Charlie is a mutt.That said, he does have some breed specific traits. He shows some beagle but probably a bit more prominent is the golden retriever in his blood. He actually looks like a miniature golden retriever, if that were a breed. He has the same boxy face and floppy ears. He has a beautiful flag tail, and the most silky golden fur I think I’'ve ever seen. But, appearances aren'’t the only way his retriever blood shows.
My dog loves to play fetch. He will bring a stuffed toy, a stick, or, most favorite, a bouncing ball. He loves to run after the bouncing ball, catch it in his mouth and return it for the next throw. This game goes on as long as the thrower doesn'’t get tired. There is also a sneaky trick played by the thrower from time to time. At our house, we call it the fake-out. You know the one. You pretend to throw the ball, and your dog unwittingly chases after nothing.
Carlie falls for this trick nearly every time it’s played. What’s funny though, is that no matter how often he gets tricked, he never loses interest in playing fetch. He always comes back just as excited by the opportunity to chase after that bouncing ball.
Have noticed that we don’t have the same exuberance about being tricked or fooled. We get angry and resentful. We then carry that hurt and resentment into our relationships with others who have no fault in the trickery. What’s worse is we carry that tough exterior into ministry, too.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus describes the judgment of all souls. He speaks about the Lord separating the sheep from the goats. The Lord judges both groups according to the same criteria. He praises the sheep for ministering to the Lord when he was sick, hungry, naked, and in prison. The goats are rebuked for not caring for him. When the sheep and goats both ask when they were or were not caring for the Lord, He tells them that, “whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me."
When we hear these words today, I think we give ourselves too much leeway. We say, I give money to the poor, I serve at Mass, I do volunteer activities in my community. I am clearly serving Jesus. I’m fine.
But, what about the scammers? What about the cheaters and the criminals? What about the people who are freeloaders and abusers? What about the ones who refuse to ask for forgiveness?
Are we still reaching out to them? Are we still kind? Do we show them love and consideration?
The trouble is, we don'’t. We put up our walls and barriers and comfort ourselves with the knowledge that they don't deserve the ministry of Jesus. They have been tricksters, so they haven’t earned the care and love we have to share. But, we couldn’'t be further from the truth.
When we go forth to our judgment day, the Lord isn'’t going to praise us for not getting fleeced or tricked by others. He’s going to ask how many times we forgave, how many times we reached out to others, or how many times we were loving. What will we answer?
I know that it’s hard to stay joyful and forgiving when people give you so much to be grumpy about. That’s why welcome to the Eucharist each week. It’s why we can seek to let go of those hurts in Confession. The Sacraments let us start again, so we can go out fresh and renewed ready to love and serve each other once more.
Chasing a ball thrills Charlie no matter how many times we try to trick him. The opportunity to care and serve the world should do the same for us
