Using words to help make the world a better place

The piece below appears in today's Irish Times.

Michael Commane
On Christmas Eve three little children were sitting on the back seat, upstairs on a Bus Átha Cliatha bus. Their parents were sitting in the seat in front of them.

At one stage one of the three children, a little boy, spotted a Christmas tree in the window of a house. He shouted out, “Look at that tree isn’t it beautiful”. They were his exact words. At most he was six. And it was because of his young age that the formula of words he used caught my attention. It was really a powerfully strong statement. 

This little boy saw something that pleased his eye and he was able to describe it in such perfect terms. I too looked at the tree, which was inside the window of a house, and yes, it looked good and there was a fine proportion to it. It was also delicately decorated.

Over the last days we have heard much about how the Word is associated with God. In tomorrow’s Gospel, (John 1: 1- 18) one of the world’s finest pieces of literature, St John begins his work with “In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was God; he was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him and without him nothing came to be."

These days we celebrate our belief that the Incarnate Son of God, who is born in Bethlehem, is God’s definitive Word. We believe that through his life, words and actions we know something more about God.

That little boy on the Number 14 bus on Christmas Eve had no idea the joy that he gave to people in his loud exclamation of beauty. But he certainly brought a smile to many of his fellow passengers. May his words go on to bring smiles to the faces of many people during the span of his life. 

In so many ways our words define us. The words we use to other people and the words we hear from other people play a significant role in defining who and what we are. The moment someone opens their mouth we can get a picture or an opinion of who they are.

Words are important. God’s Word is of ultimate importance.

There is an old adage which goes: “Don’t do as I do but do as I say”. There might well be an element of hypocrisy in it but nevertheless it does place a great emphasis on the words we use. It gives an importance to words. And so it should.

The beginning of a new year might well be an opportune time to decide to use words to build people up rather than knock them down. A time to use words to convey what we mean. A time to decide that our words will be real and vital and have nothing at all to do with cliché or pious waffle.

It’s easy to criticise, complain, castigate and throw cold water on words, and ideas. At times it’s difficult to be positive. But somehow or other if we could remind ourselves that we are all made in the image and likeness of God we might find ourselves in a position to be more positive towards other people and their ideas. We might realise that our positive words have a far better chance of building up the spirit and confidence of people than any negative or nasty words we may tend to use.

Living and spreading the Word of God might well be a starting point.

The words that little boy used on the 14 bus brought a smile to people's faces. He inspired. 

May your words and my words help make our world a better place. So, a fruitful and prosperous new year to all.