Overspeeding, overloading

The story is told about a mother superior and three nuns who were stopped by a traffic policeman for overspeeding. The mother superior contested the allegation, stating that they were religious, and that God was with them, including the Blessed Mother and their patron saint. To which the policeman replied: “In that case, I will also fine you for overloading.”

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In today’s Gospel (Mt. 13, 1-23) Jesus tells His disciples about the Parable of the Sower who planted seeds on all sorts of grounds. The seeds were good, but their growth and produce depended on where they were sown. In other words, God’s grace can operate only if and when we cooperate with it.

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None of us has a monopoly over God, or godliness for that matter. Neither will our religion be a guarantee for our salvation. We must move beyond names and labels, and make God and godliness present and alive in the day-to-day realities we encounter.

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A person who blames God for bad things that happen in his/her life has still a long way to go. A person who keeps blaming others for his/her misery and travails in life also has still a long journey up ahead. A person who takes full responsibility and owns up to whatever situation he/she is in has arrived.

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The soil, as we know, can be enriched, or can be impoverished. Good as it is, the Word of God, can produce a hundredfold harvest in each one of us, or can just wither and die depending on our openness and obedience. The saints and martyrs have shown to us that even in the most adverse conditions, the Word of God can come alive in a heart that is humble and contrite.

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Whenever we encounter persecution or criticism of any kind this should lead us to soul-searching and prayer. Trials should bring us to our knees, humble us, purify us, and strengthen us. Whenever we are faced with trials, the soil that is in us is being fertilized.

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There have been, there are, and there will always be rock-throwing against the Church. In particular, our bishops are the target these days. After the cry for blood, the finger-pointing, and the blame game shall have subsided, perhaps it would be good for us to see “the Big Picture” in this whole unfolding of events.

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Let us not overspeed in judging our bishops! Our bishops are not saints, neither do they claim to be. Of the 133 bishops in the Philippines, seven are alleged to have received government funds from the PCSO, and the total amount they got was about P7 million. There is no certainty that they received Pajeros, and if ever they received vehicles, they were for the apostolate. The “Big Picture” is that the bishops under fire are a small dot in a landscape that is scattered with so much graft and corruption. I am sure this is a purifying and learning situation for the Church, for our bishops, and for all of us. But to focus on the dot is to miss the whole point. Yes, let us not forget the forest because of our focus on the trees. Don’t be fooled! There are persons so powerful that they can manage or manipulate issues and, yes, even people.

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“Grace never leaves you where it first finds you.” (Anne Lamott) It is good for us to be reminded today that no matter how far we wander from God, His grace always abides with us and will continue to find us. Many of us may have veered away or may have turned our backs from our original commitment because of our weaknesses, failures, and easy compromises, but it is so assuring to know that we are still loved, and that we can always go back, or come nearer, if that is all that we are able to do for now.

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We hold on to the constancy of God’s Word, and the faithfulness of God. Yes, the seed is good and so is the sower. In the end, after we have done all that we can, we can only turn to God and plead for His mercy when the final accounting comes. Let us not overload ourselves with useless worldly pursuits and concerns. What matters most is that we did our best, and that we held on to our goodness, and that we continued to love.

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Our biggest regret when we come to life’s end is that we had the opportunity and we wasted it! Those with much talents and never used them, those with much wealth and never shared them, those with much love and never expressed them, will have in the end much regret, wailing and grinding of teeth. Wasted soil, wasted land, wasted life—may these not be our lot when we come to the end of our lives.

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The Philippine Soong Ching Ling Foundation is holding its 6th Shanghai International Children’s Cultural and Art Festival, July 30 to Aug. 5, 2011 in Shanghai. It is held every three years, with 195 groups from 35 countries and regions participating. This year, blind girl Fatima Soriano has been chosen to represent the Philippines. Let us give Fatima our moral support with our prayers and perhaps, for those interested, join her in her China trip. For particulars please call 7217457/5214156.

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A moment with the Lord:

Lord, help me not to live a wasted life because of overspeeding and overloading. Amen.