March 2, 2010
Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
By Beth DeCristofaro
Wash yourselves clean! Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes; cease doing evil; learn to do good. Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow. (Isaiah 1:16-17)
The greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:12)
Piety
God of all people, Hear us as we join in prayer with our brothers and sisters in need. Bless our Lenten fasting, learning, and giving. May your generous love for your people be our guide as we reach out to all who live with hunger and poverty. Amen. (Operation Rice Bowl Prayer)
Study
Last week we got a bag of rice, soy and dehydrated vegetables which the Salvation Army is distributing in Haiti for earthquake survivors. This one pack, approximately one pound of fortified rice and soy, is intended to feed approximately six people and is packed with vitamins. Reading the ingredients, I felt like I’d been punched. The directions to make the “casserole” are easy enough, if you have clean, boiling water and a bowl to stir it in. But this one packet would easily feed my family of four. And I would probably add a side of broccoli and wash it all down with some nice iced tea.
In our family – and families of friends – we have soy and rice allergies plus vegetarians (this casserole is chicken-flavored). What would I feel, standing in line to receive this package reading these ingredients? Certainly I would be grateful for food but my heart would sink knowing that some of my family would not be able to eat it easily.
The nutritional value on the package is listed for diets of 2,000 calories daily. Who receives 2,000 calories daily in Haiti? 2,000 calories in Bangladesh? 2,000 calories in rural Honduras? 2,000 calories in Darfur, Sudan? 2,000 calories in earthquake ravaged Chile? 2,000 calories when you live under a bridge in Fairfax Country, VA?
I could continue to list areas of poverty and malnutrition to fill this page. What struck me viscerally is how little I know of poverty and malnutrition. How little I know of the humbling forces of life. How little I know how to be servant. But reading the ingredients certainly humbled me in a new way. Is my desire for God as strong as my daily desire for food? Can I make this a part of my Lenten journey to draw closer to Christ?
Today’s readings focus on resisting hypocrisy in our religious practices – Jesus speaks about the church leaders: “All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues…” Lent allows us to also look closely at ourselves to gain knowledge of humility and identify places of self-exaltation. I pray that I not rest on my laurels that I am using Lent wisely and sincerely. I pray that I am drawing closer to God and to my neighbors, God’s chosen children. God loves us not for what we do or accomplish, what we eat or how we pray. God loves us because God made each and everyone of us. I pray that I can learn to love, just a bit better, this Lent.
Action
Check out http://www.numanainc.com/index.cfm. Partnered with the Salvation Army, The Mission of Numana is to empower you to save the starving. From Numana’s website: “Your Organization saves the starving” … “We do this by facilitating Packaging Events at which volunteers package four simple ingredients in to small plastic bags.”
Prepare a meal from Catholic Relief Services’ Rice Bowl recipes. Listen to your own body as it eats a meal different from what you are accustomed to and, most likely, much less than you are accustomed to. http://orb.crs.org/recipes/
