Whoever Does the Will of God

January 29, 2008

Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time

The ark of the LORD was brought in and set in its place within the tent David had pitched for it. Then David offered holocausts and peace offerings before the LORD. When he finished making these offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts. 2 Samuel 6:17-18

And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. (For) whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” Mark 3:34-35

Piety

Suscipe (Traditional Offering of Self)

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,

My memory, my understanding,

And my entire will,

All I have and call my own.

You have given all to me.

To you, Lord, I return it.

Everything is yours: do with it what you will.

Give me only your love and your grace,

That is enough for me.

-- St. Ignatius of Loyola

(From Hearts on Fire: Praying with Jesuits, edited by Michael Harter, SJ. Chicago: Jesuit Way, an imprint of Loyola Press, 2005)

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/mark/mark3.htm#v31

Are we outside asking about the Lord? Or are we inside the tent participating in the joyous company that we have in the presence of the Lord?

When we stay in touch with a friend or relative, we can sometimes feel their presence in our life even if they are far away in distant, even if we rarely hear from them directly. Did you ever have a friend who was so close to you that when you would think about her or him, invariably, the person would call or write. It was almost like you thoughts were transferred to them telepathically.

Throughout the Bible, we meet people who are in touch with Jesus and their neighbors. They dance in His holy presence as David did before the Ark. They revel in his aura like the wine steward in Cana. Like the one leper who returned to say “Thank you” after being cured.

We also meet those who are out of touch with the Lord and their neighbors. They are outside the tent, synagogue or widening circle of disciples.

Noah was in touch with God and obeyed the commandment to “build an ark.” Those who died in the flood were not.

Jonah was in touch with God. The people of Sodom and Gomorrah were not.

Moses was in touch with God. The Egyptians were not.

Mary was in touch with God. Herod was not.

The shepherds and magi were in touch with God. Most Romans were not.

Nicodemus was in touch with Jesus. The Pharisees were not.

Being in touch with Jesus and in His presence is not just a physical or metaphysical activity. It also is a spiritual and actual event in our lives. Jesus identifies the one, single defining character of those people who are in touch with Him: “Whoever does the will of God” is what defines us as Christians. First, we must know God through our prayer life. Then, we must find out His will through our study and discernment. Finally, we must fulfill it through active love.

Action

In our daily lives, we come in contact with many people – our brothers and sisters. Some of them may come into our lives to provide for us as David provided food for the Israelites. Who we do business with also defines us as a people.

According to the Cone Corporate Citizenship Study, today’s consumers want to make a difference when their purchases. This has made cause-related marketing a huge phenomenon. A portion of the proceeds from many common items we buy is donated to charity. Price and quality being equal, the 2004 survey showed that eight in 10 Americans say that corporate support of causes wins their trust in that company, a 21% increase since 1997. Earlier studies have shown that 84 percent of Americans would be likely to switch brands to support good works. [1]

One such company which is vying for a share of our purchases of ink and toner is Laser Monks, Inc. and their brand of commerce with compassion. The company was founded by Our Lady of Spring Bank Cistercian Abbey in Sparta, Wisconsin, as a way to support the community as well as give back to those in need around it. By applying the 900 year old Benedictine Rule, they have created a $10 million business in supplying ink and toner cartridges to customers. According to a letter from Fr. Bernard McCoy, O. Cist., posted on the website:

Our monastery is part of the 900-year-old Cistercian Order; our particular Abbey was founded over 75 years ago in the United States. Every monastery has a monk in charge of all the temporal needs and activities of the community. Among my duties as Steward of Temporal Affairs are developing and managing ways to support our life and charities. Contrary to popular understanding, monasteries are self-supporting. A part of our day is given to some sort of remunerative work, from which we support our modest living needs in the monastery, and then use the rest for charitable work. Our Abbey was at this time looking into various new income projects, which had ranged from growing Shitake mushrooms, raising Christmas trees, to building a golf course and conference center. An income project that was based on a necessary consumable item, like toner and ink cartridges, was exactly what the monastery needed - a solid, consistent, income that would not be affected by difficult economic times. Everyone has to have toner and ink to print, businesses especially. And everyone wants to save money. Add to this the fact that we use the money for good works and to support monks who dedicate their lives to serving God and neighbor, and you have the ultimate win-win situation. The manufacturers were elated with the possibilities. They immediately said we should market not only to schools, churches, and other non-profits, but especially to businesses. “Look, you're monks. You have an image and long tradition of being trustworthy and providing top quality products. You're offering a great product at a great price. Once people hear about you, it's an easy decision. Why would anyone pay more money, when they can have quality products for less, from monks who use the income to help others?”

Marketplace Radio did a story on Laser Monks that you can listen to online here. The book is available here.

Who is in the company you keep? Who is counted among the businesses that you patronize? Is there room in your purchases to shift some of what you would spend at a big box store like Staples or Office Depot to Laser Monks? Why? Here are more words from Fr. McCoy:

LaserMonks save our customers money, lots of money. They can use these savings for all sorts of good works. But there's even more good news to the story. By purchasing printing supplies from LaserMonks, our customers not only save money, they support the monks’ modest life of prayer and our good works. By helping you save money, we can help others throughout the world. Everyone wins with LaserMonks. Isn’t that the way business should be?

King David may have provided “to each man and each woman in the entire multitude of Israel, a loaf of bread, a cut of roast meat, and a raisin cake.” Today, you can turn to LaserMonks. Instead of getting food to keep you going, they can provide supplies to keep your business growing.

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[1] http://www.coneinc.com/oldsite/Pages/pr_30.html