PRIESTS` RECOLLECTION

Jer14.17b-22/ Matt 13.36-43 by Eeso While we often hear from many people in the parish and in our workplace other than a parish, that they are too busy with plenty of concerns in their daily life, there are still many of them who can be living examples for us, the same people who help us out in parish management and missionary endeavors. I myself, for the period of around 15 years of parish life, have met and encountered a lot of devout Catholic laities , lowly and humble as they are, who are able to spend plenty of time in reading the bible, reflect on the word of God, and in their own and many ways, proclaim the Word of God both in their words and deeds. Encountering devout Catholic laity has been both a chance and a challenge for me to reflect further on how far had I dealt with the word of God diligently, or more seriously, as a priest in the parish in particular. First and foremost, I must be thankful always, that, unlike them, I don’t need to think about when and how will I be able to go to church when I find myself too busy…church is my residence anyway! Counting all the blessings… I enjoy the convenience of having a conducive place and more than enough time to read the bible, daily. Not to mention, preparing a talk or a sermon for our people is a lot of advantage for me, a challenge, always, to become, if not to become better, at least, to become a good person and priest. Indeed, it is always a lot of advantage in the sense that when I generally talk about good things and remind people about Christian values, that is the best time I ask myself (sometimes while being ashamed of myself) how had I been faithful to what I say at the pulpit, in front of many devout laities. When I start to talk about generosity, patience, forgiveness, and many others, to what extent have I been unselfish, to what extent have I been patient to people and events, and to what extent have I been truly understanding and forgiving. I can only speak for myself… too many experiences to share about being indifferent, being impatient, and maybe being arrogant and unforgiving. When I start to talk about important ingredients in order to attain fruitful and really blessed faith- sharing and collaborative pastoral work, to what extent am I able to slow down and talk just enough, and to what extent am I able to listen well to the heart and opinion of others. When I talk about moral values in the context of our Christian living, to what extent am I able to follow moral values, especially when nobody can see me. All these I believe has something to do with the Word of God we have today. In my personal and quiet time, I always hope and pray that I may trully live the words I utter in my daily preaching, and in my encounter with people. May the same unending mercy and love of God continue to guide all of us so that His Word be well understood and be well felt by our friends and by many people in our care. ​