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Sunday July 15, 2018

EXPRESSIONS by CJ Prusi

A NEW, YOUNG PARISHIONER STUDYING

FOR HIS MASTERS OF FINE ARTS DEGREE

ACTIONS & THOUGHTS

Oftentimes, action and thought are separate things.  When one acts, there is not much room for thought, and in thinking action is made secondary.  As necessary as it is to think, so too is action important in this time. However, because our thoughts motivate our actions, it is fundamental to be in the right state of mind when acting.

There are times when people do the wrong thing for the right reasons.  Consider those who have accosted our political leaders in restaurants as of late.  It is easy to say that interrupting someone’s personal time with his or her family to make a scene in a public place is the wrong thing to do.  At the same time, the motivations behind the people who have spoken up to people in power have been largely good.  They have ranged from defending the immigrant families who’ve been separated at the border, to urging action on global climate change.  The people speaking out are not speaking from selfishness, but they are projecting anger.  When they yell at public officials, they are doing the wrong thing for the right reasons.

Conversely, we are sometimes guilty of doing the right things for the wrong reasons.  This takes many forms, from children doing chores solely to earn TV time, to giving money to the poor only when people are watching, to making breakfast for a spouse to make up for the fight they had the night before.  While all of these actions are good, the source of action comes from a mental state of self-preservation or hedonism.  When we are the primary motivation for our actions, we often find ourselves doing the right things for the wrong reasons.

It’s not difficult to follow the logic here, but the action is harder than the philosophy.  It is only by putting faith in God, by confessing our selfish intentions and giving them up, that it is possible find the strength to do the right things for the right reasons.  When giving, when serving, when speaking out for those who cannot, it is crucial that we do so with the right motivations.

This week, before acting, talk to God.  Ask for the courage and integrity to do right when there is no potential for personal gain.  The goal is that our every act is a way of thanking God for the abundance of blessings we have been given, and that the reward for doing good is itself — because doing good is the most rewarding thing we can do.