Preaching with our actions more than our words
1 Peter 2: 9-12
Beloved, I urge you as aliens and sojourners to keep away from worldly
desires that wage war against the soul. Maintain good conduct among the
Gentiles, so that if they speak of you as evildoers, they may observe your good
works and glorify God on the day of visitation.
When you
think about the people whom you admire the most, what do you remember about
them: their words or their works; what they said or what they did? When I think
of the priests I’ve looked up to, I can’t really think of any memorable sermons
they preached, but I do recall things they did. I can still smell Fr. Tribou’s
cigar that he smoked at Catholic High – of course, smoking was strictly
prohibited. I remember Fr. Jack Harris playing basketball with us at recess at
St. Theresa’s and beating us soundly. I can still hear Fr. Warren Harvey
singing at the end of his homilies at Good Counsel. I can still remember Fr.
Fred’s booming laughter while teaching physics, because after all, physics is a
pretty funny subject. When you think about what leaves a longer impression or a
lasting impact, actions out-weigh words. As St. Francis of Assisi once said:
“Go through all the world and preach the Good News, and when necessary, use
words.” But even St. Francis himself is revered more for what he did than what
he said.
In the first
reading today, St. Peter urges the early Christian community to focus on their
actions. He says: “Maintain good conduct among the Gentiles, so that…they may
observe your good works and glorify God on the day of salvation.” That is, what
will convince the world about Christianity is our actions, even more than our
words, just like I recall many priests’ behavior more than their sermons. St.
Peter himself was a man of action: he stepped out of the boat to walk on water,
he wanted to build three booths at the Transfiguration on Mt. Tabor, he refused
to let Jesus wash his feet at the Last Supper, he cut off the servant’s ear in
the Garden of Gethsamane. Peter knew that people are admired for their actions,
and that’s the most powerful preaching to give glory to God.
My friends,
let me ask you: what kind of sermon are you preaching with your actions?
Sometimes our words say one thing but our actions say something else. Fr. James
Martin, the popular Jesuit writer, said his father would drive the family to
Mass on Sunday, and while everyone else was inside, his father would sit in the
car and read the newspaper. The father in the car was preaching a more
memorable sermon than the Father in the church! Some Catholics bring their
children to our Catholic school or PRE classes but never bring them to Mass on
Sunday. Who’s truly teaching those children a lasting lesson? Folks, what
people remember about us will not be our wise words or our catchy clichés, but
rather what we do, and what we don’t do. That’s what your children will
remember about you, and my parishioners will remember about me.
Indeed, in the end, even lovers don’t
want lengthy letters or sappy soliloquies, they want their beloved’s embrace.
As Mary Chapin Carpenter sang so unforgettably, lovers say: “Shut up and kiss
me.”
Praised be
Jesus Christ!
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