He’s Against It

President Calvin Coolidge, known for his brevity of speech, never used three words when one or two would suffice. One Sunday morning, he went to Church without his wife, who wasn’t feeling very well. When the President returned to the White House, Mrs. Coolidge asked what the sermon was about.

“Sin,” Coolidge said. “And what did the preacher have to say about sin?” Mrs. Coolidge persisted. “He was against it,” her husband replied.

A novelist was researching a book about life in a New England town during the first half of the 20th century. He thought he might get some valuable insight while visiting a local cemetery. He soon discovered that almost all the tombstones erected during the period in question contained a short epitaph. Without exception, each epitaph had only words of praise for the deceased person. Words like “generous”… “kind”… “upstanding”… “noble,”… “loving” appeared everywhere. All of which prompted the researcher to ask, “I wonder where they buried the sinners.”

In today’s Gospel…