Daily Retreat 10/28/07
2007 Oct 28 SUN: THIRTIETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Sir 35: 12-14. 16-18/ Ps 33(34): 2-3. 17-18. 19. 23 (7a)/ 2 Tm 4: 6-8. 16-18/ Lk 18: 9- 14
From today’s readings: “The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds.... The Lord hears the cry of the poor.... The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat.... O God, be merciful to me a sinner....”
A Lesson in Psychology
I never liked group projects in school. From the earliest grades, I was invariably matched up with some of the most unmotivated kids in class. So, in order to assure a good grade for “our” group project, not only would I have to do my own part well, I would inevitably end up spending extra time assisting the laggards, either helping them do their part right, re-doing what they had done sloppily, or outrightly doing their share of work myself when they failed to complete it or even get started on it!
One of my last group projects in school dates to my junior year in college. Although I’ve utterly forgotten the details of the assignment, I’ll never forget the lesson in life it taught me, the same lesson I should have learned earlier from the Gospel.
For my Intro to Psychology class, we were assigned to groups of five or six, and instructed to complete some elementary unimaginative experiments in behavioral observation over the weekend and then, of course, to document our inconsequential conclusions. Not a single one of us was overly enthused about the assignment, least of all myself. To tell the truth, I was only in the class because it was one of those core courses in the humanities for which the dean refused to allow more practical substitutions. And we were certainly a motley crew - none of us hung out together, nor did any of us have the slightest interest in getting to know each other better.
So only with the utmost reluctance did we all finally agree to meet in the library to work on our project at 8pm Sunday evening. That, of course, is the hour which college students (at least the semi-serious ones) consider the end of the weekend - the time to get started on the homework and studies which, as we routinely complained to our professors, were so excessive as to occupy our whole weekend!
But in fact, that one was mostly a carefree weekend. I don’t think I had even troubled my head with a single thought about the psych assignment until I glanced at a clock Sunday evening, and the clock read 8:30, and for some vague reason, that seemed ominous. But momentarily, the vagueness of the reason dissipated, and I literally screamed as the dreadful realization hit that I had forgotten the appointment to work on the group project!
Dropping everything, I immediately ran with all my might the half mile to the library, lambasting myself for becoming the same type of parasite that had habitually exploited me in previous projects. A zero for this assignment would certainly skewer my psych grade - was there any way I could redeem myself with the other members of the group? Perhaps I could agree to do all the typing for the final paper, and for good measure, I would even promise to do some extra credit research so we could tack on an impressive appendix! In my desperation, I was willing to do practically anything to salvage my psych grade. I even tried to think of the best way to humbly beg the other group members to accept my proposal to make amends....
But when I finally arrived at the library, there was no one from my class there! Figuring they must have all moved elsewhere, I frantically checked around the locale, and then eventually tried telephoning the other members’ dorms. When I finally got through to one classmate, I started to apologize profusely, but all he did was yawn as he grunted the realization, “Oh yeah, we were supposed to meet tonight, weren’t we?”
Although I was somewhat relieved that I wasn’t the only one who had forgotten the meeting, I certainly didn’t consider his lapse could ever serve as my justification. Nonetheless, as I painstakingly traced down the other members of the group, and one by one, (and generally, without much chagrin), each admitted that he too had forgotten our appointment, the earnest contrition about my own failing and zealous resolution to make amends gradually were drowned out by self-righteous disgust for the inexcusable negligence of the other members of the group.
But providentially, my guardian angel insisted that I reflect anew on the whole situation during my nightly examination of conscience. Yes, I had forgotten the appointment, and that was clear evidence of negligence on my own part. But after all, everyone else had forgotten too, and in the end, I was the one who finally remembered and then took the initiative to marshal the members together for a later meeting to complete the assignment. “True enough,” my conscience admitted, “but are you excusing your own faults because everyone else has those same faults, or even worse ones? Is that ever solid moral reasoning?”
As the Gospel parable suddenly came to mind, the realization hit me that I had to choose between stepping forward like the Pharisee to thank God that I wasn’t like the rest of those dolts in my group, since, after all, I had been the one to save the day; or, I could follow the publican’s example by focusing on my own failing, confessing my sinfulness, my negligence, my self-righteousness, humbly begging the Lord to have mercy on me, a sinner.
It’s so natural to shrug off missing Mass occasionally, because, after all, there are so many who do so regularly. It’s so simple to soothe a conscience about using contraceptives, because, after all, nearly everyone else is doing it. It’s so easy to excuse occasional gossip and bad language, because, after all, that’s just the way people talk in this age. It’s so tempting to justify these and all our own shortcomings - it’s so tempting to be a self-righteous Pharisee, because, after all, that’s just what the Tempter wants everyone to be....
Sir 35: 12-14. 16-18/ Ps 33(34): 2-3. 17-18. 19. 23 (7a)/ 2 Tm 4: 6-8. 16-18/ Lk 18: 9- 14
From today’s readings: “The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds.... The Lord hears the cry of the poor.... The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat.... O God, be merciful to me a sinner....”
A Lesson in Psychology
I never liked group projects in school. From the earliest grades, I was invariably matched up with some of the most unmotivated kids in class. So, in order to assure a good grade for “our” group project, not only would I have to do my own part well, I would inevitably end up spending extra time assisting the laggards, either helping them do their part right, re-doing what they had done sloppily, or outrightly doing their share of work myself when they failed to complete it or even get started on it!
One of my last group projects in school dates to my junior year in college. Although I’ve utterly forgotten the details of the assignment, I’ll never forget the lesson in life it taught me, the same lesson I should have learned earlier from the Gospel.
For my Intro to Psychology class, we were assigned to groups of five or six, and instructed to complete some elementary unimaginative experiments in behavioral observation over the weekend and then, of course, to document our inconsequential conclusions. Not a single one of us was overly enthused about the assignment, least of all myself. To tell the truth, I was only in the class because it was one of those core courses in the humanities for which the dean refused to allow more practical substitutions. And we were certainly a motley crew - none of us hung out together, nor did any of us have the slightest interest in getting to know each other better.
So only with the utmost reluctance did we all finally agree to meet in the library to work on our project at 8pm Sunday evening. That, of course, is the hour which college students (at least the semi-serious ones) consider the end of the weekend - the time to get started on the homework and studies which, as we routinely complained to our professors, were so excessive as to occupy our whole weekend!
But in fact, that one was mostly a carefree weekend. I don’t think I had even troubled my head with a single thought about the psych assignment until I glanced at a clock Sunday evening, and the clock read 8:30, and for some vague reason, that seemed ominous. But momentarily, the vagueness of the reason dissipated, and I literally screamed as the dreadful realization hit that I had forgotten the appointment to work on the group project!
Dropping everything, I immediately ran with all my might the half mile to the library, lambasting myself for becoming the same type of parasite that had habitually exploited me in previous projects. A zero for this assignment would certainly skewer my psych grade - was there any way I could redeem myself with the other members of the group? Perhaps I could agree to do all the typing for the final paper, and for good measure, I would even promise to do some extra credit research so we could tack on an impressive appendix! In my desperation, I was willing to do practically anything to salvage my psych grade. I even tried to think of the best way to humbly beg the other group members to accept my proposal to make amends....
But when I finally arrived at the library, there was no one from my class there! Figuring they must have all moved elsewhere, I frantically checked around the locale, and then eventually tried telephoning the other members’ dorms. When I finally got through to one classmate, I started to apologize profusely, but all he did was yawn as he grunted the realization, “Oh yeah, we were supposed to meet tonight, weren’t we?”
Although I was somewhat relieved that I wasn’t the only one who had forgotten the meeting, I certainly didn’t consider his lapse could ever serve as my justification. Nonetheless, as I painstakingly traced down the other members of the group, and one by one, (and generally, without much chagrin), each admitted that he too had forgotten our appointment, the earnest contrition about my own failing and zealous resolution to make amends gradually were drowned out by self-righteous disgust for the inexcusable negligence of the other members of the group.
But providentially, my guardian angel insisted that I reflect anew on the whole situation during my nightly examination of conscience. Yes, I had forgotten the appointment, and that was clear evidence of negligence on my own part. But after all, everyone else had forgotten too, and in the end, I was the one who finally remembered and then took the initiative to marshal the members together for a later meeting to complete the assignment. “True enough,” my conscience admitted, “but are you excusing your own faults because everyone else has those same faults, or even worse ones? Is that ever solid moral reasoning?”
As the Gospel parable suddenly came to mind, the realization hit me that I had to choose between stepping forward like the Pharisee to thank God that I wasn’t like the rest of those dolts in my group, since, after all, I had been the one to save the day; or, I could follow the publican’s example by focusing on my own failing, confessing my sinfulness, my negligence, my self-righteousness, humbly begging the Lord to have mercy on me, a sinner.
It’s so natural to shrug off missing Mass occasionally, because, after all, there are so many who do so regularly. It’s so simple to soothe a conscience about using contraceptives, because, after all, nearly everyone else is doing it. It’s so easy to excuse occasional gossip and bad language, because, after all, that’s just the way people talk in this age. It’s so tempting to justify these and all our own shortcomings - it’s so tempting to be a self-righteous Pharisee, because, after all, that’s just what the Tempter wants everyone to be....
posted by FrPitstick | 10/26/2007
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