Going to a brief workshop organised by A Faith That
Does Justice(http://www.faith-justice.org/)on the Spiritual Exercises of St
Ignatius of Loyola,seemingly includeda God-sized welcoming party. Surprises surfaced,
including getting lost, yetgetting to know other people of goodwill, of old
souls and big love. Of speaking truth to power, and of speaking to be less
lonely and build community - two unnecessarily different activities that
morning.
If we look closely, we can see many people of
goodwill. Yet we are not always good at being good to ourselves –how can we be
good for others? By being as good as we can, and not as we cannot. Like the
person who gave up salt, pepper and butter twenty years ago, and is working on
giving up hard drinking (but loves milk a lot). Like the poor who may be bent
by circumstances, but not their smiles. Unlike the rich who make money
unjustly, burden the downtrodden unnecessarily, and refute with legal arguments
that there was no crime. What unfolded then and later, with or without
reflection or intervention, was still up to them.
It is human to think of survival. Being people of
goodwillbecomes apparent when we reach out, and does not stop until we have
stopped for good ourselves.Better still, remember that this journey is a
journey of countless steps, but any start requires just one step, over and over
again.
Take some time. Rest and reflect. A little reflection
helps, because our intentions do not limit our horizons, an easy and frequent
misunderstanding. Try, for we can and
should ask that of ourselves, and be generous with our failures and ourselves
as others had been, and even then, always be ready to begin again.
Michael Phung, SJ
