17^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, B July 25/26, 2009 – 5:00 p.m., 12 Noon

1. In May, ABC aired a program called "Adventures of an Incurable Optimist"
- it featured actor Michael J. Fox – who, nearly 20 years ago, was diagnosed with
Parkinson's Disease
- Fox told reporters he never imagined that the illness would completely redefine
the way he looked at life – for the better
- in the program, he interviewed cancer survivor Lance Armstrong, who remarked, "I don't think it's a stretch to say that none of my success on the bike would have been
possible without that disease (cancer)."
- Fox also interviewed a man he called "the most relentlessly cheerful guy you've
ever met" outside a NY subway
- Oscar Smith, Jr. works 2 jobs, including one handing out free newspapers on a
street corner. Every weekday, rain or shine, Smith greets commuters with a huge
smile and a boisterous, "good morning" and people can't help but smile right back
- Fox's pursuit of happiness even took him across the globe – to Bhutan, in the
Himalayas where they measure, "gross national happiness"
- the program portrayed the benefits of having an optimistic view of life
- the examples were not only inspirational, they made you want to be optimistic as
well

2. There are two kinds of people – the optimists and the pessimists
- the optimist wakes up and says, "Good morning, Lord"
- the pessimist wakes up and says, "Good Lord, MORNING!"
- an optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in
- the pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves

3. Today's Gospel offers us a glimpse at both optimists and pessimists
- Jesus the shores of the Sea of Galilee, where a large crowd has followed him
- they are attracted to Jesus because of the signs he was doing with the sick
- there are over 5,000 people present

Jesus speaks first – testing Philip by asking, "WHERE are we to buy bread for these
people to eat?
- it was really a test of his optimism – was Philip a glass-half-empty kind of guy
or glass-half-full?

I find it interesting that Jesus asked the "where" question.
- after all, this was 5,000 people
- did he expect Philip would say, "Oh there's a great Costco just around the block –
I'm sure they've got bread for 5,000!"

4. But notice how Philip answers a different question
- He speaks about how much it will COST
- Philip's answer makes it clear – even with Costco, we don't have the resources
- Philip was a REALIST
- it would take more than 8 months wages – just to give each person a bite
- Philip let his negativity get in the way of thinking about the possibilities
- he couldn't see outside the box

5. The next person mentioned is partially optimistic
- Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said, "There is a boy here who has 5 barley loaves
and two fish."
- rather than wringing his hands about 8 months wages and where the bakery was,
Andrew was looking for answers
- he seemed to be more practical
- when confronted with a problem he moved through the crowd looking for an answer
- it took a lot of hopeful optimism to mention such a ridiculously small amount of
food
- but then he says, "but what good are they among so many people?"
- he didn't have enough faith to believe that so little could do so much

6. So, where to we find the optimistic one in this crowd?
- I suggest the real optimistic is the little boy with the 5 loaves and the 2 fish
- he was the only one to bring a small lunch
- he was optimistic about Jesus and prepared to stay a while to listen
- he gave his small lunch because he believed that God could do marvelous things –
even feed all these people
- he had heard that Jesus healed the blind, made the lame walk, and cast out demons
- for someone like that, feeding a thousand people should be a snap
- for such a one, the possibilities are unlimited and Jesus responds by feeding the crowd with 12 baskets of leftovers.

8. We life in a scarcity culture
- we look at a vast need, we measure our resources, we decide we are powerless to
act so we don't try
- we never think of turning over our resources to Jesus, however modest they may be
- so we don't act, we don't think we can make a difference, we don't even try
- the little boy's gift was not too small to give
- little things have great possibility in the hands of God
- ask the people in Slavic Village whose neighborhood and yards were transformed
by the love and labor of our parishioners
- or the mourners moved by the generous outpouring of love in cookies baked or food
served with a smile
- look at those touched by the beauty of a song, or a hug or a note of encouragement
- Our calculations, scientific principles and pessimistic doubts don't take into
consideration the extravagant possibilities of God
- Are you a pessimistic who sees the difficulty in every opportunity or an optimist who sees the opportunity in every difficulty
- the bible tells us there's more to life than we can see, more to this world than
we can understand and more of God's grace than we can ever afford
- that's cause for celebration and OPTIMISM.