It was the best of sounds, it was the worst of sounds.
I was riding the bus home earlier today, taking the opportunity of solitude and quiet in the largely empty vehicle to pray the Afternoon Hour (None) of the Divine Office.
Halfway into the psalms for the Hour, interruptions came from two directions. Behind me, an old lady started moaning and panting in pain or delirium, while an old man up front began playing videos on his smartphone, blasting screams and yells from some unknown video at full volume.
I sighed inwardly, and prepared to refocus on my prayers, when the Spirit prompted me to listen more carefully to the lady’s murmurs. To my great surprise, her “moans” and “pants” were actually something completely unexpected…
LOOOOOOOOORD!
JESUS JESUS JESUS JESUS JESUS JESUS!
LOOOOOOOOORD!
(Under other circumstances, those might have also been desperate pleas for divine pain relief, but there was no agony on her face, so…)
As if to prove that the Spirit doesn’t do things by halves, I reached the concluding prayer of the Hour:
God our Father, you are calling us to prayer at the ninth hour, when the apostles went up to the temple.
Grant that the prayer we offer with sincere hearts in the name of Jesus may bring salvation to all who call upon that holy Name.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Huh.
The other passengers around her clearly heard the same thing, for despite the many empty seats on the bus, and the infamous Singaporean reflex that recoils blatantly from insane or diseased persons, not one soul moved away from her in fear or disgust.
In contrast, the old man silenced his mobile after a couple of minutes. The angry stares he attracted may have had something to do with it.
As for us, dear brothers and sisters, it’s an opportune moment to reflect on how we use the Holy Name of Jesus in our daily lives.
Do we offer it to others as a blessing? (“Jesus loves you just as he loves me, so how can I help?”)
Or do we wield it as a curse? (“JESUS ***ING CHRIST! Are you trying to get us whacked?!?!”)
Do we keep it to ourselves, “hoarding” it against even our fellow believers?
Or do we speak freely of Him who died to save us all?
On our deathbeds, will our final words be “Jesus, thank You for this life’s journey. Is it time to go on to the next already? Then let’s be on our way.”
Or “JESUS! WHERE ARE YOU?!?! I DON’T WANT TO DIE YET!!!”
To paraphrase an oft-quoted assertion: We Have The Option.