This retired shepherd was invited to attend Holy Family’s annual picnic. Their pastor, Fr. Corey asked me if I would preach the homily. So, I bring Kirby along and together we shared this story about mercy. I want the children to learn that Jesus’ love can come from people we never expect.
Once upon a time, there was a dog called Kirby who was going to the park to play with his favorite ball when – Oh No! he was chased by a Big Bully Cat! The Big Bully Cat pulled Kirby’s ears and bit his tail and scratched his face and finally chased poor Kirby into a large bed of pricker bushes and left him there. Poor, poor Kirby. It was worse than that. Poor Kirby was so hurt that he could not get up, he just lay in the bed of pricker bushed feeling very, very sad.
But just then, a poodle came by, a fluffy, white poodle. “Hooray!” thought Kirby, “This fluffy, white poodle will help me out of the pricker bushes. But the poodle did not help Kirby. She turned up her nose and walked straight past. Oh. That wasn’t very friendly. Poor Kirby.
But just then, a sausage dog came by, a long, sausagey sausage dog.
“Hooray!” thought Kirby, “This long, sausagey sausage dog will help me out of
the pricker bushes.” But the sausage dog did not help Kirby. He looked the
other way and walked straight past. Oh. That wasn’t very friendly. Poor Kirby.
But just then, a dalmatian came by, a big, spotty dalmatian. “Hooray!” thought Kirby, “This big, spotty dalmatian will help me out of the pricker bushes.” But the dalmatian did not help Snuffles. She turned her spotty back and walked straight past. Oh. That wasn’t very friendly.
Poor Kirby. Kirby was feeling very sad. Would no-one come to help him? Just
then, someone else came along. Was it the fluffy white poodle?
Was it the long sausagey sausage dog? No. Was it the big, spotty dalmatian? No.
Oh No! it was another Big Bully Cat!
Oh No! thought Kirby, This Big Bully Cat will be mean to me. He will pull my ears and bite my tail and scratch my face! Kirby shakes in fear.
But the Big Bully Cat did not do any of these things. Instead, the Big Bully
Cat pulled Kirby out of the pricker bushes. The Big Bully Cat found a bandage
in his pocket and he put the bandage around Kirby’s head.
Then he rubbed Kirby’s ears better, put some soothing cream on his tail, and
brushed his fur all smooth again.
Finally, the Big Bad Cubby gave Kirby his favorite treat – dog biscuits!. Then Kirby and the Big Bully Cat who wasn’t a bully after all went to the park to play ball together.
(Grownup summary). Why do we do acts of mercy? There is a story about thirty-two members of my small parish who were willing to be volunteer hosts for guest families living in the church basement. They brought them home-made dinners, watched their kids, and generally tried to treat them like human beings in the midst of their unfortunately crappy circumstances. As always happens, of course, there were some complaints from church members. They claimed our guests were sloppy, that they didn’t come for dinner on time, they didn’t do the dishes, their kids were bratty, they left the lights on. they didn’t leave the building when they were supposed to, etc., etc. (It just wouldn’t be a church if people didn’t whine about something, you know?)
I like to remind those who find fault that, if these guests actually had their acts together, they wouldn’t be living in a church basement. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves why we do acts of mercy in the first place. When the pastor was asked what we hoped to get out of it. He responded that he wanted an incarnational ministry for his church in which people could see that they had made a real difference in the lives of others. One of his parishioners answered that this program would “make God smile.” Others came up with similarly groovey-sounding answers, but one of his teenagers simply said, “I want these homeless people to get back on their feet.”
In this Sunday’s Gospel (Luke 15: 1-10), Jesus teaches us about rejoicing when the lost are found. It’s meant as a critique against those who get their shorts bunched up over why people get “lost” to begin with. We are to be supporters, not judges.
Think about it. If you’re a parent and you have a child with an addiction or an eating disorder, do you condemn or abandon that child? Wouldn’t you diligently search for the best care you could find to bring him or her back to your family in one piece? And when that lost child reaches a recovery milestone or graduates from school or gets married or achieves some goal of a normal, healthy, functioning human being, aren’t you overcome with joy? Don’t you want to throw a party and celebrate?
All of us, after all, are lost in some way. Jesus has gone to pretty drastic lengths to find us and bring us back to ourselves. I’d say that calls for a party, or a picnic wouldn’t you? If your lost sheep is found, say a prayer of thanks sometime this week. Let the joy of the Lord into your heart, and enjoy a foretaste of the feast to come.
Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends that we realize that all our acts of mercy put us in a cloud closer to Our Lord and heaven.
