You ’re Still You!
Imagine
you’re in a bus and you have with you blank sheets of bond paper.
Suddenly the bus speeds off and several blank sheets flew out the
window. Would you bother to ask the bus driver to stop so you could go
running after the papers? Probably not. They’re just blank sheets anyway
and there are still many left with you.
But
what if the paper you were holding contained your dissertation and when
the bus sped off, a single sheet flew away. I bet you would not even
wait for the bus to stop. You would get off and run after that single
sheet. Why bother? You still have several sheets with you. Why endanger
your life for that single sheet?
It
is not the number of sheets but the uniqueness of each sheet of paper
that matters. Each sheet of paper is unique, and each sheet has a unique
contribution to the betterment of the whole.
In
the same vein, we cannot appreciate Jesus’ parable of the single lost
sheep and the single lost coin unless we see it from the vantage point
not of quantity but of quality. Truly, even if it has wandered away, the
shepherd will risk life and limb to find the missing one because it is
unique and special. In a world where people can treat one another as
disposable, dispensable and replaceable, the Gospel is a consoling
reminder that God looks at each one of us in our uniqueness and
individuality. God wishes the return even of a single sinner because no
one is disposable in His beautiful creation. Even the sinner has a soul
uniquely created by God
and called to uniquely share in the divine life.
This is truly good news for each and every one of us! Fr. Joel Jason
REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Are
there people whom you treat as dispensable, that is, just one among the
many? Do you appreciate the uniqueness of your person?
O
God, You knew me even before I was fashioned in my mother’s womb. I
rejoice in my uniqueness. May I rejoice in others,’ too. Amen.
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