Tuesday, July 29, 2003
Sanctification of the Everyday
Jesus likes the image of light and lamp. He frequently talks about his followers as lamps and light. "You are the light of the world," he says. He tells people that they need to be like good servants waiting for their master to come home, being dressed, ready for action, with lamps lit. He talks about the foolish women who run out of oil while waiting for the bridegroom to come home, and the wise women who have oil for their lamps to spare.
Mother Teresa borrows from this image to talk about love. "See how a lamp burns, by he continual consumption of little drops of oil...What are the drops of oil in our lamps? They are the little things of everyday life. Fidelity, little words of kindness, just a little thought for others, those little acts of silence, of look and thought, of word and deed."
To follow the path we started with, walking humbly with God, loving mercy and acting justly, requires not just the holy day type of action, but everyday love. It's hard. Everyday life is maybe more conducive of whining and hurting and turning our backs on those in need outside of our immediate circle, but to live out those concepts, we have to stretch, to keep our lamps filled with the oil of love.
Jesus likes the image of light and lamp. He frequently talks about his followers as lamps and light. "You are the light of the world," he says. He tells people that they need to be like good servants waiting for their master to come home, being dressed, ready for action, with lamps lit. He talks about the foolish women who run out of oil while waiting for the bridegroom to come home, and the wise women who have oil for their lamps to spare.
Mother Teresa borrows from this image to talk about love. "See how a lamp burns, by he continual consumption of little drops of oil...What are the drops of oil in our lamps? They are the little things of everyday life. Fidelity, little words of kindness, just a little thought for others, those little acts of silence, of look and thought, of word and deed."
To follow the path we started with, walking humbly with God, loving mercy and acting justly, requires not just the holy day type of action, but everyday love. It's hard. Everyday life is maybe more conducive of whining and hurting and turning our backs on those in need outside of our immediate circle, but to live out those concepts, we have to stretch, to keep our lamps filled with the oil of love.
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