
The little Pharisee that hides in my head, folded his arms and raised his eyebrows. “What are you going to do” he asked “just ignore that?” It’s seems such a small detail the correct vessels for Mass with all that’s wrong with the world, but when they are not right every alarm goes off inside me. It becomes a fight against the devils distraction to focus on the Mass. I inwardly groaned, it’s a kin to the bridegroom being dressed in overalls I muttered and I brought the matter to the attention of God, because I was sure he would sympathise with me how shocking it was. Funny though, He just pointed out the other imperfect vessel that His precious blood was ultimately destined for..uhh me.
It is such dangerous ground to call people out, and I can’t think of a time when I have pointed a finger and not noticed the three pointing back. My experience is that it is always something God wishes to perfect in me that He allows me to be rattled by first, in another. I can wrap it up “all pretty” in righteous wrapping paper tied with a justified bow, but if I look deeply it’s coming from a place of irritation with my own failings, rather than in this case, the concern for Our Lord dwelling in Poole pottery.
There’s a term for ignoring that self knowledge…hypocrisy. And I think it is the key to correcting in Charity, to first see ourselves in light of truth and then evaluating wether we are in fact more deserving of the tax collector lanyard we were about to loop around the neck of another.
I think we have to ask ourselves honestly if we are correcting out of love, it’s way too easy to answer yes without doing that painful look at our own hearts first. This is why we need honest friends, a community of people we know will call us out not for the sake of justice, or to point score but because they truly want us to grow closer to Jesus.
It’s a tough call friends but if we all try to notice our glass houses and put down our stones, the Church, hey, even the world, just might be a nicer place to hang out. And rather than feeling judged and condemned, people might just wish to change for the better because of us, not despite us.
So did I speak up about the Poole pottery? On that occasion no, there were other priests and a Bishop present, this was their call I decided. On other occasions yes I have, but always mindful these days of the help this imperfect vessel is constantly in dire need of.