Coming from Uganda or the African tropics where the weather almost stays the same throughout the season, it is fascinating to see the seasonal changes in this country. The leaves change color, the leaves fall off the trees, the trees are left bare for months, then the trees start coming back to life by growing the leaves again, and in the end are full of green leaves again!
What Are the Signs?
People out here can read the seasons by looking at the trees and being attentive to the temperatures and can tell you Fall has come, Autumn has arrived, Winter is here, Spring is here, and Summer has arrived. By reading the weather, people know when to take out their thick jackets and scarves, when to bring out their shorts, which shoes to bring out, when to do their lawn, or when to turn on the heat or the AC. All these decisions and actions depend on their clear reading of the weather.
The Lord uses an almost similar image to explain that we can cultivate a similar spiritual competence to read our individual and social circumstances with the eyes of faith and know the decisions and actions that God is asking us to make. For instance, when we see that the divorce rate in the US has gone up to 44%, what is God asking us to do? When we see that our Churches are becoming empty, and some Churches are being closed what is God trying to show us and what action is He inviting us to take? When we see so much violence, mass incarceration of people, and huge substance addiction what do those signs say to us as a people of faith and what action is God asking us to take in our times?
Kairos Moments
There is always a “Kairos Moment” not a “Chronos Moment” – a Kairos time when God lifts the veil off certain situations and invites us to take action given what He has revealed to us. God can be able to do that about our personal lives when He shows us something about our life and invites us to take action; or he can do it on a societal level and invites a society to take action.
There are some people who can be able to read those Kairos moments well and respond appropriately, and there are some who can’t read them at all, so they take no action at all.
Our Spiritual Senses
Today the Lord invites us to cultivate a spiritual sensibility or what we call the “eyes of faith” and “ears of faith” that can be able to “see” and to “hear” Him when He reveals and speaks to us about specific matters on which He wants us to take action. Sharpening our “spiritual eyes” and “spiritual ears” takes a great commitment to a life of prayer and a commitment to matters of faith.
Today we can ask ourselves – What does God want me to “see” and to “hear” about my life and about society? What action does He want me to take given what He has shown me? There are some things that cannot be put off or be delayed. There is a moment when God desires us to take quick action and not to put off something.
- Father Boby's inspirational homily was recorded live during Mass at the Father Peyton Center this morning. You can view the Mass (and the Rosary at the 30-minute mark) on the Family Rosary YouTube page.
- To join the Rosary and Mass Livestream, visit the Family Rosary YouTube or Facebook page at 11:30 a.m. Eastern, Monday – Friday. Consider inviting others to join too! (*If you are not a member of Facebook and a signup window appears, simply select the X at the top of the pop-up message and continue to the livestream.)
