Maybe that dream is not a dream after all

Today at Holy Mass in the first reading St John draws a line in the sand….He discusses how “the things” of this world are passing and that attachment to those “things” lead to distancing ones self from God….”Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, sensual lust, enticement for the eyes, and a pretentious life, is not from the Father but is from the world. Yet the world and its enticement are passing away. But whoever does the will of God remains forever.”…….This statement by St John goes against just about every one of our American sensibilities…..It brings to the forefront of our mind what is truly important and what gets disregarded….While we live in this world, clearly we need certain material things to provide for our family…But materialism, which is so pervasive in American culture leads one to forget what is most important….All the “things” we have will not comfort us when we are alone on our death bed….Only a life detached from materialism can lead us to where we want to go….And only God can give us what the world can never give us - Which is peace, lasting joy and eternal life

“A holy day has dawned upon us. Come, you nations, and adore the Lord. Today a great light has come upon the earth.”

For seven years I worked for Morgan Stanley, which is one of the largest Investment Banks in the world….While I was not an executive, I dealt with on a daily basis many people who were…These individuals made ridiculous sums of money….They are the people young American high achievers aspire to be…..During the time that I work with these people, I noticed that many of them were not very happy….Let me put it this way, on my free time, these were not the people I would want to spend time with…..Could it be that the “American dream”, which we pump into our children’s heads is not a “dream” after all?….Clearly, we need to earn a living in this life but if making tons of money makes a person miserable, the question becomes - Is it worth it?…..Back to my time working at Morgan Stanley…On my floor there was this old woman who cleaned the floor…She always pushed around a big garbage can and on that can she taped a picture of the Holy family, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, so as she pushed the can, she could always see this holy image as she worked…I bring this woman up because she was always smiling…She always seemed happy and when you greeted her, she always returned the greeting with joy…..This woman made a fraction of what the people I worked with made and yet, she was infinitely happier and so much more pleasant to be around…How can that be?…..There is a great paradox to living a Catholic life….To the world a Catholic lifestyle does not make sense…..I can remember when I had my fifth child at the age of 51 years old…My boss who made hundreds of thousands of dollars a year said to me - “Joe - You are crazy”…..Is it so crazy to have children?…..Or……Is it crazy to allow material things to dominate our life?……..Life is all about choices…..And with all choices made there are consequences, both in the here and now and when we die and face the Lord……As a middle aged man, I can say I have learned a “few things” in my life time…One of those “things” is - You can not have it both ways - Meaning, if we choose the things of the world, we lose God in the process……Jesus puts it this way……“No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon”…......This statement is unquestionably true…..Interestingly enough - What is commonly called “Americanism” in academic circles, which prioritizes material success as the primarily goal in life and should be “the dream” of all is in direct conflict with the words of Christ - Hmmmmm - Were we sold a lie?.......….Working hard and living up to our potential is what everyone should hope to achieve, I sure do, but if that means losing our relationship with God - Is it worth it?….Speaking personally, I have never met an eighty-five year old man who showed me a picture of his car….Eight-five year old men, seem to always show you pictures of their grand-kids and do so with a huge smile……Catholics need to strive to be "in the world" but not be "of the world"…As St John tells us today…......…”The world and its enticement are passing away”……..Don’t sell yourself short and don’t sell your soul for something that will leave you all alone in the end….....Why? - Because - “Whoever does the will of God remains forever.”…You can’t have it both ways…Don’t believe the lie

“Say among the nations: The LORD is king. He has made the world firm, not to be moved; he governs the peoples with equity”

Today at Mass St John tells it like it is….."The love of money is the root of all evil”…....Now don’t get me wrong - We need a certain amount of money to provide for our family…Is that what we do or are we “building our castle” here on earth and in doing so, “thinking” we can still have God and heaven in the process?…..This idea, which is associated with what is referred to as Americanism, is in direct conflict with Catholic Social Teaching….Are we familiar with Catholic Social Teaching?……Have we “twisted” our belief system to live like our pagan neighbors as opposed to living for God and working daily to build his Kingdom on earth?……Do we believe in the “prosperity gospel” as opposed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ?……All valid questions - And all these questions are addressed by St John today at Mass………..”Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” - Hmmmm - Does not sound like the American Dream I was taught?….....Maybe that dream is not a dream after all…………..JMJ