The Branches

After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave. (1 Kings 19:12-13)

August 11, 2026

Hello Everyone — 

Some of you reading these words may recall a cult-classic TV series of the early 1970s entitled The Night Stalker. Darren McGavin played a rumpled, wire-service reporter in Chicago by the name of Carl Kolchak. Again and again, Kolchak throughout the 20-episode series would inevitably back into mysterious murders involving a garden variety of creatures of the night.

In one episode, while steeped in yet another investigation, one of the characters tried to shed some light on those things that unsettle us and cause us to fear. The character did so by turning “fear” into an acronym for “false evidence appearing real.” It was a bit of conventional wisdom that has stuck with me all these years.

The disciples were terrified! Certain that it was a ghost, they cried out in fear. Even before Peter got out of the boat, he had his doubts. “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” As one commentator put it while reflecting on last Sunday's gospel (Mt 14:22-33), had not Jesus just spoken to them? Did Peter not trust his hearing? The strength of the wind is what scared Peter. But it was his fear that made him sink — not the wind.

Fear — doubts — dread — skepticism. These and more fly in the face of hope.

A little closer to our own time, in 2008, Pixar released a thoughtful sci-fi film called Wall-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter, Earth-class). Although an animated feature, it is not your typical movie. It is a challenging parable about humanity’s ability to destroy itself — and the resources we humans possess to save ourselves as well.

Set some seven hundred years into the future, the earth had become a dark, arid pile of garbage. Humans had fled the planet long before. An economy consecrated to the manufacture and consumption of ever more stuff had ravaged and destroyed the earth.

Wall-E is the last of a mechanical army of solar-powered robots left behind to clean up the mess. Wall-E spends its days gathering and compacting garbage and lifting the blocks into precise arrangements resembling skyscrapers. But this plucky, hardworking little machine possesses a sense of joy and wonder (his human creators had managed to install something of a “soul” in Wall-E).

While he goes about sweeping up the mountains of garbage, Wall-E is fascinated by some of the things he finds. He saves Christmas lights and a myriad of bright, colorful objects. Interestingly, the little robot learns about love and friendship from an old videotape of the movie Hello Dolly.

But Wall-E’s most precious discovery leads to the rebirth of humankind. In a rusty old refrigerator, Wall-E finds a tiny perfect green plant. Wall-E replants the little sprout in an old shoe and cares for it. It is a sprig of hope that maybe, just maybe, the earth can bloom again — that humankind can return and recreate itself and its world. Wall-E’s gentle care of the plant leads to an unexpected blossoming of hope. And not only that but also of friendship and love in a barren world where fear and desolation once dominated.

“Immediately, Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him (Peter).”

May we recognize the same outstretched hand in our fears and doubts.

As I do for you, please pray for me,

Most Reverend Jeffrey S. Grob
Archbishop of Milwaukee