A Sunday Thought to Start the Week Off Right
This third Sunday of 2017 finds the New Year in full swing. Those first days back to work after the generally quiet Christmas Season were, as usual, a bit of a stretch. Like a body stiff from a long night's sleep, the muscles and joints resisted the first stirrings, in this case the normal work load, wishing at times to return to the cocoon of the great Christmas reprieve. Of course, the inevitability of a return to normal eventually sinks in, and reality takes over from imagination and wishful thinking. And so we find ourselves now fully in sync with the pace of the modern world, firing on all cylinders, full steam ahead, etc. It's at this point that we again recognize the true and full value one of the roles Sunday should play in our lives: rest.
Last Sunday we talked a bit about proper attitude and disposition at Mass. But the Lord's Day provides us with more than the Holy Sacrifice. Our Father wants us to take a break in some substantive manner from not only servile work, but our everyday cares and labors. That's why Sunday has been called a "day of rest."
In days gone by, most stores closed on Sunday. Sadly, that's not true anymore. I remember when a local discount department store, formerly closed on Sunday, opened just it's food section on Sundays; the rest of the store was roped off. Soon, though, the entire store was open for Sunday business, as was just about every other store. The only hold-outs for a spell were liquor stores; and that changed not too long ago, at least in our neck of the woods.
I remember having dinner with a couple who own a fine wine and liquor store, shortly after the Sunday ban was lifted. They were complaining about how they now had to work seven days a week. So naturally I asked why they didn't just stay closed on Sunday. It seems if they had, their regular customers would simply go to a competitor and they'd likely lose that business permanently. Goodbye day of rest. And the same applies to many other retail business establishments.
Perhaps this will all lead to our country eventually imitating the Chinese, at least those living in Hong Kong, with whom I've had some experience. An American I know married a Chinese woman and worked for her family. They worked seven days a week, along with every other Chinese family with whom they did business. Basically, they worked all the time, with the one break coming at their New Year's celebration. Do we want to imitate this practice? Will the more you work, the more you make, take over every part of our lives - if it hasn't already done so?
My parents used to tell me stories of Sundays "back in the day"; we're talking back to when some people didn't have telephones (and we're not talking cell phones: any kind of telephone!). This was at a time when families tended to live near each other. Sunday was a day to get together. People would stop by on Sunday sometimes unannounced. No big deal because unannounced didn't really mean unexpected. After all, it was Sunday. Besides having a day off from work (and there was no TV or - going back far enough - even a radio) people got together and actually spent time together, even talking to one another...face to face!
It's likely such an arrangement would likely not fly today; even hard for some of us to imagine. But our Father still wants us to rest in some meaningful way. "Remember thou keep holy the Lord's Day" remains one of the Ten Commandments. It hasn't been revoked, despite what's developed in recent years. And what we're suggesting here is that part of that keeping holy includes rest, at the very least a respite from any difficult or distasteful activities that might fill the other six days. This isn't about following rules and regulations (although there is that aspect to consider: it's a Commandment, after all). It's more about appreciating the love of a Father for His children, recognizing that He knows what's good for us, just as any decent, caring father would.
If you're a parent, and you've got a child who works really hard, you likely have suggested rest to them from time to time, if they seem to be overdoing it. Maybe your own parents have suggested this to you. Now picture our Heavenly Father, Whose love for us knows no limit. If you're not sure how magnanimous the love of our Father is for us, just remember that He sent His only begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, to condescend to live among us, to give us His example of how to live a good life, and even suffered and died so that each and every one of us could spend eternity basking in the Father's love in Heaven. These aren't just words we learn from our Catechism. Mull them over a bit, let them sink in, and you'll see why Sunday as a day of rest springs from the Father's deep, infinite love for you and me.
The worst thing we can do in the face of such immense generosity would be to reject the offer, to turn our back on our loving Father. Don't do it. Try to get by without making Sunday a day of shopping, or chores. Take a break, spend time with family. Engage yourself in activities you find refreshing, even enriching: read good books, listen to beautiful music, spend some extra time in prayer and spiritual reading, especially if you're not doing this during the week on a regular basis. Sunday shouldn't just be the first day of the week or even the day you go to Mass. Accept your Father's love. Return that love by those thoughts, words, and actions that will keep you in His warm embrace.
Have a Blessed and Happy Sunday!
Last Sunday we talked a bit about proper attitude and disposition at Mass. But the Lord's Day provides us with more than the Holy Sacrifice. Our Father wants us to take a break in some substantive manner from not only servile work, but our everyday cares and labors. That's why Sunday has been called a "day of rest."
In days gone by, most stores closed on Sunday. Sadly, that's not true anymore. I remember when a local discount department store, formerly closed on Sunday, opened just it's food section on Sundays; the rest of the store was roped off. Soon, though, the entire store was open for Sunday business, as was just about every other store. The only hold-outs for a spell were liquor stores; and that changed not too long ago, at least in our neck of the woods.
I remember having dinner with a couple who own a fine wine and liquor store, shortly after the Sunday ban was lifted. They were complaining about how they now had to work seven days a week. So naturally I asked why they didn't just stay closed on Sunday. It seems if they had, their regular customers would simply go to a competitor and they'd likely lose that business permanently. Goodbye day of rest. And the same applies to many other retail business establishments.
Perhaps this will all lead to our country eventually imitating the Chinese, at least those living in Hong Kong, with whom I've had some experience. An American I know married a Chinese woman and worked for her family. They worked seven days a week, along with every other Chinese family with whom they did business. Basically, they worked all the time, with the one break coming at their New Year's celebration. Do we want to imitate this practice? Will the more you work, the more you make, take over every part of our lives - if it hasn't already done so?
My parents used to tell me stories of Sundays "back in the day"; we're talking back to when some people didn't have telephones (and we're not talking cell phones: any kind of telephone!). This was at a time when families tended to live near each other. Sunday was a day to get together. People would stop by on Sunday sometimes unannounced. No big deal because unannounced didn't really mean unexpected. After all, it was Sunday. Besides having a day off from work (and there was no TV or - going back far enough - even a radio) people got together and actually spent time together, even talking to one another...face to face!
It's likely such an arrangement would likely not fly today; even hard for some of us to imagine. But our Father still wants us to rest in some meaningful way. "Remember thou keep holy the Lord's Day" remains one of the Ten Commandments. It hasn't been revoked, despite what's developed in recent years. And what we're suggesting here is that part of that keeping holy includes rest, at the very least a respite from any difficult or distasteful activities that might fill the other six days. This isn't about following rules and regulations (although there is that aspect to consider: it's a Commandment, after all). It's more about appreciating the love of a Father for His children, recognizing that He knows what's good for us, just as any decent, caring father would.
If you're a parent, and you've got a child who works really hard, you likely have suggested rest to them from time to time, if they seem to be overdoing it. Maybe your own parents have suggested this to you. Now picture our Heavenly Father, Whose love for us knows no limit. If you're not sure how magnanimous the love of our Father is for us, just remember that He sent His only begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, to condescend to live among us, to give us His example of how to live a good life, and even suffered and died so that each and every one of us could spend eternity basking in the Father's love in Heaven. These aren't just words we learn from our Catechism. Mull them over a bit, let them sink in, and you'll see why Sunday as a day of rest springs from the Father's deep, infinite love for you and me.
The worst thing we can do in the face of such immense generosity would be to reject the offer, to turn our back on our loving Father. Don't do it. Try to get by without making Sunday a day of shopping, or chores. Take a break, spend time with family. Engage yourself in activities you find refreshing, even enriching: read good books, listen to beautiful music, spend some extra time in prayer and spiritual reading, especially if you're not doing this during the week on a regular basis. Sunday shouldn't just be the first day of the week or even the day you go to Mass. Accept your Father's love. Return that love by those thoughts, words, and actions that will keep you in His warm embrace.
Have a Blessed and Happy Sunday!
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