About Me

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Themes of Detachment

I listened to a homily on the subject of our call to detachment.  It really resonated with me.  In sincerity.    We are fairly willing to detach if what we are letting go is something we perceive to be bad or poor for us. 

I feel that sometimes this is not the complete act of detachment.  We are not called only  to give up what we dislike for our good.  Sometimes, we have to give up what we love for the better of someone else.  This could mean, instead of $40 worth of take out lunches, you donate that to the church soup kitchen, and you brown bag it to work for a week. Or maybe you give your time to a charity instead of hanging out at home in your arm chair.  Maybe, for the greater good, you let go of control of a situation.  Maybe you say yes, when you want to say no.

I believe there is balance to detachment. We are not to just give up things we dislike but, we must learn to give up what we adore.  This is by far the biggest of my challenges. 

So when I listen to the readings for leaving everything behind and following Jesus, I know what he is calling me to do.  I wish I had the courage to do that.  I wish I could just leave it all behind and follow him as I am called.  But, that would mean I would have to sacrifice everything, that which I detest along with that which I adore.  What a difficult act of devotion this would be.  To truly detach from this world and its experiences and completely rely upon God seems impossible.

Since you made it through my long entry, I will leave you with a great song by Building 429.