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Happy Father’s Day!

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It’s unfortunate we have to celebrate this holiday under the shadow of self-quarantining and social distancing.

But, ironically enough, some dads may find themselves home today because of the Coronavirus. To all of you, I hope you make the best of an otherwise difficult day.

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Today the Church remembers all dads, but one dad in particular, Saint Joseph, the foster father of Jesus.

We know very little about his life, because scripture only references him in the early life of Jesus. But there’s still enough detail there to paint some picture of what he was like.

Joseph lived in an small village…He was married to a young, peasant girl named Mary… He spent his life as a carpenter, earning his daily bread by the sweat of his brow. 

He knew the twinge of hunger, the pain of aching bones, and the value of a few cents.

He was an ordinary man, much less accomplished than some of us.

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Joseph never went to college. He never wrote a book. He never owned shares in the stock market. He never held public office. 

He didn’t have a blog. He never made the news. He never lived in a major city or even journeyed far from his home.

The only time he left his home country was to flee to Egypt as a refugee because King Herod was trying to kill the infant Jesus. 

And the child wasn’t even his.

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On the surface, Joseph was uneducated; a peasant; a refugee. 

A nobody.

Yet 2,000 years have come and gone and we still celebrate his life. Out of the billions of dads who’ve come and gone, he is one we remember.

Why is that?

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Maybe it’s because we all see something of Joseph in ourselves. 

Like him, we know the value of hard work, the meaning of sacrifice, and the importance of family. 

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Joseph never accrued worldly wealth or status; neither will many of us. But he was faithful in the tasks God entrusted to him.

He worked hard. He loved deeply. He was a faithful husband. And he believed in the Son of God.

That’s what counts in the end.

Being faithful; being humble; and being responsible. Living such a life makes us all blessed in the eyes of Almighty God.

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With the rapid spread of the Coronavirus, it’s hard to remember we’re still in the season of Lent.

While some of us may have given up Facebook or chocolate this year, perhaps we’re all trying to cling to our patience, instead.

After all, there may not even be chocolate available to buy!

I’m sure we’ve all seen clips of shoppers standing in line for miles, their carts filled with groceries, toilet paper and hand sanitizer, suspicious of the person behind them. 

Maybe we’ve been one of them.

As the old saying goes, “Patience is a virtue.” While there are so many things about this outbreak that we cannot change, our attitude is one of them.

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We may define the word attitude as an, “inner disposition; the way we think or feel inside.” 

That’s really what our Lenten penance is all about – trying to change our attitude; the way we think about others; the way we feel inside.

In particular, Lent is all about growing in love.

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In the Gospel, Jesus says, “I have not come to abolish, but to fulfill the Law.” 

That’s a tall order. 

By the time Christ walked this earth, the Jews followed more than the 10 commandments. Over the centuries, rabbis tacked on additional rules, leading to a total of 613! 

They must’ve been gluttons for punishment.

But Jesus says that anyone can fulfill these rules – and the Law – with one word, love.

Love your God; love your neighbor. Then you fulfill the Law – and by extension, the regulations of Lent.

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So how much have we grown in love this Lent? Especially with this outbreak of the Coronavirus, have we found ourselves increasingly patient or irritable? Selfish or generous?

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While there are many things we cannot change, our attitude is one of them. Perhaps that should be our focus as we move ahead.

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“That’s is why the Kingdom of God may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants” (Mt. 18:24).

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Biblical scholars have tried to calculate just how much debt these two servants owed. One was estimated to be 10,000-talents, while the other only 100 denarii.

If that 10,000-talent debt were paid in coins, it’d require an army of 8,600 people each carrying a 60-pound sack of coins on their back.

…8,600 sacks of coins…

A hundred denarii, on the other hand, could fit inside someone’s pocket like a handful of pennies.

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So what’s the point?

This man has been forgiven an immense debt, so large it’s almost impossible to imagine.

But then he turns around and becomes petty with his neighbor, demanding he repay him.

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Pettiness.

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So much of the anger that fills our hearts is often over petty stuff. 

We don’t get our way; someone cuts us off on the Parkway; interrupts us mid-sentence; or plays passive-aggressive at the dinner table.

If Jesus forgives all the sins we’ve committed, then the least we can do is forgive our neighbor for making a mild mistake.

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In Jesus’ eyes, it’s the difference between 8,600 sacks of coins versus a few pennies. 

Given the fact that we’re all living with an increased level of stress these days, we should let the small stuff go.