(The story and many of the ideas in this homily come from Jack Shea.)
There is a story entitled, “What is the World Like?”
God and a man were walking down the road. The man asked God, “What is the world like?”
God replied: “I cannot talk when I am thirsty. If you could get me a drink of cool water, we could discuss what the world is like. There is a village nearby. Go and get me a drink.”
The man goes into the village and knocks on the door of the first house. A comely young woman opens the door. His jaw drops, but he manages to say, “I need a glass of cool water.”
“Of course,” she says, smiling, “but it is midday. Would you care to stay for some food?”
“I am hungry,” he says, looking over his shoulder. “And your offer of food is a great kindness.”
He went it and the door closed behind him.
Thirty years went by. The man who wanted to know what the world was like and the woman who offered him food married and raised five children. He became a respected merchant and she became an honored member of the community. One day a terrible storm came in off the ocean and threatened their lives. The merchant cried out, “Help me, God.”
A voice from the midst of the storm said, “Where is my cup of cold water.”
Spiritual traditions always warn people about becoming lost in the world. The demands of everyday life are merciless. There is always more to do and not enough time to do it. It’s always something. At times the constant activity may be boring; at other times it may be exciting. From the point of view of the story it breeds lack of attention to the demands of God.
What is the world like? The answer of the story is that it is a place of forgetfulness, or, in the metaphor of St. Matthew’s Gospel, it is a place where we fall asleep. We do not stay attentive to the spiritual dimension of life. Eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, working in the field, and grinding at the mill take all our time and, more importantly, take all our mind. When this happens, we find ourselves lacking passion, purpose, and pleasure. As one perplexed person put it, “How can I be so busy and yet so empty?”
The dominance of everyday activity is particularly true in the Christmas season. Already busy people become busier. They have to prepare for the season, which often means more shopping more work. Unfortunately, this frantic preparation often puts people to sleep spiritually. People begin to long not for the birth of the Christmas Christ, but for the lazy, doldrums of January. The rush of the season works against the message of the season.
Almost everyone has experienced his or her spirits being depleted and even defeated. However, often the alarm does not go off. We tolerate what T.S. Eliot called, “living and partly living.” We wrongly treat spirit as a luxury. If our bodies are hurting, we will pay attention to them and work hard to recover our physical health. If our financial security or social status is under attack, we will struggle and fight ceaselessly for our money and position. But we will allow our spirit to languish and even atrophy. This tendency to neglect spirit may be the underlying insight of Matthew into the people of Noah’s time. They valued everything but the Spirit that ultimately sustained them.
How are we to keep spiritual aware in the midst of everyday activity? How are we to keep awake while working in the field and grinding at the mill? This is not easy. We may have the desire, but we lack the know-how. And to shout the command, “Stay awake” as St. Matthew’s Jesus does, may strengthen commitment, but it does not show a way forward. We need to complement desire with strategies.
I have learned a few strategies from others throughout my life. My Jewish doctor keeps his Hebrew prayer of purification on his cell phone which he recites every time he washes his hands. It reminds him of his spiritual duty while performing his job.
Another friend pauses every time he passes a Christmas tree in the building where he works and thinks of the connection between heaven and earth that is symbolized by the tree and thinks of the God who created all trees.
Another friend repeats a favorite verse of a psalm each time she hears the telephone, doorbell or church bell ring.
They all claim that it helps them to be more patient, more respectful, and more aware of the Spirit. They also say that it brings them pleasure, passion and purpose as they wed the spiritual aspect of Advent to the necessary preparations for the holidays.
These or similar practices become the path to the Gospel value of constant, vigilant awareness. And constant, vigilant awareness is the precondition in order to know and respond to the “coming of the Son of Man,” and the arrival of the “day of the Lord.”
Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator