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Gospel: Mark 4: 21-15
Jesus said to his disciples,
“Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket
or under a bed,
and not to be placed on a lampstand?
For there is nothing hidden except to be made visible;
nothing is secret except to come to light.
Anyone who has ears to hear ought to hear.”
He also told them, “Take care what you hear.
The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you,
and still more will be given to you.
To the one who has, more will be given;
from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas, a towering intellect who lived in 13th century Italy.
Any person studying for priesthood or religious life has read his works – perhaps some of you have, too.
It’s been said that Thomas wrote so much it would take a person 25 years of writing day and night in order to copy all of his works.
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But his academic success didn’t come without cost. Some of his closest peers – other monks living in the monastery with him – became terribly jealous.
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One day while having lunch, for example, a group of monks approached him and said, “Look! There’s a horse and chariot flying in the sky!”
Immediately, Thomas rushed to the window, looking up.
Seeing nothing there, he turned around and saw his brothers pointing and laughing at him, as if he were fooled.
Taking a deep breath, Thomas sighed and said, “I’d rather believe a horse could fly than believe my own brothers would lie to me.”
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Words are powerful. They’re meant to teach, to inspire, and to heal.
Not to hurt. Not to lie.
As Jesus says in the Gospel, “The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you.”
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I wonder, then, what will our conversations sound like today?
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May they be filled with words of positivity, praise, and peace.
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