Rat Race Society

23 Sunday in Ordinary Time
09 September 2007

First Reading: Wisdom 9:13-18
What man indeed can know the intentions of God?
Who can divine the will of the Lord?
The reasonings of mortals are unsure
and our intentions unstable;
for a perishable body presses down the soul,
and this tent of clay weighs down the teeming mind.
It is hard enough for us to work out what is on earth,
laborious to know what lies within our reach;
who, then, can discover what is in the heavens?
As for your intention, who could have learnt it, had you not granted Wisdom
and sent your holy spirit from above?
Thus have the paths of those on earth been straightened
and men been taught what pleases you,
and saved, by Wisdom.

Second Reading: Philemon 1:9-17
I am appealing to your love, reminding you that this is Paul writing, an old man now and, what is more, still a prisoner of Christ Jesus. I am appealing to you for a child of mine, whose father I became while wearing these chains: I mean Onesimus. I am sending him back to you, and with him – I could say – a part of my own self. I should have liked to keep him with me; he could have been a substitute for you, to help me while I am in the chains that the Good News has brought me. However, I did not want to do anything without your consent; it would have been forcing your act of kindness, which should be spontaneous. I know you have been deprived of Onesimus for a time, but it was only so that you could have him back for ever, not as a slave any more, but something much better than a slave, a dear brother; especially dear to me, but how much more to you, as a blood-brother as well as a brother in the Lord. So if all that we have in common means anything to you, welcome him as you would me.

Gospel: Luke 14:25-33
Great crowds accompanied Jesus on his way and he turned and spoke to them. If any man comes to me without hating his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes and his own life too, he cannot be my disciple. Anyone who does not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

‘And indeed, which of you here, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and work out the cost to see if he had enough to complete it? Otherwise, if he laid the foundation and then found himself unable to finish the work, the onlookers would all start making fun of him and saying, “ Here is a man who started to build and was unable to finish”. Or again, what king marching to war against another king would not first sit down and consider whether with ten thousand men he could stand up to the other who advanced against him with twenty thousand? If not, then while the other king was still a long way off, he would send envoys to sue for peace. So in the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions.’

Reflection
By Pietro S Albano

We belong to a 'rat race' society where everyone is in a hurry. We hurry up at work, for example, because of the many things that would pile up if we 'take it easy'. We are in a hurry that we fail to pay attention to our loved ones. Time seems to be a luxury nowadays that we tend to do things in an instant and avoid reflection and prayer. We make decisions that we would soon regret. We suddenly jump into conclusion without trying to see the two sides of a story. More often than not, haste does really make a lot of waste. Jesus, who already had a great following, challenged the people to think hard before deciding to be His disciples. For Him, a person with a 'rat race' mentality will never be fit to be His follower no matter how skillful or talented he may be. These kind of people lack wisdom which has been so beautifully described in the First Reading. Wisdom is significant if we wish to follow Christ as it helps us to see clearly where He will lead us.

Father, pour forth on us Your wisdom so we may dedicate our wholeselves for Your greater glory and the good of our fellowmen. In Jesus' name. Amen.

GIFT OF WISDOM

By Elizabeth R. Eguia

Wisdom is the key in doing God’s will. I know that I am created in His image and likeness and I was given the freedom to make my own decisions. That’s how much He loves me and also you. But most of the time, when I just rely on my own strength, my own knowledge, the result of what I do will always be a failure. This is because I just decide on what I thought is right and what other people are telling me to do. It is only when I fail that I realized that there’s a far more greater power, far more greater way of doing things. And this is all because of Wisdom. Through the Holy Spirit, this gift has been there in our midst just waiting to be grasp upon. The only thing left to do is to ask for it. That is why from then on, I would ask daily to God for this gift. For I know that if I have wisdom, all my decisions whether big or small, personal or business, for others or for myself will be in accordance to his will.

In the same way, this is being revealed to us in the Gospel of Luke. To do His will, we need to carry our cross and follow his ways and the way to do that is through the gift of Wisdom. With this gift, we are able to think well, come up with a better way of doing things, and decide on matters which are more important than material wealth.

So the next time you are face with a dilemma or even just a minor problem, ask for Wisdom and you will be enlighten to do the right thing.

Dear Lord, we come to Your presence today glorifying and praising You for the gift of Life and for the gift of Wisdom. Continue to pour upon us this gift, so that everything we do, everything we decide upon, will always be in accordance to Your holy will. Amen.