It's Self-inspection Time!
There's an amusing story of a farmer who owned a very beautiful horse of which he was very proud. One day he rode him into town and carefully tied the animal to the hitching post in front of the general store. Two thieves, passing through the town, spied the handsome horse and decided to steal it. They also decided on a clever strategy to carry out their plan. One of them untied the horse and rode swiftly away. The other remained by the post. When the farmer emerged from the store and saw that his horse was gone, he was about to shout for help when the conspirator walked up to him. In a sad, low tone he said, “Sir, I am your horse. Years ago I sinned, and for my sins I was punished. I was changed into a horse. Today my sentence is over, and I can be released if you will be so kind.” The farmer was dumbfounded, yet touched by the story. So he sent the man away wishing him luck in his new life. Several weeks later the farmer went to a fair in a neighboring town. Great was his surprise to see his own horse for sale there. After gazing long at the animal to make sure that his eyes did not deceive him, he walked over and whispered into the horse’s ear, “So -- I see you’ve sinned again!”
When we sin again, even though we don’t turn into a horse, our humanity is diminished. And we are called to repentance, which means to restore our lost humanity -- to transform ourselves into the fully human person God wants us to be.
"The time has come," Jesus says in today's Gospel Lesson, "and the Kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent, and believe the Good News" (Mk. 1:15). In Mark's Gospel, these are the first words spoken by Jesus, and this statement represents the spirit of His entire ministry: a series of demands for rebirth and renewal.
Each time we contemplate the birth of a child and the renewal of the cycle of life, [...]
Stories you can use...
We've got a million of them (well, almost).
Soul
A local civic club invited a noted surgeon as guest speaker for their monthly business meeting. The esteemed physician addressed the audience, “You know, I have operated on many people over a great many years. I have performed thousands of operations on every part of the anatomy. This forces me to some very difficult conclusions. After looking at every part of man, I have come to the conclusion that man has no soul. I have never seen one.” One woman raised her hand and challenged the speaker. ”Doctor, have you ever performed brain surgery?” ”Yes, thousands of times,” the surgeon answered. ”Well, did you ever find a thought in any of those brains?” she asked.
Commonplace
In a museum in Florence, Italy, there is a painting by Raphael called “The Madonna of the Barrel.” The story is told that Raphael was walking one day through the market place of Florence when he saw a mother, evidently a very poor woman, sitting in the street with her child at her breast. She was dressed in shabby attire, but on her face was the caring expression of mother love. Raphael was so charmed by her appearance that he decided to paint her at once, right where she sat. He took for his canvas the end of an old barrel which was conveniently nearby. Using color and brushes which were in his pocket, painted on the barrel head a picture which today hangs in one of the galleries of Florence, a masterpiece. Raphael was an immortal artist by reason of his native gifts, but more than that because of his capacity to see the beautiful and the romantic in commonplace people, even a poor woman in a market place. Peale, N.V., “The New Art of Living,” Hawthorn Books, Inc.
Vanity
A woman explained that in order to offset the depression she felt at reaching her 40th birthday, she decided to treat herself to a new haircut and a new outfit. Walking down the street, she was flattered when two young men waved at her, saying something in Spanish. Pretending not to hear them, she tossed her head haughtily as she marched resolutely onward. A third man tried to speak to her as she strode past his car. He finally leaned his head out the window and yelled, “Ma’am, they’re trying to tell you — you’re walking in their wet cement.” —Truxillo, E.G. (adapted)
Parenting
Ed Flom, Chairman and CEO of Florida Steel Corporation, addressed the Harvard Business School Club of Florida West Coast on the subject of “Leadership.” To illustrate one of his points, Flom told this story: I once became really annoyed at my daughter Julie (who was two or three years old at the time) and decided on an old Army routine to punish her. I told her that whenever she spoke to me, every sentence had to begin and end with the word “Sir.” “Sir, may I go out and play, sir?” “Sir, the boys are picking on me, sir!” Later I had to go to the drugstore and invited Julie to accompany me (provided, of course, that she sit in the back seat of the car). About halfway to our destination, I felt a little hand on the back of my neck and heard this statement: “Sir, I love you, sir.” That did it! I quickly changed routines and learned yet another lesson.
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