I always turn off the movie as the credits roll. Don’t even bat an eye.
I mean I may keep them on if I really like the song, or if my husband and I have a bet to settle about the name of an unknown actor we couldn’t quite agree upon.
But, that’s usually it.
It wasn’t until I started work as a copy editor that I became quite fond of the little print inside the cover of a book, and subsequently, the little print at the end of a movie. Even though my name isn’t usually (well, ever) on the cover, it doesn’t mean I don’t pour blood, sweat, and tears into making sure a book is in tiptop shape before print… or that I don’t have a fundamental role in the publication. I am committed until the very end regardless of the praise I receive. And it is the gift of humility that causes me to see and appreciate this special role God has given me. It may be clique, but it is true: There is a role that only I can fill.
I begin to imagine that the names featured in the credits to a movie are a bit like the Communion of Saints. St. Paul ends his letter with a line befitting of this analogy. He says, may “my service for Jerusalem be acceptable to the saints,” and in turn asks the Romans to pray for him. St. Paul affirms the saints wisdom and support in heaven, his role as a good steward of the mission, but also our role to participate through prayer as well. St. Paul called each of the Romans to find a place in his mission – through their prayers, and he is calling all of us to find our place in the larger mission of the church. Whether we proclaim him in front of a camera or behind a computer. Whatever our work may be, it is a part of this glorious community of men and women whose sole purpose is to lead and be led to heaven.
Take some time to consider your role in the communion of saints. How have you been called to serve? Are you responding with humility and obedience or with pride and disdain? Take some time today to consider St. Therese’s words on the individuality of souls:
“I understood that every flower created by Him is beautiful, that the brilliance of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not lessen the perfume of the violet or the sweet simplicity of the daisy. I understood that if all the lowly flowers wished to be roses, nature would no longer be enameled with lovely hues. And so it is in the world of souls, Our lord's living garden.”
We’re all created with a place and purpose in this world. Sometimes, it just takes us a little longer than others to realize it.
