2 Mar 2016
No one who was there in 1898 is alive today. They did their part: they received the faith
from their ancestors, and passed it on to their children and their children’s
children. And it’s why the parish is
still here today. Our ancestors knew
they were each a “link in the chain,” a single “thread in the fabric,” a mere steward of God’s gifts—to be received
and shared.
And that’s what Jesus asks of us as well: to receive into our
hearts the law of faith, hope, and charity—and then to pass it along. He asks us to be faithful stewards of his
very great love. Of course, times have
changed. Today, many of our children’s
children aren’t too interested in receiving
the faith and the hope God offers. Some
are; but many aren’t. And what else can
we feel but hurt when that with which we’re entrusted is rejected.
And it should hurt
because we’re not only stewards of faith—we’re part of that living faith we profess. When others reject our faith, in some ways,
they reject us—personally. And we
remember Jesus who was expelled from his home town, who was judged unfairly and
treated unjustly by the authorities, who was crucified because he tried to be
the faithful Steward of the Father’s love.
We have our mission from God: to pass on what we have
received. But we also have a great
support in God who knows what it’s like to see that mission flounder. And, to quote a humble servant of God in
Calcutta: “God does not ask that we successful; he only asks that we faithful."
Our ancestors carried out the mission of Christ: they were
faithful stewards. And that’s the most
we can hope to be—faithful and true, offering the wisdom and mercy of God . . .
to anyone who’ll hear us.
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