Mass Readings Audio
https://bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/2021-06-27-usccb-daily-mass-readings

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time – June 27, 2021

Welcome to the one hundred and seventieth episode of By Your Life. I’m Lisa Huetteman and I know that you have a hundred different things you could be doing right now, so I thank you for choosing By Your Life.

My goal is to inspire, empower, support, challenge, and encourage you to connect Sunday, with Monday-Friday, in a secular business world. It’s my desire to help you live our Catholic faith in the marketplace. I hope to offer you practical ways to go forth and glorify the Lord by your life.

In this edition, we’ll reflect on the readings for the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B). Our first reading from the Book of Wisdom tells us what God intended for the world saying, “God formed us to be imperishable; the image of his own nature he made us.” (Wis 2:23) and how sin changed that because “by the envy of the devil, death entered the world.” (Wis 2:24) Because of envy, everything changed. Think about that for a minute. Because of envy, death entered the world. (Wis 2:24) Then consider how often you have allowed envy to enter your heart and the emotional, social, and spiritual death that followed.

Wired for Fairness

In episode 53 of By Your Life, I wrote about a famous research study done with Capuchin monkeys called the “Fairness Study.” You can watch what the study revealed in an excerpt from Frans de Waal’s TED Talk. Essentially, the research consisted of taking two Capuchin monkeys who lived together in a community and putting them in separate, but adjacent cages where they could see each other. The monkeys were taught a task, which was to take a rock and hand it to the scientist. When they successfully completed the task, they were given a piece of cucumber. Over and over, each of the monkeys would successfully complete the task and be totally satisfied with the cucumber as the reward.

In the Fairness Study, the first monkey handed the researcher the rock, and received a piece of cucumber and was perfectly content. Then, with the first monkey watching, the second monkey completed the task, but instead of cucumber was given a grape, which she ate. Now grapes are the preferred reward for Capuchin monkeys, so when the first monkey completed the task again and was once more given a piece of cucumber, she immediately threw it back at the researcher. Then, the second monkey completed the task again and was given a grape. The first monkey repeated the task by giving the researcher the rock and was hopeful she would get her just reward, but again was given a piece of cucumber, at which point she threw the cucumber back at the researcher and pitched a fit. It is absolutely hysterical. (Click here for a link.)

The point of the research is that if we evolved from primates, we are wired with an innate sense of fairness. It is ingrained in us. If you and I do the same task, we should be compensated in the same way. Never mind that I’ve been perfectly happy with my compensation up to this point. If you are given something that I perceive to be better, for no good reason, I will think that it is unfair. I bring this up because it is natural to have a desire for fairness. However, we need to beware when our sense of fairness is driven by envy.

Fairness Versus Envy

I had a colleague who told me he didn’t think it was fair that I got a promotion because I knew the wife of the hiring manager. In his mind, the fair thing would be for all resumes to be blindly reviewed on their own merit. I assume that he believed that if they had been, he would also have been given the chance to interview for the job. The truth was, I had experience he didn’t have, I had recommendations he didn’t have, and yes, my resume did get attention instead of being buried in the pile of applications because the wife of the hiring manager vouched for me because of her experience working with me. There was nothing unfair about it. 90 percent of all jobs are gotten as the result of networking, and I used my network to get noticed. After that, I had to prove myself on my own. As the Roman historian, Sallust said, “They envy the distinction I have won; let them, therefore, envy my toils, my honesty, and the methods by which I gained it.”

Second of Seven Deadly Sins

Envy isn’t a sense of unfairness, instead, it is a feeling of discontentment or resentment aroused by someone else’s good fortune. Envy is most often used to refer to a covetous feeling toward another person’s attributes, possessions, or stature in life. It is a violation of the 10^th Commandment and one of the seven deadly sins. According to Dante, envy is second only to pride and is called the daughter of pride.

In the workplace, envy rears its ugly head all the time. One person is envious of another’s office space. Another person is envious of their coworker being assigned a special project. Another is envious of the recognition a colleague received for a job well done. Another is envious of a teammate’s promotion. Another is envious of their associate’s parking spot. And it goes on and on. Envy destroys teamwork because it destroys relationships. Envy brings death to collaboration because it destroys trust. Envy is devastating to cooperation because it invites competition.

Unlike a desire for fairness, which is to right a wrong, envy’s desire is to wrong a right. Envious thoughts lead to destructive actions, and nobody wins. As English playwright and poet Christopher Marlowe wrote, “I am Envy…I cannot read and therefore wish all books burned.”

Combatting Envy

The Holy Father Pope Francis wrote in his Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Amoris Laetitia that, “Envy is a form of sadness provoked by another’s prosperity; it shows that we are not concerned for the happiness of others but only with our own well-being. Whereas love makes us rise above ourselves, envy closes us in on ourselves. True love values the other person’s achievements. It does not see him or her as a threat. It frees us from the sour taste of envy. It recognizes that everyone has different gifts and a unique path in life. So, it strives to discover its own road to happiness, while allowing others to find theirs.” (¶ 95) In other words, envy is the result of a lack of love for others.

If we don’t want to accompany the devil down his envious path to death, what should we do? Bishop Robert Barron, in his video series Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues, tells us to counteract the deadly sins we must consciously live the antidotes or the “Lively Virtues.” For envy, the lively virtue is admiration.

When I look at others with admiration, I recognize and appreciate that all good comes from God, regardless of whether it comes to me or to someone else. Admiring someone’s gifts is actually giving glory to God. I also think that in addition to admiration of God’s greatness in others, a little bit of gratitude for what God has given us goes a long way to help us combat this deadly sin because envy of another person’s blessings blinds us from seeing our own.

St. Paul, in the second reading from his Second Letter to the Corinthians, gives us a little more insight into how to grow in virtue and that is to be generous. He writes, “Not that others should have relief while you are burdened, but that as a matter of equality your abundance at the present time should supply their needs, so that their abundance may also supply your needs, that there may be equality. As it is written: Whoever had much did not have more, and whoever had little did not have less.” (2 Cor 8:13)

A common application of generosity is giving money, and certainly, there is a need for this in general and in the workplace. When a team member experiences a personal financial crisis, there are many examples of co-workers “passing the hat” to help that person out so they can get back on their feet again. But it doesn’t have to be about money. It could be stepping in to pick up the slack when someone is sick, on vacation, or simply over-loaded, knowing that they would do the same for you. All our workplaces would be more successful if this type of generosity were practiced on a regular basis.

However, I think there is another, a bigger picture view of what St. Paul is writing about when he says, “Your abundance at the present time should supply their needs, so that their abundance may also supply your needs.” (2 Cor 8:14) God did not dish out the same gifts in equal amounts to each person. Rather, he gave us complimentary gifts in just the right amount for our unique purposes. The best example of this is the difference between a great salesperson and a great accountant. In my experience, neither would be successful at each other’s jobs and they certainly would not be happy.

The salesperson would go crazy each day having to be in the office, working on a computer, and analyzing data. Similarly, a great accountant would loathe having to pick up the phone and call a stranger and ask for an appointment. They would sit at their desk rearranging the paper clips before they could force themselves to make a cold call. But that is okay because they are great at analyzing data and accurately accounting for the sales the salesperson closes.

One’s strengths compensate for the other’s weaknesses and vice versa. “Whoever had much did not have more, and whoever had little did not have less” because we each have exactly what we need to fulfill our purpose. (See episode 013 about Living on Purpose.)

We are not harmed by someone else’s good fortune. We are only harmed when we allow envy to control our outlook. When you find yourself feeling that cringe of envy, ask yourself, “How am I harmed by that person’s good fortune?”, “What blessings has God given only to me that am I grateful for?”, and “Am I willing to give up what I have or do the work that they had to do in exchange?” Look for what you admire in that person recognizing that you are admiring God and stop the completely unhelpful practice of envy.

Let’s ask for help.

Lord Jesus, forgive us for not saying “Thank You.” We repent of focusing on the things we don’t have, instead of the blessings you have given us. Set us free of the thoughts that consume our minds which give rise to envy. Substitute the negativity and cruelty within our hearts with your peace, love, and gentle kindness, so that in all that we do, we may glorify you by our lives.

May God abundantly bless you this week as you appreciate him for his generosity to you and to others, and may you glorify the Lord by your life.

If you liked this episode, spread the word. You know what to do, forward, share, or click to post. Also, check out the Resources page where you can find a link to the books and other resources mentioned in this and other episodes of By Your Life. I’m always interested in what you think, so give me some feedback by leaving a comment.