Past Reflections
Find past weekly reflections by date
- 08/29/2010 - A Time For Tolerance
- 08/22/2010 - The Perils of Perfection
- 08/15/2010 - EAT PRAY LOVE and Clergy Burnout
- 08/08/2010 - The Power of Charity
- 07/18/2010 - Mel Gibon, Lebron James, and a "Gangster Priest"!
- 07/11/2010 - Does Lindsay Lohan Need To Find Humility?
- 07/04/2010 - America's New Found Vampire Obsession
- 06/27/2010 - What Happens When Faith is Lost?
- 06/13/2010 - Adultery on the Rise
- 06/06/2010 - 25 Years in the Cloth
- 05/30/2010 - Supreme Court Takes Ethical Stand
- 05/23/2010 - Little Girls As Go-Go Dancers Is Not Okay
- 05/16/2010 - Vanessa Williams on Her Faith
- 05/09/2010 - Coming Out to God
- 05/02/2010 - Forget Love, Can't We Just Be Civil?
- 04/25/2010 - South Park Death Threat?
- 04/18/2010 - Are Gay Priests the Problem?
- 04/11/2010 - Who Cares What Would Jesus Do?
- 04/04/2010 - Easter Whether We Like It Or Not
- 03/28/2010 - Will A&P Catholics Still Flock to Church on Palm Sunday?
- 03/21/2010 - The Pastor Who Bares It All
- 03/14/2010 - SO, ARE YOU REALLY HAPPY?
- 03/07/2010 - French Confession: Call It In
- 02/28/2010 - Fasting From Comparisons and Competition
- 02/21/2010 - The Path of Redemption for Tiger Woods
- 02/14/2010 - The Power of Half
- 02/07/2010 - Human Bed Warmers More Than a Gimmick?
- 01/30/2010 - Standing Up For Sitting Down
- 01/23/2010 - How Can I Keep From Singing?
- 01/16/2010 - Images of First Family Makes Fur Fly
- 01/09/2010 - The Prized Cross
- 01/03/2010 - Here's To A Better 2010... And A Better You!
- 12/19/2009 - Sleeping On A Bed Of Nails
- 12/13/2009 - Live Like You're Dying
- 12/06/2009 - So What IS Advent Anyway?
- 11/29/2009 - The Thanksgiving Of Listening
- 11/22/2009 - What Should We Allow on Our License Plates?
- 11/15/2009 - The Woman Mauled By The Chimpanzee May Now See More Clearly Than the Rest of Us
- 11/08/2009 - Scientology: Religion, Cult, Or Just Plain Weird?
- 11/01/2009 - From All Hallows Eve To Halloween
- 10/25/2009 - Smoking: Serious As A Heart Attack
- 10/18/2009 - Looks-Obsessed Culture Making Us Unhealthy
- 10/11/2009 - Where Are The Parents?
- 10/04/2009 - Kids Killing Kids: The Real Olympian Challenge
- 09/27/2009 - Turning 50
- 09/20/2009 - The Tragedy of War with Suicides
- 09/13/2009 - Do You Want to Deny Jesus Healthcare?
- 09/06/2009 - Is Labor Day A Spiritual Holiday?
- 08/30/2009 - The Lion Of The Senate
- 08/16/2009 - Exile is Not Always A Bad Thing
- 08/09/2009 - Aren't We All Clunkers, Really?
- 07/26/2009 - All Sparkle and No Stillness
- 07/19/2009 - POPE BREAKS WRIST and HIS MESSAGE LIMPS
- 07/12/2009 - A SAD GOODBYE TO SAINT GABRIEL'S YOUTH RETREAT HOUSE
- 07/05/2009 - Wading Into The River of Resentment
- 06/28/2009 - MICHAEL and FARRAH: TOO MUCH?
- 06/21/2009 - INFIDELITY: SEXUAL AND OTHERWISE
- 06/14/2009 - SARAH PALIN IS NOT LAUGHING AT DAVID LETTERMAN
- 06/07/2009 - AN AMERICAN IDOL?
- 05/31/2009 - STANDING ON A MOTHER'S SHOULDERS
- 05/24/2009 - The Living of FARRAH FAWCETT
- 05/17/2009 - ANGELS and DEMONS
- 05/10/2009 - The Buzz Heard Around The World
- 05/03/2009 - SWINE FLU and FAITH?
- 04/26/2009 - He's Got The Whole World In His Hands
- 04/19/2009 - MEL GIBON: Divorce, Annulment...Are You Kidding?
- 04/12/2009 - An Easter Message from Father Beck
- 04/05/2009 - Passion / Palm Sunday - Holy Week
- 03/29/2009 - WHY CHURCHES ARE LOSING MEMBERS
- 03/15/2009 - Introduction
Text Size
Email to a FriendDecember 13, 2009 - Live Like You're Dying
by Father Edward L. Beck, C.P.
The blogosphere has been buzzing this week with news that rapper Tupac Shakur has made the online Playlist of the Vatican. His song CHANGE is listed among the other more sedate entries. It seems as though even a jailed gangster who was gunned down in Vegas can speak of redemption. But I'd like to nominate another song popular right now that didn't make the list. It comes from the far more sedate American Idol Kris Allen. I’m sure you've heard it. Yes, "We gotta live like we’re dying." Allen sings. "We got 86,400 seconds in each day." And we shouldn't waste a precious one of them. Tell the people we love that we love them because we may not get another chance. Now we all know that’s true, yet it's hard to live the message. I think because we always feel that there WILL be more time for us. I'll never forget talking to a woman whose husband was killed in the World Trade Center on September 11th. They had argued that morning and he left angry. Their last words were spoken in hurt and rage. And there was never a chance to make it better. She still lives with that regret. And I know it's not easy to always be aware of the fragility of life and our temporary status on this planet. That would be kind of exhausting. But this holiday season encourages the CHANGE Tupac sings about because we don't have an endless amount of time to get it right. The Advent prophet John the Baptist told his listeners to embrace the teacher of Love before it was too late. In the Hanukkah story the Maccabees fought to preserve Jewish identity against the Greeks because they believed God loved them uniquely, 86,400 seconds of every day. While the oil may have burned for only eight days, the love was endless. Our time here, however, is not. Maybe Kris Allen can be another kind of prophet for us in this holiday season. Light the Hanukkah candles, trim the tree, put out the creche, but do it realizing that each moment of celebration is it's own gift. "You never know a good thing til it's gone. You gotta live like you're dying."
To watch Father Beck give the above Reflection, click here.
Your generosity will help to keep The Sunday Mass on the air!
Please Donate