Last spring, Rev. James R. Van Dyke, S.J., Prep's president, announced that the theme for the 2019-2020 school year would be Apostles on a Mission. Throughout the school year, we will hold monthly convocations or gatherings during which members of the community will share their own reflections on this theme in the form of a letter to the founder of the Jesuit order, St. Ignatius of Loyola.
Patrick Gaul '20 gave the second reflection at the September 16 Convocation.
AMDG
September 16, 2019
Georgetown Preparatory School
Dear St. Ignatius,
A few weeks ago, Mr. Glennon asked that we all wrestle with a question, and that question was Why? Why do we at Georgetown Prep have so many gifts when others in our world have so little? In answering this question, I could discern only one conclusion: the reason we are given so many gifts is so that we can give them away.
I use the terms gifts on purpose. As I see it, we all have two types of gifts in our lives: the tangible gifts and the intangible gifts. The tangible gifts are the stuff in our lives: our homes, our cars, and our Vineyard Vines ties. Sometimes these things can aid us on our missions as apostles, and sometimes they act as impediments. There is a story in the Gospel of Luke about a rich young man who asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. A character that I think we can all empathize with here at Prep, the rich young man has done all the right things in life but when Jesus tells him to give his stuff, his tangible gifts, to the poor, the man cannot bring himself to do it because he loves his tangible gifts too much.
Jesus's message is simple: tangible gifts can distract us from the mission Jesus assigned to us; to be apostles, we must be willing to give those things away.
But maybe more important than giving away our tangible gifts, is living out the mission of an apostle by giving our intangible gifts to the world: our talents, our intellect, our memory, our sympathy, our love, our time. We don't normally think about it but there is no denying that these things are gifts. And whether we know it or not we already give these gifts on a daily basis. J.D. Donovan and Kangaroo give us the gift of their intelligence every day and every day the Whartons gives us their sense of humor. But be cognizant of where you don't yet give your intangible gifts generously. Giving our intangible gifts means that the next time you walk past a homeless man, you give him your attention and your time rather than just the change in your pocket. It means offering your friendship to the new kid and making an effort to talk to the guy who's having a bad day.
We are called to act with justice. We are called to love tenderly, to serve one another, and to walk humbly with God. Lord, Teach us to be generous. Men for others. We've all heard these words time and time again at Prep, but if we really think about them, they tell us that being generous with our talents and the intangible gifts that God has given us is the mark of a true apostle.
On the topic of giving away our gifts, I want to bring something to everybody's attention: This Friday, Prep will hold a homeless simulation in which students will live for a night as a person experiencing homelessness would. This is a great opportunity for all of us to give up our tangible gifts of a warm bed and a house, and to give up ourselves by seeking empathy and solidarity with those who don't share in our gifts. It is a chance for us to start our journey as apostles. If you are interested in participating, please get in touch with me or Mr. Krambuhl. If not, I only ask that you reflect on how else you can give your gifts away and serve as an apostle. Ask yourself, why do I have what I have, and what am I going to do with it.
I'd like to close with a prayer:
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will,
All that I have and possess.
You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.
Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
that is enough for me.
Amen