The Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)

         Mark Twain was at a dinner party whose guests included a businessman notorious for having made his money by sharp dealing and by unscrupulously and aggressively squeezing money out of his beleaguered tenants and clients. At one point in the evening, the fellow cornered Twain and piously gushed: “Before I die, Mr. Twain, I intend to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land … I want to climb to the top of Mount Sinai and read the Ten Commandments aloud.”

         “I have a better idea,” suggested Twain acidly. “Why don’t you stay right here in Boston and keep them?”

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Entrance Antiphon: Ps 18(17):19-20 — “The Lord became my protector. He brought me out to a place of freedom; He saved me because He delighted in me.”

First Reading: Sir 27:4-7 — “Praise no one before he speaks.”

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16 — “Lord, it is good to give thanks to You.”

Second Reading: 1 Cor 15:54-58 — “God gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Alleluia: Phil 2:15d, 16a — Alleluia, alleluia. “Shine like lights in the world as you hold on to the Word of Life.” Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel: Lk 6:39-45 — “From the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.”

Communion Antiphon: Ps 13(12):6 — “I will sing to the Lord who has been bountiful with me, sing psalms to the name of the Lord Most High.”

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         Biographers have often remarked that Mark Twain was a keen observer of human nature and knew quite a bit about religion. And having related this story, I think it’s safe to say that it does not take someone like Twain, or a theologian for that matter, to figure out that this fellow was routinely breaking several of the ten commandments by being covetous, deceitful, and brutally aggressive. His worst transgression, however, was probably the idol worship of making money his “god.” His priority was the acquisition of mammon at the expense of the things of God. It was rather easy for Twain to puncture the hypocrisy of this blowhard businessman’s piety, and as we listened to the readings, there is an even more subtle duplicity at work in the case of religious leaders in this weekend’s Gospel. Jesus reserved some of His harshest criticism for them.

         Very often, the Scripture readings for a particular weekend provide us with sound advice, and this is once again true of the passages heard today. We are all members of God’s human family, and in these Scripture passages we hear some good advice in regard to how to live this reality. The quality of our lives together often depends upon our efforts at communication, which involves both speaking and listening.

         In our First Reading from the book of Sirach, we are reminded of the importance of the gift of speech. Speech allows us to communicate, to share our thoughts, to express our reality, and to reveal what is inside us. This gift is to be reverenced and used appropriately with wisdom and discernment. A person’s words often reveal his or her inmost thoughts and values and usually, a wise person will use and choose words carefully and sparingly. Saint Benedict reminds us of this ancient wisdom when he writes, “The wise person is known by the fewness of his or her words.”

         And as I said earlier, it is in speaking that we express our inmost thoughts and feelings. Sirach reminds us that our speech is often the criterion on which our hearers will judge us. We need to be conscious of this if we want to accurately share our understandings, our feelings, our personal perceptions, and our values.

         My friends, if you really think about it, today’s Scriptural advice about the value of speech is truly counter-cultural. Let’s face it. In our world, words are cheap. A vast majority of the time, they don’t need to have any correspondence with reality. Regardless of their truth or falsity, in today’s world, words are most often used to help people manipulate others in order to get what they want. Even in the highest, most reputable places of office in our country, we have been bombarded with “fake news” and lies, and all we need to do is to watch the news to become all the more acutely aware of the fact that in today’s society, the purpose of speech is not always understood to be the communication of truth. Because of that, this weekend’s teaching from Sirach is badly needed by all of us … in our families … in this church … in our communities … in our state … in our nation … in our world.

         Striving to live the truth, striving to know the truth, striving to speak the truth, and striving to act accordingly, can be an enormous challenge. Living our Christian faith can bring us hardships, losses, and much suffering. Saint Paul knows this and shares it as he writes to the Corinthians in our Second Reading. He reminds his readers that they must not give up hope. And again, this is a message sadly needed by us. I think we all need to hear: “Be firm, be steadfast, be always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord, your labor is not in vain.” For those of us with faith, we should all know that truth and goodness will triumph in the end. We must never forget this reality. And with that understanding firmly in mind, we can continue to live the Gospel in peace and joy.

         Finally, in the Gospel, Saint Luke also shares some sound advice regarding human interaction and speech. He quotes Jesus’ teachings as he points out that sitting in judgment and criticizing the lives of other people is profoundly foolish. “How can you say to your brother, “Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye, when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter from your brother’s eye.” Ralph Waldo Emerson once noted, “People are very inclined to set moral standards for others.” The implication here is that we may not always use the same criteria to regulate our own lives. Rash judgment can lead to disastrous errors and misunderstandings.

         There is no way that we can accurately understand another person’s motivation just by observing the person’s behavior. If and when people do speak to us and possibly reveal the reasons for their actions, maybe then we can get some sense of their rationale. Sometimes, however, even when they talk about it, often the real reasons for someone’s actions are not expressed. Furthermore, as Jesus teaches in the Gospel, our own short-sightedness and prejudice can prevent us from understanding the true meaning of another’s acts. The safest course is to avoid making judgments unless our own integrity requires it.

         Let me also say that it is true that sometimes we do have to make judgments. And, rather than try to get inside people’s consciences, as the Gospel advises, look at the outcomes of their motivation. Just as a tree is evaluated by the fruit it produces, peoples’ actions should be evaluated on the basis of their results. There is no way we can completely understand another person’s inner thoughts and choices. We can only consider the concrete evidence that we get from observation and sound judgment.

         And so, the words of Jesus, as they are quoted today, are truly wise and give sound guidance for our interaction in the human family. “A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of a store of evil produces evil; for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.” To get to know people, the best way is to listen and observe what they do. And nevertheless, at times, we also must take our turn at speaking. The gift of speech requires us to speak the truth as we experience it. What a joy it is when our conversations enable us to get to know each other as we share our faith and the meaning it gives to our days.

         This week, we approach Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent and in a few minutes, we will approach the Lord’s table, in both cases we should be profoundly aware of our need for both forgiveness and nourishment, so that we might not only proclaim the Gospel, but also truly live it. Over the next 40 days and beyond, may our words and our actions always truly reflect Jesus Christ and what is truly in our hearts.