JOHN 20:19-23
WHEN WE HEAR THE FIRST READING FROM THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, IT'S VERY EXCITING. A MIGHTY WIND, TONGUES OF FIRE, BEING ABLE TO SPEAK IN ANY LANGUAGE AND BE UNDERSTOOD. ILLITERATE HILLBILLIES FROM GALILEE SUDDENLY BECOMING GIFTED PREACHERS, AND 3000 PEOPLE BECAME CHRISTIAN THAT DAY. IT MAKES ME JEALOUS. WOULDN'T IT BE WONDERFUL IF THE HOLY SPIRIT WOULD DO THAT FOR US? IF SOMEONE GOT SICK, WELL, THE HOLY SPIRIT WOULD HEAL HIM. IF SOMEONE NEEDED SOMETHING, WELL, THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY, LED BY THE SPIRIT, WOULD PROVIDE. AND ALL OF US WOULD LIVE IN HARMONY. THE HOLY SPIRIT WOULD SOLVE ALL OUR PROBLEMS, THE HOLY SPIRIT WOULD SEE THAT EVERY EFFORT WE MADE WOULD BE BLESSED WITH SUCCESS.
BUT IF YOU READ FURTHER IN ACTS, AND IF YOU READ THE LETTERS PAUL WROTE, AND PETER AND JOHN AND JAMES, A DIFFERENT PICTURE EMERGES. AFTER THE INITIAL EXCITEMENT, ALMOST IMMEDIATELY PROBLEMS BEGAN TO DEVELOP. JESUS HAD TOLD HIS DISCIPLES TO GO TO GALILEE TO WAIT FOR HIM. WHEN THEY GOT THERE, I IMAGINE THEY LOOKED AROUND AND SAW THOSE FAMILIAR BOATS, AND THEIR FRIENDS AND FAMILIES. THEIR THREE YEARS ON THE ROAD NOW SEEMED LIKE A DREAM, AND THEY HAD RETURNED TO THEIR COMFORTABLE REALITY. PETER COULD HARDLY WAIT. HE TOLD HIS FRIENDS, AND IT'S RIGHT THERE IN THE BIBLE, “I'M GOING FISHING”. BUT THE HOLY SPIRIT HAD OTHER IDEAS, AND THE TWELVE HAD TO LEAVE THEIR COMFORTABLE FAMILIAR LIVES FOREVER, AND WANDER THROUGH THE WORLD PREACHING AND TEACHING AND BEING PERSECUTED, PETER AND PAUL TO ROME, JAMES TO SPAIN, THOMAS TO INDIA, MATTHIAS TO ARMENIA, AND SO ON. AND ALL WERE MARTYRED IN STRANGE LANDS FAR FROM HOME.
AND WE READ ABOUT PROBLEMS IN THOSE EARLY COMMUNITIES. WHAT TO DO ABOUT THE GREEK WIDOWS WHO WEREN'T GETTING THEIR FAIR SHARE OF THE COMMON GOODS. WHAT TO DO ABOUT THE GENTILE CHRISTIANS, WHO DIDN'T SEE THE POINT OF GIVING UP PORK CHOPS AND SHRIMP. WHAT TO DO ABOUT THOSE CORINTHIAN CHRISTIANS WHO HAD COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT ONCE YOU WERE BAPTIZED, YOU WERE SAVED, SO IT DIDN'T MATTER WHAT YOU DID – AND PAUL WAS HORRIFIED AND WROTE A LONG LETTER TRYING TO SET THEM STRAIGHT.
YOU MIGHT EVEN THINK THE HOLY SPIRIT HAD CREATED PROBLEMS RATHER THAN SOLVED THEM.
AND YOU CAN READ ABOUT HOW PETER THE FIRST POPE, DECIDED THAT HE WAS GOING TO QUIT EATING WITH THE GENTILE CHRISTIANS BECAUSE HE WAS A JEW AND DECIDED TO KEEP THE DIETARY LAWS. BUT PAUL GAVE HIM A STERN LECTURE AND THE EARLY COMMUNITY DECIDED THAT YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO FOLLOW JEWISH RULES TO BE A CHRISTIAN. AND YOU CAN SEE HOW PAUL COULDN'T MAKE ANY HEADWAY WITH THE ATHENIANS. HE GOT OUT HIS BEST PHILOSOPHICAL ARGUMENTS, AND AFTER HE AND THE ATHENIANS HAD A WONDERFUL DEBATE IN THE TOWN SQUARE, HE DIDN'T MAKE ANY CONVERTS; BUT THEY TOLD HIM THEY ENJOYED THE DEBATE AND WOULD BE BACK TO DEBATE MORE. KIND OF LIKE ONE OF THOSE REALITY SHOWS ON TELEVISION I GUESS. AND WE CAN SEE PAUL AND MARK, ONCE OFF ON MISSION TOGETHER, AND THEN APPARENTLY HAVING SOME KIND OF DISAGREEMENT THAT LED MARK TO LEAVE PAUL. AND PETER AND JOHN BEING BEATEN; AND PAUL BEING STONED AND SHIPWRECKED, AND THE EARLY COMMUNITY OF CHRISTIANS BEING DRIVEN OUT OF JERUSALEM.
YOU MIGHT EVEN THINK THE HOLY SPIRIT WAS LEADING THOSE EARLY CHRISTIANS TO FAILURE AFTER FAILURE.
IF YOU THINK THE HOLY SPIRIT CAUSES PROBLEMS, IF YOU THINK THE HOLY SPIRIT LEADS US INTO FAILURE, YOU ARE RIGHT. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS, AFTER ALL, THE SPIRIT OF JESUS. AND AS JESUS WENT ABOUT DOING HIS FATHER'S WILL, HE HAD PROBLEM AFTER PROBLEM. HE HAD APOSTLES WHO WEREN'T ALL THAT SWIFT; HE HAD PHARISEES WHO FOLLOWED HIM AROUND IN THE BEGINNING OUT OF CURIOSITY, THEN IN THE HOPES OF TRYING TO SILENCE HIM, AND FINALLY, PLOTTING TO KILL HIM. THE MORE HE PREACHED AND TAUGHT AND HEALED, THE MORE PROBLEMS WERE CREATED, THE MORE BARRIERS WERE THROWN UP FOR HIM TO OVERCOME. AND FAILURE? THERE WAS A MOMENT THERE, WHEN JESUS WAS HANGING ON THE CROSS, DESERTED BY ALL BUT HIS MOTHER AND JOHN, WHEN HE MUST HAVE FELT A COMPLETE FAILURE, AND HIS FOLLOWERS WOULDN’T HAVE DISAGREED.
THE HOLY SPIRIT IS ONLY INTERESTED IN ONE THING – THAT IS TO MAKE US INTO OTHER CHRISTS. IF THE SPIRIT GAVE BIRTH TO THE CHURCH, IT ISN'T BECAUSE THIS WAS HIS GOAL; THE CHURCH IS ONLY ONE OF THE WAYS HE USES TO TURN US INTO CHRIST. AND JUST AS CHRIST FACED MORE AND MORE PROBLEMS AS HE WORKED TO DO HIS FATHER'S WILL, AND JUST AS HE FAILED SPECTACULARLY ON THE CROSS, THAT WILL BE OUR FATE AS WELL. IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME, READ THE LIFE OF JUST ABOUT ANY SAINT. PROBLEMS, FAILURES. THE TOOLS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
BECAUSE PROBLEMS SHAPE US; AS WE CONFRONT THEM, WE BECOME STRONGER, WE BECOME MORE CAPABLE OF DOING GOD'S WILL AND AVOIDING SIN; AND THE STRONGER WE ARE, THE BIGGER THE PROBLEMS HE WILL GIVE US. AND FAILURES? THE HOLY SPIRIT LEADS US TO FAILURE AND SOMETIMES, TO SUCCESS. TO HIM, IT DOESN'T MATTER IF WE FAIL OR SUCCEED. HE WILL ACCOMPLISH THE WILL OF THE FATHER, WHETHER WE FAIL OR SUCCEED. HE CAN USE ANYBODY AND ANYTHING TO BRING ABOUT THE FATHER'S PLAN; MY FAILURE DOESN'T BOTHER GOD, ONLY MY FAITHFULNESS MATTERS.
AND IN A WAY, KNOWING HOW THE HOLY SPIRIT WORKS IN OUR LIVES IS LIBERATING AND BRINGS JOY. WHEN I CONFRONT A BARRIER, WHEN I FACE A PROBLEM, I REALIZE HE IS SHAPING ME, WORKING WITHIN ME, TO MAKE ME MORE LIKE JESUS. AND IF I START OUT TO DO SOMETHING I MAY FAIL, SOMETIMES I MAY GO DOWN IN FLAMES; BUT I KNOW THAT FAILURE HAS A CONNECTION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT WHO WILL SEE TO IT THAT GOD'S WILL IS DONE AND GOD'S PLAN SUCCEEDS WHETHER OR NOT I FAIL. IF I SET OUT TO GET RID OF HUNGER, I KNOW I CAN'T DO IT, I WILL FAIL, BUT I CAN START. IF I SET OUT TO BRING CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES INTO A WORLD WHICH PROUDLY CALLS ITSELF “POST CHRISTIAN” I'M NOT LIKELY TO SEE THE FRUITS OF MY EFFORTS, BUT I CAN START, BECAUSE I AM ALLOWED TO FAIL. IF I DECIDE TO SPEND MY LIFE TRYING TO END ABORTION, I MAY DIE FEELING LIKE A FAILURE, BUT JESUS DIED FEELING LIKE A FAILURE, CRYING OUT, “MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU ABANDONED ME?”
IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN, YOUR LIFE WILL BE ONE PROBLEM AFTER ANOTHER. YOU WILL FAIL MANY TIMES MORE THAN YOU SUCCEED, IF YOU ARE SERIOUS ABOUT YOUR DUTIES AS A CHRISTIAN. AND THAT'S OK, THAT'S THE HOLY SPIRIT, WHO TURNS CRUCIFIXION INTO RESURRECTION FOR EACH OF US, THROUGH OUR PROBLEMS AND OUR FAILURES. THE SPIRIT OF JESUS IS STILL AT WORK IN THE CHURCH AND IN THE WORLD, MAKING YOU AND I INTO BROTHERS AND SISTERS OF JESUS CHRIST. AND THE MORE PROBLEMS, THE MORE FAILURE HE BRINGS INTO OUR LIVES, THE MORE WE TAKE ON THAT FAMILY RESEMBLANCE, THE MORE WE CAN LOOK FORWARD TO THAT PERSONAL EASTER SUNDAY WHEN HE WILL RAISE US UP IN TRIUMPH. COME, HOLY SPIRIT.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Seventh Sunday of Easter, Cycle A
JOHN 17:1-11
I'VE BEEN TO A FEW FUNERALS IN MY LIFE. IT'S AT FUNERALS THAT I AM MOST UNCOMFORTABLE. IF I KNEW AND LOVED THE PERSON WHO HAS DIED, I FEEL GRIEF, BUT OFTEN A SENSE OF RELIEF AS WELL. AND GRIEF AND RELIEF TOGETHER EQUALS GUILT. GRIEF BECAUSE I'LL NEVER EXPERIENCE THAT PERSON AGAIN IN THIS LIFE; AND RELIEF, SOMETIMES, THAT THE SUFFERING IS OVER, THAT THE BURDEN ON THE LOVED ONES HAS BEEN LIFTED. BUT BOTH OF THESE FEELINGS PRESUPPOSE THE END OF THE PERSON, AND CERTAINLY AS A SCIENTIST I KNOW THAT WHAT IS ME RESIDES IN MY BRAIN, AND IF YOU BLOCK THE BLOOD FLOW TO A FRONTAL LOBE MY PERSONALITY WILL CHANGE; IF I DEVELOP NEUROFIBRILLARY TANGLES IN MY BRAIN, IF I GET ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE, I MAY REACH A POINT WHERE I LOSE MY WHOLE SELF, WHERE EVERY MEMORY I HAVE VANISHES. AND WHEN THE BRAIN DIES, WHAT BECOMES OF ME?
I'VE BEEN TO FUNERALS WHERE SOMEONE, USUALLY A SON OR DAUGHTER OF THE DECEASED, TELLS THE ASSEMBLED MOURNERS THAT DAD IS UP IN HEAVEN, GETTING READY TO TEE OFF ON THE ETERNAL GOLF COURSE, OR THAT GRANDMA IS NOW REUNITED WITH GRANDPA, AND THEY ARE SITTING ON A PORCH TOGETHER JUST LIKE WHEN THEY WERE ALIVE. IT'S COMFORTING TO IMAGINE OUR LOVED ONES GOING THROUGH A GENTLE TRANSITION, TO TAKE UP LIFE AGAIN JUST LIKE BEFORE, EXCEPT NOW WITHOUT ALL THE BAD STUFF. ONE OF MY EARLIEST MEMORIES WAS OF MY FATHER SINGING A FEW LINES FROM A SONG WHICH WAS POPULAR IN THOSE DAYS, “BIG ROCK CANDY MOUNTAIN”. IT'S A VISION OF HEAVEN WHERE THERE ARE CIGARETTE TREES, LEMONADE SPRINGS, LAKES OF STEW, STREAMS OF ALCOHOL – THE DREAM OF A HOMELESS HOBO.
BUT AS I WAS READING TODAY'S GOSPEL, I WAS STRUCK BY SOMETHING JESUS HIMSELF SAID: “ETERNAL LIFE IS THIS: TO KNOW YOU, THE ONLY TRUE GOD, AND HIM WHOM YOU HAVE SENT, JESUS CHRIST.” I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU, BUT AT FIRST GLANCE, THAT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE ANY HEAVEN THAT I'VE EVER IMAGINED.
WE THINK OF HEAVEN AS LASTING FOREVER, AND OF COURSE JESUS DID SAY THAT THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN HIM WILL NEVER DIE. BUT ETERNAL LIFE IS NOT ABOUT TIME, IT SEEMS; NOT ABOUT GOODIES, AND NOT HAVING TO STRUGGLE ANYMORE. JESUS IS SAYING THAT ETERNAL LIFE IS ESSENTIALLY ABOUT RELATIONSHIP. LAST WEEK HE DESCRIBED THAT RELATIONSHIP. HE SAID “I AM IN THE FATHER AND YOU ARE IN ME AND I AM IN YOU.” IN ANOTHER PLACE HE SAYS, “PROTECT THEM IN YOUR NAME THAT YOU HAVE GIVEN ME, SO THAT THEY MAY BE ONE, AS WE ARE ONE.”
THERE ARE MANY OTHER PASSAGES IN WHICH JESUS TRIES TO PUT INTO HUMAN LANGUAGE A MYSTERY THAT WE CAN BARELY GRASP: WE CAN BE IN GOD, WE CAN BE IN EACH OTHER, WE CAN BE ONE. AND THAT IS THE GOAL OF HUMAN LIFE – TO BE ONE WITH GOD AND ONE WITH EACH OTHER.
SAINT THERESA OF AVILA WAS GIVEN A VISION OF HELL. IT WAS NOT A PLACE OF FIRE WHERE DEMONS PRODDED YOU WITH PITCHFORKS. SHE DESCRIBED IT AS AN EXPERIENCE OF UTTER SILENCE, OF BLACKNESS, WHERE HERE WAS NOTHING TO SEE, NOTHING TO HEAR, SMELL, TOUCH OR TASTE; WHERE THERE WAS NO PAST OR FUTURE, JUST A HORRIBLE NOW OF EMPTINESS. HELL WAS THE COMPLETE LACK OF RELATIONSHIP.
SO ON THE ONE HAND THERE IS ETERNAL LIFE, WHICH MEANS A DEEP, DEEP RELATIONSHIP WITH THE FATHER AND THE SON, A RELATIONSHIP OF ONENESS. AND ON THE OTHER HAND, AN ETERNAL NOW WITH NO RELATIONSHIP WHATSOEVER, NOT EVEN WITH A HEARTBEAT OR A BREATH. AND THE WONDER IS THAT WE ARE ALREADY HALF-WAY THERE. ETERNAL LIFE IS OURS TO LOSE. JESUS IN HIS PRAYER SAYS THAT WE BELONG TO HIM AND WHAT BELONGS TO HIM BELONGS TO THE FATHER. JESUS TALKS ABOUT GLORY, AND WHATEVER GLORY IS, I WANT IT AND YOU WANT IT, ESPECIALLY IF JESUS WANTS IT, AND HE SAYS HERE THAT HE DOES. GLORY IS ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE THEOLOGICAL WORDS THAT YOU CAN'T QUITE DEFINE. IN THE END IT S A MYSTERY, BUT IT CERTAINLY IS SOMETHING THAT DESCRIBES THE RISEN CHRIST. IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE POOR HUMANS CAN GIVE TO GOD, JUST AS JESUS GIVES GLORY TO HIS FATHER. IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE CAN SAY ABOUT THE BLESSED MOTHER AND THE SAINTS. AND IT IS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE SAID OF YOU AND I AS WELL. GLORY CAN MEAN A LOT OF THINGS, BUT I THINK THE BEST DEFINITION IS THAT IT MEANS REVEALING GOD. GLORY, THEN, IS THERE WHEN THAT RELATIONSHIP IS THERE; GOD SHINES THROUGH US SOMEHOW WHEN WE ARE IN THAT ONENESS THAT JESUS PRAYED WOULD BE OURS.
AND THAT BRINGS US TO THE LAST POINT. SAINT PETER TELLS US TO REJOICE WHEN WE SHARE CHRIST'S SUFFERINGS, BECAUSE IT IS HERE THAT GLORY WILL REALLY BE REVEALED. IF WE WANT GLORY, WE HAVE TO SUFFER. NOW WE ALL SUFFER, WE CAN'T ESCAPE THAT, MUCH AS WE TRY. EVERY DAY AND EVERY MOMENT THERE IS A GAP BETWEEN WHAT WE KNOW WE SHOULD BE AND WHAT WE ARE; SOMETIMES IT'S A TINY GAP, SOMETIMES ITS HUGE. IT'S ALWAYS ABOUT THE LACK OF FREEDOM; THERE IS NO TIME IN ANYONE'S LIFE WHEN HE OR SHE CAN HONESTLY SAY, “IT CAN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS.” AND SUFFERING CAN BE WASTED. WE CAN CURL UP IN A BALL AND WAIT FOR IT TO PASS; WE CAN SUFFER LIKE A DUMB ANIMAL; WE CAN BE ANGRY WITH GOD BECAUSE WE SUFFER. BUT THERE WAS ONCE A MAN WHO WAS SUFFERING, WHO WAS DYING IN GREAT PAIN; AND HE LOOKED TO HIS SIDE AND SAW ANOTHER MAN SUFFERING WITH HIM, AND SAID, “LORD, REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM”. AND THAT OTHER MAN ANSWERED, “TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”
IF YOU WOULD TRULY ENTER INTO THAT MYSTERIOUS RELATIONSHIP THAT IS ETERNAL LIFE, IF YOU WOULD TRULY ENTER INTO THE GLORY THAT BELONGS TO CHRIST AND THE FATHER, THE GLORY THAT IS SHARED BY THE SAINTS, IF YOU WOULD TRULY LOOK FOR THOSE MOMENTS IN YOUR LIFE WHEN JESUS IS CLOSEST TO YOU, WHEN HE IS MOST ONE WITH YOU, IT IS WHEN YOU ARE SUFFERING. AND THAT IS A GREAT MYSTERY, AND IT'S SCARY, AND IT TURNS EVERYTHING UPSIDE DOWN, BECAUSE WE SORT OF THINK THAT ETERNAL LIFE IS THE ABSENCE OF SUFFERING.
BUT ETERNAL LIFE, JESUS SAYS, IS TO KNOW THE ONE TRUE GOD AND THE CHRIST WHOM HE HAS SENT. AND IT WAS IN HIS SUFFERING THAT JESUS GLORIFIED THE FATHER AND WAS GLORIFIED. AND WE WHO ARE GIVEN TO JESUS BY THE FATHER ARE ALSO GIVEN THE GIFT OF SUFFERING, SO THAT WE CAN BECOME ONE WITH JESUS AND HE WITH US.
WHAT A MYSTERY! BUT WHAT A PROMISE. IF GOD CAN TURN SUFFERING INTO GLORY, THEN WHAT CAN'T HE DO?
LET US PRAY, NOT THAT GOD REMOVE SUFFERING FROM OUR LIVES, BUT THAT WHEN SUFFERING COMES, WE WILL SEE HOW CLOSE WE ARE IN THOSE MOMENTS TO JESUS.
I'VE BEEN TO A FEW FUNERALS IN MY LIFE. IT'S AT FUNERALS THAT I AM MOST UNCOMFORTABLE. IF I KNEW AND LOVED THE PERSON WHO HAS DIED, I FEEL GRIEF, BUT OFTEN A SENSE OF RELIEF AS WELL. AND GRIEF AND RELIEF TOGETHER EQUALS GUILT. GRIEF BECAUSE I'LL NEVER EXPERIENCE THAT PERSON AGAIN IN THIS LIFE; AND RELIEF, SOMETIMES, THAT THE SUFFERING IS OVER, THAT THE BURDEN ON THE LOVED ONES HAS BEEN LIFTED. BUT BOTH OF THESE FEELINGS PRESUPPOSE THE END OF THE PERSON, AND CERTAINLY AS A SCIENTIST I KNOW THAT WHAT IS ME RESIDES IN MY BRAIN, AND IF YOU BLOCK THE BLOOD FLOW TO A FRONTAL LOBE MY PERSONALITY WILL CHANGE; IF I DEVELOP NEUROFIBRILLARY TANGLES IN MY BRAIN, IF I GET ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE, I MAY REACH A POINT WHERE I LOSE MY WHOLE SELF, WHERE EVERY MEMORY I HAVE VANISHES. AND WHEN THE BRAIN DIES, WHAT BECOMES OF ME?
I'VE BEEN TO FUNERALS WHERE SOMEONE, USUALLY A SON OR DAUGHTER OF THE DECEASED, TELLS THE ASSEMBLED MOURNERS THAT DAD IS UP IN HEAVEN, GETTING READY TO TEE OFF ON THE ETERNAL GOLF COURSE, OR THAT GRANDMA IS NOW REUNITED WITH GRANDPA, AND THEY ARE SITTING ON A PORCH TOGETHER JUST LIKE WHEN THEY WERE ALIVE. IT'S COMFORTING TO IMAGINE OUR LOVED ONES GOING THROUGH A GENTLE TRANSITION, TO TAKE UP LIFE AGAIN JUST LIKE BEFORE, EXCEPT NOW WITHOUT ALL THE BAD STUFF. ONE OF MY EARLIEST MEMORIES WAS OF MY FATHER SINGING A FEW LINES FROM A SONG WHICH WAS POPULAR IN THOSE DAYS, “BIG ROCK CANDY MOUNTAIN”. IT'S A VISION OF HEAVEN WHERE THERE ARE CIGARETTE TREES, LEMONADE SPRINGS, LAKES OF STEW, STREAMS OF ALCOHOL – THE DREAM OF A HOMELESS HOBO.
BUT AS I WAS READING TODAY'S GOSPEL, I WAS STRUCK BY SOMETHING JESUS HIMSELF SAID: “ETERNAL LIFE IS THIS: TO KNOW YOU, THE ONLY TRUE GOD, AND HIM WHOM YOU HAVE SENT, JESUS CHRIST.” I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU, BUT AT FIRST GLANCE, THAT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE ANY HEAVEN THAT I'VE EVER IMAGINED.
WE THINK OF HEAVEN AS LASTING FOREVER, AND OF COURSE JESUS DID SAY THAT THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN HIM WILL NEVER DIE. BUT ETERNAL LIFE IS NOT ABOUT TIME, IT SEEMS; NOT ABOUT GOODIES, AND NOT HAVING TO STRUGGLE ANYMORE. JESUS IS SAYING THAT ETERNAL LIFE IS ESSENTIALLY ABOUT RELATIONSHIP. LAST WEEK HE DESCRIBED THAT RELATIONSHIP. HE SAID “I AM IN THE FATHER AND YOU ARE IN ME AND I AM IN YOU.” IN ANOTHER PLACE HE SAYS, “PROTECT THEM IN YOUR NAME THAT YOU HAVE GIVEN ME, SO THAT THEY MAY BE ONE, AS WE ARE ONE.”
THERE ARE MANY OTHER PASSAGES IN WHICH JESUS TRIES TO PUT INTO HUMAN LANGUAGE A MYSTERY THAT WE CAN BARELY GRASP: WE CAN BE IN GOD, WE CAN BE IN EACH OTHER, WE CAN BE ONE. AND THAT IS THE GOAL OF HUMAN LIFE – TO BE ONE WITH GOD AND ONE WITH EACH OTHER.
SAINT THERESA OF AVILA WAS GIVEN A VISION OF HELL. IT WAS NOT A PLACE OF FIRE WHERE DEMONS PRODDED YOU WITH PITCHFORKS. SHE DESCRIBED IT AS AN EXPERIENCE OF UTTER SILENCE, OF BLACKNESS, WHERE HERE WAS NOTHING TO SEE, NOTHING TO HEAR, SMELL, TOUCH OR TASTE; WHERE THERE WAS NO PAST OR FUTURE, JUST A HORRIBLE NOW OF EMPTINESS. HELL WAS THE COMPLETE LACK OF RELATIONSHIP.
SO ON THE ONE HAND THERE IS ETERNAL LIFE, WHICH MEANS A DEEP, DEEP RELATIONSHIP WITH THE FATHER AND THE SON, A RELATIONSHIP OF ONENESS. AND ON THE OTHER HAND, AN ETERNAL NOW WITH NO RELATIONSHIP WHATSOEVER, NOT EVEN WITH A HEARTBEAT OR A BREATH. AND THE WONDER IS THAT WE ARE ALREADY HALF-WAY THERE. ETERNAL LIFE IS OURS TO LOSE. JESUS IN HIS PRAYER SAYS THAT WE BELONG TO HIM AND WHAT BELONGS TO HIM BELONGS TO THE FATHER. JESUS TALKS ABOUT GLORY, AND WHATEVER GLORY IS, I WANT IT AND YOU WANT IT, ESPECIALLY IF JESUS WANTS IT, AND HE SAYS HERE THAT HE DOES. GLORY IS ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE THEOLOGICAL WORDS THAT YOU CAN'T QUITE DEFINE. IN THE END IT S A MYSTERY, BUT IT CERTAINLY IS SOMETHING THAT DESCRIBES THE RISEN CHRIST. IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE POOR HUMANS CAN GIVE TO GOD, JUST AS JESUS GIVES GLORY TO HIS FATHER. IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE CAN SAY ABOUT THE BLESSED MOTHER AND THE SAINTS. AND IT IS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE SAID OF YOU AND I AS WELL. GLORY CAN MEAN A LOT OF THINGS, BUT I THINK THE BEST DEFINITION IS THAT IT MEANS REVEALING GOD. GLORY, THEN, IS THERE WHEN THAT RELATIONSHIP IS THERE; GOD SHINES THROUGH US SOMEHOW WHEN WE ARE IN THAT ONENESS THAT JESUS PRAYED WOULD BE OURS.
AND THAT BRINGS US TO THE LAST POINT. SAINT PETER TELLS US TO REJOICE WHEN WE SHARE CHRIST'S SUFFERINGS, BECAUSE IT IS HERE THAT GLORY WILL REALLY BE REVEALED. IF WE WANT GLORY, WE HAVE TO SUFFER. NOW WE ALL SUFFER, WE CAN'T ESCAPE THAT, MUCH AS WE TRY. EVERY DAY AND EVERY MOMENT THERE IS A GAP BETWEEN WHAT WE KNOW WE SHOULD BE AND WHAT WE ARE; SOMETIMES IT'S A TINY GAP, SOMETIMES ITS HUGE. IT'S ALWAYS ABOUT THE LACK OF FREEDOM; THERE IS NO TIME IN ANYONE'S LIFE WHEN HE OR SHE CAN HONESTLY SAY, “IT CAN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS.” AND SUFFERING CAN BE WASTED. WE CAN CURL UP IN A BALL AND WAIT FOR IT TO PASS; WE CAN SUFFER LIKE A DUMB ANIMAL; WE CAN BE ANGRY WITH GOD BECAUSE WE SUFFER. BUT THERE WAS ONCE A MAN WHO WAS SUFFERING, WHO WAS DYING IN GREAT PAIN; AND HE LOOKED TO HIS SIDE AND SAW ANOTHER MAN SUFFERING WITH HIM, AND SAID, “LORD, REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM”. AND THAT OTHER MAN ANSWERED, “TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”
IF YOU WOULD TRULY ENTER INTO THAT MYSTERIOUS RELATIONSHIP THAT IS ETERNAL LIFE, IF YOU WOULD TRULY ENTER INTO THE GLORY THAT BELONGS TO CHRIST AND THE FATHER, THE GLORY THAT IS SHARED BY THE SAINTS, IF YOU WOULD TRULY LOOK FOR THOSE MOMENTS IN YOUR LIFE WHEN JESUS IS CLOSEST TO YOU, WHEN HE IS MOST ONE WITH YOU, IT IS WHEN YOU ARE SUFFERING. AND THAT IS A GREAT MYSTERY, AND IT'S SCARY, AND IT TURNS EVERYTHING UPSIDE DOWN, BECAUSE WE SORT OF THINK THAT ETERNAL LIFE IS THE ABSENCE OF SUFFERING.
BUT ETERNAL LIFE, JESUS SAYS, IS TO KNOW THE ONE TRUE GOD AND THE CHRIST WHOM HE HAS SENT. AND IT WAS IN HIS SUFFERING THAT JESUS GLORIFIED THE FATHER AND WAS GLORIFIED. AND WE WHO ARE GIVEN TO JESUS BY THE FATHER ARE ALSO GIVEN THE GIFT OF SUFFERING, SO THAT WE CAN BECOME ONE WITH JESUS AND HE WITH US.
WHAT A MYSTERY! BUT WHAT A PROMISE. IF GOD CAN TURN SUFFERING INTO GLORY, THEN WHAT CAN'T HE DO?
LET US PRAY, NOT THAT GOD REMOVE SUFFERING FROM OUR LIVES, BUT THAT WHEN SUFFERING COMES, WE WILL SEE HOW CLOSE WE ARE IN THOSE MOMENTS TO JESUS.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Sixth Sunday of Easter, Cycle A
JOHN 14:15-21
JOAN AND I ATTENDED A CONCERT IN HOLYOKE LAST NIGHT. IT WAS PUT ON BY THE RIGHT TO LIFE GROUP AT OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE PARISH. THIS PARISH IS IN THE OLDER PART OF HOLYOKE AND AS PARISHES GO, IS PRETTY POOR. BUT THEY HAVE A STRONG RIGHT TO LIFE GROUP. AT THE NATIONAL MARCH FOR LIFE IN WASHINGTON DC THIS YEAR, THERE WERE NINE BUSES FROM OUR DIOCESE CARRYING PEOPLE TO PARTICIPATE. TWO OF THEM CAME FROM OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE PARISH.
AT THE CONCERT A YOUNG LADY NAMED KEILA RAMON WAS THE FEATURED SINGER, ALONG WITH DAN KANE ON THE SYNTHESIZER, AND SOME OF THE OTHER DAN KANE SINGERS HELPING OUT. AND I HAD THAT OLD FEELING AGAIN, WHEN I SEE REALLY GREAT MUSICIANS. I WISH THAT I COULD SING, OR PLAY, LIKE THEY DO. I WISH THAT I COULD MAKE A SYNTHESIZER SOUND LIKE A SWING BAND FROM THE 20'S OR A ROCK AND ROLL BAND FROM THE 90'S. I WISH THAT I HAD A VOICE THAT COULD ALMOST HYPNOTIZE THE PEOPLE WHO LISTENED, OR STAGE PRESENCE LIKE THESE PERFORMERS HAD. BUT I DON'T, AND I NEVER WILL.
TODAY IN THE GOSPEL, JESUS CONTINUES TO SPEAK FROM HIS HEART TO HIS DISCIPLES AND TO US. IF YOU READ THE SECTION OF JOHN'S GOSPEL FROM WHICH TODAY'S READING IS TAKEN, YOU WILL SEE THAT IT IS FULL OF PROMISES. "I WILL ASK THE FATHER, AND HE WILL GIVE YOU ANOTHER ADVOCATE." WE DON'T HAVE A TRANSLATION FOR THE GREEK WORD PARACLETE. A PARACLETE WAS SOMEONE WHO INTERCEDED FOR SOMEONE ELSE, OR SOMEONE WHO TOOK YOUR PART IN A DISPUTE, OR SOMEONE WHO HELPED YOU MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION. BUT SOMEONE WHO ENCOURAGED YOU TO DO THE RIGHT THING, THAT WAS ANOTHER WAY OF USING THE WORD, AND PERHAPS THAT'S THE BEST ONE HERE.
HE MAKES ANOTHER PROMISE: "I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU ORPHANS, I WILL COME TO YOU." AND WHEN HE COMES, HE PROMISES, "YOU WILL REALIZE THAT I AM IN MY FATHER, AND YOU ARE IN ME, AND I AM IN YOU."
AND FINALLY, HE PROMISES: WHOEVER LOVES ME WILL BE LOVED BY THE FATHER, AND I WILL LOVE HIM, AND REVEAL MYSELF TO HIM."
WHEN I WAS IN GRADE SCHOOL, I SANG IN A BOY'S CHOIR. I WAS TOLD BY OUR DIRECTOR THAT I HAD A VERY GOOD VOICE AND I SHOULD TAKE LESSONS. I NEVER DID. IN HIGH SCHOOL I WAS A MEMBER OF THE BAND. OUR MUSIC TEACHER WAS VERY AMBITIOUS AND NOT ONLY DID WE LEARN TO PLAY WHILE WE MARCHED AT FOOTBALL GAMES AND PARADES, BUT SHE WOULD HAVE US PLAY CONCERT MUSIC AS WELL. SHE TOLD ME I HAD TALENT AND HOPED I WOULD KEEP WORKING ON MY MUSICAL SKILLS. I HAVEN'T TOUCHED A CLARINET FOR FIFTY YEARS. SO WHEN I LISTEN TO REALLY GOOD MUSICIANS, I HAVE A SENSE OF REGRET. I WASN'T TONE DEAF, I COULD CARRY A TUNE, I COULD PLAY AN INSTRUMENT -- BUT I CHOSE A DIFFERENT PATH. I'M NOT SORRY, BUT THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A LITTLE PART OF ME THAT WONDERS WHAT IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN LIKE TO BE A SKILLED MUSICIAN.
JESUS MAKES SOME REALLY FANTASTIC PROMISES. BUT THEY ARE CONTINGENT, THEY START WITH THE WORDS, "IF YOU LOVE ME". MOST OF US IN THIS CHURCH WOULD REPLY, IF WE WERE ASKED THAT QUESTION, "I DO LOVE JESUS, OF COURSE I LOVE HIM." BUT JESUS MAKES IT VERY CLEAR WHAT HE MEANS. "IF YOU LOVE ME, YOU WILL KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS." AND HE ALSO SAYS, "WHOEVER HAS MY COMMANDMENTS AND OBSERVES THEM IS THE ONE WHO LOVES ME."
JESUS, BY THE WAY, DOESN'T MEAN THE TEN COMMANDMENTS. IN ANOTHER PLACE HE IS ASKED, "WHICH OF THE COMMANDMENTS IS THE GREATEST?" HE SPEAKS ABOUT "MY COMMANDMENTS". DO YOU KNOW WHAT HIS COMMANDMENTS ARE?
I'VE BEEN IN LOVE AND STILL AM. BUT I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST FELL IN LOVE, AND PERHAPS FALLING IN LOVE IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT THAN BEING IN LOVE. WHEN I FELL IN LOVE, MY LIFE CHANGED. IT CHANGED IN VERY CONCRETE WAYS. I STOPPED EATING SUPPER WITH MY FRATERNITY BROTHERS SO I COULD HANG OUT WITH MY BELOVED BEFORE SHE DROVE HOME. I CHANGED MY STUDY ROUTINE SO I COULD SPEND TIME SITTING AND TALKING WITH HER. I AM NOT A VERY SOCIAL PERSON, NOR AM I SKILLED AT DANCING, BUT ALL OF A SUDDEN I WAS GOING TO MIXERS AND EVEN DANCING, BECAUSE IT WAS AN EXCUSE TO BE WITH HER. IF YOU ARE IN LOVE, YOU ARE WILLING TO MAKE REAL CHANGES, EVEN PAINFUL ONES.
IF YOU AND I LOVE JESUS, WE WILL KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. WELL, WHAT ARE THEY? WE'VE HEARD A FEW OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS: "DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME." "JUST AS I HAVE WASHED YOUR FEET, YOU ARE TO WASH EACH OTHERS FEET." "LOVE ONE ANOTHER AS I HAVE LOVED YOU". "UNLESS YOU DENY YOURSELVES AND TAKE UP YOUR CROSS, YOU CANNOT BE MY DISCIPLE". "DO NOT LAY UP TREASURES ON EARTH ... BUT BUILD UP TREASURES IN HEAVEN." SOME PEOPLE HAVE MADE LISTS OF THE COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS. ONE LIST HAS 38 STATEMENTS. ANOTHER THAT I FOUND THANKS TO THE INTERNET AND GOOGLE, HAS 147 "COMMANDMENTS". THE POINT OF COURSE IS NOT THAT WE HAVE TO MAKE LISTS OR MEMORIZE STATEMENTS THAT JESUS MADE, BUT IF WE LOVE HIM, WE SHOULD WANT TO LISTEN TO HIM AND EXAMINE OUR LIVES IN LIGHT OF THOSE STATEMENTS HE GIVES TO HIS FOLLOWERS; TO THINK ABOUT HOW HIS COMMANDMENTS APPLY TO OUR CIRCUMSTANCES; AND TO MAKE THE NECESSARY CHANGES IN OUR OWN HABITS AND ACTIONS AND ATTITUDES, WITH THE HELP OF THE SPIRIT WHO IS ALWAYS URGING US ON, URGING US TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT, WHAT IS GOOD FOR US. IF WE DON'T MAKE THIS EFFORT, THEN WHATEVER WE FEEL TOWARDS JESUS, IT IS NOT LOVE THE WAY HE DEFINES LOVE. BUT IF WE CHANGE OURSELVES, WITH THE HELP OF THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, WE WILL BECOME MORE AND MORE LIKE JESUS, AND THE PROMISES JESUS MAKES WILL BE OURS, BECAUSE WE WILL HAVE PROVEN THAT WE LOVE HIM.
I COULD HAVE BEEN A MUSICIAN, POSSIBLY EVEN A GOOD ONE. BUT WHERE MUSIC IS CONCERNED, I'LL ALWAYS BE ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN. I HOPE THAT I WILL NEVER SAY, "I COULD HAVE RECEIVED THE PROMISES JESUS MADE TO THOSE WHO LOVED HIM AND SHOWED IT BY KEEPING HIS COMMANDMENTS. BUT I HAD OTHER THINGS TO DO, AND I DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER TO LEARN WHAT THOSE COMMANDMENTS ARE. "
JOAN AND I ATTENDED A CONCERT IN HOLYOKE LAST NIGHT. IT WAS PUT ON BY THE RIGHT TO LIFE GROUP AT OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE PARISH. THIS PARISH IS IN THE OLDER PART OF HOLYOKE AND AS PARISHES GO, IS PRETTY POOR. BUT THEY HAVE A STRONG RIGHT TO LIFE GROUP. AT THE NATIONAL MARCH FOR LIFE IN WASHINGTON DC THIS YEAR, THERE WERE NINE BUSES FROM OUR DIOCESE CARRYING PEOPLE TO PARTICIPATE. TWO OF THEM CAME FROM OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE PARISH.
AT THE CONCERT A YOUNG LADY NAMED KEILA RAMON WAS THE FEATURED SINGER, ALONG WITH DAN KANE ON THE SYNTHESIZER, AND SOME OF THE OTHER DAN KANE SINGERS HELPING OUT. AND I HAD THAT OLD FEELING AGAIN, WHEN I SEE REALLY GREAT MUSICIANS. I WISH THAT I COULD SING, OR PLAY, LIKE THEY DO. I WISH THAT I COULD MAKE A SYNTHESIZER SOUND LIKE A SWING BAND FROM THE 20'S OR A ROCK AND ROLL BAND FROM THE 90'S. I WISH THAT I HAD A VOICE THAT COULD ALMOST HYPNOTIZE THE PEOPLE WHO LISTENED, OR STAGE PRESENCE LIKE THESE PERFORMERS HAD. BUT I DON'T, AND I NEVER WILL.
TODAY IN THE GOSPEL, JESUS CONTINUES TO SPEAK FROM HIS HEART TO HIS DISCIPLES AND TO US. IF YOU READ THE SECTION OF JOHN'S GOSPEL FROM WHICH TODAY'S READING IS TAKEN, YOU WILL SEE THAT IT IS FULL OF PROMISES. "I WILL ASK THE FATHER, AND HE WILL GIVE YOU ANOTHER ADVOCATE." WE DON'T HAVE A TRANSLATION FOR THE GREEK WORD PARACLETE. A PARACLETE WAS SOMEONE WHO INTERCEDED FOR SOMEONE ELSE, OR SOMEONE WHO TOOK YOUR PART IN A DISPUTE, OR SOMEONE WHO HELPED YOU MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION. BUT SOMEONE WHO ENCOURAGED YOU TO DO THE RIGHT THING, THAT WAS ANOTHER WAY OF USING THE WORD, AND PERHAPS THAT'S THE BEST ONE HERE.
HE MAKES ANOTHER PROMISE: "I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU ORPHANS, I WILL COME TO YOU." AND WHEN HE COMES, HE PROMISES, "YOU WILL REALIZE THAT I AM IN MY FATHER, AND YOU ARE IN ME, AND I AM IN YOU."
AND FINALLY, HE PROMISES: WHOEVER LOVES ME WILL BE LOVED BY THE FATHER, AND I WILL LOVE HIM, AND REVEAL MYSELF TO HIM."
WHEN I WAS IN GRADE SCHOOL, I SANG IN A BOY'S CHOIR. I WAS TOLD BY OUR DIRECTOR THAT I HAD A VERY GOOD VOICE AND I SHOULD TAKE LESSONS. I NEVER DID. IN HIGH SCHOOL I WAS A MEMBER OF THE BAND. OUR MUSIC TEACHER WAS VERY AMBITIOUS AND NOT ONLY DID WE LEARN TO PLAY WHILE WE MARCHED AT FOOTBALL GAMES AND PARADES, BUT SHE WOULD HAVE US PLAY CONCERT MUSIC AS WELL. SHE TOLD ME I HAD TALENT AND HOPED I WOULD KEEP WORKING ON MY MUSICAL SKILLS. I HAVEN'T TOUCHED A CLARINET FOR FIFTY YEARS. SO WHEN I LISTEN TO REALLY GOOD MUSICIANS, I HAVE A SENSE OF REGRET. I WASN'T TONE DEAF, I COULD CARRY A TUNE, I COULD PLAY AN INSTRUMENT -- BUT I CHOSE A DIFFERENT PATH. I'M NOT SORRY, BUT THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A LITTLE PART OF ME THAT WONDERS WHAT IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN LIKE TO BE A SKILLED MUSICIAN.
JESUS MAKES SOME REALLY FANTASTIC PROMISES. BUT THEY ARE CONTINGENT, THEY START WITH THE WORDS, "IF YOU LOVE ME". MOST OF US IN THIS CHURCH WOULD REPLY, IF WE WERE ASKED THAT QUESTION, "I DO LOVE JESUS, OF COURSE I LOVE HIM." BUT JESUS MAKES IT VERY CLEAR WHAT HE MEANS. "IF YOU LOVE ME, YOU WILL KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS." AND HE ALSO SAYS, "WHOEVER HAS MY COMMANDMENTS AND OBSERVES THEM IS THE ONE WHO LOVES ME."
JESUS, BY THE WAY, DOESN'T MEAN THE TEN COMMANDMENTS. IN ANOTHER PLACE HE IS ASKED, "WHICH OF THE COMMANDMENTS IS THE GREATEST?" HE SPEAKS ABOUT "MY COMMANDMENTS". DO YOU KNOW WHAT HIS COMMANDMENTS ARE?
I'VE BEEN IN LOVE AND STILL AM. BUT I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST FELL IN LOVE, AND PERHAPS FALLING IN LOVE IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT THAN BEING IN LOVE. WHEN I FELL IN LOVE, MY LIFE CHANGED. IT CHANGED IN VERY CONCRETE WAYS. I STOPPED EATING SUPPER WITH MY FRATERNITY BROTHERS SO I COULD HANG OUT WITH MY BELOVED BEFORE SHE DROVE HOME. I CHANGED MY STUDY ROUTINE SO I COULD SPEND TIME SITTING AND TALKING WITH HER. I AM NOT A VERY SOCIAL PERSON, NOR AM I SKILLED AT DANCING, BUT ALL OF A SUDDEN I WAS GOING TO MIXERS AND EVEN DANCING, BECAUSE IT WAS AN EXCUSE TO BE WITH HER. IF YOU ARE IN LOVE, YOU ARE WILLING TO MAKE REAL CHANGES, EVEN PAINFUL ONES.
IF YOU AND I LOVE JESUS, WE WILL KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. WELL, WHAT ARE THEY? WE'VE HEARD A FEW OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS: "DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME." "JUST AS I HAVE WASHED YOUR FEET, YOU ARE TO WASH EACH OTHERS FEET." "LOVE ONE ANOTHER AS I HAVE LOVED YOU". "UNLESS YOU DENY YOURSELVES AND TAKE UP YOUR CROSS, YOU CANNOT BE MY DISCIPLE". "DO NOT LAY UP TREASURES ON EARTH ... BUT BUILD UP TREASURES IN HEAVEN." SOME PEOPLE HAVE MADE LISTS OF THE COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS. ONE LIST HAS 38 STATEMENTS. ANOTHER THAT I FOUND THANKS TO THE INTERNET AND GOOGLE, HAS 147 "COMMANDMENTS". THE POINT OF COURSE IS NOT THAT WE HAVE TO MAKE LISTS OR MEMORIZE STATEMENTS THAT JESUS MADE, BUT IF WE LOVE HIM, WE SHOULD WANT TO LISTEN TO HIM AND EXAMINE OUR LIVES IN LIGHT OF THOSE STATEMENTS HE GIVES TO HIS FOLLOWERS; TO THINK ABOUT HOW HIS COMMANDMENTS APPLY TO OUR CIRCUMSTANCES; AND TO MAKE THE NECESSARY CHANGES IN OUR OWN HABITS AND ACTIONS AND ATTITUDES, WITH THE HELP OF THE SPIRIT WHO IS ALWAYS URGING US ON, URGING US TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT, WHAT IS GOOD FOR US. IF WE DON'T MAKE THIS EFFORT, THEN WHATEVER WE FEEL TOWARDS JESUS, IT IS NOT LOVE THE WAY HE DEFINES LOVE. BUT IF WE CHANGE OURSELVES, WITH THE HELP OF THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, WE WILL BECOME MORE AND MORE LIKE JESUS, AND THE PROMISES JESUS MAKES WILL BE OURS, BECAUSE WE WILL HAVE PROVEN THAT WE LOVE HIM.
I COULD HAVE BEEN A MUSICIAN, POSSIBLY EVEN A GOOD ONE. BUT WHERE MUSIC IS CONCERNED, I'LL ALWAYS BE ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN. I HOPE THAT I WILL NEVER SAY, "I COULD HAVE RECEIVED THE PROMISES JESUS MADE TO THOSE WHO LOVED HIM AND SHOWED IT BY KEEPING HIS COMMANDMENTS. BUT I HAD OTHER THINGS TO DO, AND I DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER TO LEARN WHAT THOSE COMMANDMENTS ARE. "
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Fifth Sunday of Easter, Cycle A
JOHN 14:1-12
YOU MAY REMEMBER THE STORY IN THE BOOK OF EXODUS ABOUT THE TIME MOSES WENT UP ON THE MOUNTAIN AND THE ISRAELITES PERSUADED AARON TO MAKE A GOLDEN CALF FOR THEM SO THEY WOULD HAVE SOMETHING TO WORSHIP. AND OF COURSE, GOD BECAME VERY ANGRY AND IT WAS ALL MOSES COULD DO TO PERSUADE GOD NOT TO DESTROY THEM. SOMETIMES WE THINK THAT THE GOLDEN CALF WAS A FALSE GOD, A PAGAN DEITY; BUT ANTHROPOLOGISTS WHO STUDY THESE THINGS AREN'T SO SURE. SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT THE ISRAELITES WERE SIMPLY IMITATING THE EGYPTIANS, WHO HAD EACH OF THEIR GODS REPRESENTED BY SOME KIND OF ANIMAL. SO THEY JUST WANTED TO BE LIKE OTHER PEOPLE AND HAVE A REPRESENTATION OF GOD. BUT OF COURSE THE GOLDEN CALF WAS DESTROYED AND NEVER AGAIN, EVEN TO THIS DAY, HAVE THE JEWISH PEOPLE TRIED TO PORTRAY GOD. NOT SO WE CATHOLICS. OUR CHURCHES ARE FULL OF IMAGES WHICH DEPICT GOD. I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT JESUS, NOW. BUT GOD THE FATHER HAS BEEN AN OLD MAN WITH A LONG WHITE BEARD FOR A LONG TIME – ON THE CEILING OF THE POPE'S OWN CHAPEL HE REACHES DOWN FROM THE CLOUDS TO TOUCH THE FINGER OF ADAM AND GIVE HIM LIFE. AND THE SAME IS TRUE OF GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT – A DOVE, A TONGUE OF FLAME – WE KNOW THE CODE.
BUT WE KNOW THAT WE CAN'T DEPICT GOD, OR EVEN DESCRIBE HIM. AN OLD MYSTICAL TRADITION IS TO SIT QUIETLY AND THINK ABOUT GOD, AND EVERY TIME WE FORM A PICTURE, WE BLOT IT OUT. SOONER OR LATER, THE WORD “GOD” WILL NO LONGER BE ASSOCIATED WITH PICTURES, AND WHEN OUR MINDS REACH THIS POINT, WE BEGIN TO HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF GOD. A BEGINNING, OF COURSE, NEVER TO BE COMPLETED UNTIL WE'VE GONE ON TO THE NEXT LIFE; AND EVEN THERE WE WILL SPEND AN ETERNITY NEVER COMPLETELY GRASPING WHO GOD IS.
IN TODAY'S GOSPEL PHILIP SAYS, “MASTER, SHOW US THE FATHER, AND THAT WILL BE ENOUGH FOR US.” THE QUESTION SEEMS TO COME OUT OF THE BLUE. BUT JESUS HAS BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE FATHER, AND SPEAKING ABOUT HIM IN SUCH A PERSONAL WAY, THAT PHILIP COULD BE FORGIVEN IF HE HAD CONCLUDED THAT JESUS HAD SOME SORT OF SECRET KNOWLEDGE. AFTER ALL, JESUS HAD JUST SAID IN REFERENCE TO THE FATHER, “FROM NOW ON YOU DO KNOW HIM AND HAVE SEEN HIM.” JESUS GOES ON TO SAY, “BELIEVE ME THAT I AM IN THE FATHER AND THE FATHER IS IN ME, OR ELSE, BELIEVE BECAUSE OF THE WORKS THAT I DO.”
SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS SAID THE GOD WAS PURE ACT. YOU AND I ARE CAPABLE OF ACTING BUT OUR ACTIONS ARE NOT IDENTICAL TO OUR SELVES. NOT SO WITH GOD; YOU CAN'T SAY “THERE IS GOD, AND THERE IS HIS ACTION.” GOD IS ACTION, JUST AS GOD IS LOVE.
JESUS SEEMS TO BE SAYING THAT IF YOU SEE HIS WORKS, YOU WILL SEE GOD; AND THAT MAKES SENSE BECAUSE THE WORKS OF JESUS ARE THE WORKS OF THE FATHER, AND THE FATHER, THE SON, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT ARE ONE, AND THAT ONE IS PURE ACT. IT'S HARD TO GET OUR MINDS AROUND BUT IT'S TRUE, IF YOU BELIEVE AQUINAS.
IF PHILIP WANTS TO SEE THE FATHER, HE NEEDS TO LOOK AT JESUS; BUT NOT JUST THAT, AT JESUS ACTING, CARRYING OUT THE WORKS THAT ORIGINATE WITH THE FATHER. AND THAT HAS IMMENSE IMPLICATIONS FOR YOU AND I.
WOULDN'T IT BE WONDERFUL TO SEE GOD? HEAVEN, AFTER ALL, IS WHAT WE ALL DESIRE, AND IN HEAVEN WE WILL SPEND ETERNITY GAZING ON GOD, IN A SENSE, AND NEVER BEING BORED, NEVER BEING UNHAPPY, ALWAYS BEING COMPLETELY FULFILLED – IN THAT ETERNAL NOW ALL OUR QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED, ALL THAT WE LACKED ON EARTH WILL BE GIVEN TO US, AND IT WILL ALL BE IN THAT MYSTERIOUS MOMENT WHEN WE GAZE UPON GOD. BUT WE CAN BEGIN THAT MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW. THINK ABOUT WHAT ELSE JESUS SAYS: “THE MAN WHO HAS FAITH IN ME WILL DO THE WORKS THAT I DO, AND EVEN GREATER THAN THESE.” IF ULTIMATELY WE SEE GOD IN THE WORKS OF JESUS, AND IF IN THE FINAL ANALYSIS THE ONE WHO HAS FAITH IN JESUS DOES THE WORKS OF JESUS, THEN WHEN WE SEE THOSE WORKS, WE ARE SEEING THE FATHER, WE ARE SEEING GOD, IF ONLY DIMLY.
SHOULD WE ALL RUN OUT AND LOOK FOR ANOTHER MOTHER THERESA, OR MAYBE STUDY SISTER OLGA WHO CAME TO OUR PARISH A COUPLE OF TIMES IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS? SHOULD WE SEEK OUT HOLY PEOPLE DOING THE WORKS OF JESUS, SO THAT WE CAN SEE SOME GLIMPSE OF THE FATHER?
WELL, THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE MISSING THE POINT. CERTAINLY WE SHOULD REJOICE WHEN WE SEE SOMEONE DOING THE WORKS OF JESUS; IT'S A SIGN THAT GOD IS NOT IN SOME FAR-OFF HEAVEN, BUT RATHER, THAT HE IS IN OUR MIDST. WHEN WE SEE STREET PEOPLE BEING FED, WHEN WE SEE CHILDREN BEING TAUGHT THE FAITH AND MAKING THEIR FIRST COMMUNION, WHEN WE SEE THE SICK BEING VISITED – THERE ARE SO MANY PLACES WE CAN SEE THE FATHER IN ACTION IF WE JUST OPEN OUR EYES. AND IN THOSE ACTIONS WE CAN CATCH A GLIMPSE OF GOD.
BUT THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE, SOMETHING THAT SAINT FRANCIS, AMONG OTHERS, UNDERSTOOD. IF YOU WANT TO SEE GOD, YOU LOOK AT THE WORKS OF JESUS. BUT IF YOU WANT TO GO ONE MORE STEP AND EXPERIENCE GOD, YOU YOURSELF DO THE WORKS OF GOD. FRANCIS, AND MANY OTHER SAINTS, SET OUT TO CONSCIOUSLY IMITATE JESUS – FRANCIS PROBABLY MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE. AND EVERYONE WHO KNEW FRANCIS, AND ALL HIS FOLLOWERS DOWN THROUGH THE YEARS, EVEN TO TODAY, SEE SOMETHING OF GOD IN THE WORKS OF FRANCIS, AND EXPERIENCE SOMETHING OF GOD IN THEIR OWN IMITATION OF THEIR FOUNDER. THE SAME OF COURSE COULD BE SAID OF SO MANY OTHER SAINTS.
SO IF YOU WANT TO SEE GOD, GO FIND WHERE THE WORKS OF JESUS ARE BEING CARRIED OUT. BUT IF YOU WANT TO EXPERIENCE GOD, DO THE WORKS OF JESUS. YOU WILL BE SETTING ONE FOOT IN HEAVEN, AND THERE ISN'T ANYTHING MORE IMPORTANT, MORE WORTHWHILE.
AND IF YOU DO THE WORKS OF JESUS, YOU WILL BE SHOWING OTHERS THE FATHER.
GOD SHOWS HIMSELF TO US IN THE WORKS OF JESUS; SOME OF THOSE WHO SEE THOSE WORKS CHOOSE TO DO THEM THEMSELVES, AND EXPERIENCE THE PRESENCE OF GOD; AND WHEN SOME CHOOSE TO DO THE WORKS OF GOD, OTHERS SEE GOD. THE REASON FOR THE RAPID GROWTH OF THE CHURCH IN THOSE EARLY DAYS WAS BECAUSE CHRISTIANS WERE SHOWING GOD TO THE PEOPLE AROUND THEM. AND IT CAN BE SO TODAY. GO OUT AND DO THE WORKS OF JESUS.
YOU MAY REMEMBER THE STORY IN THE BOOK OF EXODUS ABOUT THE TIME MOSES WENT UP ON THE MOUNTAIN AND THE ISRAELITES PERSUADED AARON TO MAKE A GOLDEN CALF FOR THEM SO THEY WOULD HAVE SOMETHING TO WORSHIP. AND OF COURSE, GOD BECAME VERY ANGRY AND IT WAS ALL MOSES COULD DO TO PERSUADE GOD NOT TO DESTROY THEM. SOMETIMES WE THINK THAT THE GOLDEN CALF WAS A FALSE GOD, A PAGAN DEITY; BUT ANTHROPOLOGISTS WHO STUDY THESE THINGS AREN'T SO SURE. SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT THE ISRAELITES WERE SIMPLY IMITATING THE EGYPTIANS, WHO HAD EACH OF THEIR GODS REPRESENTED BY SOME KIND OF ANIMAL. SO THEY JUST WANTED TO BE LIKE OTHER PEOPLE AND HAVE A REPRESENTATION OF GOD. BUT OF COURSE THE GOLDEN CALF WAS DESTROYED AND NEVER AGAIN, EVEN TO THIS DAY, HAVE THE JEWISH PEOPLE TRIED TO PORTRAY GOD. NOT SO WE CATHOLICS. OUR CHURCHES ARE FULL OF IMAGES WHICH DEPICT GOD. I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT JESUS, NOW. BUT GOD THE FATHER HAS BEEN AN OLD MAN WITH A LONG WHITE BEARD FOR A LONG TIME – ON THE CEILING OF THE POPE'S OWN CHAPEL HE REACHES DOWN FROM THE CLOUDS TO TOUCH THE FINGER OF ADAM AND GIVE HIM LIFE. AND THE SAME IS TRUE OF GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT – A DOVE, A TONGUE OF FLAME – WE KNOW THE CODE.
BUT WE KNOW THAT WE CAN'T DEPICT GOD, OR EVEN DESCRIBE HIM. AN OLD MYSTICAL TRADITION IS TO SIT QUIETLY AND THINK ABOUT GOD, AND EVERY TIME WE FORM A PICTURE, WE BLOT IT OUT. SOONER OR LATER, THE WORD “GOD” WILL NO LONGER BE ASSOCIATED WITH PICTURES, AND WHEN OUR MINDS REACH THIS POINT, WE BEGIN TO HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF GOD. A BEGINNING, OF COURSE, NEVER TO BE COMPLETED UNTIL WE'VE GONE ON TO THE NEXT LIFE; AND EVEN THERE WE WILL SPEND AN ETERNITY NEVER COMPLETELY GRASPING WHO GOD IS.
IN TODAY'S GOSPEL PHILIP SAYS, “MASTER, SHOW US THE FATHER, AND THAT WILL BE ENOUGH FOR US.” THE QUESTION SEEMS TO COME OUT OF THE BLUE. BUT JESUS HAS BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE FATHER, AND SPEAKING ABOUT HIM IN SUCH A PERSONAL WAY, THAT PHILIP COULD BE FORGIVEN IF HE HAD CONCLUDED THAT JESUS HAD SOME SORT OF SECRET KNOWLEDGE. AFTER ALL, JESUS HAD JUST SAID IN REFERENCE TO THE FATHER, “FROM NOW ON YOU DO KNOW HIM AND HAVE SEEN HIM.” JESUS GOES ON TO SAY, “BELIEVE ME THAT I AM IN THE FATHER AND THE FATHER IS IN ME, OR ELSE, BELIEVE BECAUSE OF THE WORKS THAT I DO.”
SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS SAID THE GOD WAS PURE ACT. YOU AND I ARE CAPABLE OF ACTING BUT OUR ACTIONS ARE NOT IDENTICAL TO OUR SELVES. NOT SO WITH GOD; YOU CAN'T SAY “THERE IS GOD, AND THERE IS HIS ACTION.” GOD IS ACTION, JUST AS GOD IS LOVE.
JESUS SEEMS TO BE SAYING THAT IF YOU SEE HIS WORKS, YOU WILL SEE GOD; AND THAT MAKES SENSE BECAUSE THE WORKS OF JESUS ARE THE WORKS OF THE FATHER, AND THE FATHER, THE SON, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT ARE ONE, AND THAT ONE IS PURE ACT. IT'S HARD TO GET OUR MINDS AROUND BUT IT'S TRUE, IF YOU BELIEVE AQUINAS.
IF PHILIP WANTS TO SEE THE FATHER, HE NEEDS TO LOOK AT JESUS; BUT NOT JUST THAT, AT JESUS ACTING, CARRYING OUT THE WORKS THAT ORIGINATE WITH THE FATHER. AND THAT HAS IMMENSE IMPLICATIONS FOR YOU AND I.
WOULDN'T IT BE WONDERFUL TO SEE GOD? HEAVEN, AFTER ALL, IS WHAT WE ALL DESIRE, AND IN HEAVEN WE WILL SPEND ETERNITY GAZING ON GOD, IN A SENSE, AND NEVER BEING BORED, NEVER BEING UNHAPPY, ALWAYS BEING COMPLETELY FULFILLED – IN THAT ETERNAL NOW ALL OUR QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED, ALL THAT WE LACKED ON EARTH WILL BE GIVEN TO US, AND IT WILL ALL BE IN THAT MYSTERIOUS MOMENT WHEN WE GAZE UPON GOD. BUT WE CAN BEGIN THAT MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW. THINK ABOUT WHAT ELSE JESUS SAYS: “THE MAN WHO HAS FAITH IN ME WILL DO THE WORKS THAT I DO, AND EVEN GREATER THAN THESE.” IF ULTIMATELY WE SEE GOD IN THE WORKS OF JESUS, AND IF IN THE FINAL ANALYSIS THE ONE WHO HAS FAITH IN JESUS DOES THE WORKS OF JESUS, THEN WHEN WE SEE THOSE WORKS, WE ARE SEEING THE FATHER, WE ARE SEEING GOD, IF ONLY DIMLY.
SHOULD WE ALL RUN OUT AND LOOK FOR ANOTHER MOTHER THERESA, OR MAYBE STUDY SISTER OLGA WHO CAME TO OUR PARISH A COUPLE OF TIMES IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS? SHOULD WE SEEK OUT HOLY PEOPLE DOING THE WORKS OF JESUS, SO THAT WE CAN SEE SOME GLIMPSE OF THE FATHER?
WELL, THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE MISSING THE POINT. CERTAINLY WE SHOULD REJOICE WHEN WE SEE SOMEONE DOING THE WORKS OF JESUS; IT'S A SIGN THAT GOD IS NOT IN SOME FAR-OFF HEAVEN, BUT RATHER, THAT HE IS IN OUR MIDST. WHEN WE SEE STREET PEOPLE BEING FED, WHEN WE SEE CHILDREN BEING TAUGHT THE FAITH AND MAKING THEIR FIRST COMMUNION, WHEN WE SEE THE SICK BEING VISITED – THERE ARE SO MANY PLACES WE CAN SEE THE FATHER IN ACTION IF WE JUST OPEN OUR EYES. AND IN THOSE ACTIONS WE CAN CATCH A GLIMPSE OF GOD.
BUT THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE, SOMETHING THAT SAINT FRANCIS, AMONG OTHERS, UNDERSTOOD. IF YOU WANT TO SEE GOD, YOU LOOK AT THE WORKS OF JESUS. BUT IF YOU WANT TO GO ONE MORE STEP AND EXPERIENCE GOD, YOU YOURSELF DO THE WORKS OF GOD. FRANCIS, AND MANY OTHER SAINTS, SET OUT TO CONSCIOUSLY IMITATE JESUS – FRANCIS PROBABLY MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE. AND EVERYONE WHO KNEW FRANCIS, AND ALL HIS FOLLOWERS DOWN THROUGH THE YEARS, EVEN TO TODAY, SEE SOMETHING OF GOD IN THE WORKS OF FRANCIS, AND EXPERIENCE SOMETHING OF GOD IN THEIR OWN IMITATION OF THEIR FOUNDER. THE SAME OF COURSE COULD BE SAID OF SO MANY OTHER SAINTS.
SO IF YOU WANT TO SEE GOD, GO FIND WHERE THE WORKS OF JESUS ARE BEING CARRIED OUT. BUT IF YOU WANT TO EXPERIENCE GOD, DO THE WORKS OF JESUS. YOU WILL BE SETTING ONE FOOT IN HEAVEN, AND THERE ISN'T ANYTHING MORE IMPORTANT, MORE WORTHWHILE.
AND IF YOU DO THE WORKS OF JESUS, YOU WILL BE SHOWING OTHERS THE FATHER.
GOD SHOWS HIMSELF TO US IN THE WORKS OF JESUS; SOME OF THOSE WHO SEE THOSE WORKS CHOOSE TO DO THEM THEMSELVES, AND EXPERIENCE THE PRESENCE OF GOD; AND WHEN SOME CHOOSE TO DO THE WORKS OF GOD, OTHERS SEE GOD. THE REASON FOR THE RAPID GROWTH OF THE CHURCH IN THOSE EARLY DAYS WAS BECAUSE CHRISTIANS WERE SHOWING GOD TO THE PEOPLE AROUND THEM. AND IT CAN BE SO TODAY. GO OUT AND DO THE WORKS OF JESUS.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Fourth Sunday of Easter, cycle A
JOHN 10:1-10
DO YOU KNOW ANYONE WHO CAN'T SIT STILL? I HAVE AN ACQUAINTANCE WHO HOLDS DOWN TWO FAIRLY DEMANDING JOBS, AND WHEN HE ISN'T WORKING, HE'S HANGING OUT WITH FRIENDS, AND WHEN HE IS ALONE, HE'S NOT REALLY ALONE; HE'S ON FACEBOOK, OR WRITING AND READING EMAILS, OR IF HE CAN'T FIND SOMEONE TO EMAIL, HE WATCHES A MOVIE. HE DOESN'T GET NEARLY ENOUGH SLEEP; EACH DAY HE DRIVES HIMSELF UNTIL HE SORT OF FALLS INTO A COMA, AND GETS UP THE NEXT MORNING TO DO THE SAME THING. I DON'T THINK HE'S HAPPY, BUT HE DOESN'T WANT TO STOP AND THINK ABOUT HIS LIFE AND HIS FUTURE; IT'S MUCH EASIER TO DO EVERYTHING HE CAN TO AVOID THINKING, MEDITATING, PLANNING.
AND I COULD TELL YOU ABOUT ANOTHER PERSON I KNOW. SHE GETS UP IN THE MORNING, AND HER WHOLE DAY IS PLANNED TO THE LAST DETAIL. SHE PLANS HER LUNCH THE DAY BEFORE; HER DAY CONSISTS OF WORK, EATING, EXERCISE, AND SPENDING THE EVENING WITH HER COMPUTER. HER ROUTINE HARDLY EVER VARIES, AND SHE TENDS TO GET UPSET WHEN SHE CAN'T CONTROL WHAT IS HAPPENING.
AND I GUESS WE ARE ALL A LITTLE LIKE THAT. WE ARE COMFORTABLE WITH THE WALLS THAT KEEP OUT UNCERTAINTY AND DANGER. WE LIKE ROUTINE, WHETHER IT IS BORING, REPETITIVE ROUTINE, OR FRENETIC ACTIVITY THAT REFUSES TO LOOK AT THE FUTURE OR LEARN FROM THE PAST. AND WE MAY KNOW WE AREN'T PARTICULARLY HAPPY WITH THE WAY THINGS ARE, BUT WE ARE CONTENT, AT LEAST ENOUGH NOT TO WANT CHANGE.
BUT THERE ARE DANGERS. ONE IS THAT TIME SLIPS AWAY, AND SOMEDAY WE DISCOVER THAT WE HAVE RUN OUT OF TIME. WE'VE SPENT OUR LIFE GETTING UP IN THE MORNING, GOING THROUGH OUR ROUTINE, AND GOING TO SLEEP. WE'VE MISSED THE BEST THAT LIFE HAS TO OFFER. ANOTHER IS THAT A LIFE OF ROUTINE NECESSARILY KEEPS US FROM FORMING AND DEEPENING RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER PEOPLE, INCLUDING OUR LORD. MY GRANDMOTHER USED TO TELL ME THAT FRIENDS ARE LIKE SILVER, BUT OLD FRIENDS ARE GOLD. I WONDER WHAT HAPPENED TO ALL THOSE PEOPLE I CONSIDERED CLOSE FRIENDS WHEN I WAS YOUNG? I'M ASHAMED TO SAY THAT I HAVEN'T KEPT UP WITH MOST OF THE FRIENDS I'VE MADE DOWN THROUGH THE YEARS. MY LIFE IS TOO BUSY; IT'S TOO MUCH TROUBLE TO NURTURE ALL THOSE RELATIONSHIPS.
IN TODAY'S GOSPEL, WE HEAR THE WORDS: WHEN THE SHEPHERD HAS DRIVEN OUT ALL OF HIS OWN, HE GOES AHEAD OF THEM. OUR IMAGINATION FOCUSES ON THE SHEPHERD CALMLY LEADING HIS SHEEP; BUT BEFORE HE CAN DO THIS, HE HAS TO FORCE THE SHEEP OUT OF THE SHEEPFOLD. THE WORD USED HERE IS THE SAME WORD USED WHEN JESUS DRIVES THE MONEY-CHANGERS OUT OF THE TEMPLE, OR THE DEMONS OUT OF THE MAN POSSESSED. SHEEP DO NOT LIKE TO LEAVE THE SHEEPFOLD. THEY RESIST BEING DRIVEN OUT.
WE SHEEP WHO BELONG TO JESUS ARE LIKE THAT. WE KNOW HIS VOICE; WE PERK UP OUR EARS WHEN HE CALLS US BY NAME. WHEN WE HEAR HIS WORDS IN THE SCRIPTURES, WHEN WE REALLY LISTEN TO WHAT HIS CHURCH TELLS US, THERE ARE TIMES WHEN WE FEEL THE HOLY SPIRIT URGING US ON, BUT WE RESIST; WE LIKE OUR SHEEPFOLD.
ONCE WHEN THE DISCIPLES WERE SENT TO CARRY OUT THE WORK OF JESUS, THEY CAME BACK SO EXCITED; THEY HAD LAID HANDS ON PEOPLE AND SEEN THEM BE HEALED. THEY HAD DRIVEN OUT DEMONS. THEY HAD OPENED THEIR MOUTHS AND LISTENED IN AMAZEMENT TO THE WORDS THAT CAME OUT. AND THEY RUSHED BACK TO JESUS. AND HE SAID TO THEM, “COME AWAY WITH ME FOR A WHILE AND REST.” THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE SHEEPFOLD. BUT THE SHEPHERD CALLS US OUT, AND BRINGS US BACK.
THAT SHOULD BE THE RHYTHM OF A CHRISTIAN LIFE. IF WE FOLLOW OUR SHEPHERD WE WILL SPEND TIME RESTING, BEING WATCHED OVER, BEING TENDED TO. BUT WE HAVE TO LET HIM LEAD US OUT AS WELL, BECAUSE WE BELONG IN THE WORLD, WE HAVE BEEN MADE TO TRANSFORM IT, TO BUILD THE KINGDOM. SOME OF US SEE OUR RELIGION AS AN INWARD THING, BETWEEN ME AND GOD. OTHERS NEGLECT THEIR PRAYER LIFE, THEIR MEDITATION, THEIR SPIRITUAL READING, FEELING THAT RELIGION IS BEST PRACTICED BY ACTION. BUT THE SHEPHERD LEADS US IN AND OUT OF THE SHEEPFOLD.
DID YOU NOTICE IN THE GOSPEL READING THAT JESUS DOES NOT COMPARE HIMSELF TO A SHEPHERD; HE CALLS HIMSELF A GATE. LATER IN THIS GOSPEL PASSAGE HE WILL SAY THAT HE IS THE GOOD SHEPHERD, BUT WHAT DOES HE MEAN, HERE, THAT HE IS THE GATE?
A CHRISTIAN NEEDS TO COME IN TO THE SAFETY OF THE SHEEPFOLD AND GO OUT INTO THE WORLD TO GROW THE KINGDOM. BUT THE ONLY WAY THIS WILL WORK IS IF THIS MOVEMENT ALWAYS INVOLVES JESUS. THERE ARE RELIGIONS, NOBLE AND GREAT RELIGIONS LIKE BUDDHISM, WHERE A PERSON STRUGGLES TO BECOME ONE WITH THE DIVINE. THIS IS DONE BY ONESELF, WITHOUT HELP. NO WONDER SO FEW EVEN ATTEMPT IT. AND SO MUCH EFFORT IS TAKEN UP IN THAT STRUGGLE THAT THERE IS NO ROOM TO BUILD THE KINGDOM. THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS FOR THEM, AN ILLUSION THAT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER. AND THERE ARE OTHER RELIGIONS, MORE MODERN ONES, PERHAPS, WHERE INNER GROWTH ISN'T IMPORTANT. SOME STRAINS OF ISLAM ARE SOMETHING LIKE THAT. WHAT MAKES YOU A RELIGIOUS PERSON IS WHAT YOU DO TO SUBJECT THE WORLD TO THE KORAN AND SHARIA LAW. YOUR SALVATION DEPENDS ON JIHAD, STRUGGLE, CONQUEST OF YOURSELF AND THE WORLD. YOU CAN BLOW YOURSELF UP IF IT HELPS. ENTERING INTO A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD CAN WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT LIFE.
CHRISTIANITY IS A RELIGION OF BALANCE, AND THE BALANCE IS JESUS. IN THE SHEEPFOLD, WE GET TO KNOW HIM, WE STUDY HIS WORDS, WE SPEAK TO HIM AND LET HIM SPEAK TO US. WE ACCEPT HIS FORGIVENESS AND LEARN TO FORGIVE OTHERS. WE ARE NOURISHED, CLEANSED, ENLIGHTENED. AND WHEN WE GO OUT, WE KEEP OUR EYES ON THE SHEPHERD, WE FOLLOW HIM, AND WE DON'T WANDER OFF. WE DO THE WORKS HE WOULD DO, AND WE LOOK FOR WAYS TO HELP THOSE ALREADY DOING HIS WORKS. OUTSIDE THE SHEEPFOLD OUR EGOS HAVE TO BE CAST ASIDE, BECAUSE UNLESS WE FOLLOW OUR SHEPHERD, ALL OUR EFFORTS ARE USELESS.
WE GO IN AND OUT THROUGH JESUS.
OUR CHALLENGE THIS WEEK IS TO EXAMINE OURSELVES. ARE WE SPENDING ENOUGH TIME IN THE SHEEPFOLD? ARE WE SPENDING TIME IN THE WORLD; AND ARE WE GOING IN AND OUT THROUGH JESUS? AND IF WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THESE THINGS MEAN FOR US, ARE WE ASKING SOMEONE WHO KNOWS TO HELP US GROW AS CHRISTIANS?
JESUS, AFTER ALL, CAME SO THAT WE SHEEP WOULD HAVE LIFE, AND HAVE IT ABUNDANTLY. ABUNDANT LIFE IS A LIFE OF SURPRISES, GOOD AND BAD, A LIFE WHICH DOES NOT SURRENDER TO ROUTINE. LET US NOT LET SUCH A LIFE PASS US BY.
DO YOU KNOW ANYONE WHO CAN'T SIT STILL? I HAVE AN ACQUAINTANCE WHO HOLDS DOWN TWO FAIRLY DEMANDING JOBS, AND WHEN HE ISN'T WORKING, HE'S HANGING OUT WITH FRIENDS, AND WHEN HE IS ALONE, HE'S NOT REALLY ALONE; HE'S ON FACEBOOK, OR WRITING AND READING EMAILS, OR IF HE CAN'T FIND SOMEONE TO EMAIL, HE WATCHES A MOVIE. HE DOESN'T GET NEARLY ENOUGH SLEEP; EACH DAY HE DRIVES HIMSELF UNTIL HE SORT OF FALLS INTO A COMA, AND GETS UP THE NEXT MORNING TO DO THE SAME THING. I DON'T THINK HE'S HAPPY, BUT HE DOESN'T WANT TO STOP AND THINK ABOUT HIS LIFE AND HIS FUTURE; IT'S MUCH EASIER TO DO EVERYTHING HE CAN TO AVOID THINKING, MEDITATING, PLANNING.
AND I COULD TELL YOU ABOUT ANOTHER PERSON I KNOW. SHE GETS UP IN THE MORNING, AND HER WHOLE DAY IS PLANNED TO THE LAST DETAIL. SHE PLANS HER LUNCH THE DAY BEFORE; HER DAY CONSISTS OF WORK, EATING, EXERCISE, AND SPENDING THE EVENING WITH HER COMPUTER. HER ROUTINE HARDLY EVER VARIES, AND SHE TENDS TO GET UPSET WHEN SHE CAN'T CONTROL WHAT IS HAPPENING.
AND I GUESS WE ARE ALL A LITTLE LIKE THAT. WE ARE COMFORTABLE WITH THE WALLS THAT KEEP OUT UNCERTAINTY AND DANGER. WE LIKE ROUTINE, WHETHER IT IS BORING, REPETITIVE ROUTINE, OR FRENETIC ACTIVITY THAT REFUSES TO LOOK AT THE FUTURE OR LEARN FROM THE PAST. AND WE MAY KNOW WE AREN'T PARTICULARLY HAPPY WITH THE WAY THINGS ARE, BUT WE ARE CONTENT, AT LEAST ENOUGH NOT TO WANT CHANGE.
BUT THERE ARE DANGERS. ONE IS THAT TIME SLIPS AWAY, AND SOMEDAY WE DISCOVER THAT WE HAVE RUN OUT OF TIME. WE'VE SPENT OUR LIFE GETTING UP IN THE MORNING, GOING THROUGH OUR ROUTINE, AND GOING TO SLEEP. WE'VE MISSED THE BEST THAT LIFE HAS TO OFFER. ANOTHER IS THAT A LIFE OF ROUTINE NECESSARILY KEEPS US FROM FORMING AND DEEPENING RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER PEOPLE, INCLUDING OUR LORD. MY GRANDMOTHER USED TO TELL ME THAT FRIENDS ARE LIKE SILVER, BUT OLD FRIENDS ARE GOLD. I WONDER WHAT HAPPENED TO ALL THOSE PEOPLE I CONSIDERED CLOSE FRIENDS WHEN I WAS YOUNG? I'M ASHAMED TO SAY THAT I HAVEN'T KEPT UP WITH MOST OF THE FRIENDS I'VE MADE DOWN THROUGH THE YEARS. MY LIFE IS TOO BUSY; IT'S TOO MUCH TROUBLE TO NURTURE ALL THOSE RELATIONSHIPS.
IN TODAY'S GOSPEL, WE HEAR THE WORDS: WHEN THE SHEPHERD HAS DRIVEN OUT ALL OF HIS OWN, HE GOES AHEAD OF THEM. OUR IMAGINATION FOCUSES ON THE SHEPHERD CALMLY LEADING HIS SHEEP; BUT BEFORE HE CAN DO THIS, HE HAS TO FORCE THE SHEEP OUT OF THE SHEEPFOLD. THE WORD USED HERE IS THE SAME WORD USED WHEN JESUS DRIVES THE MONEY-CHANGERS OUT OF THE TEMPLE, OR THE DEMONS OUT OF THE MAN POSSESSED. SHEEP DO NOT LIKE TO LEAVE THE SHEEPFOLD. THEY RESIST BEING DRIVEN OUT.
WE SHEEP WHO BELONG TO JESUS ARE LIKE THAT. WE KNOW HIS VOICE; WE PERK UP OUR EARS WHEN HE CALLS US BY NAME. WHEN WE HEAR HIS WORDS IN THE SCRIPTURES, WHEN WE REALLY LISTEN TO WHAT HIS CHURCH TELLS US, THERE ARE TIMES WHEN WE FEEL THE HOLY SPIRIT URGING US ON, BUT WE RESIST; WE LIKE OUR SHEEPFOLD.
ONCE WHEN THE DISCIPLES WERE SENT TO CARRY OUT THE WORK OF JESUS, THEY CAME BACK SO EXCITED; THEY HAD LAID HANDS ON PEOPLE AND SEEN THEM BE HEALED. THEY HAD DRIVEN OUT DEMONS. THEY HAD OPENED THEIR MOUTHS AND LISTENED IN AMAZEMENT TO THE WORDS THAT CAME OUT. AND THEY RUSHED BACK TO JESUS. AND HE SAID TO THEM, “COME AWAY WITH ME FOR A WHILE AND REST.” THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE SHEEPFOLD. BUT THE SHEPHERD CALLS US OUT, AND BRINGS US BACK.
THAT SHOULD BE THE RHYTHM OF A CHRISTIAN LIFE. IF WE FOLLOW OUR SHEPHERD WE WILL SPEND TIME RESTING, BEING WATCHED OVER, BEING TENDED TO. BUT WE HAVE TO LET HIM LEAD US OUT AS WELL, BECAUSE WE BELONG IN THE WORLD, WE HAVE BEEN MADE TO TRANSFORM IT, TO BUILD THE KINGDOM. SOME OF US SEE OUR RELIGION AS AN INWARD THING, BETWEEN ME AND GOD. OTHERS NEGLECT THEIR PRAYER LIFE, THEIR MEDITATION, THEIR SPIRITUAL READING, FEELING THAT RELIGION IS BEST PRACTICED BY ACTION. BUT THE SHEPHERD LEADS US IN AND OUT OF THE SHEEPFOLD.
DID YOU NOTICE IN THE GOSPEL READING THAT JESUS DOES NOT COMPARE HIMSELF TO A SHEPHERD; HE CALLS HIMSELF A GATE. LATER IN THIS GOSPEL PASSAGE HE WILL SAY THAT HE IS THE GOOD SHEPHERD, BUT WHAT DOES HE MEAN, HERE, THAT HE IS THE GATE?
A CHRISTIAN NEEDS TO COME IN TO THE SAFETY OF THE SHEEPFOLD AND GO OUT INTO THE WORLD TO GROW THE KINGDOM. BUT THE ONLY WAY THIS WILL WORK IS IF THIS MOVEMENT ALWAYS INVOLVES JESUS. THERE ARE RELIGIONS, NOBLE AND GREAT RELIGIONS LIKE BUDDHISM, WHERE A PERSON STRUGGLES TO BECOME ONE WITH THE DIVINE. THIS IS DONE BY ONESELF, WITHOUT HELP. NO WONDER SO FEW EVEN ATTEMPT IT. AND SO MUCH EFFORT IS TAKEN UP IN THAT STRUGGLE THAT THERE IS NO ROOM TO BUILD THE KINGDOM. THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS FOR THEM, AN ILLUSION THAT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER. AND THERE ARE OTHER RELIGIONS, MORE MODERN ONES, PERHAPS, WHERE INNER GROWTH ISN'T IMPORTANT. SOME STRAINS OF ISLAM ARE SOMETHING LIKE THAT. WHAT MAKES YOU A RELIGIOUS PERSON IS WHAT YOU DO TO SUBJECT THE WORLD TO THE KORAN AND SHARIA LAW. YOUR SALVATION DEPENDS ON JIHAD, STRUGGLE, CONQUEST OF YOURSELF AND THE WORLD. YOU CAN BLOW YOURSELF UP IF IT HELPS. ENTERING INTO A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD CAN WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT LIFE.
CHRISTIANITY IS A RELIGION OF BALANCE, AND THE BALANCE IS JESUS. IN THE SHEEPFOLD, WE GET TO KNOW HIM, WE STUDY HIS WORDS, WE SPEAK TO HIM AND LET HIM SPEAK TO US. WE ACCEPT HIS FORGIVENESS AND LEARN TO FORGIVE OTHERS. WE ARE NOURISHED, CLEANSED, ENLIGHTENED. AND WHEN WE GO OUT, WE KEEP OUR EYES ON THE SHEPHERD, WE FOLLOW HIM, AND WE DON'T WANDER OFF. WE DO THE WORKS HE WOULD DO, AND WE LOOK FOR WAYS TO HELP THOSE ALREADY DOING HIS WORKS. OUTSIDE THE SHEEPFOLD OUR EGOS HAVE TO BE CAST ASIDE, BECAUSE UNLESS WE FOLLOW OUR SHEPHERD, ALL OUR EFFORTS ARE USELESS.
WE GO IN AND OUT THROUGH JESUS.
OUR CHALLENGE THIS WEEK IS TO EXAMINE OURSELVES. ARE WE SPENDING ENOUGH TIME IN THE SHEEPFOLD? ARE WE SPENDING TIME IN THE WORLD; AND ARE WE GOING IN AND OUT THROUGH JESUS? AND IF WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THESE THINGS MEAN FOR US, ARE WE ASKING SOMEONE WHO KNOWS TO HELP US GROW AS CHRISTIANS?
JESUS, AFTER ALL, CAME SO THAT WE SHEEP WOULD HAVE LIFE, AND HAVE IT ABUNDANTLY. ABUNDANT LIFE IS A LIFE OF SURPRISES, GOOD AND BAD, A LIFE WHICH DOES NOT SURRENDER TO ROUTINE. LET US NOT LET SUCH A LIFE PASS US BY.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Third Sunday of Easter, cycle A
LUKE 24:13-35
EVERY NOW AND THEN YOU HEAR PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT HOW THE CHURCH HAS TO ADAPT TO THE WORLD WIDE WEB IF IT IS GOING TO COMPETE. IT NEEDS TO GET FAMILIAR WITH YOU TUBE AND TWITTER AND FACEBOOK. IF SAINT PAUL WERE ALIVE TODAY, YOU CAN BE SURE HE'D HAVE A BLOG AND PREACH THE GOSPEL USING THE NEW MEDIA. AND I'M NOT SAYING THAT THERE ISN'T SOME TRUTH IN THOSE KINDS OF STATEMENTS.
BUT LET US THINK A BIT ABOUT TODAY'S GOSPEL. TWO PERSONS, ONE OF WHOM WAS A MAN AND I LIKE TO THINK THE OTHER WAS HIS WIFE, WERE WALKING ALONG, THINKING ABOUT WHAT THEY HAD BEEN THROUGH. THEY WERE DEPRESSED, THEIR HEARTS WERE HEAVY. WHAT HAD HAPPENED DIDN'T MAKE SENSE; SOMETIMES IT'S SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND WHAT LIFE THROWS AT YOU. MY WEEK WAS LIKE THAT, AND YOURS PROBABLY WAS ALSO. I HAD TO TELL A PATIENT THAT HE HAD ABOUT SIX MONTHS TO LIVE IF HE WAS LUCKY. HE'D JUST GOTTEN MARRIED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO. WE WERE ALL REMINDED OF THAT MOMENT TEN YEARS AGO WHEN OUR COUNTRY WAS ATTACKED BY TERRORISTS. WHERE WAS GOD? GASOLINE AND FOOD PRICES ARE GOING UP AT AN ALARMING RATE, NO ONE KNOWS WHAT TO DO. WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN? WE AREN'T TOO DIFFERENT FROM THOSE TWO MEN ON THE ROAD.
BUT IF WE ARE QUIET AND ATTENTIVE, WE MIGHT HEAR SOMEONE IN OUR MIDST, WHO WILL TELL US HOW FOOLISH WE ARE, BECAUSE WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN WHAT WE NEED TO MAKE SENSE OF THE WORLD, BUT WE DON'T USE IT. AND AT THE END OF OUR WEEK, WE ARE REMINDED OF THE MYSTERIES THAT HELP US SEE THE TRUTH – TODAY WE HEARD SOME OF THEM: YOU ARE THE SON OF GOD WHO FULFILLED THE WORDS FO THE PROPHETS; YOU ARE THE LAMB OF GOD WHO SHED HIS BLOOD FOR US; YOU SHOW US THE PATH OF LIFE, SO THAT WE CAN ATTAIN JOY -- AND TO EACH STATEMENT, WE REPLIED, LORD, HAVE MERCY. SIN IS AT THE ROOT NOT SO MUCH THINGS WE DO, BUT FAILURE OF TRUST, FAILURE TO BELIEVE, FAILURE TO LET GOD RUN OUR LIVES. AND WE NEED TO ASK HIS MERCY FOR THOSE FAILURES.
AND THAT PERSON IN OUR MIDST, THE ONE WHO PROMISED THAT WHERE TWO OR THREE ARE GATHERED IN HIS NAME, THERE HE WILL BE, DOES HAVE MERCY ON US, AND THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE SCRIPTURES WE ARE GIVEN, SHOWS US WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW, HOW WE NEED TO ACT; AND ONCE AGAIN, EQUIPS US WITH GOD'S WORD SO THAT WE CAN MAKE SENSE OF OUR WORLD. AND IF WE LISTEN TO THE SCRIPTURES AND LET THOSE WORDS TOUCH US, WE MIGHT ALSO HAVE THAT SENSATION OF OUR HEARTS BURNING WITHIN US; THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL, AFTER ALL, SET US ON FIRE IF WE LET HIM.
AND THE TWO TRAVELERS SEE SOMETHING ABOUT THIS STRANGER IN THEIR MIDST, AND DON'T WANT TO SAY GOODBYE – THEY WANT TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH HIM. SO THEY TAKE WHAT LITTLE THEY HAVE, SOME BREAD, SOME WINE, AND OFFER IT TO HIM. AND AFTER WE LISTEN TO THE SCRIPTURES, AFTER WE'VE EXPRESSED OUR FAITH, WE TAKE UP BREAD AND WINE, AND IN AN AGE-OLD CEREMONY, WE TAKE THESE BITS OF FOOD AND DRINK, AND OFFER THEM TO GOD, ALONG WITH ALL THOSE MOMENTS OF OUR WEEK, ALL THOSE TIMES WHEN OUR FAITH WAS WEAK, WHEN WE FAILED TO DO WHAT WE SHOULD HAVE DONE. SOMETIMES WE MAY EVEN FEEL THE URGE TO OFFER OURSELVES – IT'S SCARY AND IT'S HARD, AND USUALLY WHEN I TRY TO OFFER MYSELF, IT'S AN INCOMPLETE OFFERING AND I HOLD BACK.
THE TWO TRAVELERS SHARE THEIR MEAL WITH THE STRANGER, WHO BEGINS THE PRAYER OF BLESSING, THE COMMON GRACE USED BY DEVOUT JEWS EVEN TODAY THAT BEGINS WITH SIMPLE WORDS: “BLESSED ARE YOU, LORD OUR GOD, KING OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO BRINGS FORTH BREAD FROM THE EARTH.” AND THE STRANGER CONTINUES THE PRAYER, AND THEN TAKES BREAD AND BREAKS IT AND OFFERS IT AND SAYS, “THIS IS MY BODY”. AND THE TWO TRAVELERS IN A BURST OF RECOGNITION REALIZE THAT THE STRANGER IS THEIR TEACHER, THE HOPE OF ISRAEL, THE SAME ONE THAT THEY WATCHED DIE ON THAT CROSS. AND IN THAT MOMENT THEY SEE HIM NO MORE, BUT THEY KNOW HE IS WITH THEM, BECAUSE TIME AND SPACE CAN NO LONGER CONTAIN HIM. AND WE TOO BEGIN OUR PRAYER WITH WORDS WHICH RESEMBLE THOSE THAT OUR SPIRITUAL ANCESTORS HAVE USED SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL, AND FOR US TOO A MOMENT COMES WHEN BREAD IS BROKEN AND OUR PRIEST WHO STANDS IN OUR MIDST TO REPRESENT CHRIST TO US, PRONOUNCES THOSE SAME WORDS, “THIS IS MY BODY, THIS IS MY BLOOD”. AND WE JOYFULLY EAT AND DRINK WHAT HAS BEEN TRANSFORMED, AND JESUS, NO LONGER LIMITED BY TIME OR SPACE, IS WITH US ONCE AGAIN.
THE TWO TRAVELERS HAVE ENCOUNTERED THE RISEN CHRIST, AND THEIR SADNESS HAS TURNED TO JOY, THEIR CONFUSION TO CLARITY, THEIR EXHAUSTION TO BOUNDLESS ENERGY, AND THEY LEAVE THE TABLE, AND ALMOST RUN THE SEVEN MILES BACK TO JERUSALEM. THEY CAN'T WAIT TO PROCLAIM THAT JESUS HAS RISEN FROM THE DEAD, AND BECAUSE OF THAT, EVERYTHING THAT SEEMS SO MEANINGLESS, SO DEPRESSING, SO CONFUSING, IS SEEN WITH NEW EYES. TO ONE WHO HAS SEEN AND UNDERSTOOD THAT CHRIST HAS DIED AND IS NOW ALIVE FOR ALL ETERNITY, EVERYTHING IS TRANSFORMED, EVERYTHING IS CLEAR, NOTHING IS LOST. AND THINGS SHOULD NOT BE ANY DIFFERENT TODAY. WHEN WE LEAVE OUR TABLE, WE TOO SHOULD GO OUT CARRYING CHRIST IN OUR HEARTS, AND PROCLAIMING THE GOOD NEWS.
WHEN YOU HEAR THIS GOSPEL PASSAGE, THIS STORY OF THE TRAVELERS ON THE ROAD TO EMMAUS, DON'T YOU HEAR ECHOES OF OUR OWN LIVES AND THE FACT THAT THE MASS IS THE FOCAL POINT OF OUR WHOLE WEEK? THE MASS IS THE PLACE WHERE WE ARE RENEWED, COMFORTED, ENLIGHTENED, AND MADE HOLY; THE PLACE WHERE WE ENCOUNTER CHRIST.
LIKE THE TRAVELERS WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN THE COMMUNITY. WHEN WE GATHER, HE IS IN OUR MIDST. WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN FORGIVENESS AND REPENTANCE; WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN HIS WORD. AND FINALLY WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN THE FLESH, IN HIS BODY AND BLOOD AT THE SACRED MEAL. AND HE NOURISHES US, AND TRANSFORMS US, AND MAKES US FIT TO GO OUT AND PROCLAIM TO THE WORLD THAT HE IS RISEN, AND THAT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE. AND WE HAVE TO HAVE THIS WEEKLY CELEBRATION, WHERE WE PHYSICALLY COME TOGETHER; WE CANNOT ENCOUNTER THE LIVING JESUS ON FACEBOOK OR TWITTER OR YOU TUBE; WE NEED EACH OTHER, WE NEED THE SCRIPTURES, WE NEED THE BODY AND BLOOD.
JESUS PROMISED THAT HE WOULD NOT LEAVE US ORPHANS. AND IN THE GOSPEL STORY, AND INDEED IN ALL THE STORIES OF THOSE DAYS AFTER THE FIRST EASTER, HE FULFILLS THE PROMISE HE MADE. AND SINCE THEN AND FOR ALL THE REST OF TIME UNTIL THE LAST JUDGMENT, HE FULFILLS THE PROMISE IN THE MASS. MAY OUR FAITH GROW STRONG SO THAT OUR HEARTS WILL BURN WITHIN US, AND WE WILL MEET THE LORD AND BE GIVEN THE STRENGTH TO TRANSFORM THE WORLD.
EVERY NOW AND THEN YOU HEAR PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT HOW THE CHURCH HAS TO ADAPT TO THE WORLD WIDE WEB IF IT IS GOING TO COMPETE. IT NEEDS TO GET FAMILIAR WITH YOU TUBE AND TWITTER AND FACEBOOK. IF SAINT PAUL WERE ALIVE TODAY, YOU CAN BE SURE HE'D HAVE A BLOG AND PREACH THE GOSPEL USING THE NEW MEDIA. AND I'M NOT SAYING THAT THERE ISN'T SOME TRUTH IN THOSE KINDS OF STATEMENTS.
BUT LET US THINK A BIT ABOUT TODAY'S GOSPEL. TWO PERSONS, ONE OF WHOM WAS A MAN AND I LIKE TO THINK THE OTHER WAS HIS WIFE, WERE WALKING ALONG, THINKING ABOUT WHAT THEY HAD BEEN THROUGH. THEY WERE DEPRESSED, THEIR HEARTS WERE HEAVY. WHAT HAD HAPPENED DIDN'T MAKE SENSE; SOMETIMES IT'S SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND WHAT LIFE THROWS AT YOU. MY WEEK WAS LIKE THAT, AND YOURS PROBABLY WAS ALSO. I HAD TO TELL A PATIENT THAT HE HAD ABOUT SIX MONTHS TO LIVE IF HE WAS LUCKY. HE'D JUST GOTTEN MARRIED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO. WE WERE ALL REMINDED OF THAT MOMENT TEN YEARS AGO WHEN OUR COUNTRY WAS ATTACKED BY TERRORISTS. WHERE WAS GOD? GASOLINE AND FOOD PRICES ARE GOING UP AT AN ALARMING RATE, NO ONE KNOWS WHAT TO DO. WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN? WE AREN'T TOO DIFFERENT FROM THOSE TWO MEN ON THE ROAD.
BUT IF WE ARE QUIET AND ATTENTIVE, WE MIGHT HEAR SOMEONE IN OUR MIDST, WHO WILL TELL US HOW FOOLISH WE ARE, BECAUSE WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN WHAT WE NEED TO MAKE SENSE OF THE WORLD, BUT WE DON'T USE IT. AND AT THE END OF OUR WEEK, WE ARE REMINDED OF THE MYSTERIES THAT HELP US SEE THE TRUTH – TODAY WE HEARD SOME OF THEM: YOU ARE THE SON OF GOD WHO FULFILLED THE WORDS FO THE PROPHETS; YOU ARE THE LAMB OF GOD WHO SHED HIS BLOOD FOR US; YOU SHOW US THE PATH OF LIFE, SO THAT WE CAN ATTAIN JOY -- AND TO EACH STATEMENT, WE REPLIED, LORD, HAVE MERCY. SIN IS AT THE ROOT NOT SO MUCH THINGS WE DO, BUT FAILURE OF TRUST, FAILURE TO BELIEVE, FAILURE TO LET GOD RUN OUR LIVES. AND WE NEED TO ASK HIS MERCY FOR THOSE FAILURES.
AND THAT PERSON IN OUR MIDST, THE ONE WHO PROMISED THAT WHERE TWO OR THREE ARE GATHERED IN HIS NAME, THERE HE WILL BE, DOES HAVE MERCY ON US, AND THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE SCRIPTURES WE ARE GIVEN, SHOWS US WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW, HOW WE NEED TO ACT; AND ONCE AGAIN, EQUIPS US WITH GOD'S WORD SO THAT WE CAN MAKE SENSE OF OUR WORLD. AND IF WE LISTEN TO THE SCRIPTURES AND LET THOSE WORDS TOUCH US, WE MIGHT ALSO HAVE THAT SENSATION OF OUR HEARTS BURNING WITHIN US; THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL, AFTER ALL, SET US ON FIRE IF WE LET HIM.
AND THE TWO TRAVELERS SEE SOMETHING ABOUT THIS STRANGER IN THEIR MIDST, AND DON'T WANT TO SAY GOODBYE – THEY WANT TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH HIM. SO THEY TAKE WHAT LITTLE THEY HAVE, SOME BREAD, SOME WINE, AND OFFER IT TO HIM. AND AFTER WE LISTEN TO THE SCRIPTURES, AFTER WE'VE EXPRESSED OUR FAITH, WE TAKE UP BREAD AND WINE, AND IN AN AGE-OLD CEREMONY, WE TAKE THESE BITS OF FOOD AND DRINK, AND OFFER THEM TO GOD, ALONG WITH ALL THOSE MOMENTS OF OUR WEEK, ALL THOSE TIMES WHEN OUR FAITH WAS WEAK, WHEN WE FAILED TO DO WHAT WE SHOULD HAVE DONE. SOMETIMES WE MAY EVEN FEEL THE URGE TO OFFER OURSELVES – IT'S SCARY AND IT'S HARD, AND USUALLY WHEN I TRY TO OFFER MYSELF, IT'S AN INCOMPLETE OFFERING AND I HOLD BACK.
THE TWO TRAVELERS SHARE THEIR MEAL WITH THE STRANGER, WHO BEGINS THE PRAYER OF BLESSING, THE COMMON GRACE USED BY DEVOUT JEWS EVEN TODAY THAT BEGINS WITH SIMPLE WORDS: “BLESSED ARE YOU, LORD OUR GOD, KING OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO BRINGS FORTH BREAD FROM THE EARTH.” AND THE STRANGER CONTINUES THE PRAYER, AND THEN TAKES BREAD AND BREAKS IT AND OFFERS IT AND SAYS, “THIS IS MY BODY”. AND THE TWO TRAVELERS IN A BURST OF RECOGNITION REALIZE THAT THE STRANGER IS THEIR TEACHER, THE HOPE OF ISRAEL, THE SAME ONE THAT THEY WATCHED DIE ON THAT CROSS. AND IN THAT MOMENT THEY SEE HIM NO MORE, BUT THEY KNOW HE IS WITH THEM, BECAUSE TIME AND SPACE CAN NO LONGER CONTAIN HIM. AND WE TOO BEGIN OUR PRAYER WITH WORDS WHICH RESEMBLE THOSE THAT OUR SPIRITUAL ANCESTORS HAVE USED SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL, AND FOR US TOO A MOMENT COMES WHEN BREAD IS BROKEN AND OUR PRIEST WHO STANDS IN OUR MIDST TO REPRESENT CHRIST TO US, PRONOUNCES THOSE SAME WORDS, “THIS IS MY BODY, THIS IS MY BLOOD”. AND WE JOYFULLY EAT AND DRINK WHAT HAS BEEN TRANSFORMED, AND JESUS, NO LONGER LIMITED BY TIME OR SPACE, IS WITH US ONCE AGAIN.
THE TWO TRAVELERS HAVE ENCOUNTERED THE RISEN CHRIST, AND THEIR SADNESS HAS TURNED TO JOY, THEIR CONFUSION TO CLARITY, THEIR EXHAUSTION TO BOUNDLESS ENERGY, AND THEY LEAVE THE TABLE, AND ALMOST RUN THE SEVEN MILES BACK TO JERUSALEM. THEY CAN'T WAIT TO PROCLAIM THAT JESUS HAS RISEN FROM THE DEAD, AND BECAUSE OF THAT, EVERYTHING THAT SEEMS SO MEANINGLESS, SO DEPRESSING, SO CONFUSING, IS SEEN WITH NEW EYES. TO ONE WHO HAS SEEN AND UNDERSTOOD THAT CHRIST HAS DIED AND IS NOW ALIVE FOR ALL ETERNITY, EVERYTHING IS TRANSFORMED, EVERYTHING IS CLEAR, NOTHING IS LOST. AND THINGS SHOULD NOT BE ANY DIFFERENT TODAY. WHEN WE LEAVE OUR TABLE, WE TOO SHOULD GO OUT CARRYING CHRIST IN OUR HEARTS, AND PROCLAIMING THE GOOD NEWS.
WHEN YOU HEAR THIS GOSPEL PASSAGE, THIS STORY OF THE TRAVELERS ON THE ROAD TO EMMAUS, DON'T YOU HEAR ECHOES OF OUR OWN LIVES AND THE FACT THAT THE MASS IS THE FOCAL POINT OF OUR WHOLE WEEK? THE MASS IS THE PLACE WHERE WE ARE RENEWED, COMFORTED, ENLIGHTENED, AND MADE HOLY; THE PLACE WHERE WE ENCOUNTER CHRIST.
LIKE THE TRAVELERS WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN THE COMMUNITY. WHEN WE GATHER, HE IS IN OUR MIDST. WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN FORGIVENESS AND REPENTANCE; WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN HIS WORD. AND FINALLY WE ENCOUNTER HIM IN THE FLESH, IN HIS BODY AND BLOOD AT THE SACRED MEAL. AND HE NOURISHES US, AND TRANSFORMS US, AND MAKES US FIT TO GO OUT AND PROCLAIM TO THE WORLD THAT HE IS RISEN, AND THAT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE. AND WE HAVE TO HAVE THIS WEEKLY CELEBRATION, WHERE WE PHYSICALLY COME TOGETHER; WE CANNOT ENCOUNTER THE LIVING JESUS ON FACEBOOK OR TWITTER OR YOU TUBE; WE NEED EACH OTHER, WE NEED THE SCRIPTURES, WE NEED THE BODY AND BLOOD.
JESUS PROMISED THAT HE WOULD NOT LEAVE US ORPHANS. AND IN THE GOSPEL STORY, AND INDEED IN ALL THE STORIES OF THOSE DAYS AFTER THE FIRST EASTER, HE FULFILLS THE PROMISE HE MADE. AND SINCE THEN AND FOR ALL THE REST OF TIME UNTIL THE LAST JUDGMENT, HE FULFILLS THE PROMISE IN THE MASS. MAY OUR FAITH GROW STRONG SO THAT OUR HEARTS WILL BURN WITHIN US, AND WE WILL MEET THE LORD AND BE GIVEN THE STRENGTH TO TRANSFORM THE WORLD.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Second Sunday of Easter, cycle A
JOHN 20:19-31
ABOUT 1900 YEARS AGO IN WHAT IS WESTERN TURKEY TODAY, THE LAST LIVING APOSTLE SAT IN HIS STUDY, WONDERING WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HIS FLOCK. WHEN HE HAD FIRST MOVED TO THIS AREA TAKING ALONG MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS, HE HAD PREACHED THE GOOD NEWS, AND ATTRACTED MANY CONVERTS. HE HAD ORDAINED DEACONS AND PRESBYTERS AND HAD A THRIVING, ENTHUSIASTIC CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY, AND ALL THIS WAS HELPED BECAUSE THIS WAS AN AREA WHERE THE HEAVY HAND OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE WAS NOT SO MUCH IN EVIDENCE. HIS FLOCK WAS NOT PARTICULARLY PERSECUTED, AND THEY GOT ALONG WITH THEIR PAGAN NEIGHBORS AND WITH THE JEWISH COMMUNITY AS WELL.; MAYBE THAT WAS BECAUSE THE MOTHER OF JESUS LIVED IN THEIR MIDST. GOD HAD TRULY BLESSED THEM AND SPARED THEM FROM THE TERRIBLE THINGS WHICH HAPPENED TO CHRISTIANS IN ALMOST EVERY OTHER PART OF THE EMPIRE.
BUT JOHN SENSED THAT SOMETHING HAD CHANGED. THE PEOPLE WERE CONTENT; THEY HAD LOST THEIR EDGE. THEY WENT TO CHURCH AND PARTICIPATED IN THE LITURGY, BUT YOU COULDN'T TELL THEM FROM THEIR NEIGHBORS ANYMORE. PROSPEROUS BUSINESSMEN, WELL-DRESSED MATRONS – RICH CHRISTIANS SPENT MORE TIME WITH RICH PAGANS THAN WITH THE POOR CHRISTIANS. AND THE OLD BISHOP KNOWING THAT HIS LIFE WAS DRAWING TO A CLOSE, DECIDED TO WRITE AN ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE OF JESUS IN THE HOPES THAT IF HE COULD MAKE THIS MORE REAL TO HIS PEOPLE, THEY COULD BELIEVE – AND BY BELIEF, HE MEANT THEY WOULD TAKE THE MESSAGE OF JESUS SERIOUSLY.
THINGS ARE NOT TOO DIFFERENT TODAY. OUR DIOCESE HAS COME A LONG WAY DURING MY LIFETIME AND YOURS, AND IN THE WRONG WAY. THE LAST FEW YEARS HAVE SEEN CLOSING OF PARISHES, A LOSS OF ABOUT A THIRD OF THE PERSONNEL WORKING FOR THE DIOCESE; HARDLY ANY PRESENCE OF RELIGIOUS ORDERS – AND OF COURSE THE SCANDALS AND THE LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY THAT HAVE BEEN GIVEN IN SETTLEMENTS. I WON'T BORE YOU WITH STATISTICS, BUT THEY ARE PRETTY DEPRESSING.
AND YOU KNOW, WE DON'T SEEM TO KNOW WHAT TO DO. WE ARE GOING THROUGH A BIG EFFORT TO REVISE THE LITURGY. THAT'S WONDERFUL, BUT WILL IT BRING PEOPLE BACK TO THE CHURCH? I DOUBT IT. WE JUST GOT THROUGH ANOTHER EASTER. HUGE CROWDS AT EVERY MASS. WHERE ARE THEY TODAY?
WHAT'S THE ANSWER? I DON'T KNOW. BUT THE READINGS TODAY ARE INTERESTING, ESPECIALLY IF YOU READ THEM BACKWARD. THINK ABOUT THOSE APOSTLES – AFRAID, LOCKED IN A ROOM, NOT LETTING ANYONE IN, NOT DARING TO GO OUT. AND JESUS APPEARS IN THEIR MIDST, AND GIVES THEM HIS PEACE, AND GIVES THEM HIS SPIRIT, AND GIVES THEM SOMETHING NO KING, NO EMPEROR, NO PROPHET HAD EVER HAD – THE POWER TO FORGIVE SINS. AND HE TELLS THEM TO GO OUT, TO TRANSFORM THE WORLD.
THAT'S GREAT, ISN'T IT? BUT NOTICE, A WEEK LATER, THEY ARE STILL THERE, STILL LOCKED UP, STILL WONDERING WHETHER IT IS SAFE TO GO OUT. AND THOMAS SAYS, WHEN THEY TELL HIM THEY HAVE SEEN THE LORD, “I WILL NOT BELIEVE”. IS THOMAS JUST A WORLD-CLASS SKEPTIC? AFTER ALL, THE WORDS “DOUBTING THOMAS” HAVE BECOME PART OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. IS THOMAS BEING STUBBORN, BECAUSE JESUS APPEARED TO THE OTHER APOSTLES, BUT NOT TO HIM? WE CAN SPECULATE. BUT MAYBE THE ANSWER IS STARING US IN THE FACE.
“YOU TELL ME YOU SAW JESUS ALIVE? YOU TELL ME THAT HE GAVE YOU HIS SPIRIT AND SENT YOU TO PREACH HIS GOSPEL? YOU TELL ME HE GAVE YOU THE PEACE THAT WAS ALWAYS WITH HIM, THE PEACE THAT GAVE HIM THE COURAGE TO TELL THE TRUTH, TO CONFRONT THE AUTHORITIES, TO LIVE WITHOUT FEAR? AND YOU ARE STILL HERE, LOCKED IN THIS ROOM? I DON'T BELIEVE YOU.”
AND MAYBE THAT'S OUR PROBLEM TOO. WE ARE LIKE THOSE TEN APOSTLES, LOADED WITH GREAT SPIRITUAL GIFTS, GIVEN PROMISES BY GOD HIMSELF WHO CANNOT LIE; AND LET'S FACE IT, WE'VE WITNESSED GOD'S WORK IN OUR LIVES, THE BIRTH OF A CHILD, THE WEDDING TO OUR BEST FRIEND, AND LITTLE GRACES AS WELL, LIKE THE FLOWERS THAT ARE BLOOMING OUTSIDE THE CHURCH AND GIVING US BEAUTY, AS A PURE GIFT, FOR NO OTHER PURPOSE THAN TO DELIGHT US. AND LIKE THE APOSTLES, WE STAY LOCKED UP, AFRAID TO VENTURE OUT, AFRAID TO WITNESS TO THE WORLD WHAT WE KNOW – CHRIST HAS RISEN, DEATH IS CONQUERED, ETERNAL LIFE IS OURS.
THE SECOND READING FROM THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PETER IS A SERMON. NOW PETER IS FIRED UP. HE TELLS US OF AN INHERITANCE WHICH CANNOT BE DESTROYED, WAITING FOR US IN HEAVEN. EVEN OUR SUFFERINGS ARE VALUABLE BECAUSE THEY STRENGTHEN OUR FAITH AND THUS OUR LOVE.
AND IN THE FIRST READING, WE GET A GLIMPSE OF HOW IT WAS IN THOSE FIRST DAYS OF THE CHURCH – A COMMUNITY WHICH BY THE WAY THEY LIVED THE GOSPELS BECAME A UNIVERSAL CHURCH THAT GREW AND PROSPERED DESPITE PERSECUTIONS AND CORRUPT POPES AND KINGS, DESPITE SCHISMS AND HERESIES. AND DOWN THROUGH THE AGES, CHRISTIANS HAVE SEEN THEIR COMMUNITIES WITHER AND SOMETIMES DISAPPEAR AND FELT DESPAIR. BUT EVERY NOW AND THEN AN INDIVIDUAL OR A COMMUNITY REALLY LISTENED TO WHAT THAT OLD BISHOP JOHN HAD TO SAY, AND THEY HEARD THE PROMISES AND HEARD ABOUT THE RESURRECTION WHICH GUARANTEED THOSE PROMISES. AND EVERY NOW AND THEN A REAL CHRISTIAN WOULD FALL ON HIS OR HER KNEES AND SAY “MY LORD AND MY GOD!” BECAUSE IF YOU SAY THAT FROM THE BOTTOM OF YOUR SOUL, YOU CAN'T HELP BUT BE CHANGED, THE PEACE OF JESUS WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR FEAR, AND THE SPIRIT OF JESUS WILL PUT THE WORDS IN YOUR MOUTH AND GUIDE YOUR ACTIONS, AND THE CHURCH WILL CATCH ON FIRE ONCE AGAIN, AND JOHN'S GOSPEL WILL ACHIEVE IT'S GOAL, SO THAT YOU WILL BELIEVE, SO THAT YOU WILL HAVE LIFE.
THIS IS MERCY SUNDAY. GOD HAS FORGIVEN US. HE HAS GIVEN US JESUS HIS SON. HE HAS FORGIVEN OUR SINS, AND STANDS READY TO FORGIVE US AGAIN AND AGAIN. AND JESUS LIVES! CAN YOU REALLY BELIEVE THIS AND KEEP QUIET? AND IF YOU ARE QUIET, WHO WILL SEE YOU AND SAY, “I DO NOT BELIEVE, BECAUSE IF YOUR BELIEF MAKES NO DIFFERENCE IN YOUR LIFE, IF YOUR BELIEF IN THIS STUPENDOUS SET OF IDEAS DOES NOT MAKE YOU DIFFERENT, IF YOU BELIEVE ALL THIS AND DON'T SAY SOMETHING, THEN YOU DON'T REALLY BELIEVE IT AT ALL, DO YOU?”
AS ANOTHER FRIEND OF JESUS ONCE SAID, "LORD, I BELIEVE; HELP MY UNBELIEF."
ABOUT 1900 YEARS AGO IN WHAT IS WESTERN TURKEY TODAY, THE LAST LIVING APOSTLE SAT IN HIS STUDY, WONDERING WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HIS FLOCK. WHEN HE HAD FIRST MOVED TO THIS AREA TAKING ALONG MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS, HE HAD PREACHED THE GOOD NEWS, AND ATTRACTED MANY CONVERTS. HE HAD ORDAINED DEACONS AND PRESBYTERS AND HAD A THRIVING, ENTHUSIASTIC CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY, AND ALL THIS WAS HELPED BECAUSE THIS WAS AN AREA WHERE THE HEAVY HAND OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE WAS NOT SO MUCH IN EVIDENCE. HIS FLOCK WAS NOT PARTICULARLY PERSECUTED, AND THEY GOT ALONG WITH THEIR PAGAN NEIGHBORS AND WITH THE JEWISH COMMUNITY AS WELL.; MAYBE THAT WAS BECAUSE THE MOTHER OF JESUS LIVED IN THEIR MIDST. GOD HAD TRULY BLESSED THEM AND SPARED THEM FROM THE TERRIBLE THINGS WHICH HAPPENED TO CHRISTIANS IN ALMOST EVERY OTHER PART OF THE EMPIRE.
BUT JOHN SENSED THAT SOMETHING HAD CHANGED. THE PEOPLE WERE CONTENT; THEY HAD LOST THEIR EDGE. THEY WENT TO CHURCH AND PARTICIPATED IN THE LITURGY, BUT YOU COULDN'T TELL THEM FROM THEIR NEIGHBORS ANYMORE. PROSPEROUS BUSINESSMEN, WELL-DRESSED MATRONS – RICH CHRISTIANS SPENT MORE TIME WITH RICH PAGANS THAN WITH THE POOR CHRISTIANS. AND THE OLD BISHOP KNOWING THAT HIS LIFE WAS DRAWING TO A CLOSE, DECIDED TO WRITE AN ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE OF JESUS IN THE HOPES THAT IF HE COULD MAKE THIS MORE REAL TO HIS PEOPLE, THEY COULD BELIEVE – AND BY BELIEF, HE MEANT THEY WOULD TAKE THE MESSAGE OF JESUS SERIOUSLY.
THINGS ARE NOT TOO DIFFERENT TODAY. OUR DIOCESE HAS COME A LONG WAY DURING MY LIFETIME AND YOURS, AND IN THE WRONG WAY. THE LAST FEW YEARS HAVE SEEN CLOSING OF PARISHES, A LOSS OF ABOUT A THIRD OF THE PERSONNEL WORKING FOR THE DIOCESE; HARDLY ANY PRESENCE OF RELIGIOUS ORDERS – AND OF COURSE THE SCANDALS AND THE LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY THAT HAVE BEEN GIVEN IN SETTLEMENTS. I WON'T BORE YOU WITH STATISTICS, BUT THEY ARE PRETTY DEPRESSING.
AND YOU KNOW, WE DON'T SEEM TO KNOW WHAT TO DO. WE ARE GOING THROUGH A BIG EFFORT TO REVISE THE LITURGY. THAT'S WONDERFUL, BUT WILL IT BRING PEOPLE BACK TO THE CHURCH? I DOUBT IT. WE JUST GOT THROUGH ANOTHER EASTER. HUGE CROWDS AT EVERY MASS. WHERE ARE THEY TODAY?
WHAT'S THE ANSWER? I DON'T KNOW. BUT THE READINGS TODAY ARE INTERESTING, ESPECIALLY IF YOU READ THEM BACKWARD. THINK ABOUT THOSE APOSTLES – AFRAID, LOCKED IN A ROOM, NOT LETTING ANYONE IN, NOT DARING TO GO OUT. AND JESUS APPEARS IN THEIR MIDST, AND GIVES THEM HIS PEACE, AND GIVES THEM HIS SPIRIT, AND GIVES THEM SOMETHING NO KING, NO EMPEROR, NO PROPHET HAD EVER HAD – THE POWER TO FORGIVE SINS. AND HE TELLS THEM TO GO OUT, TO TRANSFORM THE WORLD.
THAT'S GREAT, ISN'T IT? BUT NOTICE, A WEEK LATER, THEY ARE STILL THERE, STILL LOCKED UP, STILL WONDERING WHETHER IT IS SAFE TO GO OUT. AND THOMAS SAYS, WHEN THEY TELL HIM THEY HAVE SEEN THE LORD, “I WILL NOT BELIEVE”. IS THOMAS JUST A WORLD-CLASS SKEPTIC? AFTER ALL, THE WORDS “DOUBTING THOMAS” HAVE BECOME PART OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. IS THOMAS BEING STUBBORN, BECAUSE JESUS APPEARED TO THE OTHER APOSTLES, BUT NOT TO HIM? WE CAN SPECULATE. BUT MAYBE THE ANSWER IS STARING US IN THE FACE.
“YOU TELL ME YOU SAW JESUS ALIVE? YOU TELL ME THAT HE GAVE YOU HIS SPIRIT AND SENT YOU TO PREACH HIS GOSPEL? YOU TELL ME HE GAVE YOU THE PEACE THAT WAS ALWAYS WITH HIM, THE PEACE THAT GAVE HIM THE COURAGE TO TELL THE TRUTH, TO CONFRONT THE AUTHORITIES, TO LIVE WITHOUT FEAR? AND YOU ARE STILL HERE, LOCKED IN THIS ROOM? I DON'T BELIEVE YOU.”
AND MAYBE THAT'S OUR PROBLEM TOO. WE ARE LIKE THOSE TEN APOSTLES, LOADED WITH GREAT SPIRITUAL GIFTS, GIVEN PROMISES BY GOD HIMSELF WHO CANNOT LIE; AND LET'S FACE IT, WE'VE WITNESSED GOD'S WORK IN OUR LIVES, THE BIRTH OF A CHILD, THE WEDDING TO OUR BEST FRIEND, AND LITTLE GRACES AS WELL, LIKE THE FLOWERS THAT ARE BLOOMING OUTSIDE THE CHURCH AND GIVING US BEAUTY, AS A PURE GIFT, FOR NO OTHER PURPOSE THAN TO DELIGHT US. AND LIKE THE APOSTLES, WE STAY LOCKED UP, AFRAID TO VENTURE OUT, AFRAID TO WITNESS TO THE WORLD WHAT WE KNOW – CHRIST HAS RISEN, DEATH IS CONQUERED, ETERNAL LIFE IS OURS.
THE SECOND READING FROM THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PETER IS A SERMON. NOW PETER IS FIRED UP. HE TELLS US OF AN INHERITANCE WHICH CANNOT BE DESTROYED, WAITING FOR US IN HEAVEN. EVEN OUR SUFFERINGS ARE VALUABLE BECAUSE THEY STRENGTHEN OUR FAITH AND THUS OUR LOVE.
AND IN THE FIRST READING, WE GET A GLIMPSE OF HOW IT WAS IN THOSE FIRST DAYS OF THE CHURCH – A COMMUNITY WHICH BY THE WAY THEY LIVED THE GOSPELS BECAME A UNIVERSAL CHURCH THAT GREW AND PROSPERED DESPITE PERSECUTIONS AND CORRUPT POPES AND KINGS, DESPITE SCHISMS AND HERESIES. AND DOWN THROUGH THE AGES, CHRISTIANS HAVE SEEN THEIR COMMUNITIES WITHER AND SOMETIMES DISAPPEAR AND FELT DESPAIR. BUT EVERY NOW AND THEN AN INDIVIDUAL OR A COMMUNITY REALLY LISTENED TO WHAT THAT OLD BISHOP JOHN HAD TO SAY, AND THEY HEARD THE PROMISES AND HEARD ABOUT THE RESURRECTION WHICH GUARANTEED THOSE PROMISES. AND EVERY NOW AND THEN A REAL CHRISTIAN WOULD FALL ON HIS OR HER KNEES AND SAY “MY LORD AND MY GOD!” BECAUSE IF YOU SAY THAT FROM THE BOTTOM OF YOUR SOUL, YOU CAN'T HELP BUT BE CHANGED, THE PEACE OF JESUS WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR FEAR, AND THE SPIRIT OF JESUS WILL PUT THE WORDS IN YOUR MOUTH AND GUIDE YOUR ACTIONS, AND THE CHURCH WILL CATCH ON FIRE ONCE AGAIN, AND JOHN'S GOSPEL WILL ACHIEVE IT'S GOAL, SO THAT YOU WILL BELIEVE, SO THAT YOU WILL HAVE LIFE.
THIS IS MERCY SUNDAY. GOD HAS FORGIVEN US. HE HAS GIVEN US JESUS HIS SON. HE HAS FORGIVEN OUR SINS, AND STANDS READY TO FORGIVE US AGAIN AND AGAIN. AND JESUS LIVES! CAN YOU REALLY BELIEVE THIS AND KEEP QUIET? AND IF YOU ARE QUIET, WHO WILL SEE YOU AND SAY, “I DO NOT BELIEVE, BECAUSE IF YOUR BELIEF MAKES NO DIFFERENCE IN YOUR LIFE, IF YOUR BELIEF IN THIS STUPENDOUS SET OF IDEAS DOES NOT MAKE YOU DIFFERENT, IF YOU BELIEVE ALL THIS AND DON'T SAY SOMETHING, THEN YOU DON'T REALLY BELIEVE IT AT ALL, DO YOU?”
AS ANOTHER FRIEND OF JESUS ONCE SAID, "LORD, I BELIEVE; HELP MY UNBELIEF."
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