Monday, November 16, 2009

I HAVE NO HANDS

Years ago, as a corporate lawyer, my boss came into my office to chit-chat, as he was want to, and told me his eight-year old, Michael, had asked him, “Is there really a Santa Claus?” To which he replied, “Yes,” thinking to himself, “Santa is the embodiment of the spirit of selfless generosity. Anytime you give to bring joy and happiness to another, especially children, you bring Santa to life.”

In the same way, Christians received their name in the first century because in their words and actions they embodied the sacrificial love of Christ. Someone wrote a comment to my last blog that to “enflesh” seems cannibalistic. They are not alone. There is a book entitled, “How The Romans Saw Christians”, which says the same thing. The Romans persecuted Christians because they were viewed as pagans for not believing in the Roman gods, and because there were rumors that Christians celebrated bloody, sacrificial meals, where they ate human flesh and drank human blood. It’s sad that what is sacred for some is often misunderstood by others (and not just about Catholic beliefs).

Still, to be a Catholic is indeed to enflesh Christ, to make His presence felt. We believe that Christ is ever-present, but that He is manifested most especially through us. There is an inner-city church in San Diego, Our Lady of Guadalupe, with a statue of Our Lord outside, that has been vandalized. Its hands were broken off. But instead of replacing the hands, they put a sign underneath the statue that says, “I HAVE NO HANDS BUT YOURS.” That in essence captures what it means to be a Catholic…to be the hands, the heart, the Body of Christ.

Christ did not come simply to spend a few years with us and then leave us alone. He came to bring out the Christ in each of us…to be forever embodied in each of us. We all do the same with our children, and with all whom we love. We leave them a part of us so that it becomes a part of them. It shapes them.

For example, when I was in the seminary, one of the required courses was Pastoral Care. One day a visiting professor told us that each of us is shaped by the expressions used by our parents, such as “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”, “Look before you leap”, “Life is like a bowl of cherries”, etc. I tried to recall what expression my parents used, and could not think of one. My parents were good and very hard-working, but not very expressive. Then it hit me. My parents’ expression was, “Action speaks louder than words” and they didn’t even have to say it. And it did indeed shape me.

Jesus used many sayings to express his and God’s great love and mercy. Perhaps, one that captures all of them is, “Love your enemy”. He not only said it, he lived it. He expressed this great love in many ways, not the least of which was breaking bread with one and all. He left us his words of love, and the way in which to live them so as to “be one” – his great dream. Now it is no mere coincidence that his parting gift to us was the Eucharist. He wanted us to break bread together, to feel his continuing presence with us and within us, and to bring his presence to life by becoming what we receive.

If you were going to leave your loved ones some words to help shape their lives, what expression would you use? If you were going to leave them a life-giving symbol, what would it be?

8 comments:

  1. I enjoyed reading the message, the one statement I found meaningful that will stay with me for the day is -

    "I HAVE NO HANDS BUT YOURS.” (WOW!!! That can go so many ways). If I had no hands but someone else's, I would expect, love, sharing, caring, all good things. Hands can be so gentle, yet we as humans use our hands to treat others so badly: we hit, we point, we belittle. The language of our hands is so important. We can touch someone softly and, yet, we can hit someone hard and heavy. I really like the message, "I have no hands but yours". It's what I can do for others and what I would expect from someone else in return.

    Thanks.

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  2. I always tell my oldest daughter (14yrs old), "be a leader not a follower, unless you are following God." And apparently I must say it alot because the other night I was on the computer and I overheard her tell her little sister (6yrs old), who was trying to imitate her big sister's dance moves, "be a leader not a follower, unless you are following God." It felt good because I thought exactly what you are asking "If you were going to leave your loved ones some words to help shape their lives, what expression would you use?" I'm not sure that it will shape their lives but I see them now and I think they are off to a great start.

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  3. Wonderful to recall those frequently spoken comments in the day-to-day life we thought would always be, and realize how they shaped us!
    Wonderful ideas in the entire blog! Thanks again for awakening and inspiring! Peace! SM

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  4. Father Frank, I just wanted you to know that I am really enjoying your blog. May God bless you always.

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  5. Thanks for writing all of these words of wisdom. I feel as if we are talking and you are answering my questions and explaining it to me. Keep up your God given talent.

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  6. Thank you for another inspiring blog- I really enjoy them, print them out, ponder them. I would like to leave my children with: Know who you are and live accordingly, have the courage to be you, to be authentic. Ingrid.

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  7. How powerful the positive messages from our childhood, from our parents can be- and how equally powerful, deeply embedded the negative ones, especially if we do not recognize them, do not face them- gentle ones: let me do that for you..why don't you...more serious ones..that's just a white lie... we do what everyone else does... you have strange ideas...I don't care what you say or thnk...How difficult and important it is that we recognize those voices in us, how they affected us and how we ourselves could impact our children. A good time for soul searching for me...

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  8. Back in the day, my mother was very unstable person and I remember that she would always tell us to “travel light”. I didn’t understand what she meant back then (nor did she) but I can apply it to life today. Light in the sense that we are not attached to material things (here today, gone tomorrow) and light at heart in a sense that we don’t have any feelings of hate, remorse, resentment, anger, or any other emotion in our hearts that would weigh us down and keep us apart from God. This is my interpretation.

    My personal favorites and what I intend on sharing with my children are:

    You have to play with the cards you are dealt.

    Make the best of every situation and always look at the bigger picture.

    Stay positive. There is always light at the end of the tunnel.

    Strive for the things that matter in life.

    Be true to yourself and to others.

    Live right by God and others.

    Don’t know what I would leave behind. I would like to think that I would be remembered for all of the good that I have done.

    Thanks for letting me share.

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