May 2, 2010: 5th Sunday Easter (C)

  (Click to hear the audio homily)

Last week Friday morning, if you were out at our school's football field, you would have seen a cutest scene. Early last week, the rides for our parish fair was being set up, and many of the parents who drove by the field with little ones in their cars had to stop, get out and let the little ones see all the activities. But that wasn't the cutest scene. The cutest scene was when the entire Pre-K and Kindergarten classes were led out to the football field for a training--a training for what could potentially happen at the parish fair, which really did happen many times. And on Sunday at the fair, I witnessed it for myself how effective this training was.  After devouring a hamburger, nachos, a cup of ice cream, and cotton candy, I went near the big tent to rest. In the big tent was also the main public announcement booth. I saw a small 5 yr. old girl in the booth, teary eyed and one of the parents was consoling the child. The parent then made the following announcement over the PA: "Mother of (so and so), you are lost. Please report to the main booth." The parent then said to me, "A child is never lost. However, a parent can be."

Wouldn't it be nice if our older children, our teenagers, college age, and adult children receive the same training and find their lost parents? Our Pre-K and Kindergarten were trained to walk immediately to the announcement booth when their parents were lost and report them so they can be found. Wouldn't it be nice if our older children and adult children walk immediately walk over somewhere when their parents are lost?

For our little ones, helping them find their parents is easy. But for our older children, helping them find their lost parents is difficult. With the Pre-K and Kindergarten, you still have dependence and obedience. The little ones do what you ask them to do because they trust you. Here at Our Lady of Mercy School, when the little ones are about to cross the street, their teachers ask them to join hands and follow closely. Do you think the same happens for 8th graders or high school students? They are self-sufficient and self-confident with 'a hint' of disobedience and distrust of authority. Dads remember that when their kids were little, they were treated as the strongest and the smartest dad in town. It seems like these days with shows like, "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?" dads lose their glory very early. The same is for our attitude toward Heavenly Father. Before the First Communion, the little ones prayed diligently and obediently, treating Him with utmost respect. But with the gift of Nintendo, iPod, a cellphone, and all the new toys that arrive with each consecutive birthdays, we lost sight of the Heavenly Father quick. We may even be bold enough, even be arrogant enough to claim that He doesn't exist or that He is irrelevant--that's exactly what I said to myself 18 years ago. If you had seen me 18 years ago, I was a cocky, self-absorbed, selfish young man who had no room for others and definitely no room for Heavenly Father. I trusted myself only--I distrusted God and I was disobedient.

Then when a crisis hits, when we come upon a situation where we can't get ourselves out of it, we begin to cry. We begin to walk toward that announcement booth, looking for our lost Heavenly Father. Many of us ask  why Heavenly Father would so readily come find us when we are so ungrateful and disobedient. It really speaks of His boundless love. We read in our Second Reading that, "Behold, God's dwelling is with the human race. He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them as their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes..." Wouldn't it be nice if we train ourselves to go to the announcement booth when we are lost--to walk over to the Church, to open our Bible that's gathering dust, to go to Confession, and to say, "Heavenly Father, you are lost, come find me!"