MEDITATION TIP —
16th Sunday in Ordinary Time July 21, 2024

“Jesus had deep compassion on them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd” (Mark 6:34).

　The Gospel treats sheep as if they were the epitome of weak animals. But sheep are not the only weak animals that have a way to survive in nature. In some cases, they use their weakness as a weapon to adapt and survive in nature. Humans, likewise, have weaknesses, flaws, and shortcomings. However, many people are troubled by their flaws and shortcomings. Indeed, many people lament that their lives would be better if they did not have these flaws and shortcomings. But would life really be different without these flaws and shortcomings? Even if they didn't have those flaws and shortcomings, they would probably find other flaws and shortcomings and lament in the same way. But there is no one who has not been protected by his own flaws and saved by his own shortcomings.

　What we perceive as flaws, shortcomings, worries, and crises are, from a different perspective, strengths, possibilities, and opportunities. In fact, our flaws and shortcomings are our "irreplaceable friends. As the saying goes, “Yesterday’s enemy is today’s friend as well as “yesterday’s weakness is today’s strength.” Furthermore, just as the saying goes, “A friend in unexpected circumstances is a true friend,” many people have experienced that a shortcoming that they thought was unexpected was actually their true strength, and it has determined their lives.

　Therefore, it is important to rephrase things as follows. For example, I am indecisive, but I am really kind. I am angry, but that is a sign of passion. I am prone to change my mind, but that is because I am curious. I am cold, but that is because I am able to judge calmly. Thus, as you change the way you say things, you will find yourself reassessing yourself and gaining confidence in yourself. This is not to console yourself; it is the principle that “if you act that way, you will be that way,” and as you keep reminding yourself of it, it really will be that way. We can change the world just by changing our views and perspectives. “There is no happiness or unhappiness in the world, but the way we think can make it so.” (Konosuke Matsushita)

　“Human beings are nothing more than a reed, the weakest thing in nature, but a reed that thinks” (Pascal, “Pensee”). The reed is a perennial grass of the Poaceae family that grows in colonies near water. Because of its weak and shaky appearance, Pascal likens human beings to a reed. In the vastness of the universe, human beings are helpless and miserable. But human beings, through thought, can encompass even this vast universe. Therein lies the dignity and greatness of a human being. Thus, Pascal says, “a human being is a thinking reed,” a contradictory being of misery and greatness, powerlessness and infinity. The Bible also describes the weak human being as a “bruised reed” (Isaiah 42:3).

　True strength comes from recognizing one’s own weakness. By discovering what we cannot do, we actually discover what else we can do. To discover what we cannot do is to know ourselves. And when we truly know ourselves, we can discover that important thing that only we can do.

 　　　　　(Contribution by Father Akabae)