22nd Sunday: Year C  - August  2010

 There is an Aesop fable about a Jackdaw bird.

In case you're not an ornithologist, a Jackdaw is similar to blackbird, only smaller

 In the fable, The Jackdaw finds some brightly colored feathers.

Wishing to make himself beautiful, he stuck them in with his own and joined the peacocks. The Peacocks of course, recognized him at once, drove him from their midst, pulling fake feathers as they did so. When back with other Jackdaws, they were so disgusted with his behavior that they would not let him stay either.

 What Jesus urges is the kind of humility which says:  Recognize self as I am

          "I Am a Sinner.  I belong here in the midst of sinners,

          confessing my guilt."

 An attitude so evident in Paul--the author of 2nd reading,

                   Elsewhere he writes:  "Of these sinners I myself am the worst."

 An admission of our own nothingness, of our sinfulness, is essential condition for receiving the saving, forgiving favor of Jesus Christ.

 Jesus Christ is telling us to come before him with empty hands, so that we might receive from him (and him alone) fullness of life.

 Only when we recognize our hands (our lives) are indeed empty, that we have nothing to offer - save our sins - everything else is gift only then is grace possible

 What is actually being recommended in today's readings is ANAWIM (poor in spirit) Means not-so-much, change, as to recognize With realization that we are "good for nothing" do we come to see that in the Lord all things are possible.

 Only when we recognize our poverty and experience God's tremendous outpouring of love; only then can we realize the importance of ministry to the poor and needy in our own lives.

 It is the realization that the poorest of our sisters and brothers,

          from whom we seemingly have nothing to gain,

          are in fact a precious gift from the Creator

          because they bring Jesus Christ--in his suffering flesh--into our midst.

Like the Lord, we must hear the cry of the poor.

HERE at Saint Patrick

·         prepare and serve Community meals

 ·        Matthew 25 outreach to those who are in need

·        World Responsibility Fund  -  $10,000 to be shared with programs locally and outside local community,  to address the poor 

·        prepare and serve meals at Catholic Worker House

Mother Therese--the nun from Calcutta  who became famous because of her work with poor and derelict.

           She paraphrases today's gospel when she writes:

                   "Only in heaven we will see how much we owe to the poor

                             for helping us to love God the better

                                      because of them."

We are invited to the table

          have no right, only by grace of God

But it is here that we recognize our own  poverty,

          and recommit ourselves to hear the cry of the poor.