Whoever causes one of these little ones to sin

Today’s readings provide us with a very challenging examination of conscience by presenting us with a convicting truth:

Whoever leads another person astray from Christ will be punished, and whoever helps another find the way to Christ will be rewarded.

There is a short story by the well-known American author O. Henry where a young girl whose mother has died is starved for her father’s attention, but the father is always tiered and does not want to be bothered by the little girl.  O. Henry describes the father: he is red-haired, unshaven and untidy.

The girl spends more time in the streets than at home where she receives insufficient attention because in the streets she receives plenty of attention and as a young lady she ends up with the wrong crowd.

When she dies, O. Henry describes a heavenly court room where the girl is introduced as “utterly incorrigible.”  She murdered her fiancé and committed suicide.  No defense could be provided for her case.

The court officer surprisingly dismisses the charges.  He allows the girl into paradise and names the guilty party: The red-haired, unshaven and untidy man who allowed his daughter to play in the streets.  The girl was innocent; her father would be held responsible for her life.

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”

While in the desert, Moses named seventy elders to share the burden of his duties.  He was unable to meet the needs of those entrusted to him; and even though they behaved like grumbling and unappreciative children, Moses did what he had to do in order to help them remain faithful to God and not be lost.  He acted to help Israel find its way during harsh times unlike the red-haired, unshaven and untidy man whose inaction led to the loss of his daughter.

When contemplating these two opposing paths, we may ask ourselves: in what ways am I like the red-haired, unshaven and untidy man?  What things do I do, or perhaps not do, that may be causing another to go astray?

Maybe I am literally like the red-haired man, not giving my children the attention they need?  Perhaps I am disengaged from their religious upbringing?  Maybe I am uninterested in my aging parents who now need me now more than ever?

How do I act around my family and coworkers?  Do I speak and act, above all things, with great charity or do I act prideful and self-righteously when I speak of my faith?  Am I a light that attracts others to Christ by the way I live or do my actions cause scandal?  Am I a stumbling block to the faith of others?

How do I treat those distant from God or those who think differently than me?  Do I insult them and cut them off, or like Christ, approach them with love and kindness to draw them to God?

Do I seek to meet the needs of those around me, especially the poor?  Do I take Saint James’ words to heart, that our indifference for the needy actually murders them?  We will be held responsible like the red-haired man.

Now looking at the opposite path, how we can help others find the way to Christ, we may ask ourselves: in what ways am I like Moses?  What things do I do, small or big, to help others remain faithful and not go astray?

It is good to take note of these good actions since it is always easier to see our failures.  The fact we are here at Mass indicates we are people of faith, people who seek Christ and seek to do His will, though it may be difficult, though we may fail at times.

The good we do has tremendous effects, we must never underestimate it.  We must constantly seek the good and avoid evil.  This is part of the radical call to follow Christ.  We do not have to cut our hands or feet, we don’t have to pluck out our eyes, but we do need to take steps, sometimes drastic, to remain faithful to Jesus Christ and to draw others to Him.  We must seek the good and avoid evil.

If the computer causes you to sin, get it out of your room into a public place or get rid of it.

If getting together with certain folks leads to gossip, drinking or any other sinful behaviors, change the subject, change your friends or be strong to resist temptation.

Christ wants us to enjoy the reward of eternal life and to bring along with us as many people as possible.  The question for a Christian is not: how will I get into heaven, but rather: how will we get into heaven?

May Christ give us the grace to recognize the ways we lead others astray from Him so we may change, and may he reward us for the good we have done in leading others to Him.  May our encounter with Him at this Eucharist strengthen us in our Christian journey.