Your Hands

The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel has a classic depiction in the fresco by Michelangelo of the creation of Adam. The hand of the elderly father reaches out to the finger of a young Adam, and man was created. ‘Let us make man in our own image.’ God created man with His own hands, and gave Adam hands that can create, invent and do marvellous things through the millennia that followed. Man’s hands are a special gift that God gave him. With them he can make fascinating melodies on the piano, the flute and other instruments. The hands of a surgeon can perform delicate and life-saving surgeries. The hands of an artist can paint immortal masterpieces which now hang in huge museums in our large cities. The hands of a mother can soothe the pain of a child, change hundreds of diapers, cook innumerable meals, wash tons of laundry. Hands can join in prayer, help in volunteering, build an entire house, help feed the hungry. The hands of a priest can bless countless objects, join couples in marriage, absolve sins and consecrate the Eucharist. Now ask yourself: what am I doing with my hands, what have I done with them in the past, what do I plan to do with them in the future?