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Something
Stronger than an Elephant
August 30-31, 2003
Fr. George Smiga
Mark
7:l-8, 14-15, 21-23
The elephant
is the largest land animal that exists. It is, of course,
a very powerful beast. Nevertheless, throughout most of Africa
and Asia, elephants are tamed for domestic purposes. Farmers
use them to tear down walls and to carry heavy loads. How
is this possible? For although the elephant is a cooperative
creature, if it decided to wander off, who would stop it?
There is a universal and effective means to solve this problem.
Farmers in this region will take a wild elephant and tie a
rope to one of its legs and then tie the other end to a banyan
tree. Now the banyan tree is a huge tree with roots that go
deep into the ground. It is immovable. For a few days the
elephant will tug on the rope, trying to wander away. But
in time he learns that there is no budging the banyan tree.
Once that lesson is learned, the farmer's task is simple.
He can take the elephant wherever he wishes and by tying it
to a simple little wooden stake in the ground, he renders
the elephant immobile. Because as soon as the elephant feels
the tug of the rope on his leg, he gives up. He has learned
that you can't move a banyan tree.
This is
the power of habit. Once we learn a pattern of behavior, that
pattern tends to rule our lives. There can be other ways of
acting or thinking, but we usually give in to the pattern
we already know, because it is habitual. This seems to be
the problem for the scribes in today's gospel. They inherited
a tradition of ritually washing their hands before meals,
and they criticize Jesus' disciples for not following the
practice. The scribes were not trying to cause trouble. They
were simply giving a custom, a habit, more importance and
authority than it deserved. The power of the habit prevented
them from recognizing that other and even better ways of acting
were possible.
The word
of God today calls us to look at the habits, the patterns
of behavior in our own life, and to realize the power that
they have over us. Certain habits might indeed be good. But
there are other habits that hold us back and lessen our ability
to live. I imagine that many here this morning have the habit
of coming to church on the weekend. If it's Sunday, it's into
the car and to St. Noel. Now in itself that habit of coming
to church is good. But we should not confuse the habit of
showing up with the worship of God. What God asks of us is
not simply to show up, but to be open to God's word in our
lives. Being physically present in church is not the same
as being open to expect God to address us, to change us, and
to call us to service. But all too often the habit of coming
is given equal weight with the reality of worship, and that
can hold us back from growth.
Some of
us might have the habit of comfort, the habit of least resistance.
We find ourselves at the end of our work plopping down in
front of the television set or the computer screen, and hours
go by. Over the course of the week we can waste a great deal
of time. We never stop to ask ourselves, "What could
I accomplish if I spent that time in another way?" I
could call a friend that I've been meaning to talk to. I could
ask the kids how things went in school. I could exercise.
I might even find a way of serving my neighbor. All of these
things are real possibilities, real options for our time.
But we never seize them, because the habit of inactivity,
the habit of least resistance, kicks in.
Some of
us might have the habit of forgetfulness. We live every day
with people in our family, we see our friends often, but we
forget how important these people are to us. When was the
last time that we remembered why we love our spouse? When
was the last time we remembered why we were proud of our children
or thankful for our friends? When was the last time we told
them so? It is a real possibility to remember and to tell
our spouse our love, our children our pride, our friends our
thankfulness. These are real options for action in our lives,
but all too often we do not seize them because the habit of
forgetfulness takes those opportunities away. We live from
day to day without ever recognizing the blessings that we
have been given.
God calls
us to grow, to deepen our life. Change is possible. Growth
is a reality. But only if we face the habits that are holding
us back. If we do not examine the habits in our life that
are stifling us, we give them more power over us. We are a
gifted people. We have a great potential. We have a bright
future. But if we do not recognize the habits that are controlling
us, that future, that potential, those gifts can be lost.
We may be as powerful as an elephant, but if we are blind
to the habits that control us, we can find ourselves powerless,
tied to a small wooden stake as the world passes us by.
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