.  So, we can’t imagine any solution, but God’s bringing about the end.

I’m reminded of the story of the starfish on the beach.  Thousands of them washed onto the sand, and a little boy was tossing some back into the sea.  A nearby man said: “What are you doing that for?  You can’t make any difference with all these dying fish.”  And the boy picked up another starfish and tossed into the waves.  “I made a difference for that one,” he said.

Jesus came into a world that had forgotten God.  His followers were tortured and killed --- and still are today --- for trying to save one soul.  And the world changed, one soul at a time, but it was not without witness; it was not without suffering.  Is this the end?  Perhaps if the Father wills it, but we are here to save souls, one at a time, and perhaps most foremost, our own.

Suffering, trust, love in action.  It’s the history of Christianity, the heart of Christ, ongoing to the end, and beyond.

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The men’s group have started reading the book titled: Eucharist, by Bishop Robert Barron.  His introductory chapter includes the story told in the movie Babette’s Feast.  I greatly liked that particular movie and, if I had ever known, I had forgotten that it was a parable of the Eucharist.  It is a simple story of a great woman who gave up her greatness to live among, befriend, and serve the poor, and then at the end showed her greatness for all to see in her final action, in an amazing meal, in which she gave her all for them.  It is a great introduction to Bishop Barron’s book.  It has me hungering for more.

His Mercy Starts With You

 

Why every hair on your head has been counted.  So there is no need to be afraid,
you are worth more than hundreds of sparrows.  MT 10

The priest’s homily on the above gospel this morning was short.  “He cares about you, you uniquely.  He knows you and every hair on your head and every sparrow in the sky.  And He loves you.  He doesn’t need to hear your devout prayers, know of your generous almsgiving, or see you regretting your failures.  He knows these things.  Speak to Him; don’t dwell on your failures; He doesn’t.  There is no need to be afraid.  His mercy starts with you.”

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I had arrived at church early, to be the first in the after-mass confession line, for my (much needed) monthly confession.  Most strangely, a few minutes before mass began the priest walked over to me and said: “I have a few minutes for confession.  Keep it short.”  So, I went in to the confession room and summarized my sins in one short sentence.  And as I said the last word he immediately said: “For your penance say ….”  And after my contrition prayer it was over.  It was so rushed I felt that he didn’t even hear what I said, the sin which so weighed on me.  But then I heard the short sermon (above) at mass, which seemed written for me.  Then I recalled that in the sacrament of confession, it not the priest who hears our sins and contrition, but he who acts in persona Christi in the person of Christ.  And despite the shortness of the confession, I knew Christ heard me.

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The man who does my yard work and maintenance around the house used to be my neighbor.  Talented at what he does, like many poor people he has little skills at handling money or time.

On Wednesday this week the local police came to my door, asking about him.  He was cutting my grass in the back yard.  They said they only wanted to talk to him, but they handcuffed him and drove off.  I know of his life.  As I know it, at 17 he was convicted of being a sexual predator for having sex with his 15-year-old girlfriend.  He now is 60, and has been checking in with the local police monthly all his life because of that incident --- now looked upon as common or even taught in our schools.  A few years back he was driving the vehicle of his employer when police found drugs in the back seat.  He was arrested despite his not using drugs and it not being his vehicle.  His lawyer convinced him to plead guilty to avoid jail time --- and to agree to the monthly meeting with a parole officer for blood tests.  The man is poor and owns no vehicle, and when finding someone to drive him to the various police stations for monthly check ins became too much, he stopped.  And now was arrested at my house for parole violation.

I felt so bad when I saw this man handcuffed, and sobbing softly.  All the real evils around me, in our country, in the church, and in our culture suddenly weighed on me.  Everywhere I saw darkness.  Yes, I know what you are thinking, and I believed and did all those things, but it was hard.  On Friday, I was able to find out that my friend would go before a judge for his parole violation at about 4PM.  Expectations were a fine and 3 months to perhaps 2 years jail time.  And I went to church and prayed, speaking most sincerely to Jesus there on the altar.  Adoration ended at 7PM, and as I walked out of the church, my phone rang.  “I’m downtown at the courthouse; can you come and pick me up?” said my friend.  And so I did.  He told me how the judge looked at his original trial records (most unusual I am told) and his parole check-ins, and the negative drug tests each time he checked in.  And, then the judge said “This is wrong.  I’m vacating the parole violation charge and reversing the original trial results, and ordering this man’s records be cleared.”  And he was freed to go home, and he called me for a ride.

I pray the Divine Mercy chaplet each day, calling on God’s mercy for the world.  God does hear our prayers, and reads our hearts.  And in those times when we feel despair, we need to remember:  His mercy starts with you.

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And as my Friday adventures came to an end, I drove home, when suddenly through the rain clouds the sun shone on me, something I’ve almost come to expect.  But that’s just a coincidence.  😊