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EDWARD McCORKELL
contemplative vocation. I thought as a young man that I was going to be a Paulist missionary and preach the gospel. But God had in mind that I will be a contemplative monk.
And in my own family, my father was a beautiful person and a really holy man. I was fourteen when my father died; and I was serving the Mass on the Sunday after his death. The pastor gave a kind of euology of my father. And I remember him saying that my father was never, ever known to say an unkind word about anyone. Well, I could have got up and told the congregation that I had lived with him, and I knew that was exactly true. That was one thing he would never stand for, if we started criticizing other people and running them down. He would say that in our house, if you don't have a positive word to say, then just shut up.
L.M.: That is beautiful.
E.M.: He wasn't naive, he knew that there was evil in the world and that people weren't always behaving right. But he said we don't talk about that. My father was very gentle, but on that one thing he was very firm. So often people are complaining about one another and criticizing one another: Isn't he awful? Isn't she dreadful? There's so much of that, too much of it.
L.M.: That's part of what creates all the misery and suffering in this world.
E.M.: We would all be better off if the energy that people are using in complaining was spent in contemplative prayer, and with building up a positive attitude of loving kindness, and compassion, and mercy toward others.
L.M.: There is a sense of humor and friendliness that can come out of spiritual practice.
E.M.: Oh, definitely. God help us if we lose our sense of humor. It's often overlooked that Jesus had a real sense of humor.
L.M.: Where do you find him showing it?
E.M.: I'm sure that Jesus laughed regarding Saint Peter. The time that two or three apostles were in the boat fishing, and Jesus came walking on the
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