Doing, Being, and
The "Jesus Prayer"
Gospel for the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time:
Luke 18.9-14
One of my favorite speakers in the area of religious education is David Wells from the diocese of Plymouth, England. He gives a great talk on how our society values what people do, rather than who people are.
He has now come to a point in his life where, when people ask him "What do you do?" He replies,
"Sometimes, when I'm all alone, I dance naked in the living room. What do you do???"
We all fall into this trap. Just today I met up with a former student, and asked what his brother was "up to". I was glad to hear about his success as a welder for the oil patch, but I neglected to ask further about his family, his health, or his general well-being.
We are far too concerned with the doing. And now, as a (semi) retired educator, I am keenly aware that my worth is not tied up in how active I am, or what to do with my life.
No, my worthiness is simple- I am a child of God.
And as I child of God, I rely on His grace and mercy.
Which brings us to the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, which, like all of Jesus' parables, is rich in meaning and deceptively simple.
A quick explanation of the two main characters. (In a previous blog I mentioned that characters in Jesus' parables "remain nameless"- a reminder that they represent all of us) Pharisees were the religious elite- they always went waaaaayyyy beyond the expectations of the Law- instead of fasting once a week, they'd fast twice, etc. Tax collectors were the most despised traitors of the Jewish people- not only would they collect taxes from their people for the Romans, but would keep a healthy portion for themselves.
So here we have, based on what they do, the "best" and the "worst" of Jewish society.
Jesus then gives and account of who they are. The Pharisee thanks God that he is not like other people. In fact, his prayer is not to God at all, but a hymn of praise to himself.
The tax collector is a man of few words. And those few words become the core of the centuries old "Jesus Prayer"
On the surface, it would appear that we need to give our heads a shake when it comes to the way we pray. And that is true, but I think as Catholics we've taken this far too literally. That's the only explanation I can think of as to why we always fill up the back pews first. Or is it so we can make a quick getaway??
No, this isn't just about the way we pray. I think it's all about doing vs. being.
He has now come to a point in his life where, when people ask him "What do you do?" He replies,
"Sometimes, when I'm all alone, I dance naked in the living room. What do you do???"
We all fall into this trap. Just today I met up with a former student, and asked what his brother was "up to". I was glad to hear about his success as a welder for the oil patch, but I neglected to ask further about his family, his health, or his general well-being.
We are far too concerned with the doing. And now, as a (semi) retired educator, I am keenly aware that my worth is not tied up in how active I am, or what to do with my life.
No, my worthiness is simple- I am a child of God.
And as I child of God, I rely on His grace and mercy.
Which brings us to the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, which, like all of Jesus' parables, is rich in meaning and deceptively simple.
A quick explanation of the two main characters. (In a previous blog I mentioned that characters in Jesus' parables "remain nameless"- a reminder that they represent all of us) Pharisees were the religious elite- they always went waaaaayyyy beyond the expectations of the Law- instead of fasting once a week, they'd fast twice, etc. Tax collectors were the most despised traitors of the Jewish people- not only would they collect taxes from their people for the Romans, but would keep a healthy portion for themselves.
So here we have, based on what they do, the "best" and the "worst" of Jewish society.
Jesus then gives and account of who they are. The Pharisee thanks God that he is not like other people. In fact, his prayer is not to God at all, but a hymn of praise to himself.
The tax collector is a man of few words. And those few words become the core of the centuries old "Jesus Prayer"
"God be merciful to me, a sinner."
Jesus sums up the scenario by saying: "Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, but whoever humbles himself will be exalted."
On the surface, it would appear that we need to give our heads a shake when it comes to the way we pray. And that is true, but I think as Catholics we've taken this far too literally. That's the only explanation I can think of as to why we always fill up the back pews first. Or is it so we can make a quick getaway??
For God, unlike us, doesn't care about what we do, He'll love us anyway.
God cares about who we are.
His sons and daughters.
Our response to this amazing reality is simple, really.
We need to ask ourselves, every day. "Am I being a child of God through what I do?"
More often than not, the answer is "no".
And that is why, every day, we need to spend some time doing the Jesus Prayer.
For This Week...
Do the "Jesus Prayer":
When you breathe in you pray (out loud or in silence):
O Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God...
And when you breathe out you pray:
Have mercy on me a sinner.
This prayer has been used as a meditation dating back to the early Church. In the Orthodox tradition, it is prayed with little ropes, similar to praying the Rosary in the West. It can prayed while being stuck in traffic, washing the dishes, doing playground supervision, and best of all, your last prayer as you go to sleep.
Have a great week, and remember who, and whose, you are.
