Why wait to be grateful for the good?

Today’s readings can be found here. Read Fr. Epicoco’s brief reflections on the daily Mass readings, Monday through Saturday, here. For Sunday Mass reading commentary from Fr. Rytel-Andrianik, see here.

“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.”

Jesus’ rebuke of Chorazin and Bathsaida in today’s Gospel helps us make an important examination of conscience: Too many times we ignore what the Lord is doing or has done in our lives. We take everything for granted and miss the opportunity to change, which these very things offer us.

Our real problem is that when we regularly experience a good thing we become so accustomed to it that we consider it a right. People who are in good health don’t appreciate it until they get sick. People who have food every day don’t notice the importance of food until they’re hungry. People who live in a country where there are no wars don’t attach any importance to that peace until something happens that throws them into the opposite situation.

The question is, why do we have to wait until we’ve a bad experience in order to take seriously the good things that are present in our lives?

Having a life of faith means not waiting for a tragedy to decide to be better people. Having faith means not seeing God but seeing all the good that he puts into our lives in a hidden way, and living with a life-changing gratitude that makes us better people.

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Father Luigi Maria Epicoco is a priest of the Aquila Diocese and teaches Philosophy at the Pontifical Lateran University and at the ISSR ‘Fides et ratio,’ Aquila. He dedicates himself to preaching, especially for the formation of laity and religious, giving conferences, retreats and days of recollection. He has authored numerous books and articles. Since 2021, he has served as the Ecclesiastical Assistant in the Vatican Dicastery for Communication and columnist for the Vatican’s daily newspaper L’Osservatore Romano.