Recently, I was part of a conversation about people and the state of society today. It can be so easy to say, ‘back when I was young, things were like this… Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of work to do to build up the kingdom of God. After this conversation, I received the following email from my Pope Francis site. It goes like this…
“Each of you can ask how do I react to the needs that I see all around me? Do I think immediately of some reason not to get involved? Or do I show interest and willingness to help? To be sure, you cannot resolve all the problems of the world. Yet you can begin with the problems of those closest to you, with the needs of your own community. Someone once told Mother Teresa: ‘What you are doing is a mere drop in the ocean’. And she replied, ‘But if I didn’t do it, that ocean would have one drop less.” (Pope Francis)
This is powerful if you take the time to sit with it. I hesitated to use this quote; I thought it might be too challenging, but an inner voice said, go for it. Let me say that ever since the pandemic, it has been hard to get people involved, and yet we need each other: to help, to challenge, to be kind. I have seen more impatience, anger, and rude behavior lately. What can we do as builders of the kingdom to continually bring God to the forefront? How do we begin to look beyond ourselves and see others’ needs? Each of us has to answer that question.
In another recent conversation, we mentioned that ‘true listening’ is a gift, one many of us have yet to unwrap. I believe that a listening heart can truly change a difficult situation. How do I listen? Am I preparing my response or truly listening to the other person? All I know is that Pope Francis’s words have given me a lot to reflect on, and it may not be easy. Read and reread this quote this week and see how you can make this world a better place for all.
Till next week,
Sister Theresita Donach, CSFN
