In today’s gospel we hear Jesus continuing to instruct his disciples. And what he is telling them is as countercultural today as it was in his time. It’s almost as though he is saying, “Pay attention to how you feel when somebody does something to you, and then do just the opposite.”. That’s definitely not the way of the world. So what gives?
When you read through the gospels, Jesus frequently mentions the “kingdom of Heaven” or “the Kingdom of God”. Most of us think he’s talking about life after death, when we will live in the heavenly Jerusalem where everything will finally be perfect, where we will contemplate the vision of God for all eternity. Jesus, of course, came to earth to make a pathway for us to come into union with God, to destroy death, to allow us to live forever. But we don’t have to wait till we die to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. He gives us very plain instructions, which everyone can understand. And that’s the scary part. I can understand what Jesus is telling me, but putting it into practice is really hard.
Most of us who try to be disciples congratulate ourselves if we manage to avoid serious sin. When we have that act of penance at the beginning of the Mass when Father tells us to “call to mind our sins” I bet you didn’t call to mind even one. He caught me off guard also. It takes some time to remember the last time I committed an official sin. As long as I stay out of trouble and keep my nose clean, I’ll be alright.
But what if our examination of conscience consisted of those things Jesus talks about? When did I last “love” an enemy, or do good to someone who hates me? .Some of the things he talks about are more situational, and i’m not sure how I would react if someone cursed me -- probably I wouldn’t do much, but I probably wouldn’t bless them. But Jesus is laying out a way of life which has captured the imagination of some really great people, including Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Junior. And, of course, all those brothers and sisters of ours that we call saints. Following Jesus’ instructions is the only way to change the world for the better.
In the early days of the Civil Rights movement in this country I remember a story. In 1971 there was a lot of violence in Durham, North Carolina, as the city attempted to comply with mandatory integration of the schools. The city fathers appointed a Black activist, Ann Atwater, to chair a commission on how to make integration safer. They also appointed a man named Clairborne Ellis as her co-chair, who was also the head of the local branch of the Ku Klux Klan. I suspect this was an attempt to sabotage the whole process. The commission set out to interview the stakeholders, and one group came in from a local Black church and started the meeting with a rousing hymn. As Ann Atwater was clapping along, she noticed Clairborne was not, so she got up and took his hands and clapped them along with the music. That was the beginning of a life-long friendship, and Clairborne eventually quit the KKK and joined Atwater in campaigning for civil rights. At Clairborne’s funeral his family made sure that Atwater was present. By then most of Clairborne’s extended family had not only dis-associated with the segregationists but had also been involved in extending civil rights.
This story, and there are many others like it in which enemies became friends because of a simple, countercultural act on the part of one of them, is the sort of thing Jesus is talking about. Of course there is risk when this way of living is tried. You might end up being a martyr or losing your job or your home. But if you’ve truly brought the kingdom of God closer to reality by your action, you have nothing to worry about. Jesus promises that Your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
As you know, we are about to begin a synodal process in our diocese. It doesn’t involve bringing a Black activist and a ku klux klansman together, but there is a similarity. In the process we are about to embark upon, there will be opportunities for you to listen and speak to others about the Church; you will have a chance to step out of your comfort zone and engage with others over the very real tissue of thinking about our Church and what you personally would like to see in the future. We can choose to keep our heads down and go on with our lives, or we can do what Jesus says: Give and gifts will be given to you, a good measure , packed together, shakedown, and overflowing will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured it to you.
