8TH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME HOMILY – YEAR C 2025
CAN YOU SEE THE PLANK BEYOND THE SPLINTER OR THE WOOD FOR THE TREES?!
Lk 6.39-45 Ecc 27.5-8 1Cor 15.54-58
Says Silvester O’Flynn OFMCap about today’s Gospel: “A sermon reveals as much about the preacher as about the subject of discourse. The fruit that emerges says a lot about the tree… People are already bombarded with bad news 6 days a week, and they desperately need to hear good news on the seventh day!” So here’s this weekend’s effort!
Now we have the third extract from the Luke’s Sermon on the Plain, with some further practical thoughts about how to live the Christian life well in faith, word and deed.
Claude Mostowik MSC puts it this way: “As we approach Lent, the readings offer a rich array of themes… The blind leading the blind, the splinter in a companion’s eye, and a good tree and its fruits. Jesus had a sense of humour and loved to make people laugh – and slowly realize they were laughing at themselves. The Gospel prompts us to deep self-reflection about or own blindness in leading others, to acknowledge the plank in our own eye as we deal with the splinter in the eye of another, and whether we are a tree that bears good fruit.”
Jesus often enough looks at the world around him to portray images of reality, in order to connect our thoughts with his message and its implications for our own lives. Today we’ve references to splinters, planks, and then nature, with trees, fruit, figs, thorns, grapes and brambles (not the logistics company!). We’re back to the basics of good and evil, and their sources (not sauces!). It’s what comes from the heart that counts, but the acknowledgement is that we all have a dark side, that can weigh us down at times, and lead us away from the Gospel values espoused by Jesus.
When I did Psychology I at Melbourne Uni in 1970, there was a unit on Freud (the lecturer being Frank Knopfelmacher, a Czech Jew who had fled Vienna in 1939), and his insights have remained with me ever since, particularly when it comes to looking in the mirror (I have to confess not exactly an attractive sight for me these days!!).
There is the Greek legend of Narcissus, who was so flattered with his own reflection, that he fell in love with himself, rejecting all other potential love, be it romance or friendship!! The narcissist is self-obsessed, and excessive need for attention, and has an inability for empathy, so not at all a nice person, and certainly never happy!
Then there is what Freud called projection, which is something we can easily and unconsciously fall into, where we identify traits and behaviour in others, such that we point the finger in criticism, when in fact, these qualities are part of our own personalities and behaviour. I might add also isn’t is always easier to be the armchair critic, rather than participating in the action ourselves?
So, well before Freud, Jesus picks up on the ease with which we can point out the faults of others, while not adverting to or admitting to these same faults in our own attitudes and behaviour. Isn’t it so easy to be self-righteous and judgemental, as we can misguidedly feel better in ourselves, with a superior attitude?
And then there is the metaphor of ‘the blind leading the blind’ (no negative aspersions on those who are blind, of course!), suggesting that one shouldn’t be leading another person the wrong way through ignorance or malice, for that matter. There is a responsibility to look into issues and to be well informed, before sounding off with black and white opinions, when the shades of grey are all around us!
To my mind, that is one of the big problems with social media today, where statements can be made which are plain wrong or nasty, or both, with no accountability. Others can then be misled into thinking this is fact, and thus misinformed. Even darker is the way in which insults and obscenities can be thrown around on such platforms. It certainly gives good reason for shielding our young people from this negativity, where possible, and that’s a challenge, especially for parents and educators!
Meanwhile, Jesus continues to form his disciples in the ways of the Kingdom, where love is to be proclaimed and practised, in all of its dimensions. At the heart of this is a call to look beyond ourselves, but also to find a balance between being sensible about our own needs and the need to look out for our neighbour, beyond our own comfort zones with family and friends. It is all important for living a good life. As I often say, we are not called to be Christian masochists, making life more difficult for ourselves than it already is! The crosses are there for all; they don’t need to be sought!
This past week, I said Mass at Arcadia and Trevi Court, where there is a positive spirit of appreciation for the pastoral and overall care provided regularly by our parishioners and those who work in these places. I will take just one example of young Eric, the activities co-ordinator at Trevi Court, but not only that, as he has such an enthusiastic, personal and friendly engagement with each one of the residents, with the bonus that he provides karaoke hymns, singing for the Masses, and conducts a Rosary and Communion service each week, well beyond the call of duty. If anyone can brighten up the day of someone dealing with the frustrations and limitations of age and illness, Eric’s your person! To my mind, here’s Gospel in action, in a very real way.
Then on Friday it was off to St Columba’s, where the new Foxford Innovation Centre (science labs and extended learning spaces) was blessed and opened, with our new northern regional bishop Rene presiding, local state and federal MP’s, school principals and other notables in attendance. It reflects our call to faith engagement with education and broader society, of which we are all part, in some way or another. Finally, a visit to our 3 grade 1 classes here at St Therese’s finished off an entertaining morning!
So it’s back to the Gospel, which ties in well with Sirach (aka Ecclesiasticus) today, where the test of a person is in one’s conversation, “The kiln tests the work of the potter; the orchard where a tree grows is judged on the quality of its fruit; similarly a person’s words betray what one feels.” As Jesus concludes: “A good person draws what is good from the store of goodness in one’s heart… For a person’s words flow out of what fills one’s heart.”
In conclusion, let’s think before we speak, be positive and affirming, in our own words and deeds, as we apply this Gospel to building God’s Kingdom of justice, peace and love.
john hannon 2nd March 2025