Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

JOHN 1:35-42

IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN, ANDREW IS ONE OF THE FIRST DISCIPLES, AND RUNS TO TELL HIS BROTHER SIMON, “WE HAVE FOUND THE MESSIAH!” BUT WHEN YOU READ THE STORY, IT SOUNDS MORE LIKE JESUS FOUND ANDREW. THERE IS NO QUESTION THAT ANDREW HAS BEEN SEARCHING, MAYBE MORE THAN HIS BROTHER. AFTER ALL, ANDREW HAS BEEN A DISCIPLE OF JOHN, AND ANYONE WHO DECIDES TO BECOME A DISCIPLE IS PROBABLY NOT CONTENT WITH HIS LIFE AS IT IS. BECAUSE IT IS WORK TO BE A DISCIPLE. IT ISN'T JUST A MATTER OF SITTING AT YOUR MASTER'S FEET AND LEARNING. A DISCIPLE HAS TO RESHAPE HIMSELF ALONG THE LINES THE MASTER PROPOSES. SO ANDREW HAS BEEN SEARCHING.

WHEN JOHN TELLS THEM, AND THIS WILL BE FOR THE SECOND TIME, THAT JESUS IS THE LAMB OF GOD, ANDREW FOLLOWS HIM, CURIOUS, BECAUSE OF JOHN'S STRANGE STATEMENT. THE WORD “LAMB” MEANT SOMETHING TO A JEW; A LAMB WAS SENT OUT INTO THE DESERT SYMBOLICALLY CARRYING THE SINS OF THE PEOPLE. A LAMB WAS SACRIFICED TWICE A DAY IN THE TEMPLE FOR THE SINS OF THE PEOPLE; AND THERE WAS THE PASSOVER LAMB, AND THE BLOOD SMEARED ON THE DOORWAY THAT SHOWED THE DESTROYING ANGEL THAT THIS HOUSE WAS TO BE EXEMPTED FROM THE PUNISHMENT THAT GOD HAD ORDAINED FOR THE PEOPLE OF EGYPT. AND ISAIAH AND JEREMIAH BOTH COMPARED THE MYSTERIOUS SUFFERING SERVANT WHO WOULD SOMEDAY TAKE ON THE SINS OF HIS PEOPLE TO A LAMB BEING LEAD TO SLAUGHTER. DID ANDREW AND HIS FRIEND INTEND TO BE DISCIPLES OF JESUS? WHO KNOWS. I SUSPECT THAT THEY DID NOT. THEY WERE MERELY CURIOUS. AND AS THEY WERE FOLLOWING HIM HE ASKS THEM, “WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?” A LOT HAS BEEN MADE OF THEIR REPLY, “WHERE ARE YOU STAYING?” SOME SAY THAT MEANT, “WHAT MOTIVATES YOU? WHAT MAKES YOU TICK?” OTHERS SAY THAT IT MEANS, “TAKES US HOME WITH YOU AND TEACH US, LET US BE YOUR DISCIPLES.” I THINK IT MEANS JUST WHAT IT SAYS. ANDREW AND HIS FRIEND ARE A LITTLE EMBARRASSED TO BE SINGLED OUT. AND RATHER THAN ANSWER JESUS' QUESTION, THEY TRY TO CHANGE THE SUBJECT. BUT JESUS KNOWS THEY THAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING, AND SAYS, “COME AND SEE.”

JESUS ASKS YOU AND I, “WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?” BECAUSE IF HE DOESN'T ASK THE QUESTION, WE MAY NOT REALIZE THAT WE ARE SEARCHING. IT'S EASY TO GET SO BOUND UP IN JUST WHAT HAS TO BE DONE EVERY DAY, THAT YOU DON'T PAY ATTENTION TO THAT PART OF YOU THAT NEEDS TO BE SATISFIED, THAT PART OF YOU WHICH ONE WRITER REFERRED TO AS A “GOD-SHAPED HOLE” IN EVERY HUMAN BEING. BUT WHEN WE STOP FOR A MINUTE AND THINK ABOUT IT, THAT IS THE VERY NATURE OF A HUMAN BEING; WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR SOMETHING, SOMETHING TO FILL US UP, SOMETHING TO COMPLETE US. IT LEADS US TO MARRIAGE, TO OUR CAREER, TO ADDICTION, TO SEEKING AFTER POWER, OR RICHES, OR FAME. IT LEADS US TO THAT NEW CAR EVEN THOUGH THERE ISN'T MUCH WRONG WITH THE OLD ONE. I READ ABOUT A MOVIE ACTRESS WHO HAS TWO HUNDRED PAIRS OF SHOES. AND WHEN JESUS ASKS “WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?” HE INVITES US TO SLOW DOWN AND REALLY CONFRONT THIS EMPTINESS IN US, THAT SEEMS DESTINED NEVER TO BE FILLED UP.

AND THEN HE SAYS, “COME AND SEE.” HE COULD HAVE SAID, “I AM WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR, I CAN FILL YOUR EMPTINESS." BUT HE HAS ALREADY WATCHED US TRY TO FILL OUR EMPTINESS. NO MATTER HOW I ADVISE MY CHILDREN THAT CIGARETTES ARE NOT ONLY EXPENSIVE AND UNHEALTHY, BUT WILL NOT FILL THEIR EMPTINESS, ONE OF THEM HAS TO TRY THEM. WHAT ALCOHOLIC OR DRUG ADDICT CAN HONESTLY SAY THAT SHE WAS NOT TOLD THAT HER FAVORITE CHEMICAL WOULD NOT BE THE ANSWER? AND WHICH OF US HAS NEVER MADE A PURCHASE OF SOMETHING BECAUSE, AS MY GRANDMOTHER USED TO SAY, "MONEY IS BURNING A HOLE IN MY POCKET." WE AREN'T GOING TO TAKE ANYONE'S WORD FOR IT, WE HAVE TO EXPERIENCE IT IN ORDER TO KNOW WHETHER IT WILL FILL US UP. SO JESUS SAY, "COME AND SEE."

AND ANDREW AND THE OTHER DISCIPLE TAKE JESUS UP ON HIS OFFER AND SURE ENOUGH, A FEW HOURS LATER, ANDREW IS PROCLAIMING THAT HE HAS FINALLY FOUND WHAT HE NEEDS TO BE COMPLETE, HE HAS FOUND THE MESSIAH! AND THIS OF COURSE IS ONLY THE BEGINNING, BECAUSE AS ANDREW CONTINUES TO GET TO KNOW JESUS, HE REALIZES MORE AND MORE HOW THIS JESUS IS WORTH GIVING UP HIS CAREER AS A FISHERMAN; JESUS IS WORTH WANDERING THE COUNTRYSIDE OF GALILEE, MISSING A FEW MEALS, SLEEPING OUTDOORS, LOSING FRIENDS AND ALIENATING FAMILY MEMBERS WHO HAVE DECIDED THAT JESUS IS NOT ONLY MISGUIDED, BUT A POSITIVE THREAT TO THE TRUE RELIGION. AND WHEN JESUS RETURNS FROM THE DEAD AND ASCENDS INTO HEAVEN, ALL THE REST OF ANDREW'S LIFE IS DEVOTED TO TELLING OTHERS, "WE HAVE FOUND THE MESSIAH!" WHILE COUNTING THE MINUTES UNTIL HE HIMSELF WILL BE RE-UNITED WITH THE ONE WHO TOLD HIM TO "COME AND SEE."

THERE ARE PEOPLE IN THIS PARISH WHO HAVE TAKEN JESUS UP ON HIS INVITATION. YOU CAN USUALLY TELL WHO THEY ARE BECAUSE THEY ARE SPENDING SOME OF THEIR TIME AND SOME OF THEIR TREASURE DOING THINGS THAT JESUS WOULD HAVE DONE. THEY FEED THE HUNGRY, CLOTHE THE NAKED, VISIT THE SICK; THEY BRING COMMUNION TO THE SHUT-INS, THEY COUNT THE COLLECTION, THEY TEACH YOUR CHILDREN THE FAITH. THEY HAVE SEEN, AND NOW THEY PROCLAIM, "WE HAVE FOUND THE MESSIAH!" IN WHAT THEY DO. AND THEY FIND WHAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR BECAUSE HE HAS PROMISED THAT WHAT YOU DO FOR THE LEAST OF YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS, YOU DO FOR HIM; AND HE HAS PROMISED THAT EVEN IF ALL YOU GIVE IS A CUP OF COLD WATER, YOU WILL HAVE YOUR REWARD.

ITS INTERESTING TO MEET PEOPLE WHO HAVE TAKEN JESUS UP ON HIS INVITATION. THEY ARE HAPPIER, MORE JOYFUL, BECAUSE THEY ARE IN THE PROCESS OF FINDING WHAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR. THEY HAVE LESS NEED OF "STUFF" BECAUSE THEY HAVE SEEN THAT IN THE LONG RUN, MATERIAL THINGS OVER AND ABOVE ENOUGH TO KEEP OURSELVES SHELTERED AND FED AND CLOTHED REALLY DON'T SATISFY US IN THE LONG RUN. AND BECAUSE THEY HAVE DISCOVERED THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE, IT'S NO PROBLEM FOR THEM TO LET GO OF EVERYTHING ELSE SO THAT THERE IS MORE ROOM FOR JESUS.

YOU AND I HEAR A LOT OF SERMONS AND READ ABOUT HOW GREAT IT WOULD BE TO BECOME DISCIPLES OF JESUS. YOU'VE SEEN THE EXAMPLES OF THE SAINTS AND MARTYRS, WHO GAVE UP EVERYTHING TO FOLLOW JESUS. BUT JESUS KNOWS THAT WORDS BY THEMSELVES DON'T MOVE PEOPLE; ONLY THROUGH EXPERIENCE WILL WE BEGIN TO REALLY FIND THE TRUTH. AND SO HE SAYS TO YOU AND TO ME, "WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR? COME AND SEE. "

Epiphany 2012

MATTHEW 2:1-12

ON THIS FEAST OF THE EPIPHANY, WE TEND TO FOCUS ON THE THREE KINGS. BUT YOU'LL NOTICE THAT NOWHERE IN THE GOSPEL ARE THEY REFERRED TO AS KINGS, AND NOWHERE DOES IT SAY THAT THERE ARE THREE OF THEM. IT'S VERY HARD FOR US TO SHAKE THE SCENE WE SEE BEFORE US – IN MOST DEPICTIONS OF THIS EVENT WE SEE THREE MEN WEARING CROWNS, AND EACH HOLDING A GIFT. OBVIOUSLY THOSE WHO PUT TOGETHER THESE SCENES ARE INFLUENCED BY THE PROPHECIES IN ISIAIAH. BUT ALL WE REALLY KNOW IS THAT MATTHEW IS REFERRING TO MEN USING THE WORD “MAGI”. AND SURPRISINGLY ENOUGH, WE DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT THAT WORD MEANS EITHER. IN THE COUNTRY OF PERSIA, THE TERM “MAGUS” WAS USED FOR PRIESTS OF THE ZORASTORIAN FAITH. BUT LATER IT REFERRED TO ASTROLOGERS, AND BY EXTENSION, ADVISERS TO THE KING. BUT THAT IS JUST THE PERSIAN STORY. IN SOME OF THE OTHER LANGUAGES THE ROOT “MAG” REFERRED TO MAGIC. IN THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, WE MEET A MAN NAMED SIMON MAGUS WHO TRIED TO GET SAINT PETER TO SELL HIM THE SECRET BY WHICH HE COULD CALL DOWN THE HOLY SPIRIT. THAT WORD COMES FROM GREEK. SO WE DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT MATTHEW MEANT BY THE TERM “MAGI”.

BUT YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOT THE POINT HERE. THIS IS NOT THE FEAST OF THE THREE KINGS, IT IS ABOUT TWO KINGS. AND THE MAGI ARE TRACING A ROUTE WHICH YOU AND I ARE EXPECTED TO TRACE IN OUR LIVES AS WELL. SO EVEN THOUGH WE DON'T KNOW MUCH ABOUT THE MAGI, WE DO KNOW A FEW THINGS THAT ARE IMPORTANT. FIRST, THEY HAD OPEN MINDS. THEY WEREN'T CONVINCED THAT THEY WERE RIGHT AND EVERYONE ELSE WAS WRONG. WE SEE FROM THIS STORY THAT THEY HAD STUDIED THE SCRIPTURES OF THE JEWS, AND THEY WEREN'T JEWS. THEY LOOKED FOR TRUTH WHEREVER THEY COULD FIND IT. THEY WOULD HAVE MADE VERY POOR LEFT WING DEMOCRATS OR RIGHT WING REPUBLICANS. THEY WOULD NEVER BE VERY GOOD PEOPLE TO RECRUIT TO A CAUSE, BECAUSE THEY WERE COMMITTED TO TRUTH, NOT OPINIONS. SECOND, THEY WERE WILLING TO TRAVEL GREAT DISTANCES BECAUSE THEY VALUED TRUTH. ONCE THEY WERE CONVINCED THAT THEIR REASONING WAS CORRECT, THEY DID NOT SIT ON THEIR LAURELS, THEY WENT OUT TO SEE WITH THEIR OWN EYES WHETHER THIS WAS SO. THIRD, THEY WERE NOT SWAYED BY THE TRAPPINGS OF POWER. THEY DID NOT RETURN TO HEROD AS HE HAD REQUESTED. ALL THESE QUALITIES INDICATE THAT THE MAGI VALUED TRUTH ABOVE ALL ELSE – AS SHOULD WE ALL.

FOR US HEROD IS A VILLAIN. THE HEROD WE MEET HERE PUT JOHN THE BAPTIST TO DEATH, BUT WAS NOT THE SAME ONE UNDER WHOM JESUS WAS CONDEMNED. OUR HEROD WAS MUCH ADMIRED FOR HIS EFFORTS AT URBAN RENEWAL. HE CAUSED CITIES TO BE BUILT, HE OVERSAW THE CONSTRUCTION OF AQUEDUCTS AND CANALS, SO THAT PRECIOUS WATER WAS AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT THE LAND. HE DELICATELY BALANCED ROMAN INTERESTS WITH THOSE OF HIS SUBJECTS, SO THAT HE COULD BE CALLED A “FRIEND OF ROME” AND THE “KING OF THE JEWS”. BUT HEROD WAS A LOT LIKE OTHER MONARCHS OF HIS TIME. HE WAS VICIOUS WHEN HE FELT THREATENED. AND WE KNOW HE HAD TEN WIVES AND MANY SONS; HE CHANGED HIS WILL SIX TIMES, NAMING DIFFERENT SONS AS HIS HEIR. HE PUT ONE SON TO DEATH, WHO HAD TRIED TO POISON HIM. WE MAY THINK THAT'S TERRIBLE, BUT CONSTANTINE PUT TWO SONS TO DEATH FOR TRYING TO OVERTHROW HIM. FOR HEROD, IT WAS TERRIBLY IMPORTANT THAT HIS BLOODLINE BE CONTINUED ON THE THRONE OF ISRAEL. AND JUST WHEN HE THOUGHT IT WAS ALL FINALLY WORKED OUT, ALONG COMES SOME STRANGERS WHO INSISTED THAT THE KING OF THE JEWS WAS NOT IN THE PALACE, BUT OUT THERE SOMEWHERE. HEROD DID WHAT HE HAD TO.

FOR HEROD, HIS WHOLE IDENTITY WAS TIED UP IN HIS KINGDOM. FOR HEROD, ANY SLIGHT SUGGESTION THAT HE WAS LOSING CONTROL CAUSED HIM GREAT ANXIETY. AND I CAN SYMPATHIZE WITH HIM. ALL MY LIFE I'VE HAD A TENDENCY TO WORRY ABOUT WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO ME OR TO MY FAMILY IF SOME CATASTROPHE OCCURRED. AND I'M SURE I'VE MADE DECISIONS WHICH WEREN'T VERY GOOD ONES, BECAUSE OF MY CAUTION, MY INSECURITY. I THINK MANY OF US CAN IDENTIFY WITH HEROD – WE STRUGGLE TO BUILD, TO MANAGE OUR LIVES TO THE LETTER; TO GUARD AGAINST AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE, UNTIL THESE EFFORTS TEMPT US TO ACT AGAINST OUR BETTER NATURE.

WHEN THE MAGI FOUND THE CHRIST CHILD, WHAT THEY FOUND WAS A BABY, THE CHILD OF A PEASANT WOMAN AND HER CARPENTER HUSBAND. THEY DIDN'T EVEN HAVE A HOME OF THEIR OWN. SURELY THE FIRST REACTION OF THE MAGI MUST HAVE BEEN DISBELIEF; HOW COULD THIS CHILD BE THE KING OF THE JEWS? IN THOSE DAYS, PEOPLE PAID A LOT MORE ATTENTION TO YOUR SOCIAL STATUS, YOUR FAMILY, YOUR NAME; AND KINGS CAME FROM KINGS AND PEASANTS FROM PEASANTS, AND THAT WAS THE NATURAL ORDER, AND NO ONE THOUGHT TO QUESTION IT. BUT THE MAGI WHO HAD DEMONSTRATED THEIR LOVE FOR TRUTH, RECEIVED A REVELATION FROM THE GOD OF TRUTH, WHICH BROUGHT THEM GREAT JOY, AND THE CONVICTION THAT DESPITE THE EVIDENCE OF THEIR SENSES, THIS WAS THE REAL KING, AND HEROD WAS AN IMPOSTER.

THE MAGI HAD A CHOICE AT THAT MOMENT. HAD THEY RETURNED TO HEROD AS HE HAD REQUESTED, THEY COULD HAVE MADE A CLAIM ON HIM. SURELY HE WOULD HAVE BEEN WILLING TO REWARD THEM, JUST AS HE HAD BEEN WILLING TO GIVE HIS FOSTER DAUGHTER HALF HIS KINGDOM FOR A DANCE SHE PERFORMED. JUST AS ORIENTAL KINGS REACTED TO SLIGHTS WITH OVERWHELMING PUNISHMENT, THEY REWARDED THEIR SUPPORTERS LAVISHLY. IT WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN HARD TO RATIONALIZE, AND THE MAGI DID NOT KNOW THAT HEROD INTENDED TO KILL THE CHILD.

BUT THE SIGNIFICANT WORDS IN THE GOSPEL ARE THESE : THE MAGI “DEPARTED FOR THEIR COUNTRY BY ANOTHER WAY.” FACED WITH THE CHOICE BETWEEN HEROD, WHO REPRESENTED THE WORLD, THE WAY THINGS ARE, THE CONCERN FOR SECURITY, FOR CONTROL, FOR BUILDING UP AND TEARING DOWN, FOR MAKING SURE I GET MINE – OR THIS BABY, WHO IS ONLY A PROMISE, AND AN UNLIKELY ONE AT THAT, THEY CHOSE ANOTHER WAY; THEY REJECTED HEROD AND ALL HE REPRESENTED, AND CHOSE TO PUT THEIR TRUST IN THE PROMISE.

SO THIS IS THE FEAST OF TWO KINGS. AND EACH OF US IS CONFRONTED WITH CHOOSING ONE OVER THE OTHER. AND WE MAKE OUR CHOICES EVERY DAY, MANY TIMES EVERY DAY. AND IF YOU ARE LIKE ME, YOU OFTEN MAKE THE WRONG CHOICE.

SO TODAY LET US REMEMBER THE MAGI AND THE TWO KINGS, AND RESOLVE WITH THEM TO FOLLOW ANOTHER WAY, A WAY THAT IS NOT THE WAY OF THE WORLD.

New Year's Day 2011

LUKE 2:16-21

THE FIRST DAY OF JANUARY IS A FEAST DAY LOOKING FOR A FEAST, I GUESS. IT'S NEW YEAR'S DAY, OF COURSE. ONCE IT WAS THE FEAST OF THE CIRCUMCISION OF JESUS. AMONG SOME CHRISTIANS IT IS THE WORLD DAY OF PEACE, AND SOME CALL IT THE FEAST OF THE NAMING OF JESUS. IT'S THE LAST DAY OF KWANZA. AND THIS YEAR IT IS THE FEAST OF MARY, THE MOTHER OF GOD, FOR US CATHOLICS. POOR JANUARY FIRST! IT HAS A REAL IDENTITY PROBLEM. I GUESS THE ONLY THING IT HAS GOING FOR IT IS THAT IT DOESN'T FALL ON A DATE DETERMINED BY THE MOON, LIKE EASTER AND PENTECOST.

WHEN I LOOK BACK AT MY LIFE, I CAN REMEMBER WHAT KIND OF PERSON I WAS WHEN I WAS YOUNG. I DIDN'T KNOW IT AT THE TIME, BUT I REALLY LACKED HUMILITY. I HAD ALWAYS GOTTEN STRAIGHT A'S IN SCHOOL, AND LEARNING CAME EASY TO ME. MY LIFE CHANGED AFTER I GOT MARRIED. LIVING WITH SOMEONE WHO SOON LEARNS ALL YOUR FAULTS; HAVING CHILDREN AND MAKING INEVITABLE MISTAKES IN RAISING THEM – YOU SOON LEARN THAT YOU HAVE A LOT TO BE HUMBLE ABOUT. SO GETTING MARRIED WAS A REAL TURNING POINT IN MY LIFE, AND I THINK THAT IF I HADN'T GOTTEN MARRIED, I WOULD HAVE SPENT THE REST OF MY LIFE THINKING I WAS SPECIAL, NEVER DISCOVERING THAT I NEEDED REDEMPTION. AND I CAN LOOK BACK ON THAT AND SEE THE HAND OF GOD IN MY LIFE, GRANTING ME A GREAT BLESSING – A WONDERFUL WIFE, CHILDREN, A GREAT CAREER – AND AN OPPORTUNITY TO GROW SPIRITUALLY BECAUSE OF THESE VERY THINGS.

OUR WORLD IS IN LOVE WITH CHANCE. THE PREVAILING THEORY OF EVOLUTION IS THAT EVERY LIVING CREATURE AROSE THROUGH SHEER CHANCE. AND WHEN SCIENTISTS DISCOVERED THAT THE UNIVERSE HAD A BEGINNING, THAT EVERYTHING IN THE UNIVERSE WAS SEEMINGLY DESIGNED SO THAT LIFE, AND ESPECIALLY HUMAN BEINGS, COULD ARISE, THEY HAD TO CHOOSE WHETHER TO BELIEVE IN A GOD, OR TO EMBRACE ANOTHER IDEA, NAMELY THAT THERE WERE UNCOUNTABLE UNIVERSES WHERE THINGS WERE ALL A LITTLE DIFFERENT, SO NATURALLY THERE COULD BE ONE OR TWO WHERE THINGS JUST BY CHANCE WERE EXACTLY RIGHT FOR LIFE TO ARISE.

WE CHRISTIANS DON'T REALLY BELIEVE IN CHANCE. WE BELIEVE THAT SOMEHOW EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS IS GOD'S WILL, EVEN THOUGH HE LEAVES US WITH FREE WILL. AND THAT MEANS THAT EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO YOU OR ME IS GOD'S WILL. AND WE CHRISTIANS BELIEVE ANOTHER THING ABOUT GOD. GOD IS A LOVING GOD AND GUIDES OUR LIVES SO AS TO GIVE US EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME ONE WITH HIM, WHICH IS THE ONLY GOAL WORTHY OF A HUMAN BEING.

SO TODAY WE HEAR ABOUT MARY, KEEPING ALL THESE THINGS AND REFLECTING ON THEM IN HER HEART. MARY IS THE PERFECT HUMAN BEING. SHE KNOWS THAT EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO HER IS WILLED BY GOD. AND IF THAT'S THE CASE, THEN SHE INTENDS TO EXAMINE WHAT GOD HAS WILLED, SO THAT SHE CAN KNOW MORE ABOUT GOD'S PLAN FOR HER. AND AS SHE THINKS ABOUT WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO HER IN THE PAST, IT BECOMES EASIER FOR HER TO READ GOD'S WILL FOR HER IN THE EVENTS OF THE PRESENT. THAT'S WHAT REFLECTING MEANS – LOOKING FOR MEANING IN OUR LIVES, LOOKING FOR THE HAND OF GOD IN THE TWISTS AND TURNS OF OUR OWN STORY.

BUT MARY DID NOT JUST REFLECT. SHE WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE STORY OF ISRAEL. SHE MAY NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO QUOTE THE OLD TESTAMENT CHAPTER AND VERSE – BUT SHE KNEW THE OUTLINES OF THE STORY AND ESPECIALLY THE PROMISES GOD HAD MADE TO HIS PEOPLE. SO WHEN SHE REFLECTED ON THE THINGS SHE KEPT, THE EVENTS OF HER LIFE, SHE DID SO IN LIGHT OF THE SCRIPTURES AS SHE KNEW THEM. BECAUSE IN THE SCRIPTURES, JUST LIKE IN THE EVENTS OF HER OWN LIFE, GOD SPOKE TO HER, AND MARY WANTED NOTHING SO MUCH AS TO UNDERSTAND GOD'S WILL AND CARRY IT OUT. BEING WITHOUT ORIGINAL SIN, BEING CREATED AS A PERFECT HUMAN BEING, MARY KNEW THAT THE DESTINY OF A HUMAN BEING WAS TO BECOME ONE WITH GOD, AND THAT NOTHING WAS AS IMPORTANT AS LIVING IN HIS WILL.

AND THE SAINTS DOWN THROUGH THE AGES FOLLOWED MARY'S EXAMPLE, AND EXAMINED THEIR OWN LIVES IN THE LIGHT OF SCRIPTURE TO DISCOVER THE WILL OF GOD FOR THEM. THINK OF SAINT FRANCIS, WHO SET OUT TO IMITATE CHRIST AS WELL AS HE COULD, HAVING CONSIDERED HOW HIS OWN LIFE UP TO THEN HAD BEEN GUIDED BY SELFISHNESS. THINK ABOUT SAINT AUGUSTINE, WHO RECORDED IN HIS AUTOBIOGRAPHY HOW EACH EVENT IN HIS LIFE FIT TOGETHER LIKE A PUZZLE, TO LEAD HIM TO SURRENDER HIS LIFE TO GOD.

GOD IS ALWAYS SPEAKING TO US. WE KNOW HE SPEAKS TO US IN THE SCRIPTURES. BUT HE ALSO COMMUNICATES WITH US IN EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO US, IN ALL THE EVENTS OF OUR LIVES. AND IF WE KEEP THESE THINGS AND REFLECT ON THEM IN OUR HEARTS AS MARY DID, WE WILL LEARN HIS LANGUAGE, WE WILL BE ABLE TO KNOW WHAT HE IS SAYING TO US.

MOST OF US PRAY. WE ASK FOR THINGS, WE ASK FOR FORGIVENESS; SOMETIMES WE ADORE, SOMETIMES WE THANK. BUT FOR MOST OF US, PRAYER IS A MONOLOGUE WHERE WE SPEAK TO A SILENT GOD AND HOPE HE HEARS US. MARY SHOWS US THAT PRAYER IS SUPPOSED TO BE A DIALOGUE, AND THIS MEANS THAT WE LISTEN TO GOD SPEAKING TO US.

WHEN I LOOK AT MY MARRIAGE, IT CHANGED MY WHOLE LIFE; AND LOOKING BACK IT IS CLEAR THAT GOD WAS WORKING IN MY LIFE. AND I CAN THINK OF MANY OTHER MOMENTS WHEN GOD SHAPED THINGS TO OFFER ME A CHANCE TO GROW CLOSER TO HIM SPIRITUALLY. AND THERE ARE UNDOUBTEDLY MANY TIMES WHEN I MISSED WHAT GOD WAS SAYING TO ME.

MARY SHOWS THE WAY. SHE SHOWS US HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO KEEP THE THINGS WHICH HAPPEN TO US AND BRING THEM OUT REGULARLY TO REFLECT UPON THEM. AND IF WE REFLECT ON THEM IN THE LIGHT OF THE WORD OF GOD, WE LEARN GOD'S WILL FOR US, AND ENTER INTO THAT DIALOGUE WHICH BRINGS US INTO UNION WITH GOD.

MARY KNEW, AS DID THE GREAT PHILOSOPHER SOCRATES, THAT AN UNEXAMINED LIFE IS NOT WORTH LIVING. SO SHE KEPT ALL THESE THINGS AND REFLECTED ON THEM IN HER HEART. AND SO SHOULD WE.

Midnight Mass, Christmas, 2011

LUKE 2:1-14

WELCOME TO SAINT MARY'S. WELCOME HOME.

I GREW UP IN MONTANA. I WENT TO COLLEGE IN WASHINGTON, D.C., TO THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA. THE FIRST SEMESTER I WAS AWAY, EVEN AT THE RIPE OLD AGE OF SEVENTEEN, I FELT HOMESICK AT TIMES. SOMETIMES MY HOMESICKNESS WAS REALLY BAD, OTHER TIMES ALMOST NON-EXISTENT. BUT AS CHRISTMAS APPROACHED, IT BUILT UP. I REMEMBER PACKING MY BAGS AND GETTING ON THE TRAIN AND MAKING THAT TWO AND ONE HALF DAY TRIP ACROSS THE COUNTRY. IT WAS A COLD DARK EVENING WHEN WE PULLED INTO THE STATION IN HELENA. MY DAD HAD COME TO PICK ME UP. WE DROVE HOME AND WALKED IN TO THE WARM INVITING HOUSE FILLED WITH THE SMELLS OF CHRISTMAS – THE TREE, THE CANDLES, THE GINGERBREAD, THE FIREPLACE CRACKLING AWAY. AND THERE WAS MY MOTHER AND MY TWO SISTERS, AND ALL OF A SUDDEN WE WERE A FAMILY AGAIN, AND I WAS HOME.

HUMAN BEINGS NEED A HOME, IN FACT, MOST CREATURES DO. REMEMBER WHEN JESUS SAID, “FOXES HAVE DENS AND BIRDS OF THE AIR HAVE THEIR NESTS, BUT THE SON OF MAN HAS NOWHERE TO LAY HIS HEAD.” EVEN JESUS MISSED HIS HOME WHEN HE WAS AWAY FROM IT. WE NEED HOMES, AND WE ARE HOMESICK WHEN WE ARE AWAY.

WHAT MAKES A HOME? SURELY SIGHTS AND SMELLS AND FAMILIAR SURROUNDINGS HELP, BUT ISN'T IT FUNDAMENTALLY ABOUT PEOPLE, PEOPLE WITH WHOM YOU CAN BE COMFORTABLE, PEOPLE WHO ACCEPT YOU WITH ALL YOUR FAULTS AND STILL LOVE YOU?

THAT'S WHAT THE SHEPHERDS FOUND WHEN THEY LEFT THE DARK PASTURES AND WENT TO THE MANGER. WHY WAS THAT CHILD, THAT CHRIST CHILD, GIVEN TO US? WHY DID GOD BECOME FIRST OF ALL A BABY? BABIES HAVE A WAY OF MAKING US FEEL AT HOME. BABIES DON'T CARE HOW MUCH MONEY YOU HAVE OR WHAT TITLES YOU CLAIM. THEY DON'T CARE WHAT YOU HAVE ON YOUR CONSCIENCE, OR THAT YOU MAY BE A TERRIBLE SINNER. THREE WEEKS AGO I BAPTIZED MY NEWEST GRANDCHILD, AND IT WAS FUN TO WATCH OTHERWISE UNEMOTIONAL MEN MAKE FUNNY FACES TO TRY TO GET A SMILE OUT OF HER, OR DIGNIFIED LADIES SPEAKING BABY TALK. PEOPLE DROP THEIR MASKS AROUND BABIES, BECAUSE BABIES DON'T JUDGE, THEY ONLY ACCEPT; AND IN RESPONSE WE GET IN TOUCH WITH OUR OWN INNOCENCE FOR A MOMENT; AND MAYBE WE SEE OURSELVES AS GOD OUR FATHER LOOKS ON US. GOD BECAME A BABY, THE FATHER GAVE US THIS CHILD, SO THAT WE COULD BE AT HOME. IF WE ARE CHRISTIANS WE ARE NOT PART OF THIS WORLD, AND SOMETHING IN US LONGS FOR OUR REAL HOME, OUR REAL FATHER; AND HERE IN THIS CHURCH THE CHILD WELCOMES US, CALLS US TO COME HOME FOR A LITTLE WHILE TO REST.

WHEN WE REALLY THINK ABOUT IT, THAT WORLD OUT THERE IS A CONSTANT TEMPTATION FOR US TO BECOME CYNICAL, FOR US TO LOSE OUR SENSE OF WONDER. ANOTHER POLITICIAN IS FOUND TO HAVE AN ADULTEROUS RELATIONSHIP. ANOTHER BISHOP IS ACCUSED OF COVERING UP A SCANDAL. A BELOVED FOOTBALL COACH IS FOUND TO HAVE KNOWN ABOUT THE CRIMES OF ONE OF HIS ASSISTANTS, BUT COVERED IT UP. AND THE LIST GOES ON AND ON. AND WE WONDER IF THERE IS ANY NOBILITY LEFT IN THE WORLD, IF THERE ARE ANY CAUSES WORTHY ENOUGH TO DEVOTE OURSELVES TO – OR IS WHAT THE WORLD SAYS TRUE – IT IS EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF.

THAT'S WHERE OUR HOME BECOMES SO IMPORTANT. HERE IN THIS BABY IS TRUE INNOCENCE; HERE IS TRUE WONDER; HERE IS A CAUSE FOR WHICH WE CAN GIVE OUR LIVES. THE CHILD WITH OPEN ARMS, WITH COMPLETE ACCEPTANCE, WITH UNCONDITIONAL LOVE; THE CHILD WHO REVEALS WHAT KIND OF GOD WE WORSHIP. AND WE NEED TO KEEP COMING BACK TO DRINK OF THIS INNOCENCE SO THAT WE ARE NOT OVERCOME BY THAT WORLD THROUGH WHICH WE TRAVEL AS STRANGERS.

MY GRANDFATHER WAS NOT A CHURCH-GOER. HE USED TO SAY THAT HE FELT CLOSEST TO GOD WHEN HE WAS OUT IN THE WOODS, OR FISHING IN A MOUNTAIN STREAM. HE DIDN'T NEED A CHURCH IN WHICH TO ENCOUNTER GOD. BUT HE WAS WRONG. JESUS TOLD US THAT WHERE TWO OR THREE ARE GATHERED TOGETHER, THERE HE IS. THE SHEPHERDS WERE GIVEN THE NEWS THAT A CHILD HAD BEEN GIVEN TO THE HUMAN RACE, BUT THEY HAD TO COME TOGETHER IN THE STABLE TO MAKE THAT PROMISE REAL FOR THEMSELVES. GOD LOVES HIS PEOPLE BUT HE ESPECIALLY LOVES THEM WHEN THEY ARE GATHERED TOGETHER IN THE PRESENCE OF HIS SON. WE WHO WERE IN DARKNESS SEE A GREAT LIGHT, BUT ONLY HERE, ONLY WHERE THE CHILD IS.

IT'S ALWAYS WONDERFUL TO GO HOME, WHERE WE CAN LET DOWN OUR GUARD, WHERE WE CAN LOVE AND BE LOVED, WHERE WE ARE UNCONDITIONALLY ACCEPTED. IT MAKES US STRONGER PEOPLE, WE BECOME MORE CENTERED, MORE GROUNDED; WE BECOME RENEWED. BECAUSE THAT IS THE RHYTHM OF THE LIFE OF A CHRISTIAN – TO COME HOME, TO PUT DOWN OUR BURDENS, TO LAY ASIDE THE CARES OF THE WORLD. AND THEN WE FEAST AT THE BANQUET TO WHICH WE HAVE BEEN INVITED; WE RECEIVE HOLY COMMUNION, WHERE WE BECOME ONE WITH THE CHILD, AND WITH EACH OTHER; AND WE RECEIVE PART OF HIS LIGHT. AND, GOD WILLING, WHEN WE LEAVE THIS SPIRITUAL HOME WE WILL CARRY THE LIGHT WITH US, SO THAT WE CAN BRING INNOCENCE AND TRUTH AND GOODNESS INTO THE WORLD WHICH SO DESPERATELY NEEDS THOSE THINGS.

THIS IS OUR HOME, NOT BECAUSE OF THE BUILDING OR THE DECORATIONS OR THE SIGHTS AND SMELLS AND SOUNDS, BUT BECAUSE OF THE CHILD WHO IS GIVEN TO US, WHO IS ALWAYS HERE , AND HERE IN A SPECIAL WAY, TO WELCOME US FROM OUR BURDENS, TO FEED US IN WORD AND SACRAMENT, AND TO SEND US FORTH REFRESHED AND RENEWED.

THIS IS OUR HOME BECAUSE THIS IS WHERE THE FATHER OF THAT CHILD INVITES US TO BE PART OF HIS FAMILY, WHERE WE CAN BE WITH OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS AND BE REMINDED THAT THE FATHER LOVES EACH OF THEM WITHOUT HOLDING BACK, JUST AS HE LOVES YOU; AND HOW CAN WE NOT LOVE THE ONES OUR FATHER CALLS HIS OWN.

THIS IS OUR HOME BECAUSE WE HAVE A FAMILY RESEMBLANCE; THE HOLY SPIRIT LIVES IN US AND IS CONSTANTLY MAKING US MORE LIKE THE CHILD WHO IS GIVEN TO US, THE CHILD WHO MAKES US BECOME LIKE LITTLE CHILDREN, CHILDREN WHO FORGIVE, WHO LIVE IN THE PRESENT, WHO LEARN TO TRUST THEIR FATHER.

WELCOME HOME, BROTHERS AND SISTERS. AND COME OFTEN AND BE REFRESHED. THE CHILD IS ALWAYS HERE FOR YOU AT SAINT MARY'S.

Fourth Sunday of Advent, cycle B

LUKE 1:26-38

A FEW YEARS AGO, MY GRANDDAUGHTER DID SOMETHING I HAD TOLD HER NOT TO DO. SINCE THIS WAS THE THIRD OR FOURTH TIME THAT DAY THAT THIS HAPPENED, I RAISED MY VOICE AS I BEGIN TO LIST WHAT FEARSOME PUNISHMENTS I WOULD DOLE OUT TO HER IF ANYTHING LIKE THIS HAPPENED AGAIN. SHE CALMLY STARED AT ME WHILE I CAUGHT MY BREATH, AND SAID, “I’M JUST A KID, YOU KNOW.”

MARY WAS JUST A KID. SHE WAS A TEENAGER, WE SUSPECT, BECAUSE NO WOMAN GOT THROUGH HER TEEN YEARS WITHOUT BEING MARRIED, AND OF COURSE WE KNOW MARY WAS ENGAGED. IN MEDIEVAL TIMES THERE WAS A LOT OF SPECULATION ABOUT HOW MARY HAD BEEN TURNED OVER TO THE PRIESTS IN THE TEMPLE WHEN SHE WAS VERY YOUNG SO THAT SHE COULD BECOME EDUCATED; HOW JOSEPH WAS AN OLD MAN, LONG PAST THE POINT OF BEING ABLE TO FATHER A CHILD; AND IN FACT THERE ARE STORIES ABOUT JOACHIM AND ANN, THE NAMES GIVEN TO MARY’S PARENTS. THOSE SCHOLARS FROM THE MIDDLE AGES COULDN’T GET THEIR HEADS AROUND HOW MARY COULD HAVE BEEN CONCEIVED IN THE MANNER THAT ALL OTHER PEOPLE ARE CONCEIVED, SO THEY MADE UP SOME PRETTY INTERESTING STORIES ABOUT HOW IT COULD BE THAT MARY COULD BE THE CHILD OF HER PARENTS, AND YET HER PARENTS CONCEIVED HER IN SOME MIRACULOUS WAY.

BUT SHE WAS JUST A KID. SHE WASN’T EDUCATED – EVEN RICH AND NOBLE WOMEN WEREN’T EDUCATED – AND JOSEPH WAS YOUNG ENOUGH TO HAVE CHILDREN; THE PEOPLE OF THAT TIME, UNLIKE OUR OWN, VALUED CHILDREN, AND MARY’S PARENTS, WHO HAD A BIG SAY IN WHO SHE WOULD MARRY, WOULD HAVE REALLY WANTED GRANDCHILDREN, JUST AS MARY WOULD ASPIRE TO BE A MOTHER. NO DODDERING OLD MAN FOR HER. BUT THERE WAS SOMETHING ABOUT MARY – THE LORD WAS WITH HER. WITH ALL THE WONDERS OF HEAVEN, WITH ALL THE BEAUTY OF THE UNIVERSE, WITH ALL THE ANGELS IN THEIR MAGNIFICENCE TO SEE, THE FATHER LOOKED AT MARY AND LOVED HER AND WAS WITH HER. THIS DID NOT HAPPEN AT THE TIME THE ANGEL APPEARED TO HER; THE ANGEL WAS JUST MAKING AN OBSERVATION. NO, THE LORD WAS WITH HER FROM THE BEGINNING, FROM THE MOMENT OF CONCEPTION, AND SHE WAS HIS LOVE, THIS KID, THIS 12 OR 13 YEAR OLD GIRL.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO HAVE THE LORD WITH YOU? AFTER ALL, MARY’S LIFE WASN’T SO DIFFERENT FROM ANYONE’S. SHE CERTAINLY SUFFERED, SHE GREW OLD, SHE DIED. WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

WHEN THE ANGEL TOLD HER THAT SHE WAS TO BE THE MOTHER OF THE SAVIOR, SHE REACTED AS ANYONE WOULD. “HOW CAN THIS BE, FOR I HAVE NO RELATIONS WITH A MAN?” ALMOST LIKE DYING, HER WHOLE LIFE FLASHED BEFORE HER EYES. WHAT ABOUT JOSEPH, WHOM SHE LOVED, WHOM SHE PLANNED TO SPEND HER LIFE WITH? WHAT WOULD HE SAY? WHAT ABOUT HER PARENTS, WHO WOULD BE HEART-BROKEN? WHAT ABOUT … BUT THE LIST WENT ON AND ON. HER MIND RAISED A MILLION OBJECTIONS. THIS COULD NOT BE. BUT THE LORD WAS WITH HER, AND WHEN THE LORD IS WITH YOU, YOU HAVE THE FREEDOM TO CHOOSE WHAT IS RIGHT, EVEN WHEN IT IS LIKELY TO HURT. AND MARY CHOSE THE GOOD; SHE ROSE ABOVE ALL THE OBJECTIONS HER MIND WAS THROWING UP, AND SAID, “FIAT, VOLUNTAS TUA!” AND I SAY THAT IN LATIN, BECAUSE IT IS MUCH STRONGER THAN THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION WE JUST READ. MARY SAID, “DO YOUR WILL TO ME.” SHE DOES NOT PASSIVELY ACCEPT WHAT GOD HAS IN STORE FOR HER; SHE EAGERLY EMBRACES IT. SHE IS NOT GOING TO OVERTHINK IT, SHE IS NOT GOING TO PUT CONDITIONS AROUND IT; BECAUSE GOD IS WITH HER, AND SHE KNOWS IT, SHE CHOOSES TO ENTER INTO HIS WILL.

AND DO YOU KNOW THAT GOD IS WITH YOU? HE IS WITH YOU JUST AS HE IS WITH MARY, BECAUSE YOU WERE BAPTIZED, AND AT THAT MOMENT OF BAPTISM, HE LOOKED AWAY FROM THE SERAPHIM AND CHERUBIM AND ALL THE GLORIES OF HEAVEN, AND LOOKED ON YOU WITH LOVE, AND BOUND HIMSELF TO YOU, HIS FAVORITE CHILD. BUT WAIT? HOW CAN YOU BE HIS FAVORITE? WHAT ABOUT THE GREAT SAINTS? WHAT ABOUT SO MANY PEOPLE WHO ARE SO MUCH HOLIER THAN YOU AND I WILL EVER BE? BUT THAT’S THE WAY GOD IS, YOU ARE HIS FAVORITE CHILD, AND SO ARE YOU AND SO AM I. AND HE IS WITH YOU, AND HE GIVES YOU THE FREEDOM TO BE GOOD, AND MARY SHOWS US THAT THIS IS POSSIBLE. AND GOD HAS WORDS FOR US AS WELL. WHEN YOU ARE QUIET, WHEN YOU TURN YOUR MIND TO GOD, SOMETIMES YOU FEEL AN IMPULSE TO SOMETHING HEROIC, SOMETHING WONDERFUL, SOMETHING DANGEROUS, BUT ALWAYS, SOMETHING GOOD. AND, AS WITH MARY, OUR MINDS THROW UP EXCUSES. ONCE IN A WHILE, SOMEONE REMEMBERS THAT GOD IS WITH HER, AND CASTS ASIDE THE EXCUSES AND ENTERS INTO THAT GREAT ADVENTURE OF DOING GOD’S WILL. A MOTHER THERESA, A PADRE PIO, A JOHN PAUL. BUT MOST OF THE TIME, THE EXCUSES MAKE SENSE, AND IF WE TURN OUR ATTENTION TO THEM, AND AWAY FROM WHAT GOD IS SAYING TO US, THE MOMENT PASSES, AND WE RETURN TO OUR REGULAR LIVES. BUT GOD WILL CALL YOU AGAIN, AND AGAIN, LEAVING YOU PERFECTLY FREE, BUT ALWAYS HOPING THAT YOU WILL SAY, “DO YOUR WILL TO ME!” AND LET THE CONSEQUENCES FALL WHERE THEY MAY.

AND MARY HERSELF URGES US ON. SHE WHO FREELY CHOSE TO DO GOD’S WILL, SHE WHO WAS READY TO GIVE UP ALL HER PLANS, TO RISK ALL HER RELATIONSHIPS, TO PUT HER TRUST COMPLETELY IN GOD WHO WAS WITH HER, POINTS TO JESUS AND TELLS US AS SHE TOLD THE SERVANTS AT CANA, “DO WHATEVER HE TELLS YOU.”

THERESA OF CALCUTTA SAID THIS PRAYER: “MOTHER MARY, PRAY YOUR FIAT AND MAGNIFICAT IN MY HEART.” LET THAT BE OUR PRAYER AS WELL.

Third Sunday in Advent, Cycle B

JOHN 1: 6-8, 19-28

POPE JOHN XXIII WAS THE POPE WHO CALLED THE CHURCH COUNCIL OF VATICAN II. ONLY THE OLDEST OF US REMEMBER WHEN HE WAS POPE. – HE WAS ELECTED WHEN HE WAS 78, AS SORT OF A COMPROMISE; HE FOLLOWED THE VERY POWERFUL AND LONG-REIGNING POPE PIUS XII, AND THE CHURCH LEADERS SEEMED TO BE SPLIT BETWEEN THOSE WHO WANTED TO DIG IN THEIR HEELS AND RESIST THE MODERN WORLD, AND THOSE WHO WANTED TO COMPLETELY CHANGE THE CHURCH. THAT TENSION IS STILL GOING ON TODAY.
JOHN WAS ELECTED BECAUSE EVERYONE THOUGHT HE WOULD KEEP THE THRONE WARM UNTIL A MORE CREDIBLE LEADER EMERGED, ONE WHO MIGHT BE ACCEPTABLE TO BOTH SIDES. BUT JOHN HAD OTHER PLANS, AND HE HAD SCARCELY MOUNTED HIS THRONE WHEN HE ANNOUNCED THAT THERE WOULD BE A CHURCH COUNCIL. AND NO AMOUNT OF ARGUING COULD DISSUADE HIM FROM THAT PLAN. HE WAS POPE FOR ONLY FOUR AND ONE HALF YEARS, AND ARGUABLY MADE A GREATER IMPACT ON THE CHURCH THAN JOHN PAUL II, OR ANY OTHER POPE IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY.
BUT ONE OF THE THINGS ABOUT JOHN XXIII THAT ENDEARED HIM TO EVERYONE WAS THAT HE WAS HUMBLE. HIS HUMILITY SHOWED FOURTH IN HIS HUMOR; HE DIDN’'T TAKE HIMSELF, OR INDEED ANYONE ELSE, SERIOUSLY. HE SAID: “”ANYONE CAN BECOME POPE. I AM LIVING PROOF OF THAT.”” HE SAID: ““IT OFTEN HAPPENS THAT I WAKE UP AT NIGHT AND BEGIN TO THINK ABOUT A SERIOUS PROBLEM AND DECIDE I MUST TELL THE POPE ABOUT IT. THEN I WAKE UP COMPLETELY AND REMEMBER THAT I AM THE POPE.”” HE SAID ONCE WHEN ASKED ABOUT HOW MANY PEOPLE WORKED IN THE VATICAN, “”ABOUT HALF.””
AND ONE STATEMENT I STILL REMEMBER FROM WHEN I READ HIS JOURNAL, PUBLISHED UNDER THE TITLE “JOURNEY OF A SOUL,” WAS THIS: “”MY PRAYER BEFORE I GO TO BED IS “GOD, I’'VE TAKEN CARE OF YOUR CHURCH ALL DAY. I AM NOW GOING TO SLEEP, SO YOU TAKE CARE OF IT TILL I WAKE UP AGAIN.””
ONE THING JOHN KNEW WAS THAT HE WAS NOT THE CHRIST, NOT THE MESSIAH, NOT THE PROPHET, AND CERTAINLY NOT THE LIGHT. AND JOHN THE BAPTIST KNEW THAT ALSO. HOW MANY OF US HAVE REALLY INTERNALIZED THAT? WE CAN CERTAINLY SAY THE RIGHT WORDS; WE CAN SPEAK HUMBLY. BUT IN REALITY I THINK IT IS VERY HARD TO LET GO OF THE IDEA THAT YOU ARE THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE. I KNOW IT IS STILL HARD FOR ME, ALTHOUGH AS I GET OLDER I AM INCREASINGLY REMINDED OF MY LACK OF RELEVANCE, AND MAYBE THAT WILL HELP TEACH ME TRUE HUMILITY. I THINK THIS LESSON IS SOMETIMES LEARNED ONLY TOWARDS THE END OF LIFE. MUCH AS I LOVED JOHN PAUL II, I THINK IT MUST HAVE BEEN HARD FOR HIM TO BE HUMBLE, WITH HIS ASTOUNDING GIFTS AND GREAT POWER; AND MAYBE THAT IS WHY GOD SAW TO IT THAT HE SPENT HIS LAST YEARS BECOMING MORE AND MORE HELPLESS.
GOD WANTS HIS CHILDREN TO LEARN HUMILITY. I DON’T MEAN THAT WE NEED TO BE HUMBLED. HUMILITY IS PART OF WISDOM; IT IS KNOWING, NOT JUST INTELLECTUALLY BUT IN OUR DEEPEST BEING, WHO WE REALLY ARE. AND WHEN WE REALLY KNOW THIS, WE AUTOMATICALLY KNOW THAT GOD IS FIRST, OUR NEIGHBOR IS SECOND, AND WE ARE THIRD. OR PERHAPS WE AND OUR NEIGHBOR ARE TIED FOR SECOND, BECAUSE JESUS TOLD US TO LOVE OUR NEIGHBOR AS OURSELVES, NOT MORE THAN OR LESS THAN OURSELVES. AND YOU WOULD THINK THIS LESSON WOULD BE EASY TO LEARN, BECAUSE WHENEVER WE ARE REMINDED THAT WE ARE FALLIBLE, THAT WE ARE EASY TO INJURE, THAT WE WILL DIE, THERE IS THE LESSON. BUT WE DON’T WANT TO LEARN THIS LESSON; OUR WHOLE LIVES ARE ATTEMPTS TO PROTECT US FROM THINKING ABOUT THESE THINGS. AND THE BETTER WE GET AT IGNORING THE REMINDERS OF OUR TRUE PLACE IN GOD’'S ORDER, THE MORE WE IGNORE GOD HIMSELF.
WHAT IS FIRST IN YOUR LIFE? THAT’S EASY TO TELL. WHATEVER YOU DO WHEN YOU HAVE TIME ON YOUR HANDS. SOME PEOPLE TAKE THEIR WORK HOME WITH THEM EVERY NIGHT. OTHERS SPEND TWO OR THREE HOURS WATCHING TELEVISION OR SURFING THE NET. STILL OTHERS ARE IMMERSED IN SPORTS, OR POLITICS, OR PERHAPS EVEN THE ARTS. NOW THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH ANY OF THESE THINGS, BUT THE DANGER IS THAT NOT ONLY DO THEY HAVE THE POTENTIAL OF INTERFERING WITH OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD, BUT THEY ALL SORT OF PRESUPPOSE THAT MY NEEDS, MY WANTS, MY PLEASURES COME FIRST; AND THEREFORE I COME FIRST.
JOHN THE BAPTIST DID NOT GET TO THE POINT WHERE HE COULD SAY, “”I AM BUT A VOICE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS”,” OVERNIGHT. HE CAME OUT OF THE DESERT, WHERE UNDOUBTEDLY HE HAD FASTED AND PRAYED, MAYBE FOR YEARS. AND ONLY WHEN HE HAD TRULY LEARNED HUMILITY WAS HE GIVEN HIS GREAT MISSION -- – KIND OF LIKE JOHN XXIII.
HOW DO WE PUT GOD FIRST? I THINK WE ALL WANT TO, BUT WE SEE THAT IT REQUIRES CHANGE, AND THAT IS SCARY. BUT THAT WAS THE MESSAGE OF JOHN: “REPENT”-- CHANGE YOUR HEARTS, GET OUT OF YOUR RUT, PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD.
HERE ARE SOME PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS. LOOK AT YOUR DAY, AND FIND A LITTLE TIME TO TURN TO GOD. TEN MINUTES OF PRAYER OR SPIRITUAL READING. WILL THAT KILL YOU? LOOK AT YOUR WEEK, AND FIND SOMETHING, BESIDES SUNDAY MASS, TO REMIND YOU THAT GOD COMES FIRST. MAYBE A BIBLE STUDY? OR A PRAYER GROUP? LOOK AT YOUR MONTH, AND SEE IF THERE'’S SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN DO FOR AN HOUR OR TWO FOR GOD. LEARNING TO PUT GOD FIRST TAKES A LIFE-TIME, I KNOW. I'’M NOT THERE YET. BUT WE HAVE TO START SOMEWHERE.
BECAUSE YOU AND I ARE JUST LIKE JOHN THE BAPTIST. WE ARE NOT THE LIGHT, WE ARE NOT THE MESSIAH, WE ARE NOT ELIJAH, AND WE ARE NOT THE PROPHET. BUT WHAT WE ARE HAS GREAT DIGNITY. JESUS SAID OF JOHN “AMEN, I SAY TO YOU, AMONG THOSE BORN OF WOMEN THERE HAS BEEN NONE GREATER THAN JOHN THE BAPTIST; YET THE LEAST IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS GREATER THAN HE.” AND OUR GREATNESS, LIKE JOHN'S, HAS TO DO WITH HOW WE PREPARE FOR THE COMING OF THE KING.

Second Sunday in Advent, Cycle B

MARK 1:1-8

BEFORE JOAN AND I GOT OLD AND STARTED HAVING THANKSGIVING DINNER WITH OUR DAUGHTER, WE WOULD PUT THE WHOLE FEAST ON OURSELVES, AND THERE WOULD USUALLY BE A LOT OF HUNGRY PEOPLE. I REMEMBER ONE TIME WE HAD ALL OUR KIDS, TOGETHER WITH THEIR COUSINS, AND THERE WAS A BOYFRIEND OR TWO IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY. OUR TRADITION FOR THANKSGIVING WAS TO GET UP EARLY AND GO TO MASS, BECAUSE AFTER ALL, THAT'S WHAT THE WORD “EUCHARIST” MEANS – GIVING THANKS – AND THEN WE WOULD HAVE A VERY LIGHT BREAKFAST. WE WOULD GO OUT AND RAKE LEAVES, OR BICYCLE SOMEWHERE, OR PLAY TOUCH FOOTBALL, OR TAKE A LONG, REALLY LONG, WALK. THE WHOLE IDEA WAS THAT WE WOULD APPROACH THANKSGIVING SUPPER WITH VERY HEARTY APPETITES, AND WITH REALLY GOOD APPETITES, WE WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE THAT SUPPER.

IF WE ARE HUNGRY, FOOD TASTES BETTER; IF WE ARE THIRSTY, A COLD GLASS OF WATER IS LIKE A FINE WINE. IF WE ARE TIRED FROM A HARD DAY'S WORK, OUR BED BECOMES A LUXURY. THE MORE WE ARE DEPRIVED OF SOMETHING, THE MORE WONDERFUL IT FEELS TO FINALLY GET IT. WE HUMAN BEINGS ARE PHYSICAL CREATURES; WE NOT ONLY HAVE BODIES, WE ARE BODIES, AND EVERYTHING WE DO, PHYSICAL, MENTAL, EMOTIONAL, SPIRITUAL, INVOLVES OUR BODIES, AND IN TURN OUR BODIES INFLUENCE EVERYTHING IN ALL OF THESE REALMS. OUR 2000 YEAR OLD CHURCH KNOWS THIS, AND THAT'S WHY WE HAVE THE VARIOUS SEASONS OF THE LITURGICAL YEAR. THE SEASON OF ADVENT IS THERE TO HELP US LONG FOR THE COMING OF OUR LORD.

LISTEN TO THE READINGS THIS SUNDAY. THEY ARE ALL ABOUT WAITING, WAITING FOR GOD TO COME AND FILL UP OUR EMPTINESS. IN THE FIRST READING, THE PROPHET IMAGINES WHAT IT WILL BE LIKE WHEN GOD FINALLY RETURNS TO RESCUE HIS PEOPLE; GOD WILL BE LIKE A SHEPHERD, NURTURING, GUARDING, AND GUIDING HIS PEOPLE. IN THE SECOND READING, PETER ADDRESSES HIS DISCOURAGED FLOCK; THEY ARE UNDERGOING PERSECUTION AND THE FUTURE LOOKS BLEAK; AND WHERE IS THIS SECOND COMING ANYWAY? PETER SAYS, KEEP WAITING; IMAGINE THAT TIME WHEN THERE WILL BE A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH, AND EVERYTHING YOU ARE GOING THROUGH WILL BE WORTH IT. AND JOHN IN THE GOSPEL PROMISES THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE COME OUT TO SEE HIM THAT THEIR WAIT IS NEARLY OVER, THE ONE THEY HAVE EXPECTED IS ALMOST HERE.

WAITING DOES TWO THINGS. OF COURSE IT MAKES WHAT WE ARE WAITING FOR MORE WONDERFUL, MORE FULFILLING, MORE DELIGHTFUL. THOSE FIRST DAYS OF SPRING AFTER A COLD SNOWY WINTER ARE ALMOST MAGICAL; BUT A WEEK LATER, NOT SO MUCH. AND IF WE HAD THAT TURKEY DINNER FIRST THING ON THANKSGIVING MORNING, IT PROBABLY WOULDN'T TASTE VERY GOOD. BUT WAITING MAKES US DESIRE THE OBJECT OF OUR WAITING, MORE AND MORE, THE LONGER WE WAIT. AND HERE'S ANOTHER THING. WAITING IS ACTIVE, NOT PASSIVE. IF SOMEONE TELLS ME THAT THERE WON'T BE A THANKSGIVING SUPPER THIS YEAR, I CAN'T WAIT FOR IT, CAN I? AND MY ATTENTION WILL TURN AWAY AND I'LL FORGET ABOUT IT.

ADVENT REMINDS US THAT WE ARE IN A STATE OF WAITING, BECAUSE WE FORGET IT SOMETIMES. WE STRUGGLE TO MAKE OUR ORDINARY LIVES AS PLEASANT AND COMFORTABLE AS THEY CAN BE, AND THAT DISTRACTS US FROM THE WAITING.

WOULDN'T IT BE WONDERFUL IF THERE WAS SOMETHING WE COULD DO TO SHORTEN OUR WAITING, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE ARE WAITING FOR SOMETHING WONDERFUL? IT APPEARS THAT WE CAN. PETER TELLS US THAT CONDUCTING OURSELVES WITH HOLINESS AND DEVOTION HASTENS THE COMING OF THE LORD.

IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN, YOU SHOULD SPEND A LITTLE TIME NOW AND THEN IMAGINING HOW THINGS WILL BE WHEN THE LORD COMES AGAIN. THERE ARE PLENTY OF HINTS IN SCRIPTURE, BUT THEY ARE VAGUE AND USUALLY SYMBOLIC. THE LORD WILL COME WITH TRUMPET BLASTS FROM THE SKY, ACCOMPANIED BY ANGELS; CROOKED WAYS WILL BE MADE STRAIGHT AND MOUNTAINS WILL BE LEVELED TO FILL IN THE VALLEYS; THE FAITHFUL WILL NEED NO LAMP OR SUN, BECAUSE GOD WILL BE THE LIGHT FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. BUT WHILE THESE IMAGES HINT AT WHAT IT MIGHT BE LIKE, MARY OUR MOTHER ASSURES US THAT THE PROUD WILL BE BROUGHT DOWN, THE LOWLY WILL BE ELEVATED; JESUS TELLS US THAT THE SORROWING WILL BE COMFORTED, THOSE WHO HUNGER FOR JUSTICE WILL FINALLY BE SATISFIED.

IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN, YOU SHOULD DEVELOP A CLEAR PICTURE OF HOW IT SHOULD BE, HOW IT WILL BE, WHEN JESUS COMES AGAIN. AND EVERY TIME YOU SEE SOMEONE IN PAIN, SOMEONE STARVING; WHENEVER YOU SEE PEOPLE BEING MARGINALIZED BECAUSE OF THEIR LANGUAGE OR THEIR COLOR OR THEIR PLACE OF ORIGIN; YOU SHOULD LONG TO HASTEN THE LORD'S COMING – AND YOU CAN DO IT BY DOING SOMETHING ABOUT WHAT YOU SEE.

IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN, THE MORE YOU IMAGINE THE COMING OF THE LORD, AND ALL THE WONDERFUL THINGS HE WILL BRING WITH HIM, THE MORE YOU WILL LONG FOR THAT TIME. AND IF YOU LONG FOR THE COMING OF THE LORD, IF YOUR WAITING IS ACTIVE WAITING, IF YOU ARE GOING ABOUT FILLING UP THE VALLEYS AND LEVELING THE MOUNTAINS AND MAKING CROOKED WAYS STRAIGHT, THE TIME OF WAITING WILL PASS SWIFTLY, AND YOU WILL BE READY WHEN HE COMES AGAIN.