Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Robert Bellah, in the influential book, Habits of the Heart, described a popular, if unarticulated, philosophy of utopian individualism: If everyone does what they want to do, volunteering with the skills they have mastered and the passion they can rouse, everyone will contribute to everyone's happiness and everyone will be satisfied. There is no need for toil or frustration in that utopian place, for no one will toil by the sweat of their brow to raise thorns and thistles.
This way of thinking requires no sacrifice, generosity, or courage. But that's often the way people approach their volunteer services in the church or community; and, I suspect, their labor in the marketplace. Students expect to live in that ideal university, recruits suppose the military will ask little more from them. Certainly, some priests and religious have supposed they should contribute to the Church no more than what they want to give.
That should not even sound like an ideal place to live.
Martyrs like Saint Lawrence joyously mock that foolishness. They have not only discarded those childish fantasies; they have passed through their reluctance, fear, and cowardice to laugh at the impossible burdens that their Christian faith has laid upon them.
We remember Saint Lawrence for gibing the emperor and mocking his torturers. He made dying for the Lord look easy.
During this pandemic the healthy are challenged with its innumerable inconveniences. And they might well complain about it until they remember that many people are sick and dying and many more are grieving the loss of loved ones. Our complaints wither before they pass our lips and we soldier on, hoping that our best efforts will spare us and our loved ones of the illness.
Dear Saint Lawrence, teach us to laugh as we offer silent, unnoticed sacrifices.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.