"Don't talk of love's flaming desire, don't talk of love, show me." - My Fair Lady

Any Redemptorist priest or brother uses the initials CSsR after his name. These stand for Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer in its Latin form. But they like to joke that it means "congregation of the same sermons recycled."  I don't think so. We are so blessed to have these fine priests gifting us with their presiding presence at Mass every day and with their inspiring homilies. Today Father Thomas Travers, whose homilies appear elsewhere on this blog, presented us with another gift which I share with you.  

                                                  

Profession of Love

by Father Thomas Travers, CSsR,

Rector Mt. St. Alphonsus Retreat Center, Esopus, New York

Jesus never has to profess his love for us...although he does profess his love and many times over...but he never has to do it, publicly with words, because his love for us is constant, consistent, faithful, without conditions. There is no need for words or professions. We just know that his love is there for us...and always there. We can sense it. We can feel it.

On the contrary, Peter had to profess his love for Jesus as he did in today's Gospel because Peter's love was not constant or faithful. It was a fickle love, a love that sent mixed messages. Peter said that he loved Jesus so much that he would always be there for Jesus, and then, when chrunch time came, he was the first to run away. "Though all these others abandon you," he said, "I will never abandon you." Oh yeah...tell me another one. (Or, as we used to say as kids: "Ask me no questions and I'll tell you no lies. A man got hit with a bucket of bricks the night before he died.")

Peter's love was a hot and cold love and because of this, Jesus asked him to profess it openly, publicly and once and for all...with all his bravado and loud voice. It wasn't for Jesus' sake that Peter needed to do so nor for the sake of the other disciples. No...it was for Peter's own sake. He needed to hear his profession of love loud and clear and in his own voice.

I had a spiritual director in Puerto Rico and he told me that when I came to him I would tell him part of my story and the purpose was not primarily for him to listen to me and get to know me and my challenges. The purpose was for me to listen to me, to get to know myself and my challenges. He explained that each time you told your story or part of it, you had to put it together and you would see it better. He believed that telling your story to another or to a group (as they do in 12-Step groups) helps us much more than it helps the other person.

And so today, Jesus gives Peter a chance to tell part of his story, his story of love. He wants Peter to see that true love is not a one time affair, it is not a loud protestation of  "I'll never leave you," made after a little wine at a dinner table. He wants Peter to learn that true love is spoken out time and time again. True love is a consistent message from the deep part of a life.

And Jesus wants Peter to learn, too, that love is shown in deeds. And that is why he gives him the mission of feeding the community, the mission of tending to its needs, the mission of caring for its welfare. He is telling Peter that love is shown in deed and not just words.

And I think that Jesus could easily get tired of all our words, too. And I am reminded of the lyrics of the song from My Fair Lady: "Words! Words! Words! I'm so sick of words! I get words all day thourgh; first from him and now from you! Is that all people can do?.. Don;'t talk of love lasting thru time. Show me! Make no undying vow. Show me now!"

Jesus asks us today, as he did Peter, if we love him. He wants us to profess that love not so much so that he will hear it...but rather so taht we will hear it loud and clear in the depths of our heart and so that in hearing our profession of love clearly, this same love will move us to tend, feed and care for the rest of the communiyt, especially those in the greatest need of our love. AMEN!

"Friendship, friendship, just a perfect blendship. When other friendships have been forgot, ours will still be hot." Cole Porter, "Anything Goes"

The lyrics above come from 1930s Broadway musical. I thought of them while searching for a photo to accompany the homily shared here. I am not trying to be flip about Holy Scripture. This morning, Fr. Thomas Travers, CSsR gifted us with a touching and pointed reflection, the fruit of his meditation on today's Gospel, Matt. 20:17-28. He titled it "Listening." Listening is a mark of friendship; it generates the "blendship", and keeps it "hot". How are we listening to those we would call our friends, to those with whom we try to make community, to make family? And how are we listening to Jesus as he speaks to us each day?

Sr. Maria Celeste and Sr. Weena 

Redemptoristines, Liguori, Missouri

Listening

by Father Thomas Travers, CSsR

Rector, Mount St. Alphonsus Retreat Center

Espous, New York

I think that a very interesting and instructive exercise is to try to, as they say, get 'inside the head' of Jesus. For instance, we can ask ourselves: what was he thinking, what was he feeling when he went through the experieces of today's gospel?

This gospel reminds me of a commercial on TV. I do not remember what it was for (maybe you remember it). The scene shows a guy, who looked like a teacher in school. He is seated at a table or desk and he is engrossed in something he is doing with his hands, perhaps playing a game or trying to figure something out. Then some little kindergarden kids bring in a rabbit and put it on his desk and say with tears in their eyes and voices, "There's something is wrong with Peter." The teacher just keeps on playing his game; does not even look at them and says off handedly, "Oh, that's OK. I still have the receipt."

He is completely oblivious of what is really going on. And then, somehow, he realizes what the kids are talking about and jumps out of his chair, raises his arms, grabs two balloons, touches them to the rabbit, says something and heals him. And the kids, all smiles, take the rabbit back in their arms again and go out to play.

I really think that Jesus can relate to those kids. He had a real problem. Not a sick rabbit but a life-changing event he had to face; a matter of life and death. And he told his disciples about it and they paid no attention. They kept right on with their useless chatter about who was going to be greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

I mean, just look at the gospel. Jesus is really serious. The gospel says that he takes the twelve disciples aside by themselves. (He did that when he was serious.) He tells them that he is going up to Jerusalem to be handed over to the leaders of their people, to be condemned to death and passed off to the Gentiles, then mocked scourged and crucified. Now that is serious stuff. He is telling them of what is going to be the saddest experience in his life. And all they are thinking of is who is going to sit at his right and left hand when he gets to the kingdom. And then the other disciples, realizing what is going on, get all bent out of shape, not because of Jesus' predicament but becasue they might lose out on the best seats, the highest rewards, in the kingdom.

You can almost hear Jesus saying, "Hey, aren't you listening to me? I just told you I am going to die a cruel death and all you are worried about is your seats at the banquet. What did I tell you about seats at banquets?" But the disciples were not listening!!! How it must have tore at the heart of Jesus. All he wanted was a little support and consolation. And he got none.

A short while ago something like that happened at our dinner table. Someone had something really important to say. He said it, but no one listened. Someone else came right in and drowned him out, oblivious to what was going on.

I think that the lesson we can learn today, the lesson that Jesus wants us to learn because he felt the effects of those who did not learn it, the lesson is to listen; to listen to the other; not to be so taken up with our own world, our own life, our own games, our own rewards that we do not hear the other in their pain and sorrow.

If our whole life is supposed to be other-oriented, loving our neighbor as ourselves, the only way we are going to be able to do so is to notice, to see, and to hear, the other especially in their hour of sorrow. LORD, GIVE US A LISTENING HEART. AMEN.

New Feature

"Blog List" Link to Great Homilies

It seems that every couple of months Blogger.com add some great new feature to its roster. The latest is "Blog List" which allows for a list of favorite blogs in the side bar. It gives a snippet of text from the last entry to the blog and you can reach the blog itself with just a click of the mouse on the title. The first offering on my "Blog List" is the one posted by our faithful Redemptorist friend, Father Thomas Travers, CSsR. His homilies are gems. Fr. Tom, or Tomas as he was known in Puerto Rico, was a missionary and a provincial. Today he serves on the Extraordinary Provincial Council of the Baltimore Province of the Redemptorists and as a member of the community at Mount St. Alphonsus Retreat Center. He enjoys presenting Progoff Journal Workshops, working with retreatants AND serving the Hispanic community in nearby Kingston. With the death of Fr, George Keaveney, the Mount's rector, Father Tom has taken on many other responsibilities. We are so grateful for his presence and his faithfulness to service and ministry. We are among his beneficiaries.