Of Potters and Clay

Homily for Thursday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Before a potter can form a piece of sculpture of clay, the clay itself must be prepared for the hands of the potter. Clay must be made malleable before it can be shaped; it must be kneaded and softened with water before it is ready to be placed on the potter’s wheel.

Once the clay is ready and the potter can begin to shape the object; it takes a great amount of care and attention to arrive at the desired end. It takes a practiced hand and an artist’s heart. To watch a potter at work can be fascinating. At this point the potter realizes that the softer the clay, the easier it is to work with it.

Today, the prophet Jeremiah tells us in so many words that we are the clay, and God is the potter. Consequently, like the clay we, too, must be softened and made malleable before God can form us into a vessel. There are several life experiences that can make us malleable – chief among them would be suffering. However, suffering must be accompanied by patience and persistence in prayer. Without these elements, suffering can harden us and make it impossible for God to use us as a potter uses clay.

This imagery can be comforting when we realize and come to know the love with which God created all things. The vessel that God forms is made to reflect not only God’s love but God’s image as well. The Lord shapes and molds us, refining us to reveal the person God created us to be. As with the lumps of clay, we bring our own malleability to the Lord’s efforts. Stubbornness, pride, and sin can make us clay that is hard to work with. Humility and obedience soften us. Love and faith make us more pliable. What God requires is our willingness to hear and listen to God’s commands. Then, and only then, can we accept the vocation to holiness that is our call as baptized members of the church.

As we prepare to meet Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, let us be open to the purpose for our lives and ask for the grace to become who we were created to be.