Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Orthodixie

Home
Eastern Orthodox
Snips, Smells & Dead Shrimp Tails

Snips, Smells & Dead Shrimp Tails

Last updated on: July 1, 2007 at 8:29 am by Fr. Joseph Huneycutt

Snips, Smells & Dead Shrimp Tails 2007-07-01T08:29:00-05:00 Fr. Joseph Huneycutt

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

A few adults and some wee volunteers were busy stuffing plastic Easter Eggs with candy and goodies. Most of them were. One creatively naughty little boy was stuffing them with something else. That would be shrimp tails. And that would be, ahem … my boy.

It was the Wednesday before Lazarus Saturday – the day on which the annual Egg Hunt is held at St George. Following the Presanctified Liturgy, some folks helped to stuff the eggs for the following Saturday; it was after the Lenten Potluck (hence, the shrimp). Dead shrimp … dead shrimp tails … stuffed in plastic eggs … to sit for 3 days … hidden and undiscovered … until found by some unsuspecting happy children.

Heh heh. Priceless.

Oh don’t get me wrong. He was wrong! But I was so proud of him.

I remember when my oldest was about, oh, 3-ish. It was after church one day, the kids were running around the yard, climbing trees, and creating mayhem. I was talking with some parishioners when I happened to look off in the distance to see a boy, about the same age, holding my daughter down and … gasp … kissing her!

I walked out and called his name, yelling: “Hey! Get off of her!”

Almost at the same time could be heard the voice of the other’s Dad, yelling: “That’s my boy! Heh heh, Yep! That’s my boy!”

For him, priceless. For me, not so much.

It’s all in perception. And when perception is viewed through the favoring eyes of love, it looks a whole shade different.

Love of my daughter led me to yell one thing; his hopes and love for his son caused an entirely different reaction.

Love.

It definitely complicates things … and you just can’t simplify without it.

St Paul writes:

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.

… For our knowledge is imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect; but when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became a man, I gave up childish ways.

Now, back to my boy; boy, being the operative word here … You gotta admit, that was a great trick! Stinky ol’ shrimp tails inside of hidden plastic eggs.

When I found out, he was scared. He thought I’d be mad at him. When I brought it up, he started to cry. He was shocked, I’m not sure he yet understands, when I held out my hand and said, “Give me five!” Laughter through young tears is, well … Priceless.

(The tails were discovered and discarded long before the cherished children’s event.)

And so it goes. When we don’t love someone, we find no joy in anything they say or do. Yet love … Love covers a multitude of sin.

For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood. So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Love, thanks God, never ends.

Yesterday, the kids returned from Camp St Raphael; a 10 hour bus trip. My son had fallen asleep and — welcome to kid camp travel — some kids had drawn on his face with markers. (Aren’t you glad you’re grown?) Anyway, when he awoke to find out, he was mad. He stayed mad, even telling me about it, until he discovered that the markings were not the work of a suspected little boy, but of his own sister and her girl friends.

Again, it’s all in perception. And when perception is viewed through the favoring eyes of love, it looks a whole shade different.

Truth be known, though … there’s times when I wonder if those two even love each other.

Boys …

“Watch over your child, O Lord, as his days increase; bless and guide him wherever he may be, keeping him unspotted from the world. Strengthen him when he stands, comfort him when discouraged or sorrowful, raise him up if he fall; and in his heart may your peace which passes understanding abide all the days of his life …”

Love never ends.

Amen.

Image Source

Uncategorized

Previous Post

June 30, 2007

LANCE: Food of gods (Too Good Not to Share)

Next Post

July 2, 2007 A Glimpse Past the Big Bang

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month November 2016 October 2016 August 2016 May 2016 April 2016 January 2016 September 2015 August 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

You have wearied the Lord with your words by saying all who do evil are good in his sight, or by asking where is the God of what?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Truth Righteousness Justice Judgment