Crying or Dying

Seeing our children as our greatest assets

11/19/2023

Mt 25:14-15, 19-21 Jesus told his disciples this parable: "A man going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one-- to each according to his ability. Then he went away. "After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five. He said, 'Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy.'"

If someone asked you, “What are your greatest assets?” how would you answer them? Most of us would reply, “Well, my house is probably my greatest asset.” Others who have successfully traded in the stock market may say their investment portfolio is their greatest asset. Still others who have grown and expanded their business enterprise may answer, “My business is my greatest asset.”

Here at Immaculate Conception Church we review our balance sheet every month which tracks the depreciation of our assets, and by far our greatest asset listed there is our Gothic-styled church. Can you even imagine how much it would cost to rebuild and replace such a historic building? The expense would be astronomical.

But did you ever think of your children as your most precious assets? Most of us think of children in the opposite category, an expense. We have to buy more food, clothes, a larger house, get them braces, send them to Catholic schools, pay college tuition, plan a wedding, and sometimes they move into the basement and don’t even pay rent! My dog Apollo takes all my extra money for food, toys, vet bills: he’s eating me out of house and home! Many younger Americans are seeing what a huge expense children are, and so don’t get married, or don’t want children at all.

And the worst thing of all is that babies cry at Mass! When I see a baby at Mass, I shudder and think: "Oh, no, here comes the competition!" But a friend of mine reminded me recently, “Fr. John, if the church ain’t crying, the church is dying.” He totally revolutionized my thinking about assets. In other words, the greatest asset of I.C. church is not this Gothic-styled cathedral (beautiful as it is), but rather every crying baby in the pews. Think of all the beautiful churches littered all over Europe but sitting empty. If the church ain’t crying, the church is dying.

I love the conclusion of C. S. Lewis’ masterful essay called “The Weight of Glory.” There he points to our greatest asset as people, writing: “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit…Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.” Lewis teaches in no uncertain terms that people are our greatest assets, and those people were once children.

In the gospel today, Jesus presents a parable about the talents. He says: “To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one – to each according to his ability.” Now, most of the time we translate the word “talent” into some monetary amount. And that is certainly the primary meaning of talent. But talents can also be understood in the sense of “assets”, and in that sense, we have no greater assets or talents than our children.

Now listen to that parable after we replace the word “talent” with the word “children”: “To one he gave five children; to another, two children; to a third, one child – to each according to his ability.” By the way, this is why the Church insists that parents are the primary educators of their children in the faith. In other words, developing your talents means raising your children in the faith. Teach them that their greatest assets will one day be their children.

My friends, it can be hard to see that our greatest assets and talents are our children. Let me give you some examples. First, even though the Supreme Court has overturned Roe vs. Wade which legalized abortion in 1973, several states have lifted that ban on abortion and legalized it in their state. Legalizing abortion is a failure to see babies are our greatest assets, instead, we see them as a liability, and need to get them off the balance sheet.

Second, every November the United States bishops meet to discuss urgent matters facing the Church in our country. Last week some bishops felt that abortion is NOT the pre-eminent threat to our society, but fortunately, the majority of bishops still do. But how surprising that the all bishops are not unanimous their opposition to abortion, and that some could think other issues are more urgent. That is a failure to see children as our greatest assets and talents.

And third, this is a lesson we can learn from our Hispanic parishioners, too, who see children as an asset, not a liability. Hispanics have lots of babies and I have lots of competition at Spanish Masses. We typically have to do group baptisms of Hispanic babies, usually between 10 to 15 at a time. Someone remarked to me recently that our church and schools are becoming more “brown”. And I replied, “You’re welcome!” I guess my brown face is helping to make our church and school more brown, too.

My friends, it does not matter if our Church is white or brown or black or red or yellow. What matters is that we see all children as a gift from God, and in the language of Jesus’ parable today, as our real talents and treasures. Why? Because if the Church ain’t crying, our Church is dying.

Praised be Jesus Christ!