October 14, 2011
Friday of the Twenty-Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
By Melanie Rigney
A worker’s wage is credited not as a gift, but as something due. But when one does not work, yet believes in the one who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness. (Romans 4:4-5)
Then I acknowledged my sin to you, my guilt I covered not. I said, “I confess my faults to the Lord,” and you took away the guilt of my sin. (Psalms 32:5)
“There is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be proclaimed from the housetops. I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but after that can do no more. I shall show you whom to fear. Be afraid of the one who after killing has the power to cast into Gehenna; yes, I tell you, be afraid of that one.” (Luke 12:2-5)
Piety
Lord, I give You heartfelt thanks for my salvation—and for your patience with me.
Study
I’m one of those people who will never get an ulcer. You know when I’m angry. You know when I’m joyful. You know when I’m deep in thought. You know when I’m giggly. Social media tools like Facebook and Twitter were made for me. I’m hardwired to think that what’s going on in my life might possibly have some interest—and relevance—to you.
What does this foray into self-reflection (some might say self-absorption) have to do with God or today’s readings? A lot, really.
Whether we live life large and open, or guard our emotions, there’s always a part or two or maybe twenty that no one else on this earth—not a best friend, not a spouse, not a sibling, not even our spiritual director—knows. It’s a part that we don’t share not because it’s boring or mundane, but because we thought or said or did something that we later regretted, that if we could turn back time we would handle far differently.
And that’s where God’s almost unbelievable mercy comes in.
We don’t have to post on Facebook or tweet that we messed up to receive forgiveness. We just have to go to the source, to the One who already knows about what’s torturing us in the dark and is happy to relieve a contrite heart and soul. God delights in putting balm on those wounds and helping us turn our faces forward, to the future He has for us on this earth and in the next.
Maybe an embarrassing YouTube video or less than flattering photograph or inappropriate e-mail that involves us will one day be seen by people we know or even those who don’t know us. Maybe they’ll think less of us for what they see and not be interested in our side of the story. Doesn’t matter. Unlike people, God doesn’t expect perfection. What He expects is honesty, faith that our indiscretions are forgiven, and a desire that we become more Christlike today than yesterday, tomorrow than today.
Action
This week, avail yourself of God’s forgiveness by receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation and releasing something you’ve been holding in the dark.
