A GIFT FREELY GIVEN
We are to assist
God in the work of creation. It is all a gift and we need to be responsible for
the gift that has freely been given to us.
Many
people look forward to retirement and a time when they no longer have to work.
Some of the Thessalonians looked forward to "retiring" from this
world and awaited the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. They were so convinced
that Christ was to come very soon that they gave up working. After all, if
Christ is coming, they thought, what was the point of plowing and planting and
harvesting? St. Paul tried to convince them that nothing had happened to
foreshadow this coming, and he gave himself as an example of how they should
continue to work. Now, centuries after St. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, we
still have no idea when Christ will come again to bring the Kingdom of God to
perfection. All we know is that God's Kingdom is still in a period of growth
and we, as are all God's people, are called to contribute to its up building.
The
readings today give us pause to examine our attitude toward a very important
human activity, our work. Paul took pride in working to support himself so as
not to be a burden to others. He saw work as necessary to live a human, orderly
and peaceable life, but the Pharisees used their sacred work as a tool for
pride and self-display. In Genesis, God is pictured as settling human beings in
the Garden of Eden to enjoy cultivating and caring for it. It seems that the
very reason for creating them was to care for the earth, to assist God, as it
were, in the work of creation.
When
I was in corporate America, work was very competitive and, at times, it became
tainted with status and power so that some work was considered sacred and other
work degrading. I have been the Director of IHRC for the past sixteen years,
and being here has allowed me to see work in a new way. The true meaning of
working to build God's Kingdom and to serve, brings people to this holy place
one by one. The staff has been coming together to meet the needs of the
retreatants for their comfort and to have a peaceful atmosphere. Truly
cultivating the people of God to come and pray and ponder on what is going on in
their life. Like St. Paul, I am truly proud because of the work we are doing at
this beautiful place.
We
are all called to put our best efforts in any work that we are doing. Be it in
our community, the corporate structure or working at the retreat center. We are
to assist God in the work of creation. It is all a gift and we need to be
responsible for the gift that has freely been given to us.