“A BALANCING ACT”
Fr. Brian Timoney
Sunday, August 3, 2008

          In the year 1337 the Pope, the Cardinals and the Monsignors and all their staff were living not in Rome but in the City of Avignon in France.  That came about because about 30 years earlier a Frenchman had been elected as Pope and he found that Rome was a very dangerous place to live in, especially for a Frenchman.  And so he decided to move the whole Papal Court up to Avignon.  After him there were six more Frenchmen elected as Popes so they were all in Avignon. 
          Well, anyway, that year among those at the Papal Court was a man called Petrarch, a very famous Italian poet.  He was very, very popular and so he had many friends and at first really enjoyed living in Avignon at the Papal Court, but gradually began to feel the stresses that go with living in a busy city.  So one day he just packed up everything and went off to live in the countryside far from the hustle and the bustle.  He was so happy with his decision that he wrote, “not to be crowded, pushed, put upon, trod on, not to be dragged to banquets when you are not hungry, not to be forced to talk when you would rather say nothing, not to be greeted at awkward moments, not to be clutched and held at street corners.  Think what it means to grow old amid such boredom.”  (Laughter)
Well, I think that in our day with the stresses of modern life we can easily identify with Petrarch and, in fact, we might add ­­­­not to have cell phones ringing all day, not to stand in long lines at the grocery store, not to be stuck in slow traffic at commute time, and not to have fundraisers call during dinner.  And speaking of cell phones, I walk on the canal trail almost every day and I would guess 50% to 60% of the people that pass me or that I pass are talking on cell phones.  And if they are not talking on their cell phones they have i Pod buds in their ears and they’re listening to God knows what.  Are we afraid to be alone with ourselves?  Are we afraid to be quiet with ourselves?  I think it is important that we recognize our need for peace and quiet.  A time to reflect, a time to pray, a time to recover from the stresses of daily living.  Jesus understood that need for himself.  He was deeply shaken and stressed when he heard of the violent death of his cousin John the Baptist.  So to relieve his stress the Gospels tell us that he retreated to the wilderness – to the desert really.  A place where he could reflect and pray and try to make some sense of all that was going on around him.  But I guess, just like us, the pressures of daily living soon caught up with him.  The crowds found where he was and followed him and he could just not turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to the needs of suffering humanity.  And so, the Gospels tell us his heart was moved with pity for the people and he cured their illnesses. 
Well, he and his disciples did not have enough food to feed the more than 5000 people who had gathered there, but they were willing to share and there was enough.  Though Jesus was tired and had his peace and quiet shattered and was really in no mood for human interaction, the needs of humanity superseded all other considerations.  I think this is an important incite into the human character of Jesus.  He needs time for peace and quiet.  He needs a place where he can reflect and pray, but that need is not paramount, it is second rate to the needs of others in his mind and in his judgment.  Well, what about us?  I think we would all recognize the need that we have for balance in our life.  Now you have many and great responsibilities to your family, to your job, to your community, to the poor, and so on, but you also have a duty to yourself.  You are no good to anyone if you are burnt out and that is a very real danger in the world that we live in.  So I am going to urge you to do your best to build into your life some real quality time with your spouse, with your children, with your friends and do build into your life some time for personal reflection and prayer.  And these two things are not contradictory.  We can and we should try to find time for both. 
Now there are various groups in our parish that, from time to time during the year, they organize retreats for both men and women, and perhaps, you might give some consideration to joining one of them.  Time for peace and quiet and prayer and reflection because there is really an ongoing need for us to refresh ourselves spiritually and that will actually help us to pay attention to the great needs of humanity all around us.  And I believe we can be consoled with the message that is in the Gospel today and, that is, that we may not have and indeed we will not have enough to meet the needs of everyone, but if we give what we can in terms of time and talent and treasure, then with God’s blessing it will be enough and indeed more than enough.  Amen.

rjs