When
I was a high school teacher, we used to get out the canoes and run
the rapids of the Little Nation River on the Quebec side of the
Ottawa River. When the going got rough, we would take a swig of Nanuk
from a little white whiskey bottle which had a polar bear pictured on
its label. The fire water burned all the way down our esophagus, and
was so potent that it could have been used to ignite our fires later
on in the day. That was our crutch, and it got us through the
narrows.
And
so when Marcus Grodi, Presdent of The Coming Home Network, told a
canoe story during one of his speeches at the “In Search of Truth,”
conference presented by Catholic Chapter House over the weekend at
Canada Christian College in Toronto, I took it all in, hook line and
sinker.
Marcus
had been steering a canoe down a treacherous part of a river while
doling out the odd piece of advice on how to survive the rapids, to
his inexperienced partner kneeling at the front.
As
the current pulled them closer to shore, they passed under an
overhanging branch, and the girl grabbed it in an attempt to slow
down the canoe. The canoe flipped and they were sucked down the
river, but fortunately managed to make it to shore. Later on while
being teased by his peers, Marcus kindly said nothing about the girl
grasping the branch to the others, but he did have a lot to say about
it to us.
Mr.
Grodi advised us to grasp at nothing, and this advice hit home with
me because I am by nature a grasper. I have a strong grip, and have
always grabbed things along the way, especially if I am afraid of
falling, stumbling or tipping over. It seems to be a natural
tendency, even if it is a crutch, and can be very dangerous, often
stopping my progress in an instant.
When
Blessed John Paul II would exhort me to “Be not afraid,” I would
still resist, and look for those overhanging branches to grab. It
reminds of the movie “127 Hours,” when the hiker is suspended in
a crevasse with his hiking boots pushing the rock wall on one side
and his back pushing from the other. Below him is a drop of some
sixty feet, all down a very narrow chute, ending in a cold pool of
crystal blue water. Without any warning, he lets go, and free falls
with the rock wall inches from his nose. The two female climbers who
are with him look at each other as if to say, “Who is he kidding?”
This sort of trust and bravery spooks me out.
I
ask myself, “Could I do it if I had to?” Would I have the guts to
stop pushing out with my feet and back, and simply quit grasping the
wall so to speak? Marcus Grodi's
message
came through loud and clear and then some. We spend our lives
grasping things, collecting, hoarding, and most of it is superfluous,
and halts our progress towards Jesus' kingdom.
When
I was a high school teacher, and I felt tired from the grind, I used
to tune into Billy Graham's Crusade, which was broadcast from
different football stadiums across the USA. Reverend Graham spoke
with command, and a seriousness which was unnerving at times. He
spoke of the family, and what God meant it to be, and he always had
the Bible by his side. I used to wonder how a non-Catholic could
speak directly to me, and move me so much. I fact, I enjoyed Billy
Graham a lot more than many of the homilies I was hearing at Mass on
Sundays.
Marcus
Grodi is cut from the same cloth. Like Billy Graham, he uses his
hands to emphasize his points, he lifts his Bible up for all to see,
and he opens it up to the verses he wants to use. The Bible becomes
his prop, and the medium is the message. This is the magic of their
speaking style, and both men possess it to perfection.
And
even though these two preachers have not been anointed in the
tradition of the apostles, directly from Saint Peter, they have a
great deal to teach us about being faithful Christians in a secular
society.
So
let us all pray that Billy Graham will one day come home to the
Catholic Church, just as Marcus Grodi did, so that we can welcome him
with open arms after his long journey home.
Now
that would be cause for celebration.
Amen!
