Years ago, I was on the hunt for a journaling bible; a bible that allowed notetaking on the margins. A bonus was if it had commentary at the bottom of the pages as well. A dear friend showed up at my door with her journaling-commentary bible that she thought I would get more use of than she. In the front of the bible, she wrote me a little note that I did not see initially. It says, “There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship” – St. Thomas Aquinas. We could probably write an entire reflection on this quote alone. However, that will be for another day. I will be referencing the commentary from my bible in today’s reflection. It is why I bring it up.
Today’s gospel continues with, among other things, what we have been reading about for several days now: detachment. In particular, detachment from material things. St. Luke, whose Feast Day is today incidentally, is writing about Christian missionaries going out to towns on missions to spread His Word. Interestingly, he sent seventy-two or in some translations, seventy. This is a much larger group than the original twelve.
Consumed by Things
The message about detachment from material things is just as prevalent today as it was two thousand plus years ago. It is so easy to be consumed by “things.” As I write this reflection, my husband is out seeing about trading in our twelve-passenger van that I have driven for most of my motherhood. As our children get older and more go off to college, there is less of a need for it. I found myself very emotional about detaching from something that is such a part of me. I thought of this gospel and how timely it is.
Many find comfort in the keeping of more stuff, which seems to lead to a false need of it. When shopping with my grandmother, she always asked us, “is it a need or a want?” We learned very quickly that most things fall under the latter. I always marveled at how unattached she was to “things.” One time I was admiring her earrings and told her how lovely they looked. She took them right out of her ears and gave them to me! I have tried this practice myself. A friend complimented a bracelet I wore and the next time I saw her I gifted it to her. I confess, it was not as easy as I had hoped it would be.
Change
As I sat in daily Mass last week, I prayed, “Lord, give me the right words,” and I was gifted with the priest sharing this quote from John Henry Newman, “To live is to change, and to be perfect is to have changed often.” I think this goes along with the theme of detachment. We need to be careful not to get too comfortable or complacent in one place. Perhaps for some this is figuratively, others physically, and for all, spiritually.
The gospel reading continues with a warning to avoid distractions, even what can be considered good distractions. I am studying St. Teresa of Avila’s Nine Grades of Prayer, and she teaches that “voluntary distraction” in prayer is a venial sin. I challenge all of us to consider this in the other areas of our lives. Let us not become distracted while seeking the mission God gives us and to detach and evangelize His Holy Word.
References
p. 1743 Holy Bible: The Catholic Journaling Bible. The New American Bible revised edition: Our Sunday Visitor 2017
p.13 St. Theresa of Avila’s Nine Grades of Prayer by Science of Sainthood
