Fourth Sunday after Easter, April 29th, 2018

Fourth Sunday after Easter, April 29th, 2018

I am not sure when and how it started but, in my opinion, people do not listen as well as they used to.  Did you hear what I said?  People do NOT listen as well as they used to.   What do I mean by that statement, I am sure you are asking yourself.   I am not referring to the actual physical act of hearing.  I am actually referring to the people that we encounter that do NOT want to listen to anything other than their own viewpoint.  Now, human beings are all different.  And, as such, we are going to have different points of views on a whole array of subjects.  Whether it be taste in music . . . or food . . . or movies . . . or fashion.  Or perhaps it is something more serious such as opinions in politics or religious matters.  Human beings are NOT going to agree 100 percent of the time on anything.  Even spouses or siblings or family members are going to disagree or have differing opinions on things.  But it used to be when I was younger that if you had a differing opinion, you just acknowledged that you disagreed and moved on.   You might not like a person's political stand, for example, but in essence it just amounted to a difference of opinion.   You might not agree with a person's opinion on a given subject but you just left it at that.  Today, sadly, it seems that if someone has an opinion on something that is "politically incorrect" it's not enough to just disagree and move on.  No, today you have to boycott the person and have that person "suffer the consequences" for having a differing opinion.  If someone has an opinion on something that differs from you, fine, move on.  Maybe you don't like the position that person has.   If you don't, OK.   It's fine.  People are allowed to disagree and have different opinions.  

In St. Jame's Epistle beginning in the first chapter we hear the following:  "let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath" (St. James 1:19)  I was given some wise advice years and year ago when I was growing up:  "You have TWO ears and ONE mouth.  So listen twice as much as you speak."   Whoever told me this must have gotten this advice from St. James. Today, it seems the opposite.  We talk twice as much as we listen.  Is this because we are trying to "drown out" anyone else who thinks differently from us?  Is it because we are so desperate to have everyone else hear us?  

"Be stedfast in thy understanding; And let thy word be the same.  Be swift to hear; and let thy life be sincere; And with patience give answer." (Sirach 5:10-11) But then we read something really astounding in verse thirteen  if you think about it: "Honour and shame is in talk; And the tongue of man is his fall."  (Sirach 5: 13)  What does this mean?  Honour AND shame is in talk???  And the tongue of man is his fall????   Again, we would be wise to listen to the words of St. James:  "let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath"  The bottom line is that both cursing and blessing can come from the same mouth.  With the same tongue we can both edify and condemn.  We should be careful what comes out of our mouth because once it comes out, it is out and can not be put back in.  Be swift to hear . . .  and with patience give answer.   Today, we don't have patience for anything, let alone listening.  "He that hath knowledge spareth his words:  And a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit." (Proverbs 17:27)   Let us do our best to not only listen to what others have to say but to also remember that we are the instrument of God.  And as such let us do our best to speak as God would have us speak.  

St. Margaret Church gathers every Sunday morning to hear the Word of God and to worship Our Heavenly Father.  We are a traditional church.  We use the King James Version of the Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Mass begins at 9:30 AM.  We celebrate at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Please join us and dedicate an hour of your week to God.  Return home to Him, the God Who waits patiently for your return.