A Mere Sticker!

Fr. Francis Scaria

Whenever I went to the garage for servicing my vehicle, the mechanics there always found some way to stick some printed advertisement of the garage on my vehicle. How and when they did it, I am not aware. When I drove to different places, people always saw these stickers. Although I did not like them, it was found that any attempt to scrape off such stickers only damaged the vehicle because of the strong adhesive put into use.

At times it appears that some priests, religious and lay people bear or tolerate such stickers. Here I am not referring to stickers stuck to their vehicles, but to themselves. When priesthood or religious life sometimes deteriorates into such stickers, it calls for urgent attention. Stickers do not make us priests or religious, especially when we have not consciously accepted those stickers.

We can claim to do the work of God only if we listen to him, act upon his directions and report back to him. We need to discern constantly and consciously the Way of the Lord and distinguish the same from the ways of the world.