I wanted to share this article written by a friend of mine, Fr. Tom Zelinski from the St. Anthony Spirituality Center in Marathon, Wisconsin (www.sarcenter.com). Definitely, words to contemplate…
In March, we hear a lot about “March Madness.” That is usually about basketball tournaments and people picking their “brackets.” There are other kinds of common madness: frantic buying of more material things, trying to get taxes done, the hectic pace of family life, and lots of other events that demand our time, treasure and talent.
For Christians during Lent, there may be another, more serious madness. The madness of Jesus and his mission of revealing the Reign of God. Some of his own relatives thought he was out of his mind. “They found him too much for them.” (Mark 6:3) He did things that went against the “common wisdom” of his day.
Following Christ may take our own madness – going beyond an hour on Sunday to spend more time at prayer or reading the Bible and other religious material, and perhaps even the madness of going out of our way to do something for a person we don’t know well. As you look around these days, what is something that might take you out of your “comfort zone” into a place of following the word of God? “Whatsoever you do for the least of these brothers and sisters, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40) We don’t do these things for the reward, but because these are good things to do. And, we do them quietly. “Your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” (Matthew 6:4)
March is a good time for random acts of madness.
