Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

MATTHEW 14:13-23
I READ ABOUT SOME SHIPWRECKED PEOPLE WHO WERE ADRIFT IN THE OCEAN. THEY HAD BEEN WRINGING OUT THE SAIL TO GET A LITTLE WATER TO DRINK. THEY WERE DISCOVERED, NEARLY DEAD OF DEHYDRATION. THEY DIDN'T REALIZE THAT THEY WERE IN AN AREA WHERE THE AMAZON RIVER FLOWS INTO THE PACIFIC OCEAN, AND THE RIVER WATER DISPLACES THE SALT WATER OUT TO ABOUT 100 MILES FROM SHORE. THEY COULD HAVE HAD ALL THE FRESH WATER THEY WANTED, JUST BY DROPPING A BUCKET IN THE SEA.
AS YOU KNOW, THERE ARE FOUR GOSPELS. THERE IS ONLY ONE MIRACLE WHICH APPEARS IN ALL FOUR, AND THAT IS THIS STORY OF THE FEEDING OF THE CROWD, OR THE MULTIPLICATION OF THE LOAVES AND FISHES. THE DIFFERENT GOSPEL WRITERS HAVE DIFFERENT NUMBERS OF PEOPLE BEING FED, DIFFERENT TIMES IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST, AND EVEN DIFFERENT LOCATIONS FOR THIS MIRACLE TO TAKE PLACE. IN FACT, IN THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, THE STORY IS TOLD TWICE; ONCE WITH FIVE LOAVES, AND THE OTHER WITH SEVEN. BUT TO THE EARLY CHURCH THERE MUST HAVE BEEN GREAT SIGNIFICANCE SINCE THE STORY WAS SO TREASURED.
THE GOSPEL WRITERS ARE ALWAYS USING THE EVENTS OF JESUS' LIFE TO ILLUSTRATE THEIR THEOLOGY. THEY PUT DIFFERENT WORDS INTO THE DISCIPLES MOUTHS. JESUS TELLS THEM TO FEED THE CROWD. LISTEN TO HOW THEY REPLY. IN THE OTHER MATTHEW STORY, THEY SAY, “WHERE COULD WE GET ENOUGH BREAD TO FEED THIS CROWD?” IN MARK, THEY SAY, “THAT WOULD TAKE MORE THAN A HALF-YEAR'S WAGES. ARE WE TO GO AND SPEND THAT MUCH ON BREAD AND GIVE IT TO THEM TO EAT?”IN LUKE, “WE HAVE ONLY FIVE LOAVES AND TWO FISH HERE. UNLESS WE GO AND BUY FOOD FOR THIS CROWD (THERE WERE ABOUT 5000 MEN.) AND IN JOHN THEY SAY, “HERE IS A BOY WITH FIVE BARLEY LOAVES AND TWO SMALL FISH, BUT HOW FAR WILL THAT GO AMONG SO MANY? NOTICE THAT IN EACH OF THESE ACCOUNTS, THE APOSTLES ANSWER THE REQUEST OF JESUS BY POINTING OUT HOW ABSURD IT IS. AND THAT IS UNFORTUNATE, BECAUSE WHEN JESUS GOES AHEAD AND WORKS THE MIRACLE, WE ARE IMPRESSED BY THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF IT, AND IT BECOMES JUST ANOTHER MIRACLE SHOWING THAT JESUS WAS GOD. BUT MAYBE TODAY'S GOSPEL CAN GIVE US A DIFFERENT TAKE ON WHAT IS GOING ON. JESUS, AFTER ALL, DIDN'T DO MIRACLES TO SHOW OFF.
IF YOU ARE A PERSON WHO READS THE NEWSPAPER OR WATCHES TELEVISION, YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH CURRENT EVENTS. AND IT'S VERY HARD TO BE FAMILIAR WITH WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE WORLD AND NOT FEEL TOTALLY HELPLESS. HOW'S THE WAR TO END POVERTY GOING? THE PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE IN THE WORLD WHO ARE OFFICIALLY POOR HAS ONLY INCREASED. WHOLE COUNTRIES ARE FILLED WITH DISPLACED PERSONS, LIVING, IF YOU CAN CALL IT THAT, ON CHARITY WITH NO HOPE OF EVER MAKING A LIVING. WHOLE COUNTRIES ARE RULED BY DESPOTS WHO THINK NOTHING OF TURNING THEIR ARMIES ON THEIR OWN PEOPLE, SO POLITICAL FREEDOM IS DECLINING. PEOPLE CAN'T GET THE MEDICAL CARE THEY NEED, EVEN IN THIS THE RICHEST OF COUNTRIES. AND IF YOU HAVE CANCER IN ZIMBABWE, YOU WILL BE LUCKY TO GET MORPHINE TO HELP YOU BEAR YOUR PAIN. AND THE LIST GOES ON AND ON. OUR VALUES ARE COLLAPSING ALL AROUND US. TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE IS THREATENED. PRACTICING CATHOLICS ARE BECOMING FEWER AND OLDER. OUR POLITICAL SYSTEM SEEMS TO BE BROKEN. ALL THIS MAKES YOU WANT TO CRAWL INTO BED AND PULL THE BLANKET OVER YOUR HEAD.
THE APOSTLES MAY HAVE FELT LIKE THAT, A LITTLE. JESUS, THEY SAY, IT'S GETTING LATE. SEND THESE PEOPLE HOME. THE APOSTLES KNEW THE CROWD WAS GETTING HUNGRY. IN THOSE DAYS, PEOPLE USUALLY ATE ONE MEAL A DAY, AND THE TIME FOR THAT MEAL HAD LONG PASSED. AND JESUS SAYS, “YOU GUYS – YOU GIVE THEM SOMETHING TO EAT.” AND MAYBE THERE WAS A SMILE ON HIS FACE AND A TWINKLE IN HIS EYE AS HE SAID THOSE WORDS. WAS HE TEASING THEM? MAYBE THE APOSTLES HEARD IT AS A JOKE. BUT THEN, SOMEONE REMEMBERED JESUS SAYING “WHATEVER YOU ASK THE FATHER IN MY NAME, IT SHALL BE GIVEN TO YOU.” AND “DON'T WORRY ABOUT TOMORROW. LOOK HOW THE BIRDS IN THE AIR AND THE LILIES OF THE FIELD ARE TAKEN CARE OF.” JESUS WAS ALWAYS TELLING THE APOSTLES THAT IF YOU LET GOD TAKE CARE OF THINGS, HE WOULD.
SO, IN MATTHEW'S STORY, WE DON'T HEAR THEM EXCLAIMING HOW IMPOSSIBLE IT IS TO FEED THIS CROWD. INSTEAD, THEY HAND OVER FIVE LOAVES AND TWO FISH. AND JESUS, IN AN ACTION THAT ANTICIPATES THE EUCHARISTIC BANQUET AT THE LAST SUPPER, BLESSED THE FOOD AND BROKE THE BREAD AND GAVE IT BACK TO HIS DISCIPLES, WHO BEGAN TO HAND IT OUT TO THE CROWD. AND AFTER FEEDING THIS CROWD, FAR LARGER THAN 5000 INDIVIDUALS, THERE WERE BASKETS OF FOOD LEFT OVER.
THERE IS SO MUCH TO DO IN THE WORLD. IT IS OUR TASK AS CHRISTIANS TO BUILD UP THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. BUT EVERYWHERE WE TURN, IT SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE. SO OUR TEMPTATION IS TO SAY, “THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN WILL COME ALONG AT THE END OF TIME” OR, “GOD WILL MAKE EVERYTHING RIGHT SOMEDAY, THERE'S NOTHING WE CAN DO ABOUT IT NOW.” AND WE GO ON, CONVINCED THAT WHATEVER WE DO, IT WON'T BE ENOUGH.
BUT THE MIRACLE OF THE LOAVES AND THE FISHES REMINDS US THAT WE CAN SQUEEZE OUT A FEW DROPS OF WATER FROM THE SAIL OF OUR BOAT, NEVER ADEQUATE, NEVER ENOUGH; OR WE CAN DIP IN TO THE ABUNDANT FRESH WATER SURROUNDING US ON ALL SIDES – GOD, WHO MULTIPLIES WHATEVER WE DO IN HIS NAME.
THE MIRACLE OF THE LOAVES AND THE FISHES IS PRETTY SPECTACULAR, AND IF YOU BELIEVE THE MIRACLE HAPPENED, YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD, AS HE SAID HE WAS. BUT THE IMPORTANT THING ABOUT THIS MIRACLE IS THAT IF YOU DARE TO TAKE GOD UP ON HIS PROMISES, YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED. IF YOU SET OUT TO WORK FOR A BETTER WORLD – A MORE JUST WORLD, A BETTER EDUCATED WORLD, A CLEANER WORLD – IF YOU PUT SOME OF YOUR ENERGY AND RESOURCES INTO PREACHING THE GOSPEL, CARRYING OUT THE BEATITUDES – IN SHORT, IF YOU BEGIN TO DO THE WORK CHRIST DID, YOU WILL SEE RESULTS FAR BEYOND WHAT YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD ACCOMPLISH. BECAUSE GOD MADE PROMISES TO YOU AND I, PROMISES TO MULTIPLY AND PERFECT OUR EFFORTS, AND HE DARES YOU TO TAKE HIM UP ON THEM, JUST LIKE JESUS DARED HIS APOSTLES THERE IN THAT DESERTED PLACE.

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

MATTHEW 13:44-52
ONE OF MY PATIENTS IS A YOUNG WOMAN WITH A PARTICULARLY VICIOUS CASE OF DIABETES. THE DISEASE HAS MADE HER NEARLY BLIND; SHE HAS LOST MOST OF THE SENSATION IN HER FEET, REPLACED BY A CONSTANT PAINFUL BURNING; SHE HAS GASTROPARESIS, WHICH IS A FANCY WORD FOR A STOMACH THAT DOESN'T CONTRACT PROPERLY ANYMORE, SO SHE HAS TO BE FED BY VEIN, AND WHEN SHE DOES TRY TO EAT, EVENTUALLY THE STOMACH FILLS UP AND SHE HAS MASSIVE VOMITING. AND THE DISEASE DESTROYED HER KIDNEYS.
AT THE AGE OF 33 SHE HAD NOTHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO BUT GRADUALLY LOSING MORE AND MORE FUNCTION, AND AN EARLY DEATH.
IT WAS AT THAT POINT THAT HER HUSBAND VOLUNTEERED TO DONATE ONE OF HIS OWN KIDNEYS. I MIGHT POINT OUT THAT THEIR MARRIAGE HAS NOT BEEN WONDERFUL, EITHER BEFORE OR AFTER THIS EVENT. HE COPES WITH THE CONSTANT PRESSURE OF A SICK WIFE AND HUGE FINANCIAL BURDENS WITH ALCOHOL; BUT SO FAR HE'S ALWAYS COME BACK TO SOBRIETY FOR A WHILE, UNTIL THE PRESSURE BUILDS UP AGAIN.
BUT HE GAVE HER A KIDNEY. HE HELD BACK DEATH FOR HER FOR A LITTLE LONGER, IN THE HOPES THAT MEDICAL SCIENCE MIGHT COME UP WITH SOMETHING NEW; BUT MORE, BECAUSE DESPITE THEIR LIFE TOGETHER BEING SUCH A CHALLENGE, HE DOESN'T WANT TO LOSE HER.
LOVE IS OFTEN VERY STRANGE. THE CHOICES WE MAKE ARE ALWAYS RELATED TO WHAT WE LOVE. EVERY TIME YOU AND I MAKE A CHOICE, WE ALSO CHOOSE TO FORGO WHAT WE MIGHT HAVE CHOSEN. THIS ISN'T A BIG DEAL WHEN YOU ARE CHOOSING BETWEEN PEAS AND CARROTS, OR EVEN A FORD OR CHEVROLET. BUT THE GREATER THE GOOD THAT WE CHOOSE, THE GREATER THE GOOD THAT WE GIVE UP. PSYCHOLOGISTS HAVE A NAME FOR THE FEELING OF LOSS THAT OCCURS ONCE WE'VE TAKEN POSSESSION OF WHAT WE HAVE CHOSEN – BUYER'S REMORSE. IT'S NOTHING BUT THE FEELING THAT WE'VE IRREVOCABLY LOST SOMETHING GOOD – WHICH WE HAVE.
HUMAN BEINGS ARE DESIGNED TO WANT EVERYTHING, TO POSSESS EVERYTHING, TO HAVE NO LIMITATIONS. LOOK AT ANY CHILD AT PLAY; THEY ARE SUPERHEROES AND PRINCESSES AND MOVIE STARS AND ATHLETES, SOMETIMES ALL ON THE SAME DAY. TAKE A CHILD TO A TOY STORE AND ASK HER TO PICK OUT ONE TOY; AND PREPARE TO SPEND THE AFTERNOON WAITING, OR INTERRUPT HER IN HER DELIBERATIONS, BECAUSE WE ARE DESIGNED TO WANT EVERYTHING.
AND WE ARE DESIGNED TO LOVE EVERYONE. CHILDREN SHOW US THIS AS WELL; THEY HAVE NO FEAR OF APPROACHING STRANGERS, THEY MAKE FRIENDS VERY QUICKLY, AND THEY ARE VERY LIBERAL WITH HUGS AND KISSES. AND GREAT SAINTS LEARN THIS FACT OVER AGAIN; SAINT FRANCIS EMBRACES THE LEPER; MOTHER THERESA COMFORTS THE DYING UNTOUCHABLES ON THE STREETS OF CALCUTTA.
SO WE GO THROUGH LIFE CHOOSING THIS ACTION WHICH WE THINK WE LOVE SLIGHTLY MORE THAN THE ACTION WE COULD HAVE CHOSEN; WE CHOOSE THIS PROFESSION INSTEAD OF THE ONE WE ALSO LIKED, BUT NOT QUITE AS MUCH. WE CHOOSE THIS PERSON TO SPEND OUR LIVES WITH INSTEAD OF THAT PERSON: EVEN IF WE CAN'T EVEN CONSIDER LOVING ANYONE ELSE, WHEN WE ENTER INTO THAT RELATIONSHIP THERE WILL BE LOSS, THERE WILL BE BUYER'S REMORSE, BECAUSE ALL OUR OTHER RELATIONSHIPS WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY WILL BE COMPLETELY CHANGED. EACH TIME WE MAKE A CHOICE, A REAL CHOICE, WE GIVE SOMETHING UP; AND WHEN THE CHOICE IS MOMENTOUS, WE GIVE UP SOMETHING MOMENTOUS. THAT'S LIFE, THAT'S REALITY.
IF YOU'VE BEEN LISTENING TO THE GOSPELS THESE PAST FEW SUNDAYS, JESUS HAS BEEN EXPLAINING TO HIS DISCIPLES THE MEANING OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. IF YOU HAVE A KINGDOM, IT IS A PLACE WHERE WHAT YOU WANT IS TRANSLATED INTO REALITY. THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN ISN'T A PLACE, BUT IT IS WHERE GOD'S WILL IS BEING REALIZED. IT IS WHERE THE BLIND SEE, THE LAME WALK, AND THE POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM. IT IS WHERE THE HUNGRY ARE FED, THE NAKED ARE CLOTHED, THOSE WHO MOURN ARE COMFORTED. IT IS WHERE THE PEOPLE WHO BEAR THE NAME OF CHRIST DO THE DEEDS OF CHRIST. SURPRISING THINGS ABOUT THE KINGDOM ARE THAT IT IS EASY TO MISS, LIKE A MUSTARD SEED; IT CAN'T BE FOUND IN PURE FORM; IT IS ALWAYS GROWING IN THE MIDST OF EVIL, LIKE WHEAT AND WEEDS, LIKE GOOD FISH AND BAD FISH; AND THE POTENTIAL FOR THE KINGDOM IS EVERYWHERE, BUT ONLY TAKES ROOT IN DECENT SOIL.
AND TODAY JESUS COMPARES IT TO A TREASURE HIDDEN IN A FIELD. THE MAN WHO HAS DISCOVERED THIS LONGS TO POSSESS THE TREASURE, WANTS IT MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE HE HAS – BECAUSE HE GOES AND SELLS ALL HE HAS SO THAT HE CAN PURCHASE THE FIELD, AND TAKE POSSESSION OF THE TREASURE. I THINK IT'S INTERESTING THAT IT TOOK EVERYTHING THE MAN HAD TO GET THE FIELD; IN PAYING FOR THE FIELD, HE DIDN'T PAY FOR THE TREASURE; IT WAS FREE.
AND SO TO SUM UP: OUR LIVES ARE FULL OF CHOICES, GREAT AND SMALL. THE HARDEST CHOICES ARE BETWEEN THINGS WHICH WE LOVE;. CHOICES LEAVE US WITH SOME DEGREE OF REGRET BECAUSE WE ARE DESIGNED TO POSSESS EVERYTHING, TO BE EVERYTHING, TO KNOW EVERYTHING; FOR SOMETHING IN US RECOGNIZES THAT WE HAVE INFINITE POTENTIAL, AND EVERY CHOICE IS CUTTING OFF A PATH THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN. SAINT AUGUSTINE OBSERVES THAT OUR HEARTS ARE RESTLESS UNTIL THEY REST IN GOD.
JESUS SAID THAT IF WE SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD, ALL ELSE WILL BE GIVEN TO US. JESUS TOLD US THAT THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS AMONG US, WITHIN US, RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW, INSOFAR AS WE DEVOTE OURSELVES TO DOING WHAT HE DID; IT DOESN'T MATTER IF THE PERSON NEXT DOOR OR THE PEOPLE AT WORK OR EVEN THE SPOUSE OF ONE'S HEART CHOOSES NOT TO SEEK THE KINGDOM OF GOD; WEEDS GROW WITH WHEAT, BAD FISH ARE CAUGHT WITH GOOD FISH. AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A SAINT TO BEGIN TO POSSESS IT, YOU DON'T HAVE TO PAY THE REAL PRICE FOR THE KINGDOM; JESUS ALREADY DID THAT.
MY PATIENT'S HUSBAND MADE A CHOICE WHICH WAS MORE THAN GIVING UP A KIDNEY; IT WAS THE CHOICE TO CONTINUE IN A VERY STRESSFUL LIFE SITUATION, WITH WHICH EVEN NOW HE STILL HAS TROUBLE COPING; BUT HE WEIGHED THE CHOICES AND GAVE HIS WIFE A BETTER AND LONGER LIFE, IN RETURN FOR? ONLY TIME WILL TELL, BUT ACTING OUT OF LOVE, HE TRUSTS THAT LOVE WILL KEEP ITS PROMISE.
AND YOU AND I ARE CONFRONTED EVERY DAY WITH AN EVEN GREATER CHOICE – TO CHOOSE THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN OVER EVERYTHING ELSE THAT IS GOOD, THAT IS LOVED, THAT IS SATISFYING – BECAUSE THAT IS THE ONLY CHOICE FOR WHICH THERE WILL BE NO REGRET; THE ONLY CHOICE WHICH ENCOMPASSES ALL POSSIBILITIES, THE ONLY CHOICE WHICH SATISFIES OUR VERY NATURE, FOR IN CHOOSING THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, WE CHOOSE EVERYTHING.
ARE YOU READY TO SELL ALL YOU HAVE TO POSSESS THE KINGDOM? WHERE YOUR TREASURE IS, THERE YOUR HEART WILL BE AS WELL.

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

MATTHEW 13:24-33
WHEN I WAS A BOY, MY MOTHER WOULD SEE ME SITTING ON THE SOFA READING COMIC BOOKS, AND, BECAUSE SHE COULDN'T STAND SEEING ANYONE SIT STILL, ORDER ME TO GO OUT THE GARDEN AND PULL UP WEEDS. I HATED THAT. I DIDN'T MIND PULLING UP WEEDS, BUT I COULDN'T TELL A WEED FROM A USEFUL PLANT. IN THE RHUBARB PATCH AND IN THE ROWS OF CARROTS I FELT FAIRLY SAFE. BUT WITH THE PEAS AND BEANS AND SQUASH -- I WAS HOPELESS. I WOULD STUDY EACH GREEN PLANT. I WOULD LOOK AT THE PICTURE ON THE SEED PACKAGE. I WOULD TRY TO DECIDE WHICH WERE IN NICE NEAT ROWS AND WHICH WEREN'T. BUT I NEVER DID IT QUITE RIGHT.
WHEN WE HEAR THE PARABLE OF THE WHEAT AND THE WEEDS, IT SEEMS STRAIGHTFORWARD. WE ARE WHEAT, AND WE COULD CERTAINLY NAME A FEW WEEDS AMONG OUR ACQUAINTANCES. WE WILL BE GATHERED INTO THE LORD'S BARN, AND THEY WILL BE CAST INTO THE FIRE.
BUT LET US GO BACK TO PALESTINE IN THE FIRST CENTURY. IF YOU REMEMBER YOUR BIBLE HISTORY, THE JEWS WHO HAD ONCE BEEN A PROSPEROUS AND POWERFUL COUNTRY UNDER DAVID AND SOLOMON, WENT THROUGH A PERIOD WHERE THEIR KINGDOM WAS BROKEN INTO TWO KINGDOMS, ISRAEL AND JUDAH. ISRAEL, IN THE NORTH, WAS CONQUERED BY THE ASSYRIANS AND THEIR LEADERS WERE EXILED; THE ASSYRIANS SETTLED PEOPLE FROM OTHER PARTS OF THEIR EMPIRE IN ISRAEL. THIS ALL TOOK PLACE ABOUT 700 YEARS BEFORE CHRIST. TO THE JEWS WHO STILL REMAINED IN THE HOLY LAND, IN THE KINGDOM OF JUDAH, THIS CALAMITY WAS GRADUALLY SEEN AS A CONSEQUENCE OF THE FACT THAT THE TRIBES IN THE NORTH HAD BEEN UNFAITHFUL, REFUSING TO WORSHIP IN THE TEMPLE, AND ADOPTING SOME OF THE PRACTICES OF THE NATIVES WHO STILL LIVED IN THE NORTH. IN THE FIFTH CENTURY, THE KINGDOM OF JUDAH WAS CONQUERED BY THE BABYLONIANS, AND THE PRINCES AND PRIESTS AND OTHER PEOPLE OF SUBSTANCE EXILED. TWO GENERATIONS LATER, KING CYRUS OF PERSIA ALLOWED WHAT FEW JEWS WERE LEFT TO GO BACK TO THEIR LAND. DURING ALL THIS TIME, THE PROPHETS HAD BEEN REINFORCING THE IDEA THAT BECAUSE THEY HAD BEEN UNFAITHFUL, THEY HAD BEEN PUNISHED. AND NOW, IN THE LITTLE KINGDOM OF JEWS THAT WAS ALL THAT WAS LEFT OF THE LAND GIVEN TO ABRAHAM, THEY WERE ALLOWED TO PRACTICE THEIR WAYS UNDER THE WATCHFUL EYES OF THE ROMANS.
THE PHARISEES BELIEVED THAT THE ONLY WAY TO GAIN GOD'S FAVOR WAS TO RIGOROUSLY KEEP HIS LAWS. AND THEY TOOK IT UPON THEMSELVES TO DECIDE WHO WAS A GOOD JEW AND WHO WASN'T. THE PHARISEES HAD CONVINCED NEARLY EVERY RELIGIOUS JEW THAT YOU COULD EASILY TELL WHO WAS ON GOD'S SIDE AND WHO WAS NOT.
ANOTHER IMPORTANT THING IS THAT THE WEED WHICH IS REFERRED TO IN THIS GOSPEL IS A PLANT CALLED DARNEL. WHEN IT IS IMMATURE, IT LOOKS JUST LIKE AN IMMATURE WHEAT PLANT. IF YOU WANTED TO SPOIL YOUR ENEMIES HARVEST, YOU COULD SEW SOME DARNEL SEED, BECAUSE IF EVEN A LITTLE OF IT GOT GROUND INTO FLOUR WITH THE WHEAT, IT WOULD MAKE PEOPLE SICK. AND IF IT MADE PEOPLE SICK, THEY'D NEVER BUY WHEAT FROM YOU AGAIN.
SO BACK TO THE PARABLE. THE SERVANTS NOW CAN BE SEEN AS THE PHARISEES AND THOSE WHO BELIEVED LIKE THEM. THEY ARE IMPATIENT TO PURIFY ISRAEL; THEY TAKE IT UPON THEMSELVES TO IDENTIFY WHO IS A GOOD JEW AND WHO ISN'T. THEY AGITATE TO EXPEL THOSE WHO AREN'T GOOD JEWS, THOSE WHO AREN'T RIGOROUSLY FOLLOWING THEIR INTERPRETATION OF THE LAW, FROM THE SYNAGOGUE, WHICH WAS A TERRIBLE THING TO HAPPEN. IN A WORLD WHERE THE SOCIAL LIFE OF A VILLAGE REVOLVED AROUND THE SYNAGOGUE, TO BE EXCLUDED WAS PUNISHMENT INDEED. JESUS' APOSTLES HAVE BEGUN TO SEE THEMSELVES AS THE NEW PHARISEES. AFTER ALL, THEY HAVE TO CHOOSE SIDES, AND THE PHARISEES ARE THE ENEMIES. AND MAYBE NOW IT IS THEIR TURN TO DECIDE WHO IS ON GOD'S SIDE, WHAT RIGHTEOUSNESS REALLY IS, HOW YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS, HOW YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO WORSHIP. LIKE THE SERVANTS IN THE PARABLE, THEY ARE READY TO BEGIN THE TASK OF WEEDING IF JESUS JUST GIVES HIS WORD.
A DARNEL SPROUT LOOKS LIKE A WHEAT SPROUT. BUT WHEN THE PLANTS REACH MATURITY, IT IS EASY TO TELL THEM APART. THE GRAINS ON THE DARNEL PLANT ARE BLACK, AND EACH GRAIN TRAILS A LONG HAIR. IN OTHER WORDS, YOU CAN TELL THE DIFFERENCE BY THE FRUIT WHICH EACH PLANT BEARS. AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FRUIT WILL BE UNTIL THE END OF THE LIFE OF THE PERSON -- AND MAYBE LONGER. SAINT JOSEPH, AFTER ALL, DIED BEFORE JESUS HAD LEFT HOME. WHEN JOSEPH DIED, TO ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES HE WAS A GOOD MAN, WHO HAD A SON WHO HAD TAKEN OVER HIS BUSINESS, AND TURNED OUT GOOD FURNITURE. PERHAPS THAT'S ALL JOSEPH KNEW, AND CERTAINLY ALL HIS NEIGHBORS KNEW, ABOUT THE FRUIT OF HIS LIFE. IT TOOK A LONG TIME TO SEE THAT THE FRUIT OF JOSEPH'S LIFE WAS JESUS, AND MARY, AND THE CHURCH; BECAUSE JOSEPH WAS THERE TO PROTECT AND NURTURE MARY EVEN BEFORE JESUS WAS BORN. YOU AND I AND CHRISTIANS DOWN THROUGH THE AGES OWE JOSEPH A LOT, BECAUSE WITHOUT HIM, MARY MIGHT HAVE BEEN STONED, OR MIGHT HAVE GIVEN BIRTH TO AN ILLEGITIMATE CHILD AND THE WHOLE STORY OF SALVATION WOULD HAVE BEEN VERY DIFFERENT. YOU MIGHT SAY THAT THE FRUIT THAT ANYONE BEARS IS NOT APPARENT TILL THE END OF THE WORLD.
JESUS TELLS HIS DISCIPLES THAT THERE NEVER WILL BE A TIME WHEN YOU AND I CAN TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE WHEAT AND THE WEEDS, NO MATTER HOW HARD WE TRY. AND NO ONE ELSE CAN, EITHER. IF YOU MEET SOMEONE WHO CURSES A POLITICIAN, OR RIDICULES A BISHOP, OR LAUGHS AT A STREET PERSON; IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO HATES GAYS, OR MUSLIMS, OR DEMOCRATS, OR REPUBLICANS; IF YOU MEET ANYONE WHO IS QUICK TO DRAW A LINE BETWEEN US AND THEM, REMIND THEM OF THE WORDS OF JESUS: "LET THEM GROW TOGETHER UNTIL THE HARVEST." AT THE HARVEST, ALL WILL BE MADE CLEAR. AT THE HARVEST, WE WILL SEE THE FRUIT OF EACH INDIVIDUAL. AND WE WILL BE SURPRISED. SURPRISED THAT THERE WILL BE PEOPLE IN THE KINGDOM WHOM WE NEVER THOUGHT WOULD MAKE IT. AND SURPRISED THAT THERE WILL BE PEOPLE WE THOUGHT SHOULD BE THERE, WHO AREN'T. AND MAYBE, SURPRISED MOST OF ALL, WHEN WE SEE THE FRUIT WE HAVE BORNE, THAT WE WILL BE THERE AT ALL.

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle A

MATTHEW 13:1-23
I HAD A MEDICAL STUDENT WHO DID A ROTATION WITH ME SEVERAL YEARS AGO. I DID WHAT I ALWAYS DO; I CORRECTED, INSTRUCTED, ENCOURAGED -- ALL THE THINGS I'VE DONE WITH MEDICAL STUDENTS SINCE I STARTED TEACHING. AND AT THE END OF THE ROTATION WE SAID GOODBYE AND I NEVER EXPECTED I'D HEAR FROM THAT PERSON AGAIN. ABOUT FIVE YEARS AGO I WAS AT A MEDICAL MEETING AND THE STUDENT, NOW A SPECIALIST AND A CONSULTANT, CAME UP TO ME. I WASN'T SURE OF HIS NAME RIGHT AWAY. HE REMINDED ME OF HIS EXPERIENCE SO MANY YEARS AGO, AND TOLD ME THAT BECAUSE OF IT, HE HAD DECIDED TO GO INTO CANCER MEDICINE, MY OWN SPECIALTY. WE TALKED FOR A WHILE, AND I LEFT WITH A GOOD FEELING; I HAD MADE A DIFFERENCE IN SOMEONE'S LIFE, BUT I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IT AT THE TIME.
IF YOU WERE TO VISIT A FARM IN PALESTINE DURING THE TIME OF JESUS, IT WOULD BE VERY DIFFERENT FROM FARMS AROUND HERE. THE SOIL IS POOR; THERE ARE AREAS WHERE THERE IS ONLY A SMALL AMOUNT OF DIRT LYING ABOVE THE ROCK. AND THE PALESTINIAN FARMER DIDN'T HAVE THE MODERN CHEMICALS THAT CAN KEEP DOWN WEEDS, AND MOST HAD TO DO THEIR PLOWING BY HAND; IF YOU WERE RICH, YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO HAVE AN ANIMAL TO PULL A PLOW, BUT THE AVERAGE FARMER USED A HOE TO CHURN UP THE GROUND A BIT. IN ORDER TO PROTECT THE GOOD SOIL, THE FARMER WOULD KEEP TO THE SAME PATH WHENEVER HE WENT OUT INTO HIS FIELD; THE PATHWAY WAS TRAMPLED DOWN AND NOT MUCH GOOD FOR ANYTHING. AND IT WAS EXHAUSTING, AND THE SEED WAS EXPENSIVE, USUALLY SAVED FROM THE LAST YEAR'S CROP. AND THESE FARMERS BARELY RAISED ENOUGH TO FEED THEIR FAMILIES AND EXCHANGE A LITTLE OF THEIR PRODUCE FOR THINGS THEY COULDN'T PRODUCE THEMSELVES. TO THE PEOPLE OF JESUS' TIME, THE PARABLE YOU JUST HEARD WOULD BE VERY RADICAL. BECAUSE A PALESTINIAN FARMER WOULD NEVER THROW SEED INTO A PATCH OF THORNS, WOULD NEVER WASTE SEED ON A TRAMPLED PATH; AND WOULD CERTAINLY NOT SIT BACK AND WATCH BIRDS PICK UP SEED AND CARRY IT AWAY.
A COMMON INTERPRETATION OF THIS PARABLE IS THAT WE SHOULD STRIVE TO BE LIKE THE GOOD SOIL – WE SHOULD PREPARE OURSELVES SO THAT THE WORD HAS A CHANCE TO DO IT'S THING IN US. AND WE COULD THEN GO HOME FEELING THAT AT LEAST WE'RE NOT LIKE SOME OF THE SOIL MENTIONED IN THE PARABLE; AT LEAST WE CAME TO CHURCH, RIGHT? AND WE ARE TRYING, AFTER ALL, SO WE MIGHT NOT YIELD 100 FOLD, BUT MAYBE 30, OR TEN, OR FIVE? IT'S TOO BAD PEOPLE WHO NEED TO HEAR THIS MESSAGE AREN'T HERE, RIGHT?
BUT THIS PARABLE IS NOT ABOUT YOU AND ME AND WHAT TO DO. THIS PARABLE IS ABOUT GOD THE FATHER, WHO IS THE SOWER, AND GOD THE SON, WHO IS THE WORD, THE SEED. AND GOD THE FATHER SCATTERS THE WORD EVERYWHERE; HE DOESN'T PAY ATTENTION TO THE SOIL. IF YOU WENT TO TIBET, YOU WOULD FIND THAT THE WORD HAS ALREADY BEATEN YOU THERE; SOME OF THOSE BUDDHIST MONKS COULD PUT YOU AND I TO SHAME IN THEIR ACTUAL PRACTICE OF CHARITY AND BROTHERLY LOVE. AND THE WORD HAS BEEN EVERYWHERE, LONG BEFORE CHRISTIAN MISSIONARIES EVER SHOWED UP. AND I WOULD DARE SAY THAT THIS PARABLE IS ALSO ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT, AS WELL, WHO IS, AFTER ALL, THE ONE WHO PREPARES THE SOIL, FOR HOW THE WORD IS RECEIVED. IF I DON'T UNDERSTAND THE WORD SEWN IN MY HEART, WHY IS THAT? OR, IF I BEAR FRUIT 100 FOLD, WHY IS THAT? PAUL SAID THAT “EVERY GOOD THING COMES FROM GOD”. SO WHETHER WE BEAR FRUIT OR NOT, IT DOESN'T HAVE MUCH TO DO WITH YOU AND I, IT WOULD SEEM.
JESUS SEEMS TO BE IMPLYING THAT THE RESPONSE TO THE WORD IS NOT REALLY IN OUR HANDS. HE QUOTES FROM ISAIAH, “YOU SHALL INDEED HEAR BUT NOT UNDERSTAND, YOU SHALL LOOK BUT NEVER SEE.” AND JESUS TELLS HIS DISCIPLES, “KNOWLEDGE OF THE MYSTERIES OF THE KINGDOM HAS BEEN GRANTED TO YOU”. NOTICE, THIS KNOWLEDGE HAS NOT BEEN LEARNED, IT HAS BEEN GIVEN AS A GIFT. AND JESUS GOES ON TO SAY THAT IT ISN'T EVEN A DESERVED GIFT BECAUSE “MANY PROPHETS AND RIGHTEOUS PEOPLE LONGED TO SEE WHAT YOU SEE … AND HEAR WHAT YOU HEAR...”
JESUS' MESSAGE IS PRETTY OBVIOUS WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT. THE WORD OF GOD, WHICH FINDS ITS COMPLETION AND SUMMIT IN JESUS HIMSELF, IS THERE FOR EVERYONE. GOD SPEAKS THROUGH THE LIFE OF HIS SON, BUT ESPECIALLY THROUGH HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION. SOME ARE INDIFFERENT, AND DON'T REACT AT ALL. SOME REACT BY HOSTILITY, OR MOCKERY; GOD'S WORD HAS AFFECTED THEM, BUT IN A BAD WAY. THE CROSS IS A SIGN OF CONTRADICTION. SOME REACT WITH ENTHUSIASM, BUT THAT BURST OF ENERGY DIES OUT. AND SOME DO BEAR FRUIT. BUT GOD SPEAKS HIS WORD TO EVERY PERSON.
SO I TAKE AWAY THREE THINGS FROM THIS PARABLE; FIRST, I SEE THE FATHER CASTING HIS WORD EVERYWHERE; HE IS NOT DISAPPOINTED WHEN THE SEED DOES NOT BEAR FRUIT, BUT HE IS JOYFUL WHEN IT DOES; I SEE JESUS AS THE SEED, ALWAYS RETURNING TO THE FATHER HAVING DONE HIS WORK, AS OUR FIRST READING SAYS. AND I SEE THE HOLY SPIRIT, PREPARING THE GROUND, FOR HIS OWN MYSTERIOUS REASONS CHOOSING THIS ONE AND NOT THAT ONE TO BEAR FRUIT. SECOND, I SEE JESUS TELLING US, HIS FOLLOWERS, THAT WE ARE GIVEN THE GIFT OF UNDERSTANDING THIS PARABLE. WE ARE GIVEN THAT GIFT THROUGH OUR BAPTISMS, THROUGH OUR RECEPTION OF THE SACRAMENTS. OUR REACTION SHOULD NOT BE THAT WE ARE BETTER THAN OTHER PEOPLE WHO WEREN'T GIVEN THE GIFT, BUT THAT WE HAVE BEEN SINGLED OUT THROUGH NO FAULT OF OUR OWN, THROUGH NO VIRTUE OF OUR OWN, TO UNDERSTAND SOMETHING OF GOD'S NATURE AND PLAN. THIRD, AND THIS IS PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT POINT, BECAUSE WE UNDERSTAND, WE ARE TO PARTICIPATE IN SPREADING THE WORD; AS WE SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS IN IMITATION OF OUR FATHER, WE NEED TO IMITATE HIS ATTITUDE AS WELL – OUR JOB IS NOT TO WORRY ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS TO THE WORD THAT WE SPREAD, BUT SIMPLY TO DO IT, SIMPLY TO BE FAITHFUL; SIMPLY TO BE GENEROUS IN SHARING WHAT WE KNOW TO BE THE TRUTH.
SAINT PAUL SAID, “I PLANTED, APOLLOS WATERED, BUT IT WAS GOD WHO GAVE GROWTH”. IT IS AFTER ALL GOD WHO WILL BRING ABOUT WHAT HE WANTS FROM OUR EFFORTS; AND IN HIS OWN TIME. ALL WE KNOW IS THAT HIS WORD DOES NOT RETURN TO HIM UNTIL IT ACHIEVES THE END FOR WHICH HE SENT IT.

Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle A

MATTHEW 11:25-30
I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR US TO THINK ABOUT TODAY. FIRST, WHAT IS MORE IMPORTANT – MAKING MONEY OR BEING DEVOTED TO YOUR FAMILY? MOST OF US WOULD AGREE THAT BEING DEVOTED TO YOUR FAMILY IS MORE IMPORTANT. BUT MOST OF US WHO ARE IN THE WORK FORCE SHOW BY OUR ACTIONS THAT WE DON'T REALLY MEAN IT. WE GIVE OUR BEST TIME AND ENERGY AND SOMETIMES EXTRA HOURS TO OUR CAREERS, TO MAKING MONEY. AND WHEN WE ARE TIRED AND OUR ENERGY IS LOW, WE GIVE THE DREGS OF OURSELVES TO OUR LOVED ONES. I'M SURE THAT'S NOT TRUE OF ALL OF US, OR EVEN IF IT IS, IT ISN'T TRUE ALL THE TIME; BUT I BET THOSE OF US WHO ARE SUCCESSFUL IN OUR JOBS KNOW THAT THIS IS TRUE ENOUGH THAT IT SHOULD BOTHER US.
HERE'S ANOTHER ONE – WHAT MATTERS MORE, THE APPROVAL OF STRANGERS OR THE APPROVAL OF OUR LOVED ONES? I CAN REMEMBER WHEN WE WOULD GET UPSET WITH OUR CHILDREN FOR DEMONSTRATING HIGH SPIRITS WHEN WE WERE OUT IN PUBLIC. OBVIOUSLY, THE APPROVAL OF STRANGERS MATTERED MORE. AND HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU COME HOME FROM WORK, WHERE YOU HID YOUR FRUSTRATION WITH YOUR CLUELESS BOSS OR UNCOOPERATIVE EMPLOYEE, AND THEN WHEN YOU GOT HOME, YOU TOOK IT OUT ON YOUR FAMILY? DOES THAT EVER HAPPEN TO YOU? IT DID, AND STILL DOES, TO ME NOW AND THEN. OUR ACTIONS SPEAK ABOUT WHAT MATTERS THE MOST TO US.
AND IF SOMEONE WERE TO ASK YOU WHAT YOU REALLY WANT OUT OF LIFE, MOST OF US WOULD SAY WE WANTED TO BE HAPPY. IN FACT, WHEN JOAN AND I WORK WITH ENGAGED COUPLES, YOU'D BE SURPRISED AT HOW OFTEN THAT IS GIVEN AS A REASON FOR GETTING MARRIED. BUT ARE YOU HAPPY? I THINK MOST OF US WOULD SAY THAT WE HAVE MOMENTS, BUT IF YOU ARE LIKE ME, YOU KNOW YOU COULD BE HAPPIER.
THESE ARE ALL BURDENS. OUR LIVES ARE ALWAYS CONTRASTS BETWEEN WHAT IS AND WHAT WE KNOW SHOULD BE. WE ALL HAVE GOOD INTENTIONS, BUT LIFE KEEPS GETTING IN THE WAY OF CARRYING THEM OUT. WHAT PERSON CAN SAY “I SPENT TOO MUCH TIME WITH MY CHILDREN WHEN THEY WERE GROWING UP. I SHOULD HAVE KEPT THE HOUSE CLEANER. I SHOULD HAVE GONE TO WORK ON WEEKENDS AND EVENINGS MORE OFTEN.”
SO WE SHOULD STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES, RIGHT? WE SHOULD BE MORE SPONTANEOUS. WE SHOULD LIVE IN THE MOMENT. WE SHOULD SPEND MORE TIME GOLFING OR FISHING AND LESS TIME IN THE OFFICE. BUT I'M NOT GOING TO FOLLOW THAT ADVICE MUCH AND YOU AREN'T EITHER; WE ALL KNEW THOSE CLICHES AND AGREED WITH THEM, AND NOTHING REALLY CHANGED.
OUR PROBLEM IS NOT THAT WE DON'T SPEND ENOUGH TIME ENJOYING LIFE, OR THAT WE SPEND TOO MUCH TIME WORKING. THE REAL PROBLEM IS THAT WE AREN'T IN BALANCE. BALANCE MEANS THAT AT ANY MOMENT WE KNOW WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT, AND WE DO IT. IF WE ARE IN BALANCE, WE ARE AT REST. AND THAT'S WHAT JESUS IS TALKING ABOUT TODAY. THERE ISN'T ANY WAY WE CAN ACHIEVE THAT BALANCE WE NEED WITHOUT GOING TO HIM. IT'S LIKE THIS. HUMAN BEINGS WERE DESIGNED TO BE COMPLETELY FULFILLED ONLY WHEN THEY ARE FOLLOWING GOD'S PATH FOR THEM. SAINT AUGUSTINE SAID THAT OUR HEARTS ARE RESTLESS UNTIL THEY REST IN GOD. IF YOU READ HIS AUTOBIOGRAPHY, YOU SEE HOW LONG AND HARD HE STRUGGLED BEFORE HE REALIZED THIS AND FINALLY SURRENDERED HIMSELF TO THIS INSIGHT. SAINT PAUL STARTED OUT AS A DEEPLY DEVOTED MAN – YOU COULD EVEN CALL HIM A RELIGIOUS FANATIC – WHO WANTED NOTHING MORE THAN TO PLEASE GOD – BUT IN HIS OWN WAY. AND WHEN HE WAS KNOCKED OFF THE HORSE AND BLINDED, HE HEARD JESUS SAY, “WHY DO YOU KICK AGAINST THE GOAD?” PAUL WAS NOT ALLOWING GOD TO LEAD HIM, AND I SUSPECT JESUS COULD ASK THE SAME QUESTION OF EACH OF US.
JESUS PROMISES REST, BUT THE CONDITION IS THAT WE ACCEPT HIS YOKE. FOR A LONG TIME THE PICTURE I HAD IN MY MIND WAS OF A HORSE PULLING A PLOW – I WAS THE HORSE, JESUS WAS DRIVING THE PLOW. BUT NOTICE THAT JESUS SAYS “MY YOKE IS EASY, MY BURDEN IS LIGHT”. MAYBE THE IMAGE SHOULD BE ONE OF THOSE DOUBLE YOKES FOR TWO HORSES. BECAUSE JESUS IS THE ONE PERSON WHO NEVER DEVIATED FROM THE PATH GOD WANTED HIM TO FOLLOW. WHEN YOU ARE FOLLOWING GOD'S PLAN, YOUR LIFE IS IN BALANCE, YOU KNOW YOU ARE DOING WHAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO, AND YOU HAVE A VERY CLEAR IDEA OF WHERE YOU ARE GOING. AND IT MAKES SENSE THAT IF WE ARE GOING TO FOLLOW GOD'S PLAN IN OUR LIVES, WE SHOULD BE IN HARNESS WITH THE ONE PERSON WHO KNOWS HOW TO DO THIS. HIS YOKE IS EASY, HIS BURDEN IS LIGHT, HE KNOWS WHAT IT IS TO BE AT REST.
JESUS LIVED A PERFECT LIFE. THINK OF HIS TEACHINGS. HE INSISTED OVER AND OVER AGAIN THAT GOD LOOKED AFTER US, THAT GOD LOVED US, AND THAT THE FATHER WOULD NEVER ABANDON US. HE LIVED HIS LIFE THAT WAY. AND ON THE CROSS, HIS LAST WORDS WERE WORDS OF TRUST “INTO THY HANDS I COMMEND MY SPIRIT”.
IF YOU GO INTO ANY OF THOSE BIG BOOK STORES, RELIGIOUS OR SECULAR, YOU CAN FIND A A SECTION FILLED WITH BOOKS TELLING YOU HOW TO IMPROVE YOURSELF, HOW TO LIVE YOUR LIFE BETTER. TITLES LIKE “BE A BETTER YOU” OR “THE SECRET TO TRUE HAPPINESS” HAVE SOLD MILLIONS AND MADE THEIR AUTHORS RICH. BUT THE ONLY PERSON THAT ACTUALLY KNOWS THE ANSWERS TO LIFE'S MOST IMPORTANT QUESTIONS DIDN'T WRITE A BOOK. YOU HAVE TO READ ABOUT HIS LIFE, STUDY WHAT HIS FOLLOWERS THOUGHT, AND SPEAK TO HIM BECAUSE AFTER HE LED HIS PERFECT LIFE, HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD AND PROMISED THAT HIS FRIENDS WOULD DO SO AS WELL, AND HE PROMISED THAT HE WOULD ALWAYS BE WITH US. HE IS PRESENT TO US WHEN WE SPEAK TO HIM, AND IF WE LISTEN, HE WILL SPEAK TO US.
YOU AND I ARE PROBABLY GOING TO GET FRUSTRATED WITH SOMETHING IN THE WORLD AND COME HOME AND TAKE IT OUT ON OUR LOVED ONES AT LEAST ONCE MORE. WE ARE GOING TO SPEND TOO MUCH TIME WORKING AND NOT ENOUGH TIME ENJOYING THE GOOD THINGS GOD GIVES US. WE ARE GOING TO PROMISE OURSELVES THAT THINGS WILL BE DIFFERENT ONCE WE GET PAST THIS LATEST CRISIS IN OUR LIVES, AS WE'VE DONE SO OFTEN BEFORE.
BUT AT LEAST WE CAN GET STARTED. AT LEAST WE CAN SERIOUSLY SET ASIDE A LITTLE TIME TO READ THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO KNEW HOW TO LIVE A PERFECT LIFE. AT LEAST WE CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE SACRAMENTS HE LEFT US TO GIVE US THE GRACE WE NEED. AT LEAST WE CAN TAKE MORE SERIOUSLY THE TEACHINGS OF THE CHURCH HE FOUNDED SO THAT WHAT HE TAUGHT WOULD ALWAYS BE NOT ONLY PRESERVED, BUT MADE TO FIT THE PRESENT TIME.
IF I REALLY WANT THE REST JESUS OFFERS, I HAVE TO GET IN TO HIS YOKE AND PULL ALONGSIDE HIM, NOT IN SOME DIRECTION OF MY CHOOSING. HE MAKES THE OFFER, HE GIVES THE MEANS, HE OFFERS TO SHOW US EVERYTHING. BUT HE LEAVES US FREE TO PUT IT OFF, TO KEEP ON DOING WHAT WE ARE DOING. WILL WE TAKE HIM UP ON HIS OFFER TODAY? OR WILL OUR TOMBSTONES SAY, “SOMEDAY I'M GOING TO GET AROUND TO WHAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT.”

Feast of Corpus Christi, cycle A

JOHN 6:51-58
WHEN I WAS IN GRADE SCHOOL, I READ A BOOK CALLED “MR. BLUE” BY MILES CONNOLLY. THE TIME WAS THE FAR FUTURE, AND THE ENTIRE WORLD WAS LIKE THE OLD SOVIET UNION IN SPADES. EVERYONE'S LIFE WAS PLANNED AND THERE WAS LITERALLY NO FREEDOM. PEOPLE WERE NOURISHED ON A TASTELESS ARTIFICIAL SUBSTANCE AND GIVEN WATER FROM RUNNING PIPES. THE BOOK OPENS WHEN THE VERY LAST HOLD-OUTS HAD BEEN CAPTURED AND ADDED TO WHAT WAS BASICALLY A WORLD-WIDE CONCENTRATION CAMP. MR. BLUE SEEMS TO BE THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS NOT LOST HIS SPIRIT. HE GOES ABOUT HIS CRUSHING PHYSICAL LABOR CHEERFULLY. HE SINGS UNDER HIS BREATH. HE CHEERS UP HIS COMRADES. HE TEASES THE GUARDS. AND NOW AND THEN HE GETS BEATEN. IN HIS RARE MOMENTS WHEN HE IS LEFT TO HIMSELF, HE GOES TO AN AREA BEHIND A CLUMP OF ROCKS. ONE DAY, MR. BLUE TAKES A FEW GRAINS OF WHEAT WHICH HE HAS MANAGED TO GROW AND GRINDS THEM INTO A PASTE WHICH HE ALLOWS TO DRY OUT IN THE SUN. HE HAS A SMALL CLUMP OF GRAPES WHICH HE SQUEEZES, AND ALLOWS THE LIQUID TO FERMENT. AND WHEN EVERYTHING IS READY, HE BEGINS THOSE ANCIENT PRAYERS, AND WHEN HE PRONOUNCES THE WORDS OF CONSECRATION, THE SKIES DARKEN AND THE HEAVENLY HOST DESCEND, AND JESUS COMES IN ALL HIS GLORY TO JUDGE THE WORLD AND BRING ABOUT THE END OF TIME. FOR MR. BLUE WAS THE LAST PRIEST ON EARTH.
TODAY WE CELEBRATE THE FEAST OF THE BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST. WE CATHOLICS BELIEVE THAT WE AND THE ORTHODOX, AND A FEW OTHER CHRISTIAN BODIES, MAKE JESUS TRULY PRESENT WHEN OUR PRIESTS CELEBRATE THE EUCHARISTIC LITURGY, BECAUSE WE HAVE MAINTAINED THE PRIESTHOOD INSTITUTED BY JESUS. WE ALSO BELIEVE, AND THIS IS IMPORTANT, THAT WHEN JESUS BECOMES PRESENT, THE BREAD AND WINE ARE NO LONGER PRESENT. ALTHOUGH EVERYTHING LOOKS AND TASTES AND FEELS THE SAME AS BEFORE, THERE HAS BEEN A CHANGE IN THE SUBSTANCE. WE TAKE LITERALLY THAT JESUS MEANT WHAT HE SAID WHEN HE TOLD HIS APOSTLES TO TAKE BREAD AND PROCLAIM THAT IT WAS HIS BODY, AND WINE WAS HIS BLOOD. JESUS IS REALLY PRESENT TO US IN THIS SACRAMENT, JUST AS HE WAS TO THE DISCIPLES AT THE LAST SUPPER, JUST AS HE WAS TO THE WORLD AT THE END OF TIME WHEN THE LAST MASS IS SAID BY THE LAST PRIEST, MR. BLUE.
I DO NOT AT ALL QUESTION THIS TEACHING. TO ME THE EUCHARIST IS THE REASON TO BE A CATHOLIC. FLANNERY O'CONNOR, A CATHOLIC WRITER DURING THE MIDDLE OF THE LAST CENTURY, WAS CHALLENGED BY A FRIEND OF HERS WHO SAID THAT THE EUCHARIST WAS A USEFUL SYMBOL. SHE REPLIED “IF IT IS A SYMBOL, THEN TO HELL WITH IT.” I AGREE. I HAVE NO USE FOR MERE SYMBOLS, AND YOU SHOULDN'T EITHER.
BUT LET'S FACE IT. I CAN SAY THAT THE EUCHARIST IS THE REAL PRESENCE, BUT DO I REALLY BELIEVE IT? I THINK THE ANSWER IS THAT MOST CATHOLICS DON'T. THERE ARE MANY CATHOLICS WHO GO TO MASS ON SUNDAY AND PARTICIPATE IN THE LIFE OF THEIR PARISH WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN THE “REAL PRESENCE”. THAT'S BEEN SHOWN BY POLLS. BUT THERE ARE MANY MORE WHO WOULD SAY THAT THEY DO BELIEVE, BUT THEIR ACTIONS WOULD ARGUE DIFFERENTLY. SOME OF US MAKE NO PREPARATION FOR RECEIVING THE HOLY EUCHARIST. IT IS JUST ANOTHER ROUTINE; WE STAND IN LINE AND GET OUR COMMUNION BARELY THINKING ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING. SOME OF US TAKE COMMUNION AND WALK OUT THE DOOR NOT EVEN BOTHERING TO FINISH PARTICIPATING IN MASS. SOME OF US RECEIVE THE EUCHARIST EVERY SUNDAY BUT HAVEN'T BEEN TO CONFESSION IN YEARS.
IT TAKES EFFORT TO APPRECIATE AND BELIEVE IN THE REAL PRESENCE. AS HUMAN BEINGS, WHAT WE DO WITH OUR BODIES INFLUENCES OUR SOULS. IF WE PREPARE TO RECEIVE THE EUCHARIST BY ASKING FORGIVENESS FOR OUR SINS AND OFFERING OURSELVES TO JESUS; IF WE RECEIVE THE HOLY EUCHARIST AND SPEAK TO JESUS IN OUR HEARTS AFTERWARD; IF WE GO OUT OF THE CHURCH IN TUNE WITH THE FACT THAT WE HAVE BEEN CHANGED BY THIS MIRACLE, WE WILL FIND THAT WE WILL GRADUALLY ENTER INTO THIS MYSTERY. IT NEEDS CULTIVATION. THE GREAT SAINTS KNEW THIS, AND STRUCTURED THEIR LIVES AROUND THE HOLY EUCHARIST. POPE JOHN PAUL, POPE BENEDICT, MOTHER THERESA, AND SO MANY OTHERS WHO ARE SAINTS OR NEAR-SAINTS THOUGHT IT ESSENTIAL TO SPEND TIME EVERY DAY BEFORE THE BLESSED SACRAMENT. AND YET, EXCEPT FOR SATURDAY EVENING AND SUNDAY MORNING THIS CHURCH IS LIKE AN EMPTY CAVERN – AND YET WE SAY THAT WE BELIEVE JESUS IS HERE, REALLY PRESENT.
JESUS SAID THAT WE MUST EAT HIS BODY AND DRINK HIS BLOOD IF WE WOULD HAVE LIFE. HE HAS GIVEN US THE MEANS TO DO THIS. BUT EATING HIS BODY AND DRINKING HIS BLOOD IN THIS SACRAMENT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO TRANSFORM US, TO BRING US INTO THAT NEW LIFE, ONLY IF WE KNOW WHAT WE ARE DOING. AND IF WE KNOW WHAT WE ARE DOING, WE CAN'T HELP BUT PREPARE, WE CAN'T HELP BUT SPEAK TO JESUS AFTER RECEIVING HIM; WE CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL UNWORTHY THAT WE ARE BEING GIVEN THIS GREAT PRIVILEGE WHICH IS NOT AVAILABLE TO MOST PEOPLE ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH. AND IF WE REALLY BELIEVE, DOESN'T BEING IN JESUS PRESENCE FOR A FEW MINUTES NOW AND THEN BEAT EVERYTHING ELSE WE CAN THINK OF ? IF A LONG-LOST FRIEND CALLED ME AND TOLD ME THAT HE WAS STAYING IN THE SHERATON TONIGHT AND COULD I JOIN HIM FOR A DRINK AND A LITTLE CATCHING UP, I WOULD CHANGE MY PLANS TO DO SO. BUT IF THE LORD OF THE UNIVERSE AND THE LOVER OF MY SOUL IS PRESENT IN THE HOLY EUCHARIST, AND EXPOSED TO MY VIEW ON TUESDAYS AND FIRST FRIDAY HERE AT SAINT MARY'S, ALMOST ANYTHING I CAN THINK OF IS MORE IMPORTANT TO ME THAN TO COME AND SPEND SOME TIME IN HIS PRESENCE.
SINCE THE BEGINNING OF CHRISTIANITY OUR PREACHERS AND THEOLOGIANS, SAINTS AND POPES, HAVE INSISTED THAT JESUS IS PRESENT, REALLY PRESENT IN THE HOLY EUCHARIST. MANY OF OUR CHRISTIAN BROTHERS AND SISTERS CANNOT BELIEVE THIS; THEY DON'T ACCEPT THAT THERE IS A MIRACLE HERE. WHEN THEY SEE HOW CATHOLICS REACT TO THE EUCHARIST, THEY COULD EASILY SAY, “YOU DON'T BELIEVE EITHER, BECAUSE IF YOU DID, YOU WOULDN'T BE WATCHING THE NEWS WHEN YOU COULD BE IN HIS PRESENCE. YOU WOULDN'T BEGRUDGE AN HOUR A MONTH TO SIT IN HIS PRESENCE AND SPEAK TO HIM. YOU WOULDN'T RECEIVE HIM INTO YOUR OWN BODY AND FORGET WHAT HAPPENED A FEW MINUTES LATER AS YOU DIVE BACK INTO THE WORLD.
SAINT THOMAS WAS ONCE ASKED WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF A MOUSE CONSUMED A CRUMB OF THE HOLY EUCHARIST. HE REPLIED, “NOTHING” BECAUSE A MOUSE HAS NO CAPACITY TO BE CHANGED, A MOUSE HAS NO ABILITY TO FORM A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS. MAY YOU AND I CULTIVATE A DEEP APPRECIATION FOR THE REAL PRESENCE THROUGH OUR WORDS AND ACTIONS. MAY YOU AND I NOT BE MICE WHERE THE HOLY EUCHARIST IS CONCERNED.

Trinity Sunday, year A

JOHN 3:16-18
TODAY'S GOSPEL IS INTERESTING. IN ONE BREATH JESUS TELLS US THAT GOD SO LOVED US THAT HE SENT HIS ONLY SON SO THAT WE MIGHT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. HE DID NOT DO THIS TO CONDEMN US, BUT SO THAT WE MIGHT BE SAVED THROUGH HIM. AND THEN, IN THE NEXT BREATH, HE SAYS THAT IF WE BELIEVE IN HIM, WE WILL NOT BE CONDEMNED, BUT IF WE DON'T, WE ARE ALREADY CONDEMNED.
I SUSPECT THAT IF YOU ARE A GOOD, CHURCH-GOING CHRISTIAN, AND YOU ARE, YOU HAVE NO PROBLEM BELIEVING THE FIRST PROPOSITION – THAT GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE SENT HIS ONLY SON. YOU BELIEVE THAT THROUGH JESUS WE WILL HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. BUT I SUSPECT THAT IF YOU ARE A GOOD CHURCH-GOING CHRISTIAN, YOU MIGHT HAVE A LITTLE PROBLEM WITH THE SECOND PROPOSITION – THAT WE HAVE TO BELIEVE IN HIM – AND JESUS EVEN SAYS, WE HAVE TO BELIEVE IN THE NAME OF THE ONLY SON OF GOD; OTHERWISE, WE ARE ALREADY CONDEMNED.
MUCH OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY IS TAKEN UP WITH TRYING TO RESOLVE THESE TENSIONS. IT WOULD SEEM THAT THE ONLY WAY WE CAN AVOID CONDEMNATION, THE ONLY WAY THAT WE CAN BE SAVED, IS BY BELIEVING IN HIS NAME. OF COURSE WE UNDERSTAND THE WORD “BELIEVE” TO BE MORE THAN JUST AGREEING WITH A PARTICULAR PROPOSITION. AFTER ALL, SATAN, THE GREATEST OF THE ANGELS, SURELY BELIEVES THAT JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD. AS JESUS DRIVES OUT DEMONS THEY CRY OUT THAT FACT. BELIEVING, IN GOSPEL LANGUAGE, MEANS THAT WE AGREE WITH OUR WHOLE BEING, NOT JUST OUR MINDS. AND IF WE AGREE WITH OUR WHOLE BEING, THAN OUR CONDUCT REFLECTS THAT WE BELIEVE IN JESUS AND WHAT JESUS TAUGHT. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE PEOPLE WHO DON'T BELIEVE? WE ALL KNOW GOOD PEOPLE THAT WE WOULD WELCOME INTO OUR CHURCH WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN JESUS. HOW DO THEY AVOID CONDEMNATION? HOW ARE THEY SAVED?
SAINT AUGUSTINE SAID THAT WE ALL DESERVE CONDEMNATION, BUT GOD, IN HIS MERCY CHOOSES SOME TO BE SAVED. FOR SAINT AUGUSTINE, NO ONE WHO HAD NOT BEEN BAPTIZED STOOD A CHANCE. AND JOHN CALVIN, THE GREAT PROTESTANT THEOLOGIAN, BELIEVED THIS AS WELL, AND INSISTED THERE WAS NOTHING ANYONE COULD DO ABOUT IT IF YOU WERE CONDEMNED. IT MAY SOUND UNJUST, BUT REMEMBER, EVEN NEWBORN BABIES ARE BORN IN ORIGINAL SIN. MANY THEOLOGIANS AND PHILOSOPHERS THOUGHT THAT CALVIN AND AUGUSTINE WERE TOO HARSH. SO AT THE OPPOSITE END OF THE SPECTRUM ARE THEOLOGIANS LIKE RAHNER, WHO SAID THAT, YES, YOU HAVE TO BE SAVED THROUGH JESUS, BUT THERE IS SUCH A THING AS AN ANONYMOUS CHRISTIAN, WHO DOES HIS BEST TO FOLLOW THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD WRITTEN IN HIS HEART. AND THAT IDEA SEEMS MORE IN KEEPING WITH OUR MODERN SENSIBILITIES. AFTER ALL, I CERTAINLY DON'T WANT MY JEWISH AND MUSLIM AND HINDU FRIENDS, AND EVEN MY ATHEIST FRIENDS, TO GO TO HELL. I HOPE THAT BY LEADING GOOD LIVES, THE WILL BE SAVED THROUGH THIS ESCAPE CLAUSE.
BUT WE DON'T KNOW. THE CHURCH ALLOWS THAT SALVATION IS POSSIBLE TO THOSE WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN JESUS, BUT HOW POSSIBLE? COMMON? RARE? SHE DOESN'T SAY. OBVIOUSLY, ITS HARD ENOUGH WHEN YOU ARE A MEMBER OF CHRIST'S OWN CHURCH.
TODAY WE CELEBRATE TRINITY SUNDAY. GOD IS THE FATHER WHO IS AT THE HEART OF THE UNIVERSE, UNKNOWABLE, BEYOND UNDERSTANDING. AND YET HE REVEALS HIMSELF TO US IN JESUS, THE SON. BUT EVEN THOUGH JESUS REVEALS THE FATHER, FOR YOU AND I TO ACCEPT THIS REVELATION, THERE MUST BE THE HOLY SPIRIT, WHO REVEALS ALL THAT IS TRUE. YOU WILL SOMETIMES HEAR PEOPLE SAY THAT WE ALL BELIEVE IN THE SAME GOD. I REMEMBER A DISCUSSION WITH A HINDU FRIEND WHO INSISTED THAT EVEN THOUGH HINDUS HAVE TEMPLES TO THOUSANDS OF GODS THROUGHOUT INDIA, THEY ARE REALLY JUST AS MUCH ONE-GOD PEOPLE AS CHRISTIANS, JEWS AND MUSLIMS. FOR A HINDU, ALL THE “GODS” ARE JUST WAYS THAT THE GOD SHOWS HIMSELF. BUT THE TRUTH IS THAT WE DON'T ALL BELIEVE IN THE SAME GOD. ONLY CHRISTIANS BELIEVE IN A GOD WHO IS THREE PERSONS IN ONE BEING. ONLY CHRISTIANS BELIEVE IN A GOD WHO EMPTIES HIMSELF OUT SO THAT HE CAN TAKE ON OUR HUMANITY AND REDEEM IT. ONLY CHRISTIANS BELIEVE IN A GOD WHO HAS CHOSEN TO SUFFER AND DIE IN OUR PLACE AND ACCEPT OUR PUNISHMENT FOR SIN.
I HOPE MY NON-CHRISTIAN FRIENDS WILL NOT BE CONDEMNED. I HOPE THAT CARL RAHNER IS RIGHT AND NOT AUGUSTINE AND CALVIN. BUT TODAY'S GOSPEL TELLS US THAT WE HAVE TO BELIEVE IN JESUS; THERE IS NO OTHER WAY. IF I AM TO BELIEVE IN HIM, I BETTER DO ALL I CAN TO KNOW HIM. IF I WANT TO KNOW JESUS, THE BEST WAY TO KNOW HIM IS TO START WITH HIS LIFE AND HIS TEACHINGS, AND THE EFFECT HE HAD ON THOSE FIRST CHRISTIANS. IF WE STUDY SCRIPTURE AND PRAY THAT THE HOLY SPIRIT ENLIGHTEN US, ALLOW US TO RECEIVE THE REVELATION OF THE FATHER BROUGHT TO US BY JESUS, IT WILL HAPPEN.
THE SECOND BEST WAY TO KNOW JESUS IS TO KNOW SOMEONE WHO HAS BEEN MOLDED IN HIS SHAPE. OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS WHO ARE SAINTS ARE ICONS OF JESUS; WHEN WE LEARN ABOUT THEM, WE SEE THAT JESUS SHINES THROUGH. THE LIVES OF THE SAINTS AND THEIR WRITINGS HELP US TO KNOW JESUS.
BUT I DOUBT THAT MY NON-CHRISTIAN FRIENDS CAN BE PERSUADED TO READ MY BIBLE OR STUDY THE SAINTS. SO THAT MEANS THAT IF I WANT THEM TO BELIEVE IN JESUS, IF I WANT THEM TO KNOW JESUS, IT IS UP TO ME TO LIVE A LIFE THAT REFLECTS JESUS. SOMEONE SAID THAT FOR MOST PEOPLE, THE ONLY BIBLE THEY WILL EVER READ IS YOU AND I.
MAYBE NEARLY EVERYONE GETS TO HEAVEN. MAYBE GETTING TO HEAVEN HARDLY EVER HAPPENS. BUT JESUS SAID THAT WE WILL NOT BE CONDEMNED IF WE BELIEVE IN HIM, AND TO BELIEVE IN HIM WE HAVE TO KNOW HIM. SO AT LEAST I KNOW THAT MUCH. BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT I MAY BE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SALVATION AND CONDEMNATION FOR MY FRIENDS WHO DON'T KNOW JESUS. THROUGH MY BAPTISM I BECOME ONE WITH HIM. AND JUST AS JESUS REVEALS THE FATHER TO THOSE WHO ARE PREDISPOSED TO THIS REVELATION BY THE HOLY SPIRIT, IT'S MY JOB AS WELL TO REVEAL THE FATHER.
TODAY ON TRINITY SUNDAY LET US THANK GOD THAT HE HAS SHOWN US SOMETHING ABOUT HIMSELF, SHOWN US WHAT KIND OF GOD WE HAVE. AND LET US TAKE JESUS SERIOUSLY; MAY OUR LIVES BE BIBLES FOR THE PEOPLE AROUND US.