Can We Be Trusted?
Memorial of Saint Martin of Tours, Bishop
My dear encountered couples:
Do you steal towels when you stay in a hotel? That’s not stealing, is it? They expect you to do that. It’s built into the price of the room.
Yea, sure, how often do we hear that said by people who pack the towels into their bags? Maybe you have some of them at home now. Isn’t it American? It might be American, European, or a world-wide human trait. But if you’ve ever done it, don’t do it again. Don’t yield to the temptation. For to give into it is, without any shadow of a moral doubt, the taking of something you deep down know really isn’t desired by the management of the motel. It is stealing. That’s why they chain down the TV’s. But some people get away with those too, don’t they? Get used to taking little things and who knows what that will lead too. This is how Jesus treats the subject:
“The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones.” Is Jesus suggesting that stealing towels could lead to stealing money?
“If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,” he says, “who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?” I think Jesus is against stealing at all levels.
Now what are we going to do with all those towels in our bath-room closets? How about saying 5 Hail Mary’s and 5 Our Fathers, and donating them to those who can’t afford to stay at motels.
