Shortly after becoming pastor of the Church of the Resurrection in Cincinnati,
I met the daughter of our music director.
She was not a Catholic,
but began coming to Mass with her mother every Sunday,
usually sitting in the first or second pew.

One Sunday, after Mass,
several older women approached me.
They said that I needed to speak to the music director’s daughter.
She was playing on her iPad during Mass,
especially during the homily.
I hadn’t noticed it
and wasn’t that concerned,
but having heard their complaints several times
I decided to talk to her about
in a more friendly manner than I was afraid they might.
So during coffee and donuts I sat with her
and we chatted for a while.
Then when it seemed safe to do so
I broached the subject.
I simply told her that some of the people sitting near her
were distracted when she was on her iPad during Mass.
Then she explained what she was doing.
“I have about 40 followers
who tune in every Sunday morning
to find out what you or the deacon are preaching about.
I take notes throughout the homily
and they ready my notes live.
I’m just trying to get the message out to my friend.”
From the outside,
some people thought she was just playing on her iPad,
when in fact she was evangelizing her friends
every Sunday morning,
and I wasn’t going to put a stop to that,
and neither were the ladies who had initially complained
about what she was doing.

Sometimes, what looks one way at first glance,
looks another when you understand what is really happening.

 

Jesus tells the Pharisees the same thing.

Until you understand the whole story,
you shouldn’t be judging others.

Circumstances matter,
and as important as the law of Moses is,
God is more concerned about people
than about all the details of the law,

especially those laws that are not from God

but from those who think they know better than God.

 

Jesus is calling us,

not to ignore basic practices of hygiene,

but to pay attention to what is really important.

 

God did not give the laws to Moses
in order to burden the people,
but in order to make their live simpler
and easier once they entered the Promised Land.

 

Elsewhere I the gospels
Jesus tells us what’s really important.

“You shall love the Lord your God
with you whole heart, with all your strength,
and you neighbor as yourself.”

 

If you’re looking for more details,

in Matthew’s Gospel,

Jesus asks us to feed the hungry,

give something to drink to the thirsty,

clothe the naked,

welcome the stranger,

and to visit those in prison and the sick.

 

He also tells us that sometimes its as simple
as giving a glass of cold water
to someone who is thirsty.

 

The Pharisees were making a list
and checking it twice,
but Jesus keeps no list.
he simply loves and asks us to love
in return.

 

As we gather at the table of the Lord,
there is no test to see if we are worthy.

Jesus knows that none of us is truly worthy.

He simply offers us himself as food and drink,
not a reward for the righteous,
but as food for those who need the grace of God in their lives.

The meal we share here

Is not for the holy,
but for those who wish to become holy,
those who know they are sinners
and who know that God loves them anyway.

 

The Pharisees were looking for ways to judge and condemn
Jesus and his disciples.
The little old ladies who complained about the young lady on her iPad
didn’t understand what was really going on either.

But Jesus knows what’s important
and invites us to know the same thing.

God never tells anyone
that it is their job to judge others.

God tells everyone we have only one responsibility,
love as we are loved by God.

 

And, by the way, the young lady with the iPad,
she stopped being judged
and began to experience love in that parish community
asked if she could be received into the Church,
and I was privileged to confirm her
and welcome her to the table of the Lord,
and a few years later,
as we watched her loosing her battle with cancer,
her faith inspired us all
as she continued to love God
and God’s people during the most painful time of her life.