Brain Gym, Soul Gym: The Fourth Sunday of Easter
Homily for Fourth Sunday of Easter
(Second Draft)
I read an article this week
about a young girl named Harper Thomas.
She was born with cerebral palsy, largely paralyzed on her right side.
But now, after brain-centered exercise therapy,
her mother, Laura, sees her daughter doing the impossible.
Harper’s parents have enrolled her
in a “brain gym.”
One of her exercises is called Constraint Induced Therapy.
Harper’s "strong" hand is restrained, forcing her to use her "weak" hand
for a series of exercises.
Little by little the therapy rebuilds her brain, enabling it to send signals to her once paralyzed limbs.
The brain has an amazing power of re-circuiting.
And that's what Harper's doing every day.
Little by little, she’s using parts of her brain
that she might not have used.
Harper will never be totally cured,
but for the first time in her life, she can throw a ball, and feed herself with a fork.
”Constraint Induced Therapy.”
That phrase sounds a lot like Lent,
that season we all finished a few weeks ago,
that season in which we work on “doing the hard thing,”
exercising those muscles we tend not to use
as much as we should:
muscles of self-sacrifice, fasting and charity.
Well, that was Lent.
We’re in the Easter season now
and the gospel is asking use to use a different
brain-based approach in our exercise of our faith.
The emphasis isn’t on motor skills like fasting and almsgiving,
but memory skills…
like recognizing Someone’s voice;
recalling Someone’s name,
remembering what Love is like.
“I am the Good Shepherd,”
says the Lord.
“My sheep recognize my voice
and they follow me.”
This verse today
is all about remembering and recognizing
and recalling what it means to be loved by Christ.
Let’s look at this in terms of brain power.
According to that article I read,
scientists are learning to harness the brain's plasticity.
They’re discovering how to train the healthy parts of the brain.
And this includes the work of memory and recognition.
One of the most exciting things about this research is that
people of any age can achieve amazing results.
Elderly people experiencing memory loss, for instance,
report dramatic improvement
after a series of workouts at a brain gym.
I’m not sure how this all works
but it makes me wonder if there’s anything like
a “brain gym” for the soul?
You know, a spiritual fitness program
that re-circuits our thinking,
keeps us sharp and makes us keen
on hearing the voice of our Shepherd;
enables us to sort out that one, all-important voice
above the pounding music of our son’s stereo
and the noise of commuter traffic on I-275
and the negative chatter in the lunch at work
and the endless stream of tragic news from around the world on CNN?
Is there a set of exercises that can speed up the reaction time,
increase our response,
sharpen our memory of what it means to
when we hear the voice of Christ calling out to us…
calling us:
to live in a certain way
to respond with eagerness of heart to do all that we can…
whatever it may be…
to forgive some jerk who hurt us,
to comfort someone who wears on us,
to correct someone who’s being self-centered,
to assist in the conversion of someone searching for God,
to be a part of the Spirit’s agenda to renew the face of the earth?
There’s a lot of work out there to do
and it all begins with our openness and ability
to hear the voice of Christ, the Good Shepherd.
So, think of this church as a “brain gym for the soul.”
Think of the Holy Eucharist
as the Jerusalem Marathon,
think of it as conditioning for Iron Saint competition.
There is no better way to spur change in the plasticity of the soul
than this action of public witness and worship in which
the Holy Spirit transforms ordinary bread into the divinity of Christ,
changes defeat into victory, death into life
and builds up shy people like you
into a strong body of faith called St. Al’s Parish,
making us together a bold witness of the Resurrection.
Hard to believe?
Maybe.
But that’s what’s possible with God
and that indeed is what happens here.
The moment you walked into church,
someone driving by on Bridgetown Road
saw someone, YOU, giving witness to your belief in Christ.
The way you pray at this Mass today,
the effort you extend to make others feel welcome,
the vigor with which you sing God’s praise,
the reverence you show when you receive the Holy Eucharist into your hand…
these exercises of faith make you strong,
they make our parish strong,
they make the experience of God strong, something that can’t be denied.
And little by little,
like that young girl named Harper Thomas,
we’re soon doing things we never thought possible:
The crosses we encounter no longer seem as heavy.
And the miles we travel no longer seem as long.
Because recognize the voice of the Shepherd
and, together, we’re answering the sound of his call.
___________________________
(First Draft)
I read an article this week
about a young girl named Harper Thomas.
She was born with cerebral palsy, largely paralyzed on her right side.
Now her mother, Laura, sees her doing the impossible.
Harper’s parents have enrolled her
in a “brain gym.”
A place that uses certain exercises
to exercise the brain.
One of her exercises is called Constraint Induced Therapy.
Her "good" hand is restrained, forcing her to use her "bad" hand
for a series of exercises.
Little by little the therapy rebuilds her brain, enabling it to send signals to her once paralyzed limbs.
The brain has an amazing power of re-circuiting.
And that's what Harper's doing every day.
Little by litter, she’s using parts of her brain
that she might not have used.
Harper will never be totally cured,
but she now has about 70 percent normal use of her arm.
For the first time in her life, she can throw a ball, and feed herself with a fork.
”Constraint Induced Therapy.”
That phrase sounds a lot like Lent,
that season in which we do the hard thing,
we exercises those muscles we tend not to use
as much as we should:
muscles of self-sacrifice, fasting and charity.
Well, we’re in the Easter season now
and the gospel is asking use to use a different
brain-based function in the exercise of our faith.
Not motor skills like fasting and almsgiving,
but memory skills like recognizing Someone’s voice
and recalling someone’s name.
“I am the Good Shepherd,”
says the Lord.
“My sheep recognize my voice
and they follow me.”
Again, let’s look at this in terms of brain power.
According to that article I read,
a lot of research is taking place
and scientists are learning to harness the brain's plasticity.
They’re discovering how to train the healthy parts of the brain
to take on jobs they don't usually do.
And this includes the work of recall and recognition.
One of the most exciting things about them is that
people of any age achieve result in amazing results.
Elderly people experiencing memory loss, for instance,
report dramatic improvement
after a series of workouts at a brain gym.
Well, is there anything like a “brain gym” for the soul?
A spiritual fitness program that re-circuits our thinking,
making us keen on hearing the voice of our Shepherd
above the pounding music of our son’s stereo
or the noise of commuter traffic on I-275
or the negative chatter in the lunch at work
or the endless stream of tragic news from around the world on CNN?
Is there a set of exercises that can speed up our reaction
to the sound of Christ’s voice calling out to us,
calling us:
to live in a certain way
to give witness to his truth
to assist in the conversion of someone we love
or to be a part of the Spirit’s agenda to renew the face of the earth?
[Dear Reader, your input is requested. Can you suggest particular habits of thought related to your work place or job site that help you train your ear to hear the Lord? Your help will be most appreciated. Feel free to post a comment on the discussion board or e-mail me directly at jms48@fuse.net Thanks!]
(Second Draft)
I read an article this week
about a young girl named Harper Thomas.
She was born with cerebral palsy, largely paralyzed on her right side.
But now, after brain-centered exercise therapy,
her mother, Laura, sees her daughter doing the impossible.
Harper’s parents have enrolled her
in a “brain gym.”
One of her exercises is called Constraint Induced Therapy.
Harper’s "strong" hand is restrained, forcing her to use her "weak" hand
for a series of exercises.
Little by little the therapy rebuilds her brain, enabling it to send signals to her once paralyzed limbs.
The brain has an amazing power of re-circuiting.
And that's what Harper's doing every day.
Little by little, she’s using parts of her brain
that she might not have used.
Harper will never be totally cured,
but for the first time in her life, she can throw a ball, and feed herself with a fork.
”Constraint Induced Therapy.”
That phrase sounds a lot like Lent,
that season we all finished a few weeks ago,
that season in which we work on “doing the hard thing,”
exercising those muscles we tend not to use
as much as we should:
muscles of self-sacrifice, fasting and charity.
Well, that was Lent.
We’re in the Easter season now
and the gospel is asking use to use a different
brain-based approach in our exercise of our faith.
The emphasis isn’t on motor skills like fasting and almsgiving,
but memory skills…
like recognizing Someone’s voice;
recalling Someone’s name,
remembering what Love is like.
“I am the Good Shepherd,”
says the Lord.
“My sheep recognize my voice
and they follow me.”
This verse today
is all about remembering and recognizing
and recalling what it means to be loved by Christ.
Let’s look at this in terms of brain power.
According to that article I read,
scientists are learning to harness the brain's plasticity.
They’re discovering how to train the healthy parts of the brain.
And this includes the work of memory and recognition.
One of the most exciting things about this research is that
people of any age can achieve amazing results.
Elderly people experiencing memory loss, for instance,
report dramatic improvement
after a series of workouts at a brain gym.
I’m not sure how this all works
but it makes me wonder if there’s anything like
a “brain gym” for the soul?
You know, a spiritual fitness program
that re-circuits our thinking,
keeps us sharp and makes us keen
on hearing the voice of our Shepherd;
enables us to sort out that one, all-important voice
above the pounding music of our son’s stereo
and the noise of commuter traffic on I-275
and the negative chatter in the lunch at work
and the endless stream of tragic news from around the world on CNN?
Is there a set of exercises that can speed up the reaction time,
increase our response,
sharpen our memory of what it means to
when we hear the voice of Christ calling out to us…
calling us:
to live in a certain way
to respond with eagerness of heart to do all that we can…
whatever it may be…
to forgive some jerk who hurt us,
to comfort someone who wears on us,
to correct someone who’s being self-centered,
to assist in the conversion of someone searching for God,
to be a part of the Spirit’s agenda to renew the face of the earth?
There’s a lot of work out there to do
and it all begins with our openness and ability
to hear the voice of Christ, the Good Shepherd.
So, think of this church as a “brain gym for the soul.”
Think of the Holy Eucharist
as the Jerusalem Marathon,
think of it as conditioning for Iron Saint competition.
There is no better way to spur change in the plasticity of the soul
than this action of public witness and worship in which
the Holy Spirit transforms ordinary bread into the divinity of Christ,
changes defeat into victory, death into life
and builds up shy people like you
into a strong body of faith called St. Al’s Parish,
making us together a bold witness of the Resurrection.
Hard to believe?
Maybe.
But that’s what’s possible with God
and that indeed is what happens here.
The moment you walked into church,
someone driving by on Bridgetown Road
saw someone, YOU, giving witness to your belief in Christ.
The way you pray at this Mass today,
the effort you extend to make others feel welcome,
the vigor with which you sing God’s praise,
the reverence you show when you receive the Holy Eucharist into your hand…
these exercises of faith make you strong,
they make our parish strong,
they make the experience of God strong, something that can’t be denied.
And little by little,
like that young girl named Harper Thomas,
we’re soon doing things we never thought possible:
The crosses we encounter no longer seem as heavy.
And the miles we travel no longer seem as long.
Because recognize the voice of the Shepherd
and, together, we’re answering the sound of his call.
___________________________
(First Draft)
I read an article this week
about a young girl named Harper Thomas.
She was born with cerebral palsy, largely paralyzed on her right side.
Now her mother, Laura, sees her doing the impossible.
Harper’s parents have enrolled her
in a “brain gym.”
A place that uses certain exercises
to exercise the brain.
One of her exercises is called Constraint Induced Therapy.
Her "good" hand is restrained, forcing her to use her "bad" hand
for a series of exercises.
Little by little the therapy rebuilds her brain, enabling it to send signals to her once paralyzed limbs.
The brain has an amazing power of re-circuiting.
And that's what Harper's doing every day.
Little by litter, she’s using parts of her brain
that she might not have used.
Harper will never be totally cured,
but she now has about 70 percent normal use of her arm.
For the first time in her life, she can throw a ball, and feed herself with a fork.
”Constraint Induced Therapy.”
That phrase sounds a lot like Lent,
that season in which we do the hard thing,
we exercises those muscles we tend not to use
as much as we should:
muscles of self-sacrifice, fasting and charity.
Well, we’re in the Easter season now
and the gospel is asking use to use a different
brain-based function in the exercise of our faith.
Not motor skills like fasting and almsgiving,
but memory skills like recognizing Someone’s voice
and recalling someone’s name.
“I am the Good Shepherd,”
says the Lord.
“My sheep recognize my voice
and they follow me.”
Again, let’s look at this in terms of brain power.
According to that article I read,
a lot of research is taking place
and scientists are learning to harness the brain's plasticity.
They’re discovering how to train the healthy parts of the brain
to take on jobs they don't usually do.
And this includes the work of recall and recognition.
One of the most exciting things about them is that
people of any age achieve result in amazing results.
Elderly people experiencing memory loss, for instance,
report dramatic improvement
after a series of workouts at a brain gym.
Well, is there anything like a “brain gym” for the soul?
A spiritual fitness program that re-circuits our thinking,
making us keen on hearing the voice of our Shepherd
above the pounding music of our son’s stereo
or the noise of commuter traffic on I-275
or the negative chatter in the lunch at work
or the endless stream of tragic news from around the world on CNN?
Is there a set of exercises that can speed up our reaction
to the sound of Christ’s voice calling out to us,
calling us:
to live in a certain way
to give witness to his truth
to assist in the conversion of someone we love
or to be a part of the Spirit’s agenda to renew the face of the earth?
[Dear Reader, your input is requested. Can you suggest particular habits of thought related to your work place or job site that help you train your ear to hear the Lord? Your help will be most appreciated. Feel free to post a comment on the discussion board or e-mail me directly at jms48@fuse.net Thanks!]
posted by BlueCollarPreacher at 1:54 PM
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