When I was growing up, I had my share of not always listening to my parents.  One evening my mother reminded me of my house chores, yet I chose not to listen, rather I went to my room to play.  So, who ended up doing my chores?  My mom.  The following day, my mom sat down with me and explained how important it was to listen to my parents.  She impressed in me that all the lessons they were teaching me were for my own good.  “Learn how to listen son, not just with your ears, but also with your heart.”

The Gospel last Wednesday reminded me of that conversation I had with my mom.  Jesus, said: “To what I shall I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? They are like children who sit in the market place and call to one another, ‘we played a flute for you, but you did not dance.  We sang a dirge, but you did not weep.’”  In this Gospel, Jesus was teaching all of us about the importance of listening from the heart.  I also find it interesting that Jesus was using a musical metaphor when he talked about listening.  Maybe Jesus is suggesting that we listen to a specific kind of music.

The first reading on Wednesday from the Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians tells us about the music we ought to hear at this time.  It is the music of love.  Our world is drowned with different kinds of noise – impatience, fear, unkindness, hopelessness, disappointment, anger.  I believe we need to rise up and begin not only to listen, but also to sing the music of God’s love.  As St. Paul defines it “Love that is patient, kind, not jealous,  not pompous, not inflated, not rude, does not seek its own interests, not quick-tempered, does not brood over injury, does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It is a love that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

Let us make God’s love real and tangible.  This is the time people need to experience the presence of God.  God is reaching out to us to LOVE not only to those who look or think or believe like us, but to everyone we encounter.  In doing so, we can make a difference in the lives of others.  The question is: “Are you ready to sing the music of love?”