Justice: Parishioner Reflections on the Jubilee

...much will be required of the person entrusted with much...

I have felt keenly the call to reach out to persons in need since I was small. As a child I remember watching an appeal on television for children starving in Africa and asking my mom if we could give money.
 
Closer to home, I have spent my entire life among individuals with disabilities. My older brother, who currently works full-time, is learning disabled. My youngest sister, who just began her first year in junior high and likes the new independence and challenge of school, has Down syndrome. To outsiders, my brother and sister appear different.
 
I often wonder why each of us ends up where we are. Why did academics come easily to me and yet were a struggle for my brother? Why do I have opportunities to travel whereas my brother always will live at home? And what about those living in poverty and starving daily? Why is that not me?

I haven't yet found answers to those questions. However, I try to use my experience and gifts to build God's kingdom here on earth. My siblings, Joe and Catherine, have made me aware that the appearance of a person does not always reflect what's on the inside. We must strive to see each person as made in God's image and likeness. In Luke's Gospel Jesus tells Peter that "much will be required of the person entrusted with much." Thus, along with the opportunities that I have, comes the moral obligation to take these gifts and use them to make this world reflect justice where all have enough to eat and are treated as children of God.

Prayer:
Loving God, each of us is made in your image and likeness. Help us to see you in ourselves and others. Give us the courage and wisdom to use your gifts, the opportunities that we have, to build a society where all persons have access to adequate food, decent shelter, excellent education, and a dignified means of making a living.

Anne Marie Kaufmann

Next reflection >>
or         
E-mail this to a friend      

     
Go Home Go Jubilee

Revised/reviewed September 5, 2000