The Rambler

  26TH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME You perhaps have heard about the customer who orders a bowl of soup. Soon after the bowl of soup is served, the customer demands that the manager be summoned. As the manager arrives, he is confronted with the following question: What is that fly doing in my soup?? The manager takes a quick look and then responds: It appears to be doing the backstroke .  So we have a cry of protest, and we also have a response. Our first reading features a cry of protest (see Ezekiel 18:25). In this case, the protest is not being directed at a manager, or a superintendent, or even a bishop; rather, this cry of protest is being sent all the way to the top. It’s a cry of protest being leveled at the Lord himself. And strikingly, it draws an immediate response.  It leaves you with the impression that, when a cry of protest is issued, an immediate response will be forthcoming. However, experience tells you that the more typical response will be an unspecified period of silenc

  25TH SUNDAY, ORDINARY TIME  Our readings open with the delivery of an exhortation: SEEK THE LORD (Isaiah 55:6). For somebody like Paul, this would rank as more of a privilege than a burden. As far as he is concerned, life means Christ (Phil. 1:21). Paul would respond to Isaiah’s message by rolling up his sleeves and getting right to it. You can almost imagine Paul whistling as he goes about the task of pursuing the Lord—after the fashion of Snow White, who recommends the practice of whistling while you work. If indeed he is whistling, it’s because the spiritual path brings a new measure of life to St. Paul. It makes him more alive; more alive rather than less alive.  Snow White sings about whistling while you work. Meanwhile, Tennessee Ernie Ford sings about the burdensome aspect of work. His 1955 song “Sixteen Tons” depicts the toll that is taken when you commit to working in a coal mine. In this case, you are becoming less alive; not more alive. You agree to this line of work bec

  24TH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME I’ve referenced the 1983 film Christmas Story in previous sermons. For the purposes of this sermon, I’ll be focusing upon a scene that features the father and his beloved lamp: he’s very carefully gluing the lamp back together. How did it become broken in the first place? It depends on who you ask. The father accuses his wife of intentionally knocking the lamp from its position on the table. She for her part claims that it was not done intentionally. Either way, the lamp appears to be broken beyond any hope of repair. Nevertheless, the father issues a call for the glue. Ultimately, however, it’s too tall of an order. The glue holds, but only for a brief period. In the end, it turns out to be a lost cause.  Now let’s shift our attention to a far more critical bond: your relationship with the Lord. It seriously needs to be understood as a bond. This bond forms when you undergo the Sacrament of Baptism. From his perspective, the Lord looks forward to this r

  23RD SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME Back in 1837 Hans Christian Andersen composed a short story titled The Emperor’s New Clothes . We’re told that this particular emperor diverted crucial funding so that he could accumulate a vast wardrobe for himself. He continually remained vigilant, anxious to review  whatever might pass for the latest fashion.  One day, he falls victim to a pair of con-artists. Posing as cloth merchants, they offer to stitch together a new wardrobe for the emperor. He informs them that he already owns a very extensive number of garments. But they respond by introducing a new type of material. They explain that this new material can only be seen by those who possess a higher level of breeding, a higher category of intellect. Unable to see anything, the emperor chooses to pretend, for the sake of protecting his sense of pride and his sense of vanity. Therefore, he goes ahead with the purchase.  The pretense is carried forward, and soon the emperor finds himself under pre

  TWENTY SECOND SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME Suppose, for a moment, that you have decided to follow through. You’ve listened to this passage from St. Paul, and you’re figuring it’s time to do more than just listen. You’re going to make an offering of yourself, just as Paul recommends (Rom. 12:1-2). It will mean placing yourself in the Lord’s hands, allowing him to shape you, to transform you. In other words, it will involve a spirit of surrender.  Assuming you go through with it, what will you be able to expect as an outcome? Perhaps you’re anticipating a variation on the fairy tale formula. You’re recalling how it happened in Cinderella: simply wave a magic wand and suddenly a pumpkin transforms into a coach; a group of mice are transformed into a team of horses; a torn dress is transformed into an elegant gown. You’re essentially hoping for a transformation that will parallel what takes place in the fairy tale—you want something that will be quick, painless, and glorious.  Our Lord, howev