Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

In today’s first reading, Saint Paul asks a question that is worth reflecting upon. ‘What do you have that was not given to you?’ Paul is reminding the members of the church in Corinth that so much in life is gift. We might work for something but even the ability to work is itself a gift. The people who matter most to us in life are a gift. We probably didn’t go looking for them; they came to us. We have just begun the Season of Creation in the church, which goes from 1^st of September to the 4^th of October, the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. It is a good time to recall how the natural world is a gift that has been given to us. Nature is a wonderful gift that can bring us healing and that can help to renew our spirits. In the gospel reading, Jesus’ disciples were treating the ears of the corn in the cornfield through which they walked as a gift. The Pharisees accused them of breaking God’s Law, but Jesus defended their actions. They were hungry and taking a few ears of corn to satisfy their hunger, which was perfectly acceptable according to Jesus’ understanding of God’s Law. It might be the equivalent of us picking and eating the black currants that have been appearing in various hedgerows at the moment. Jesus would want us to appreciate the ways that God is always gracing us and bestowing gifts on us. The appropriate response to the experience of being gifted is gratitude. A spirit of thanksgiving to God is to characterize the Lord’s followers. As Saint Paul says in another of his letters, ‘Give thanks in all circumstances’. No matter how difficult life may be for us, there is always something for which we can give thanks. A grateful attitude for all of God’s gifts to everyone can make us less critical of others.