“Rejection and failure are facts of our existence.”
How we respond to failure, rejection, or criticism says a great deal about our character and our commitment to what we believe in. When we find what we truly believe we are called to do, do we stick with it or do we abandon it at the first sign of trouble?
Roy Riegels
In 1929, Georgia Tech played the University of California in the Rose Bowl. During the game a California player named Roy Riegels recovered a fumble and started for the goal, but in the wrong direction. He was tackled by his own teammate before he could score for Georgia.
In the following plays Georgia blocked a punt from California and scored a “safety,” 2 points.
At halftime the California team dreaded the reaction they were sure to receive from their coach, but none more so than Roy Riegels. Even so, for most of the break the coach just sat in silence, looking at his dejected team. Finally he announced that the players who started the first half, would also start the second.
As the team filed out onto the field Roy Riegels remained seated in a corner, his head in his hands. The coach went over to him. “Roy, didn’t you hear me? You’re starting the second half.”
But Roy answered, “I can’t do it coach, I’ve ruined you, the university, and myself. I can’t face that crowd.”
The coach put his hand on the player’s shoulder. “Roy, get up and go on back, the game isn’t over.”
And Roy went back. It would be wonderful if we could say that California went on to win that game, they didn’t. In fact they lost by 2 points. But the Georgia Tech players said that they had never seen a man play football as Roy Riegels did in that second half.
Rejection and failure are facts of our existence.
As Christians we are sent into the world to preach the message of the Gospel, the message of Christ. We have each been given different gifts to accomplish this. We are taught to reflect Christ to such a degree that it is no longer we who live but Christ who lives in us. A properly formed Christian will preach Christ in all his words and actions; he will always work in a way that reflects the message.
To a Christian who has discovered his true vocation there is no separation between himself, his work, and his mission.
This is perhaps seen most clearly when an artist reacts to critique of his work, especially younger artists who are still finding their voice. Artists are told to not take criticism personally, it is the work that is evaluated not the person of the artist.
I do not believe this has ever helped any artist to grow and improve. Particularly for the artist that sees his work as an extension of his mission, criticism is always taken personally. Nor is that necessarily a bad thing. It may be an indication that the artist needs to change his approach or technique or simply improve upon what he is doing, in order to convey his message.
Or perhaps criticism is simply God’s way of testing our persistence, our dedication to our mission.
JK Rowling once gave a commencement speech at Harvard titled “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the importance of imagination. ” She described a time seven years after her graduation. She was unemployed and her marriage had broken down, leaving her a single mother living in poverty. In her mind she was a failure and had hit rock bottom. But that moment brought clarity to her life.
She said, “So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged. I was set free, because my greatest fear had been realized, and I was still alive, and I still had a daughter whom I adored, and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life…”
In this case Rowling’s mission included survival for her and her daughter. In spite of being rejected 12 times by various publishers, she continued to submit her manuscript until “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” was accepted by Bloomsbury publishing house.
When we encounter rejection it is natural to consider that we have failed in our mission to convey the Truth. It is our responsibility to develop our talents to the highest degree. Our gifts are merely a starting point. It is our obligation to learn and study and expand upon our gifts a hundred times over. We cannot let rejection settle into our hearts, for then we allow ourselves to be content with less than we are capable of. Rejection is simply a way to let us know we still have work to do.
Even so, after we have studied, and trained, and practiced, and developed our gifts to their fullness, we may still encounter rejection from people who reject the message and the messenger. And in that case God has told us what to do, shake the dust from our feet, and move on, the game isn’t over.
Pax Vobiscum
15th Sunday in Ordinary Time