-The homily from 11/6 is available by email
-The Scriptures for 11/13 are available at USCCB.org >
-I am preaching at the 9:30am and 12:30pm Masses on Sunday
Living the Light?!
The Word this week and the feast of St. Albert (that we celebrate this weekend) invite me to consider all the "increase" that we at St. Albert have produced with God's gift of salvation - Light. The story of the talents and the warnings of the coming "day of the Lord" go together to challenge me.
The "talent" or "resource" that the Master has entrusted to me is "salvation" in the Kingdom. The story plays out with a couple of challenging questions.
1. Have I multiplied the gift that I have received?
2. Is there more of God's Kingdom present because of what I have done with God's gift?
3. If not, isn't it possible that I never really received it?
4. Am I not worse off than before the original offer?
My conclusion (which I would like you to test in your life), is that many of us are believers in the Kingdom "in general"., in our hearts, in a way that is "personal". We believe we have received the knowledge and love of God - in general. But we are not "productive" of the Kingdom in particular, in the world, in the concrete lives that we live (in prayer, morality, loving, marriage, ministry) where the Lord wants to see the growth.
The gift was not given for our personal satisfaction, it was given for God's glory. But we are not productive.
Isn't it fair then to see and to say that I have not truly received the gift that I like to claim I have? Maybe we really DON'T believe in God as we claim on surveys. Isn't it possible to religiously claim to be a "child of the light" while at the same time refuse to surrender certain aspects of my life to the Kingdom and thus dwell in darkness?
If it is a fact that I am not being productive for the Kingdom in concrete and real, observable ways then maybe I have not really recieved the gift of salvation/kingdom at all. "take away from Him the little he has"! Ouch.
Being saved is way more than a satisfying feeling in your heart, right? As long as one has life and breath it's never too late to start being productive. It's about on-going, never-ending conversion, right?
