I am writing this on a Tuesday, and so far this week we have had two ‘top ten’ days. On Sunday morning, the dew point was 72. By three in the afternoon it was 55, and that has lasted for two full days. Days like these are like the day after a storm when dawn breaks bright, clear, and inviting. Days like today almost force you to enter into them and rejoice at the gift of being alive.
The Gospel this weekend is a strange one. It is a parable created and told by Jesus in which a crooked manager is praised by the master who has been his victim. When you listen to a parable of Jesus, be prepared to have your world upturned. What Jesus is praising in this case is not dishonesty but rather the ability to seize the moment and work for what is important. For Jesus that is to embrace and work for the values of the kingdom of God. Those values include: justice, holiness, integrity, generosity, compassion, fidelity, and thankfulness. To live your life around them is to be who Jesus calls you to be.
In many ways our parish is a good example of what this parable wants to invoke. Next weekend is the Parish festival. It only comes about because first Suzanne Calnon, and then Dan and Florence Loch, jumped in to promote this event. It means a lot of meetings, planning, and hard work, but they do it because it creates community, brings the parish together, and helps make us into who we are – the parish of St. Jerome. There are many people in our community who act decisively for the good of the parish. The Disciple Maker Survey proved that a great majority of parishioners would recommend the parish to someone outside this community. It is all those people who act decisively for our corporate good that make us who we are. By the way, I hope you know that behind it all is the work of the Holy Spirit, inspiring each of us to work for the values of the Kingdom.
