Tuesday in the Twenty-Fourth Week of Ordinary Time at Mississippi Abbey

We each came to monastic life from different backgrounds, with different gifts in such areas as music, academia, work-skills, and generosity (to name a few). Yet, as St. Paul tells us, “we were all given to drink of one Spirit.” That Spirit brought each of us here because it has given us something or someone in common that we care about.

We can care for something or someone when we like it, are attracted to it, or pleased by it. We can take care of something or someone when we take responsibility for meeting their needs. Jesus cared for and took care of, but what He is most remembered for is that He cared about.

Jesus did not say that He was sent to cure the disabled, heal the sick, or feed the thousands. He came to spread the word, to tell the story, to show who the Father is, what His kingdom is like, and how to enter it. That’s what He cared about…and what He cared about He was conscientious about. He was conscientious because the beliefs He cared about were important…they made a difference.  And so it must be with His followers.