Generosity
What would you do if God gave you a miracle? No, not winning the lottery but being cured of an illness. Perhaps, like me, you would let everyone know of the blessing you received. But is that the best response? This year, at Mass on Sundays, we are reading the Gospel of Mark. In this Gospel, Jesus usually stops people from proclaiming the miracles he has done for them. Why? Wouldn’t that be the best advertisement for him. Well, it depends on what you want to advertise
In last Sunday’s Gospel, in a tiny story, just three sentences long, we are taught just what response Jesus wants. In this first miracle told in Mark’s Gospel, we see how the true disciple of Jesus acts. Jesus is told that Peter’s mother-in-law is ill. He cures her and she begins to wait on them. Jesus gives in loving service to her; she passes on this life in loving service to others. The story is so small you could almost miss it but it reveals so much about how God acts in our world. The mother-in-law was by no means an important person in the world, but she would have been important in her family, even if they didn’t realise it. The healing wasn’t a great dramatic event that would have brought Jesus fame, but it did show his love and care for that one person.
For us, the message is quite simply, when we receive good blessings, we are to pass them on. That is the core of a good life, that is at the heart of our Christian faith. We are never given anything to keep to ourselves. Consider the people who you regard as wonderful and loving in your community and your families. Their lives will be characterised by just this generosity. Catherine of Siena, a medieval saint, said, ‘We have never truly received a gift until we have given it away.’
Loving God, show me how I can be generous with my family and friends this coming week. Let me appreciate the good things I have so much that I want to share them with others. I ask this in Jesus’ name, confident that you will hear me.
Sr Kym Harris osb
