The book of Proverbs is filled with tidbits of wisdom that come is spiffy sayings. They are easy to remember and useful in life.
Proverbs 3:3-4 "Let not kindness and fidelity leave you; bind them around your neck; then will you win favor and good esteem before God and man."
10:3 "ill-gotten treasure profits nothing, but virtue saves from death."
10:10 "he who winks at a fault causes trouble, but he who frankly reproves promises peace."
And the list goes on and on.
In today's reading we have another tidbit but it will pass you by lest you slow down.
"Provide me only with the food I need; lest being full, I deny you, saying "who is the Lord?" Or, being in want, I steal, and profane the name of my God."
What wisdom!
Too much and we have a tendency to neglect the one who gives and too little and we have the tendency to denounce the one who gives.
We should seek neither to be satisfied completely nor hunger detrimentally.
This certainly stares in the face of modern advice and counsel. The world tells us to get our fill as quickly and often as possible. We have done so and God has been profaned.
Also, the poor have been neglected and remain hungry and in want and because of our unwillingness to assist, God has been profaned.
In both cases profanity arises. Profanity is not just what happens when we speak rashly; it happens in and through our actions and omissions.
Profane comes from the latin which means "outside the temple."
But since we are the temple of the Holy Sprit, everything we do has the potential of giving praise worthy of the sacred or causing profanation unworthy of the temple we all are.
Pope Benedict reminds us that in order to be people of faith we must let Jesus take charge of our humanity and thus root our profanity and restore reverence and respect for the sacred that abides in us all.
No comments:
Post a Comment