Make room for Jesus on the Tilt-A-Whirl

Make room for Jesus on the Tilt-A-Whirl - just in case

When Christ said: "I was hungry and you fed me," he didn't mean only the hunger for bread and for food; he also meant the hunger to be loved. Jesus himself experienced this loneliness. He came amongst his own and his own received him not, and it hurt him then and it has kept on hurting him. The same hunger, the same loneliness, the same having no one to be accepted by and to be loved and wanted by. Every human being in that case resembles Christ in his loneliness; and that is the hardest part, that's real hunger. Mother Teresa

Recently, while sharing lunch with a fellow catechist, she told the story of a young child who had been attending Mass with his parents.

Like a little angel with halo all buffed and shiny, he sat quietly in the pew fingering his Rosary beads. Inevitably, as his halo began to shift to one side, he began to whirl the crystal beads around and around, faster and faster until they resembled an out-of-control tilt-a-whirl. Suddenly, in full voice the little munchkin yelled out, "Hang on Jesus! You're going for a ride!!!"

The parents, of course, were mortified, but the rest of the congregation seemed to think it was the funniest homily they had ever heard! After I left my friend, I went back to my car wondering just how many of us could take that child's precocious words and make them into our own personal slogan!

Certainly there are innumerable times when our lives seem as out of control as those Rosary beads. Sometimes it seems like one day after another with no end in sight! For those of us who are like that child, realizing that Jesus is holding on with us, the ride doesn't seem so wild and out of control even if it seems like it will never end.

But for those of us who have no knowledge of Jesus being there in the most dizzying times of our lives, it may not be long before our strength fails us and it seems like there is no longer anything to hold onto.

My own journey into depression taught me that there are places in our lives that are sometimes too tough for our friends and family members to go, and, for me, if it weren't for the belief that Jesus was there with me the whole time I would have given up - because there is nothing more painful than being alone. The human heart often translates being alone to being unloved, and being unloved must mean being without God. And that is the surest Hell.

Even in the time of the Old Testament the psalmist recounted the pain of "going it alone" during the difficult times of life: "My Lord, my deepest yearning is before you, my groaning is not hidden from you. My heart shudders, my strength forsakes me. The very light of my eyes has failed. Friends and companions shun my pain; my neighbors stand far-off . . . Lord, I wait for you. O, Lord, My God, answer me." (Psalm 38)

It would not be hard to imagine Jesus praying this verse from Scripture as he agonized in the Garden of Gethsemane. Here he was alone. His beloved friends asleep in his most pressing hour of need; though he had entreated them, "My soul is sorrowful even unto death. Remain here and keep watch." Soon, they would abandon him altogether.

Sometimes the love of others falls short, because they, like we, are only human. But God's love never fails. No matter how deep the loss, how difficult the path, how dizzying the ride, Jesus will never let go of us if we place our lives in his strong yet gentle hands. He has been where we are going.

He knows the pain and will not let us suffer alone.

_____________________________________

Mary Morrell is the author of Angels in High Top Sneakers from Loyola Press.

Contact

Diocese of Metuchen
http://www.diometuchen.org NJ, US
Mary Morrell - Associate Director, Office of Religious Education, 732 562-1990

Email

mmorrell@diometuchen.org

Keywords

Jesus

More Catholic PRWire

Showing 1 - 50 of 4,716

• « Prev
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• Next »

A Recession Antidote
Randy Hain

Monaco & The Vatican: Monaco's Grace Kelly Exhibit to Rome--A Review of Monegasque-Holy See Diplomatic History
Dna. Maria St. Catherine Sharpe, t.o.s.m., T.O.SS.T.

The Why of Jesus' Death: A Pauline Perspective
Jerom Paul

A Royal Betrayal: Catholic Monaco Liberalizes Abortion
Dna. Maria St.Catherine De Grace Sharpe, t.o.s.m., T.O.SS.T.

Embrace every moment as sacred time
Mary Regina Morrell

My Dad
JoMarie Grinkiewicz

Letting go is simple wisdom with divine potential
Mary Regina Morrell

Father Lombardi's Address on Catholic Media
Catholic Online

Pope's Words to Pontifical Latin American College
Catholic Online

Prelate: Genetics Needs a Conscience
Catholic Online

State Aid for Catholic Schools: Help or Hindrance?
Catholic Online

Scorsese Planning Movie on Japanese Martyrs
Catholic Online

2 Nuns Kidnapped in Kenya Set Free
Catholic Online

Holy See-Israel Negotiation Moves Forward
Catholic Online

Franchising to Evangelize
Catholic Online

Catholics Decry Anti-Christianity in Israel
Catholic Online

Pope and Gordon Brown Meet About Development Aid
Catholic Online

Pontiff Backs Latin America's Continental Mission
Catholic Online

Cardinal Warns Against Anti-Catholic Education
Catholic Online

Full Circle
Robert Gieb

Three words to a deeper faith
Paul Sposite

Relections for Lent 2009
chris anthony

Wisdom lies beyond the surface of life
Mary Regina Morrell

World Food Program Director on Lent
Catholic Online

Moral Clarity
DAN SHEA

Pope's Lenten Message for 2009
Catholic Online

A Prayer for Monaco: Remembering the Faith Legacy of Prince Rainier III & Princess Grace and Contemplating the Moral Challenges of Prince Albert II
Dna. Maria St. Catherine Sharpe

Keeping a Lid on Permissiveness
Sally Connolly

Glimpse of Me
Sarah Reinhard

The 3 stages of life
Michele Szekely

Sex and the Married Woman
Cheryl Dickow

A Catholic Woman Returns to the Church
Cheryl Dickow

Modernity & Morality
Dan Shea

Just a Minute
Sarah Reinhard

Catholic identity ... triumphant reemergence!
Hugh McNichol

Edging God Out
Paul Sposite

Burying a St. Joseph Statue
Cheryl Dickow

George Bush Speaks on Papal Visit
Catholic Online

Sometimes moving forward means moving the canoe
Mary Regina Morrell

Action Changes Things: Teaching our Kids about Community Service
Lisa Hendey

Easter... A Way of Life
Paul Spoisite

Papal initiative...peace and harmony!
Hugh McNichol

Proclaim the mysteries of the Resurrection!
Hugh McNichol

Jerusalem Patriarch's Easter Message
Catholic Online

Good Friday Sermon of Father Cantalamessa
Catholic Online

Papal Address at the End of the Way of the Cross
Catholic Online

Cardinal Zen's Meditations for Via Crucis
Catholic Online

Interview With Vatican Aide on Jewish-Catholic Relations
Catholic Online

Pope Benedict XVI On the Easter Triduum
Catholic Online

Holy Saturday...anticipation!
Hugh McNichol

• « Prev
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• Next »