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Millennial Lenten Reflections: Do it for the team!

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Editor’s Note: The following is part of Millennial Lenten Reflections, a blog series in collaboration with Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good. Short reflections on the day’s readings, written by young adults from FMS and other organizations, will be posted everyday throughout Lent. 

“We need to get back to basics.”  It’s something you might hear a cigar-chomping football coach yelling during practice.  “You’ve got to block! You’ve got to make your tackles!” All obvious things, of course, but that doesn’t mean that the team doesn’t need reminders every once and a while.

That’s what today’s first reading is all about.  What’s more basic than, “You shall not steal! You shall not lie!”  Again, all obvious things… and yet our cigar-chomping God (why not?) realizes that “Team Humanity” needs reminders on the basics.  And during these pep talks, we usually find ourselves reflecting on how well (or poorly) we have been running these plays in our personal lives.

Of course, personal morality is only half of the story.  The Gospel serves as a reminder that our communal morality is just as important as our personal morality.  Not telling lies is important, but so is feeding the hungry and visiting the prisoner.  Like a good football team needs a good offense as well as defense, we need to have a good communal morality as well as a personal morality.

So during Lent, let’s get out there and show ‘em what we’ve got!

 

Fr. Tom Gibbons, CSP is a member of the Paulist Fathers and is currently serving as the administrator of St. Peter’s Church in Toronto, Canada.  He has also frequently contributed to BustedHalo.com.

Franciscan Mission Service often invites guest writers to contribute to the blog. Contributors often include board members, formation leaders, Secular Franciscans, Franciscan friars and sisters, and other friends of the organization. If you would be interested in contributing, please contact info@franciscanmissionservice.org.