3 Sep 2015
Memorial of Pope Saint Gregory the
Great
“From now on,” Jesus says, “life will be different.” That’s what he says to those who say “yes” to
him. And I’m sure Peter had no idea what
he was getting himself into when he said “yes.”
Saint Gregory the Great didn’t know; none of the saints knew what their “yes”
to God would get them into. But they
still trusted God and just let the Holy Spirit lead them wherever they needed
to be, and to do whatever they needed to do.
Today, as we remember Saint Gregory, we’re reminded of an
ongoing call that the Lord puts into the hearts of his people—and it’s the call
for “balance” in our Christian life. In
the 6th Century, when St Gregory lived, there was a tension between
the ascetic life and the life of what would become known as the “parish.” There was a tension between a life focused on
God and a life focused on the needs of others. And this tension is still around today.
Some people really like to spend quiet time in prayer, study,
and contemplation of God. Other people
really like to be out there doing the work of social justice, feeding the
hungry, and being visible evangelizers. Of
course, it’s more than a simple “like” of what we do; most of us do these
things because God has put it in our hearts to do them.
But St Gregory and the Lord say, “Don’t get overly
comfortable in the particular way of life we enjoy.” Saying “yes” to God, being docile and
trusting in the guidance of God’s good will means listening to that voice which
might be saying to us:
“Maybe I can’t spend all
my time in prayer; maybe God is asking me to do just a little something for a neighbor in need.” Or, perhaps, “Maybe I can’t spend all my time being busy doing the Lord’s
work; maybe God is asking me to spend some quiet time with him, to make sure
the work I do is his work, and not
merely my own."
“From now on,” Jesus says, “life will be different.” Maybe that’ll a more balanced life between
prayer and action. Maybe it’s something
not even on your radar. Who knows? Saying “yes” to God means just that—saying “yes”
to the will of God. But we know and
trust that to be a truly good
will. And so we get up and go with
Jesus, wherever he takes us.
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