Second Sunday in Lent, cycle B

MARK 9:2-10

IN NOVEMBER ANOTHER GRANDCHILD CAME INTO OUR FAMILY. I LOVE ALL MY GRANDCHILDREN, BUT THEY ALL LIVE SOMEWHERE ELSE. MY NEWEST GRANDDAUGHTER LIVES WITH ME FOR NOW. SINCE I AM RETIRED, I AM CALLED UPON TO HOLD HER WHILE HER MOTHER DOES OTHER THINGS, SO I AM GETTING TO KNOW HER PRETTY WELL.

NOW IF YOU WERE SOME ALIEN FROM ANOTHER PLANET AND STUDIED A THREE MONTH OLD BABY, YOU WOULD NOT BE IMPRESSED. THEY AREN'T PARTICULARLY USEFUL, THEY HAVE A VERY SHORT ATTENTION SPAN, THEY DROOL A GREAT DEAL AND SPIT UP CURDLED MILK. AND THE OTHER END IS EVEN WORSE. AND THEY ARE VERY HARD TO IGNORE WHEN THEY CRY, BECAUSE THE CRYING GETS LOUDER AND MORE VIOLENT THE LONGER YOU IGNORE THEM.

BUT IF YOU ARE A GRANDFATHER, OR A FATHER OR A MOTHER, THE MORE TIME YOU SPEND WITH THE BABY, THE MORE YOU BEGIN TO SEE THAT THERE IS SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL HERE, NOT JUST BECAUSE OF THE FUTURE, BUT RIGHT NOW. SURE, THERE ARE MOMENTS WHEN YOU WISH YOU COULD BE SOMEWHERE ELSE, BUT ALL IN ALL, IT'S HARD NOT TO APPRECIATE THE BEAUTY OF A BABY.

TODAY WE HEAR THE STORY OF THE TRANSFIGURATION. BEFORE THAT MOMENT, THE APOSTLES KNEW JESUS WAS SPECIAL. HE COULD, AFTER ALL, HEAL, AND HE DEMONSTRATED A REMARKABLE WISDOM IN HIS TEACHING. THEY CHOSE TO LEAVE THEIR HOMES AND THEIR OCCUPATIONS TO FOLLOW HIM. BUT THERE WERE OTHER CHARISMATIC TEACHERS IN THAT TIME; THERE WERE OTHER WANDERING WONDER-WORKERS IN PALESTINE, AND THERE HAD BEEN BOTH IN THE PAST AS WELL. ELIJAH HAD HEALED, RAISED THE DEAD, AND COMMANDED FIRE FROM THE SKY TO CONSUME A SACRIFICE, NOT ONLY THE SACRIFICE, BUT THE ALTAR ON WHICH IT HAD BEEN OFFERED. MOSES HAD NOT ONLY WORKED MIRACLES, BUT HAD TAUGHT; THE JEWISH NATION HAD PERSISTED FOR CENTURIES BASED UPON HIS TEACHINGS.

THEN JESUS IN A MOMENT ON THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN SHOWED HIS REAL SELF, SHOWED THAT HE WAS FAR MORE THAN A MIRACLE WORKER, A TEACHER, OR A LAW-GIVER. WHY DID HE DO THIS? SOME SAY IT WAS TO STRENGTHEN THE RESOLVE OF THE APOSTLES WHEN THEY WITNESSED THE CRUCIFIXION. I GUESS IF THAT WAS THE CASE, IT DIDN'T WORK; THEY ABANDONED HIM AND DIDN'T GET THEIR ACT TOGETHER UNTIL PENTECOST. SOME SAY IT WAS TO SHOW THAT HE WAS THE FULFILLMENT OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, REPRESENTED BY MOSES, THE LAWGIVER, AND ELIJAH, THE GREATEST PROPHET. I CAN BUY THAT, BUT THAT'S THEOLOGY, AND I SUSPECT THE THREE DISCIPLES, WHO PROBABLY KNEW A LOT ABOUT FISH, DIDN'T HAVE A THEOLOGICAL THOUGHT BETWEEN THEM. AND OF COURSE, SOME SAY IT WAS TO REVEAL TO THEM THAT JESUS WAS THE SON OF GOD. OF COURSE, AFTER HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD AND ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, THEY WOULD BE EVEN MORE CONVINCED.

BUT THE TRANSFIGURATION DID DO SOMETHING. FROM THAT MOMENT ON, THE APOSTLES LOOKED AT JESUS WITH NEW EYES, EVEN THOUGH HE APPEARED TO THEM THE SAME AS BEFORE. THE WORDS OF THE FATHER, THE APPEARANCE OF MOSES AND ELIJAH, THE CLOUD SETTLING ON THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN – WONDROUS AS THOSE WERE, THEY WOULD EVENTUALLY FADE FROM THE MIND. THAT'S THE WAY HUMAN BEINGS ARE. EVEN THE MOST POWERFUL EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCES BECOME PALE MEMORIES OVER TIME.

BUT EVERY TIME THEY LOOKED AT JESUS, THEY WOULD NOW REMEMBER THAT MOMENT ON THE MOUNTAIN WHEN THE JESUS WAS REVEALED AS HE REALLY IS; FOR PETER, JAMES, AND JOHN, THEY COULD NOT LOOK AT JESUS WITHOUT REMEMBERING.

SAINT MAXIMUS THE CONFESSOR, WHO LIVED IN THE SEVENTH CENTURY, WAS THE FIRST TO NOTE SOMETHING ELSE; THAT IN ORDER TO PERCEIVE THE GLORY OF CHRIST, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NECESSARY FOR THE SENSES OF THE APOSTLES TO BE CHANGED OR TRANSFIGURED, BECAUSE IT WAS WELL KNOWN THAT YOU COULD NOT LOOK UPON GOD AND LIVE.

THERE IS AN INNER GLORY IN EACH OF US, WHETHER YOU ARE A THREE MONTH OLD BABY OR JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF. WE ARE, AFTER ALL, ADOPTED SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF THE FATHER, AND BROTHERS AND SISTERS OF JESUS CHRIST. WE ARE DESIGNED TO SPEND ETERNITY IN THE PRESENCE OF THE CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE. WE HAVE A PRIVILEGE THAT NOT EVEN ANGELS CAN CLAIM – WE CAN EAT AND DRINK THE BODY AND BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST. AND JESUS HIMSELF HINTED THAT YOU AND I CAN HAVE TRANSFIGURED SENSES; WHAT WE DO FOR THE LEAST OF OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS, WE DO FOR JESUS. IT IS POSSIBLE TO SEE THE GLORY OF CHRIST IN OTHER PEOPLE, PERHAPS ESPECIALLY THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MOST DESTITUTE, MOST HEARTBROKEN, WHO ARE LIVING AT THE MARGINS.

I WONDER IF PETER, JAMES, AND JOHN THOUGHT BACK TO THAT MOMENT AND WISHED THEY COULD REVISIT IT, WISHED THAT IT HAD NEVER ENDED. I WONDER IF THEY LOOKED FORWARD TO THAT DAY WHEN THEY WOULD MOVE FROM HERE TO THEIR ETERNAL HOME AND ONCE MORE SEE THE GLORY OF GOD COMING FROM THEIR LORD. AND MAYBE THIS THOUGHT CONSOLED THEM AS THEY TURNED TO THOSE AROUND THEM, THOSE WHOM THEY SERVED, AND BECAUSE OF THAT MOMENT, THEY WOULD AGAIN SEE A FAINT SHADOW OF THE TRANSFIGURATION IN THEIR BROTHERS AND SISTERS; THAT WOULD HAVE TO DO FOR NOW.

THIS WEEK LET US ASK FOR THE TRANSFIGURATION OF OUR OWN SENSES, SO THAT WE CAN CATCH A GLIMPSE OF THE GLORY OF GOD IN OUR NEIGHBOR. WE MARRIED PEOPLE NEED TO SEE THAT ESPECIALLY IN OUR SPOUSES, WHO ARE OUR CLOSEST COMPANIONS AND WITH WHOM WE AT LEAST ONCE EXPERIENCED THE LOVE OF GOD FOR US. WE PARENTS NEED TO SEE THE GLORY OF GOD IN OUR CHILDREN, WHO ARE GIFTS FROM GOD TO US. ALL OF US IN THIS PARISH NEED TO SEE GOD'S GLORY IN EACH OTHER, BECAUSE THE ONLY THING WE ALL HAVE IN COMMON IS THE FACT THAT WE ARE FRIENDS AND COMPANIONS OF JESUS.

AND LET US NOT HESITATE TO REVEAL THE GLORY OF GOD WHICH IS IN US, TO EACH OTHER THROUGH OUR WORDS, THROUGH OUR ACTIONS. THE TRANSFIGURATION REMINDS US THAT THERE IS FAR MORE TO EACH OF US THAN WHAT WE SEE WITH OUR MORTAL EYES. LET US PRAYER FOR TRANSFIGURED SENSES SO THAT THIS WILL BE APPARENT TO US ALL THE TIME.

First Sunday of Lent, Cycle B

MARK 1:12-15

WHEN I WAS GROWING UP IN MONTANA, MY COUSINS WENT TO A SMALL WOODEN CHURCH IN THE TINY TOWN OF EAST HELENA DEDICATED TO SAINTS CYRIL AND METHODIUS. I ONLY KNEW VAGUELY THAT THEY WERE BROTHERS WHO WERE MISSIONARIES. I WAS REMINDED OF THEM ON VALENTINE'S DAY THIS MONTH, WHEN, CONTRARY TO WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT, WE CELEBRATED THEIR FEAST DAY RATHER THAN THE FEAST OF SAINT VALENTINE. I DON'T HAVE A GOOD EXPLANATION FOR THIS, BUT I'M SURE YOU CAN ASK FATHER AFTER MASS.

BOTH BROTHERS ARE WORTH STUDYING, BUT I'M GOING TO CONCENTRATE ON SAINT CYRIL. HE WAS THE OLDER BROTHER, AND STARTED HIS CAREER AS A LAYMAN, WORKING FOR THE BYZANTINE EMPEROR. HIS GIVEN NAME WAS CONSTANTINE. THE EMPIRE WAS THREATENED BY ISLAM AND THERE WERE CONFLICTS WITH JEWISH COMMUNITIES; CYRIL, IN ORDER TO ADDRESS SOME OF THESE PROBLEMS, STUDIED THEOLOGY, AND LEARNED ARABIC AND HEBREW. HE WROTE SEVERAL TRACTS DEMONSTRATING WHY CHRISTIANITY WAS SUPERIOR TO ISLAM AND JUDAISM. EVENTUALLY THE EMPEROR PREVAILED UPON HIM AND HIS BROTHER, WHO WAS A PRIEST, TO CONVERT THE SLAVIC PEOPLE, WHO WERE PAGANS, BUT ALSO, WHO WERE BEING ACTIVELY PROSELYTIZED BY MISSIONARIES FROM GERMANY, WHO REPRESENTED THE POPE. THE EASTERN AND WESTERN CHURCH HAD NOT SPLIT AT THAT TIME, BUT THERE WAS INTENSE RIVALRY. CYRIL WITH HIS BROTHER MANAGED TO CREATE THE SLAVONIC LITURGY AND DESIGNED AN ALPHABET FOR THE SLAVIC LANGUAGES. CYRIL WON THE APPROVAL OF THE POPE FOR HIS EFFORTS, LEGITIMIZING THE SLAVONIC LITURGY IN THE EYES OF ROME. HE DIED AT ABOUT THE AGE 50, AND ONLY A FEW DAYS BEFORE HE DIED, HE BECAME A MONK, TAKING THE NAME CYRIL.

CYRIL WAS A VERY SUCCESSFUL BUREAUCRAT, AND MIGHT HAVE SPENT HIS LIFE ADVANCING IN THE COURT OF THE EMPEROR. BUT HE LEFT THIS LIFE FOR A LIFE OF STRUGGLE AND SOME DEGREE OF PERSECUTION AND BEING MISUNDERSTOOD. HE DIED BEFORE SEEING HIS EFFORTS REACH COMPLETION; HIS BROTHER METHODIUS LIVED LONG ENOUGH TO SEE THEIR EFFORTS SUCCEED.

CYRIL ILLUSTRATES SOMETHING ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A CHRISTIAN. I WAS REMINDED OF THAT BY THE GOSPEL TODAY. YOU WILL NOTICE THAT JESUS WAS “DRIVEN” BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. CYRIL WAS DRIVEN, AS WELL, AS WERE ALL OF THE SAINTS. A CHRISTIAN IS SOMEONE WHO SUBMITS TO BEING DRIVEN BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. AND OFTEN THAT MEANS GOING WHERE YOU DON'T WANT TO GO, DOING THINGS YOU DON'T WANT TO DO.

A CHRISTIAN, BY VIRTUE OF HER BAPTISM AND CONFIRMATION, BECOMES THE HANDS AND FEET AND VOICE OF CHRIST, AND BECOMES, IN THE WORDS WE USED TO USE WHEN I WAS YOUNG, A TEMPLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.

THE SACRAMENTS GIVE US THE GRACE TO DO WHAT CYRIL DID, WHAT ANY OF THE SAINTS DID – THE GRACE TO DO WHAT WE DON'T WANT TO DO. BUT LIKE ALL GRACES, THEY DON'T WORK IN A VACUUM. FOR GRACE TO WORK, THE ONE RECEIVING THE GRACE HAS TO COOPERATE. GRACES CAN BE GIVEN, BUT IGNORED.

WE HUMAN BEINGS ARE ALWAYS CAUGHT BETWEEN THE VOICE OF THE SERPENT AND THE VOICE OF GOD. GIVEN ANY DECISION, THERE IS THE ONE THAT ANSWERS THE DESIRES OF MY ANIMAL NATURE, AND THE ONE THAT HELPS BRING GOD'S KINGDOM CLOSER. MOST OF THE TIME, OUR DECISIONS DON'T SEEM TO BE VERY MOMENTOUS, AND IN THE COURSE OF A DAY, WE MAY MAKE SOME DECISIONS OUT OF SELFISHNESS AND SOME BECAUSE WE ARE SENSITIVE TO THE HOLY SPIRIT. BUT WE MAKE THESE DECISIONS ON THE EDGE OF OUR CONSCIOUSNESS; NO WONDER WE DON'T SEE MUCH CHANGE AS TIME GOES ON.

AND THAT IS WHERE LENT COMES IN. DURING LENT, OUR GOAL SHOULD BE TO BECOME MORE SENSITIVE TO THE MOVEMENTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. IN ORDER TO TO DO THIS, WE HAVE TO BECOME MORE CONSCIOUS OF THOSE DECISIONS WHICH STEM FROM OUR ANIMAL NATURE, THOSE DECISIONS THAT STEM FROM OUR SELFISHNESS. AND THAT IS WHY WE FAST AND ABSTAIN. IN THE OLDEN DAYS, WE WERE AWARE OF THIS EVERY DAY OF LENT; WE FASTED SIX OUT OF SEVEN DAYS. IT CERTAINLY DIDN'T KILL US, AND SOME OF US LOST A LITTLE WEIGHT, WHICH IS ALWAYS GOOD; BUT IN THE PROCESS OF CONSCIOUSLY NOT EATING AN AVAILABLE PIECE OF CHOCOLATE, OR NOT INDULGING ON THAT NICE MARTINI AT THE END OF THE WORK DAY, WE REMEMBERED THAT WE WERE ABLE TO RESIST TEMPTATION AND GROW IN GRACE. IT'S A GOOD THING, OF COURSE, TO DO SOMETHING POSITIVE DURING LENT, AND SOMETIMES IT HAS A SIMILAR EFFECT; BUT I THINK IT'S EASIER TO ADD SOMETHING TO OUR DAY THEN IT IS TO TAKE SOMETHING THAT IS ALMOST A PART OF US AND PUT IT ASIDE, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT IS SOMETHING THAT REALLY HURTS TO GIVE UP. THAT IS WHAT FASTING MEANS – NOT TURNING INTO SKIN AND BONES, BUT GIVING UP, JUST FOR A TIME, SOMETHING THAT HAS TO DO WITH OUR SELFISH SIDE, OUR ANIMAL NATURE.

REMEMBER, OUR GOAL IS TO BECOME SENSITIVE TO THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND WE CAN BEGIN TO DO THIS BY CONSCIOUSLY MAKING A DENT IN OUR SELFISHNESS, OUR SELF-CENTEREDNESS. AND IN THOSE MOMENTS WHEN WE FEEL THE ACHE IN OUR LIVES BECAUSE WE ARE FASTING, WE CAN HEAR THE VOICE OF THE SPIRIT, AND BECOME MORE FAMILIAR WITH HIM.

IT SEEMS LIKE A LITTLE THING, TO GIVE SOMETHING UP FOR LENT. BUT REMEMBER THAT OUR GOAL IS TO OPEN OUR LIVES UP TO THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND ALLOW HIM TO “DRIVE” US, AS HE DROVE JESUS, AS HE DRIVES THE SAINTS. AND ONCE WE ALLOW THIS, WE WILL BEGIN TO SEE THOSE MOMENTS IN OUR LIVES WHEN THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR JESUS TO ACT THROUGH US, AND WHEN HE DOES, IT WILL BECOME POSSIBLE FOR US TO DO MORE, AND AS WE YIELD TO THE SPIRIT, WE MIGHT FIND OURSELVES DOING GREAT THINGS FOR GOD, FULFILLING OUR CALLING AS CHRISTIANS.

SO LET US RESOLVE TO MAKE THIS LENT DIFFERENT, AND PRAY FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT; BUT ALSO FAST FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND REACH OUT TO THOSE WHO NEED US FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT. AND MAY THE HOLY SPIRIT DRIVE US WHERE WE DON'T WANT TO GO, AND MOVE US TO DO WHAT WE DON'T WANT TO DO.

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B

MARK 2:1-12

WHEN I LISTEN TO THIS GOSPEL, I HAVE AN ODD REACTION. HAVE YOU EVER MOVED A PARALYZED PERSON AROUND? I HAVE. IT'S VERY DIFFICULT. THEY ARE DEAD WEIGHT. HERE FOUR MEN HAVE STRUGGLED TO GET THEIR FRIEND UP ON THE ROOF OF THE HOUSE IN WHICH JESUS IS TEACHING AND HEALING. THEY HAVE REMOVED A PORTION OF THE ROOF, AND THEN VERY CAREFULLY LOWERED THEIR FRIEND DOWN IN FRONT OF JESUS. THE GOSPEL TELLS US THAT JESUS SAW THEIR FAITH. NOW WE KNOW THAT IN OTHER STORIES ABOUT JESUS' MIRACLES, THAT'S IMPORTANT. HE TELLS A WOMAN THAT HER FAITH HAS SAVED HER. HE COMMENTS ON THE LACK OF FAITH WHEN HE IS HAVING PROBLEMS WORKING MIRACLES IN HIS HOME TOWN. FAITH SEEMS TO BE IMPORTANT FOR JESUS IF MIRACLES ARE TO HAPPEN. SO WHEN JESUS SEES THE FAITH OF THE FRIENDS OF THE PARALYZED MAN, WE WOULD CERTAINLY EXPECT THAT THE NEXT THING TO HAPPEN WOULD BE A MIRACLE.

WHEN JESUS SAYS, “CHILD, YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN.” I AM A LITTLE DISAPPOINTED. OF COURSE JESUS GOES ON TO MAKE IT RIGHT AND REALLY DOES HEAL THE MAN, SO IT ALL TURNS OUT WELL IN THE END. BUT THINK FOR A MINUTE ABOUT MY ASSUMPTIONS. FORGIVING SINS IS NO BIG DEAL; HEALING A PARALYTIC IS.

I THINK THE SCRIBES WERE PROBABLY SMARTER THAN I AM AT THIS POINT, BECAUSE THEY REACTED WITH SHOCK AND ALARM WHEN JESUS SAID “YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN.”

DURING THE TIME JESUS WALKED THE EARTH, EVERYONE KNEW THAT HEALINGS TOOK PLACE THROUGH MIRACULOUS INTERVENTION. THEY WERE WRITTEN ABOUT IN THE SCRIPTURES, AND IT WAS COMMON FOR PEOPLE TO SEEK OUT HOLY MEN AND WOMEN, NOT JUST AMONG THE JEWS BUT EVEN AMONG THE PAGANS. AND SOMETIMES HEALING TOOK PLACE. TODAY WE MIGHT HAVE A SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION FOR IT, BUT THIS KIND OF THINKING WASN'T HAPPENING THEN, AND IF YOU SOUGHT THE INTERVENTION OF GOD OR A REPRESENTATIVE OF GOD, AND YOU WERE HEALED, CAUSE AND EFFECT WAS OBVIOUS. SOMETIMES JESUS' OPPONENTS ATTRIBUTED HIS HEALING TO DEMONIC FORCES; AND ONCE AT LEAST THEY TRIED TO CONVINCE THE MAN BLIND FROM BIRTH THAT JESUS DIDN'T REALLY HEAL HIM, BUT MOST OF THE TIME, NO ONE QUESTIONS THAT JESUS COULD HEAL.

BUT THAT SOMEONE COULD FORGIVE SINS – THAT WAS BLASPHEMY. A SIN WAS AN OFFENSE AGAINST GOD, AND ONLY GOD COULD FORGIVE SOMEONE WHO OFFENDED HIM. THE JEWS SPENT A LOT OF MONEY AND TIME AND EFFORT HOPING TO PERSUADE GOD TO FORGIVE THEIR SINS. ON YOM KIPPUR, ONE GOAT WAS OFFERED TO GOD AND THE OTHER SENT INTO THE DESERT SYMBOLICALLY CARRYING THE SINS OF THE PEOPLE. EVERY DAY IN THE TEMPLE, A LAMB WAS SACRIFICED IN THE MORNING AND ANOTHER IN THE EVENING FOR THE SINS OF ISRAEL; AND PEOPLE PAID FOR PRIVATE SACRIFICES AS WELL. AND DESPITE THIS, ALL REMEMBERED HOW GOD HAD REJECTED THE SACRIFICE OF CAIN FOR REASONS WHICH NO ONE KNEW; AND THEY KNEW THE SCRIPTURE THAT SAID, “GOD LOVED ISAAC AND HATED EASAU”. WHO COULD TELL IF GOD EVER FORGAVE SINS?

BUT THIS IS WHAT JESUS SAW. THE PARALYTIC WAS PARALYZED BECAUSE OF SIN. IT WASN'T PERSONAL SIN; BUT EVEN NOW, EVERY TIME YOU SEE SOMEONE WHO IS BROKEN DOWN BY OLD AGE, WHO IS WEARING A CASTE, WHO HAS TO HAVE A HEARING AID OR EYEGLASSES TO USE THOSE SENSES; ANYTIME YOU SEE A HUMAN BEING WHOSE BODY OR MIND COULD USE SOME TUNING UP BY GOD, YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE CONSEQUENCES OF SIN. WE ARE ALL SINNERS; WE ALL SHARE IN THE SIN OF OUR FIRST PARENTS, AND EVEN IF WE HAVE HARDLY EVER COMMITTED ANY KIND OF SERIOUS SIN, WE SHARE IN THE SOCIETAL SINS – AS SOMEONE ONCE SAID, IF YOU HAVE TWO SETS OF CLOTHING AND SOMEONE ELSE HAS NONE, THAT PERSON OWNS THAT SECOND SET. WE ARE ALL DESPERATELY IN NEED OF FORGIVENESS.

AND THE REAL MIRACLE IS THAT WE CAN RECEIVE FORGIVENESS AND KNOW WE ARE FORGIVEN. THAT'S THE MIRACLE OF THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE.

JOHN PAUL II TELLS US THAT THE BODY IS A SACRAMENT OF THE SELF. THAT MEANS THAT THE BODY REVEALS THE SELF BEHIND IT, WHAT WE MIGHT CALL THE SOUL. AND ACTIONS BY THE BODY, AND ACTIONS DONE TO THE BODY, AFFECT THE SELF. THESE BODIES WE HAVE NOW WE WILL HAVE FOREVER, BECAUSE WE ARE MADE TO BE EMBODIED SPIRITS. SO WHEN THE SCRIBES RECOIL IN HORROR AS JESUS CLAIMS THE POWER TO FORGIVE SIN, JESUS SHOWS THEM THAT HE HAS THE POWER BY DOING TO THE BODY WHAT HE HAS JUST DONE TO THE SOUL – THE SOUL HAS BEEN FREED OF PARALYSIS, NOW THE BODY WILL BE AS WELL.

JESUS LEAVES US WITH ACCESS TO REAL MIRACLES THROUGH THE SACRAMENTS. BUT THEY ARE MIRACLES THAT AFFECT OURSELVES. LAZARUS WAS RAISED FROM THE DEAD, BUT HE STILL GREW OLD AND DIED. NONE OF THE MIRACLES OF HEALING THAT JESUS PERFORMED WHEN HE WAS WALKING THE EARTH, OR EVEN THAT HE PERFORMS TODAY THROUGH HIS MOTHER AND THE SAINTS, IS A LASTING MIRACLE, ONLY A SIGN THAT MIRACLES ARE POSSIBLE. THE REAL MIRACLES ARE THOSE THAT AFFECT THE TRUE SELF, MIRACLES OF FORGIVENESS, AS IN PENANCE; MIRACLES OF BECOMING ONE WITH CHRIST, AS IN THE EUCHARIST, THE MIRACLE OF BECOMING A SON OR DAUGHTER OF GOD, THROUGH BAPTISM; AND YOU CAN FILL IN THE BLANKS FOR THE OTHER SACRAMENTS. JESUS LEFT US THE IMPORTANT MIRACLES, AND IT IS A TERRIBLE FAILURE OF IMAGINATION AND INDEED, OF OUR UNDERSTANDING OF REALITY, THAT WE FEEL A LITTLE DISAPPOINTED WHEN JESUS TELLS THE PARALYZED MAN “YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN.” AND WE WAIT ANXIOUSLY FOR THE SUPPOSED “REAL” MIRACLE TO COME.

AS WE BEGIN TO ENTER THE LENTEN SEASON, LET US MAKE AN EFFORT TO SEE REALITY MORE CLEARLY. LET US APPRECIATE AND REVEL IN THE FACT THAT WE CAN BE FORGIVEN IF WE WANT TO BE; THAT WE CAN BE ONE WITH JESUS IF WE WANT; AND THAT THESE MIRACLES ARE FAR GREATER THAN A MERE HEALING, OR EVEN BEING RAISED FROM THE DEAD. OUR TRUE GOAL, OUR TRUE HOME, IS TO BE GATHERED INTO THE TRINITY, WHERE WE WILL EXPERIENCE LIFE SUCH THAT WHAT WE HAVE NOW WILL BE NOTHING BUT A SHADOW. AND GOD DID EVERYTHING HE COULD TO MAKE THIS A SURE THING IF WE WANT IT. AND THE ONLY THING THAT KEEPS US FROM THAT GOAL IS OUR OWN SELVES. WE WOULD RATHER BE HEALED FROM PARALYSIS THAN HAVE OUR SINS FORGIVEN. OTHERWISE, OUR CONFESSIONALS WOULD BE OCCUPIED DAY AND NIGHT, AND OUR PRIESTS WOULD HAVE TIME FOR NOTHING ELSE.

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

MARK 1:40-45

LAST WEEK ONE OF YOU ASKED ME WHY JESUS WAS ALWAYS TELLING PEOPLE NOT TO SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE MIRACLES HE WAS PERFORMING. AND TODAY YOU HEARD IT AGAIN, WHEN HE COMMANDS THE LEPER NOT TO TELL ANYONE HOW HIS CURE HAPPENED. EVEN THOUGH JESUS TELLS PEOPLE NOT TO SAY ANYTHING, THEY OFTEN DO: THE LEPER SPREAD THE NEWS FAR AND WIDE. AND THIS IS THE YEAR THAT WE HEAR JESUS MAKING THIS STRANGE REQUEST, BECAUSE IN THE OTHER GOSPELS WE DON'T HEAR JESUS DOING THIS.

BIBLE SCHOLARS HAVE A TERM FOR THIS, CALLED THE “MESSIANIC SECRET”. AND THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF SPECULATION AS TO WHY IT APPEARS IN MARK'S GOSPEL. SOME HAVE SAID THAT JESUS DID NOT WANT PEOPLE TO THINK HE WAS THE MESSIAH ALONG THE LINES THAT THEY EXPECTED, BECAUSE THAT WOULD GET THE ROMANS RILED UP AND PUT AN END TO HIS MINISTRY. OTHERS SAY THAT JESUS DID WANT PEOPLE TO TELL OTHER PEOPLE ABOUT HIM, AND THE BEST WAY TO DO IT WOULD BE TO FORBID IT. BUT IN MARK WE FIND THAT SHORTLY AFTER HE STARTS HIS MINISTRY, HE NO LONGER CAN GO INTO THE CITIES BECAUSE HE HAS BECOME SO FAMOUS, AND THERE ARE SO MANY DEMANDING TO BE HEALED, THAT HE WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO DO WHAT HE CAME FOR, WHICH WAS PRIMARILY PROCLAIMING THE KINGDOM OF GOD. SO IF JESUS WAS TRYING TO KEEP PEOPLE FROM NOTICING HIM IT DIDN'T WORK VERY WELL.

GENERALLY WHEN YOU HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SOMETHING IN THE BIBLE, IT HELPS TO KNOW SOMETHING ABOUT THE AUDIENCE FOR A PARTICULAR WRITING. EVERYTHING IN THE NEW TESTAMENT (AND THE OLD) WAS WRITTEN FOR SOME PURPOSE, AND WRITTEN FOR SOME SPECIFIC AUDIENCE. PEOPLE THINK MATTHEW, FOR EXAMPLE, WAS WRITTEN TO SHORE UP THE FAITH OF NEW JEWISH CONVERTS, BY SHOWING THAT JESUS FULFILLED THE PROPHECIES OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. LUKE WAS WRITTEN FOR CERTAIN GENTILE CONVERTS WHO DID NOT KNOW MUCH ABOUT JEWISH TRADITIONS. THE WHOLE STORY OF THE ANGELS AND THE SHEPHERDS AT THE BIRTH OF CHRIST, AND THE STORY OF THE ANNUNCIATION, WOULD REMIND GENTILE READERS OF THE LEGENDS THAT SURROUNDED THE BIRTH OF AN EMPEROR, OR POSSIBLY ONE OF THOSE LESSER GODS AMONG THEIR HUGE NUMBER OF GODS. MOST PEOPLE THINK MARK IS BEING WRITTEN WITH THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY IN ROME IN MIND THE GOSPEL WAS WRITTEN SHORTLY AFTER THE REIGN OF NERO, WHO HAD LAUNCHED ONE OF THE MOST SEVERE PERSECUTIONS UP TO THAT POINT. THE REMAINING CHRISTIANS IN AND AROUND ROME MUST HAVE BEEN WONDERING WHAT KIND OF TERRIBLE CHOICE THEY HAD MADE WHEN THEY BECAME CHRISTIAN.

ALL THROUGH THE FIRST PART OF MARK, JESUS TELLS PEOPLE TO SAY NOTHING ABOUT WHAT THEY HAVE WITNESSED. AND AT THE CENTRAL POINT IN THE STORY, WHEN JESUS ASKS HIS APOSTLES, “WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?” PETER BLURTS OUT, “YOU ARE THE MESSIAH OF GOD”. AND HERE AGAIN, JESUS TELLS THEM TO SAY NOTHING. BUT HE NOW GIVES A REASON: “THE SON OF MAN MUST SUFFER MANY THINGS AND BE REJECTED BY THE ELDERS AND BE KILLED AND AFTER THREE DAYS RISE AGAIN.” THE KIND OF MESSIAH JESUS WAS WAS NOTHING LIKE ANY OF THE IMAGES IN THE MINDS OF THE APOSTLES, OR FOR THAT MATTER, AMONG THE JEWS IN GENERAL. THEY ALL EXPECTED A GREAT KING, OR A HIGH PRIEST, OR A PROPHET LIKE THE ONES OF ANCIENT TIMES – OR PERHAPS ALL THREE ROLLED INTO ONE. BUT THE SECRET KNOWLEDGE OF THE CHRISTIAN IN ROME WAS THAT THE MESSIAH WAS VERY MUCH LIKE THEY WERE; A PERSON WHO WAS MISUNDERSTOOD, PERSECUTED, PUT TO DEATH – BUT ROSE FROM THE DEAD AND PROMISED THAT HIS FOLLOWERS WOULD RISE WITH HIM. AND THAT WAS A WONDERFULLY CONSOLING MESSAGE TO THOSE WHO HEARD MARK'S GOSPEL. IT WAS REVOLUTIONARY, INSISTING THAT CONTRARY TO ANY RATIONAL EXPECTATION, SUFFERING COULD BE TRANSFORMED; DEATH COULD BE MADE INTO LIFE.

IN TODAY'S GOSPEL JESUS HEALS A LEPER. THE LEPER ALMOST DARES JESUS TO HEAL HIM, AND JESUS TAKES UP THAT DARE. BUT UNEXPECTEDLY HE DOES SOMETHING SHOCKING. HE TOUCHES THE LEPER. IT IS AS THOUGH A CONNECTION HAD TO BE MADE FOR THE HEALING TO TAKE PLACE; A BRIDGE SO THAT THE LEPROSY WOULD LEAVE THE MAN – AND SOMEHOW BE TAKEN UP BY JESUS. IN THE GOSPEL OF MARK, MOST OF THE MIRACLES JESUS PERFORMS DO INVOLVE TOUCH OR SOME SORT OF CONTACT, REINFORCING THIS IDEA THAT HE TAKES ON OUR BURDENS. AND IN TELLING THESE STORIES ABOUT JESUS, AND IN THE IDEA OF THE MESSIANIC SECRET, MARK IS TELLING US AND HIS OWN AUDIENCE SOMETHING ABOUT GOD, SOMETHING ALSO TOTALLY UNEXPECTED, OUTSIDE EVERYTHING THEY HAD EVER THOUGHT ABOUT GOD.

THE WAY GOD IS, MARK IS SAYING, IS NOT AS A GREAT KING, NOT AS SOMEONE WHO SITS IN HIS HEAVEN GRANTING FAVORS AND DEALING OUT PUNISHMENT. FROM THE EARLIEST DAYS OF HUMANKIND, THAT WAS THE WAY THE GODS WERE SEEN. THEY WERE TYRANTS WHO HAD TO BE PLACATED BY SACRIFICES AND OFFERINGS; THEY HAD NO MORALITY, AND WHY THEY DID THINGS WAS NEVER PREDICTABLE. BUT THE GOD OF CHRISTIANS, EMBODIED IN THE MESSIAH JESUS, IS A GOD WHO SUFFERS WITH US, WHO TAKES ON OUR BURDENS; WHO UNDERGOES DEATH, WHO LITERALLY GIVES EVERYTHING HE POSSIBLY CAN FOR THE SAKE OF THE WHOLE WORLD. AND SOMEHOW, THIS IS TRANSFORMED INTO LIFE ETERNAL. TO THE ROMAN CHRISTIAN IN MARK'S TIME, HIDING FROM THE AUTHORITIES, SEEING HIS FRIENDS AND FAMILY MEMBERS THROWN TO THE LIONS, OR BEING LIT ON FIRE TO LIGHT THE STREETS OF ROME, THIS WAS THE ONLY POSSIBLE REASON FOR REMAINING A FOLLOWER OF CHRIST.

YOU AND I STILL HAVE THAT PAGAN TENDENCY TO THINK OF GOD AS THE ONE WHO FIXES THINGS, THE ONE WHO RULES OVER US, THE ONE WHO GETS SOME SORT OF PLEASURE FROM OUR PRAYERS AND SACRIFICES. OLD HABITS DIE HARD, AND IT TOOK A LONG TIME FOR GOD, WORKING FIRST THROUGH THE JEWISH PEOPLE AND THEN THROUGH JESUS AND NOW THROUGH HIS CHURCH, TO CONVINCE US OTHERWISE. BUT DEEP IN EVERYONE'S HEART IS THAT QUESTION, “WHY DO BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE?” WHY DO WONDERFUL PEOPLE SUFFER SO MUCH? WHY DO I HAVE TO SUFFER, WHEN GOD COULD FIX THINGS WITH A WAVE OF HIS HAND? AND PERHAPS THERE IS NO PERFECT ANSWER TO THESE QUESTIONS. BUT THE MESSIANIC SECRET, THE FACT THAT THE MESSIAH OF GOD MUST SUFFER MANY THINGS, AND BE PUT TO DEATH, IS AN ANSWER WE CAN LIVE WITH.

AND WE ARE LEFT WITH THE SAME CONSOLATION THAT THOSE ROMAN CHRISTIANS SO LONG AGO HAD – THERE WILL BE RESURRECTION, THERE WILL BE TRIUMPH, EVEN OVER DEATH BECAUSE OF THIS MESSIAH.

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

MARK 1:29-39

ONCE A FATHER TOOK HIS YOUNG SON TO MCDONALDS. AS THEY SAT DOWN WITH A BIG MAC AND A HAPPY MEAL, THE FATHER SUGGESTED A SILENT PRAYER BEFORE THEY ATE. THEY BOWED THEIR HEADS. SHORTLY AFTER, THE FATHER LOOKED UP. THE SON CONTINUED WITH HIS HEAD BOWED AND HIS EYES CLOSED. FINALLY AFTER A COUPLE OF MINUTES, HE LOOKED UP AND DUG INTO HIS LUNCH. “THAT WAS A VERY LONG PRAYER,” SAID THE FATHER. “WHAT WERE YOU PRAYING FOR?” “HOW SHOULD I KNOW,” REPLIED THE BOY. “IT WAS A SILENT PRAYER.”

WHEN YOU READ THE GOSPEL OF MARK OUT LOUD, YOU ARE AWARE OF HOW THINGS ARE RUSHING ALONG FOR JESUS. LAST WEEK, HE CAME TO CAPARNUM, ENTERED THE SYNAGOGUE, TAUGHT, AND CURED A MAN WITH A DEMON. THIS WEEK, REALLY THE NEXT MORNING IN HIS TIME, HE MOVES ON TO PETER'S HOUSE, CURES HIS MOTHER IN LAW, AND THEN CONTINUES TO TEACH AND HEAL AND DRIVE OUT DEMONS; MARK MAKES IT CLEAR THAT THIS WENT ON PAST SUNSET. IT HAD BEEN A LONG DAY FOR JESUS, PROBABLY A TYPICAL DAY; AND HE AND THE APOSTLES MUST HAVE FALLEN ASLEEP THE MINUTE THEIR HEADS HIT THEIR PILLOWS. BUT THE NEXT MORNING JESUS IS MISSING, AND THE APOSTLES FINALLY FIND HIM IN PRAYER IN A QUIET PLACE.

WE'VE ALL SEEN PICTURES OF JESUS AT PRAYER. HE IS KNEELING, LOOKING UP TO HEAVEN, RESTING HIS ARMS ON A LARGE BOULDER, AND THERE IS A LIGHT SHINING ON HIS FACE. JEWS DIDN'T PRAY THAT WAY, AND I DOUBT JESUS DID EITHER. I IMAGINE THE APOSTLES FOUND HIM SITTING QUIETLY, EYES CLOSED, LOOKING LIKE HE WAS RESTING. IT WAS A SILENT PRAYER. IT WAS SILENT BECAUSE THERE WERE NO WORDS. JESUS HAD EMPTIED HIMSELF OUT AND NOW WAS RECHARGING HIS BATTERIES; HE WAS OPENING HIS MIND AND HEART TO GOD. AND IT IS NO SMALL THING THAT MARK MAKES IT CLEAR THAT THIS IS HAPPENING IN THE EARLY MORNING, BEFORE THE DAY'S DEMANDS START.

I'M SURE YOU ALL KNOW THAT THIS IS ONLY ONE OF THE TIMES THAT JESUS GOES OFF TO PRAY. WHEN I WAS LITTLE, I USED TO WONDER WHY JESUS PRAYED AT ALL. AFTER ALL, IF YOU ARE GOD, WHO DO YOU PRAY TO? IT DIDN'T MAKE SENSE. I REMEMBER ASKING ONE OF THE SISTERS WHO TAUGHT ME THAT VERY QUESTION. SHE SAID IT WAS TO GIVE US AN EXAMPLE. THAT DIDN'T MAKE SENSE TO ME THEN, AND IT DOESN'T NOW. IF JESUS DID THINGS HE DIDN'T HAVE TO SO WE WOULD HAVE A GOOD EXAMPLE, THERE IS SOMETHING KIND OF DISHONEST ABOUT THAT. BUT I THINK JESUS NEEDED TO PRAY. SO WHAT WAS HIS PRAYER ABOUT? HE WASN'T ASKING FOR ANYTHING, BECAUSE HE HAD JUST GONE THROUGH A DAY WORKING MIRACLES. HE WASN'T REQUESTING FORGIVENESS, BECAUSE HE WAS SINLESS. WAS HE THANKING GOD OR ADORING GOD? BUT HE WAS GOD. PETITION, FORGIVENESS, THANKSGIVING, ADORATION – THESE WERE THE SO CALLED FOUR KINDS OF PRAYER THAT WE WERE TAUGHT ABOUT WHEN WE WERE CHILDREN.

BUT I THINK THERE IS MORE GOING ON HERE. JESUS PRAYER IS A SILENT PRAYER. HE IS NOT APPROACHING HIS PRAYER FOR ANY OF THOSE REASONS. HE IS ENTERING INTO PRAYER TO LISTEN, TO COME INTO BALANCE, TO MAKE SURE THAT IN HIS ACTIVE MINISTRY HE IS DOING WHAT THE FATHER WANTS HIM TO DO, NOT WHAT HE THINKS SHOULD BE DONE.

JESUS WAS A VERY BUSY MAN. THE GOSPEL OF MARK MAKES THIS CLEAR. HE WAS IN DEMAND; PEOPLE SOUGHT HIM OUT, AND AS HIS FAME SPREAD, THE DEMANDS ON HIS TIME BECAME GREATER AND GREATER. FROM DAWN TILL AFTER NIGHTFALL, HE WAS HEALING, TRYING TO TEACH, DRIVING OUT DEMONS – AND WHEN HE WASN'T DOING THOSE THINGS, HE WAS ON THE ROAD, TRAVELING FROM ONE TOWN TO ANOTHER, ONLY TO DO MORE OF THE SAME.

I WAS TALKING WITH ONE OF OUR OLDER PARISHIONERS A WHILE AGO. HE'S BEEN RETIRED FOR SEVERAL YEARS. HE MADE NOTE OF THE FACT THAT HE HAS SO MUCH TO DO AND COULDN'T SEEM TO GET AROUND TO IT ALL. BEING OLD MYSELF, I SYMPATHIZED AND SUGGESTED THAT WE JUST COULDN'T DO AS MUCH AS WE WOULD LIKE WHEN WE WERE YOUNGER. HE REPLIED THAT THAT WASN'T THE CASE AT ALL; HE JUST HAD SO MANY PROJECTS GOING ON THAT HE COULDN'T GET TO THEM ALL; HE DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH TIME.

OUR WORLD IS A TIME OF GREAT BUSYNESS. I CAN REMEMBER WHEN I WAS A YOUNG DOCTOR. I THOUGHT I WAS BUSY THEN. BUT I REMEMBER TRIPS TO THE LIBRARY TO READ UP ON SOME DISEASE. THERE WERE CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER DOCTORS IN THE HALLWAYS OF THE HOSPITAL, AND I'D USUALLY LEARN SOMETHING. WE HAD MEETINGS ABOUT PATIENTS, WE HAD SEMINARS AND GRAND ROUNDS. OUR DAYS WERE BUSY BUT WE WOULD GO FROM ACTION TO REFLECTION, BACK AND FOURTH. NOWADAYS, THERE IS LESS AND LESS DOWN TIME. A PHYSICIAN'S WORTH IS JUDGED BY HOW MANY PATIENTS YOU PROCESS IN A DAY. WITH THE INTERNET AND THE MASSIVE COMPUTER SYSTEMS THAT CONTAIN EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT A PATIENT IN ORDER TO CARE FOR HIM, TRIPS TO THE LIBRARY ARE A THING OF THE PAST. IF YOU WANT TO CONFERENCE WITH ANOTHER PHYSICIAN, YOU DO IT THROUGH THE INTERNET; NO FACE TO FACE CONTACT BECAUSE BOTH OF YOU ARE TOO BUSY. AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES ABOUND, BUT THEY CAN BE SQUEEZED IN TO YOUR DAY SINCE ALL YOU NEED IS A COMPUTER TERMINAL; YOU DON'T HAVE TO PHYSICALLY MOVE INTO A CONFERENCE ROOM TO LISTEN TO A LECTURE.

AND THAT'S THE WAY THE WHOLE WORLD IS TODAY. AND THE DANGER OF LIVING IN THE WORLD IS THAT WE LOSE OURSELVES, WE GET SWALLOWED UP IN ACTIVITY, IN DANGER OF JUST BEING COGS IN AN EVIL MACHINE. WHEN I WAS A PARENT, OUR KIDS HAD DOWN TIME EVERY DAY. I WATCH MY GRANDCHILDREN GROW UP WITH A LONG LIST OF ACTIVITIES IN WHICH THEY PARTICIPATE, AND I SEE THAT THE BUSYNESS IS STARTING EARLIER AND EARLIER.

JESUS WAS AS HUMAN AS YOU AND I ARE, EXCEPT FOR SIN. HE KNEW THAT GOD HAD SENT HIM TO PROCLAIM THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN; IN FACT, WHEN HIS DISCIPLES FIND HIM, HE TELLS THEM THAT THEY ARE MOVING ON TO CONTINUE THIS MISSION. BUT JESUS ALSO KNOWS THAT THERE HAS TO BE DOWN TIME, TIME WHEN YOU PRAY, TIME WHEN YOU OFFER SILENT PRAYER, WHEN YOU ALLOW THE SPIRIT TO REFRESH YOU, AND THE FATHER TO SPEAK TO YOU. AND IT ISN'T JUST FOR JESUS. IN ANOTHER PLACE WE HEAR ABOUT THE APOSTLES WHO HAVE BEEN SENT OUT TO CURE THE SICK AND DRIVE OUT DEMONS AND ANNOUNCE THE KINGDOM. THEY COME BACK TO JESUS WILDLY EXCITED. THEY TELL HIM OF THEIR SUCCESSES, AND YOU CAN ALMOST FEEL THEIR EAGERNESS TO GET BACK ON THE MISSION. BUT JESUS SAYS TO THEM, “COME AWAY WITH ME BY YOURSELVES TO A DESERTED PLACE AND REST FOR A WHILE.”

SO LET THIS GOSPEL REMIND US THAT WE TOO NEED TO MAKE TIME EVERY DAY TO ENTER INTO PRAYER. AND PRAYER IS GOOD, BUT SILENT PRAYER, THE KIND OF PRAYER THAT JESUS SAYS, IS NOURISHMENT FOR THE SOUL. AND WHAT WILL IT PROFIT A MAN TO GAIN THE WHOLE WORLD AND LOSE HIS SOUL?

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

MARK 1:21-28

SOME OF US REMEMBER BISHOP FULTON SHEEN, WHO WAS A FAMOUS TELEVISION PREACHER. YOU CAN FIND A LOT OF HIS SERMONS ON YOU TUBE IF YOU ARE INTERESTED. AFTER HE WAS ORDAINED HE OBTAINED A DOCTORATE IN PHILOSOPHY AND WON THE CARDINAL MERCEIR PRIZE FOR HIS THESIS, WHICH WAS A GREAT HONOR. WHEN HE RETURNED TO THE US, HE TAUGHT IN A SEMINARY. ONE DAY HE GAVE A SERMON, AND AFTERWARD ONE SEMINARIAN SAID TO HIM, “THAT WAS THE MOST BRILLIANT SERMON I'VE EVER HEARD!” “WHAT DID YOU LIKE ABOUT IT?” SAID FATHER SHEEN. “OH, I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND IT AT ALL,” SAID THE SEMINARIAN, “BUT I COULD TELL IT WAS BRILLIANT.” FATHER SHEEN DECIDED THEN AND THERE TO WORK ON SIMPLIFYING HIS SERMONS, AND THE REST IS HISTORY.

IT'S ALWAYS NICE TO HEAR THAT SOMEONE LIKED YOUR SERMON. BUT I THINK MOST PREACHERS LEARN THAT IF SOMEONE TELLS YOU HE LIKED YOUR SERMON, YOU SHOULDN'T ASK HIM WHY. BECAUSE PEOPLE ALMOST NEVER LIKE YOUR SERMON BECAUSE OF THE POINT YOU WERE TRYING TO MAKE. THEY LIKED A STORY YOU TOLD, OR MAYBE A PHRASE THAT RANG A BELL. IN FACT, ONCE I WAS STANDING AT THE DOOR AFTER A MASS FOR WHICH I HAD SERVED, BUT DID NOT PREACH, AND A PARISHONER TOLD ME HE LIKED MY SERMON. I THANKED HIM. THAT WAS THE EASY WAY OUT.

IN MARK'S GOSPEL WE HEAR THAT JESUS WENT INTO THE SYNAGOGUE AND TAUGHT. THE PEOPLE WERE ASTONISHED AT HIS TEACHING. BUT WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HE TALKED ABOUT IN HIS SERMON. MAYBE MARK DIDN'T EITHER. MAYBE IT'S AN OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD. PEOPLE WHO HEAR SERMONS DON'T OFTEN REMEMBER THEM. THE ONLY REASON WE REMEMBER A SERMON IS BECAUSE SOMEONE HEARD IT AND WROTE IT DOWN.

SO WHY DON'T WE JUST WRITE DOWN OUR SERMONS SO YOU COULD TAKE THEM HOME AND READ THEM AT YOUR LEISURE? IT WOULD SHORTEN THE MASS, AND IF YOU WANTED TO REALLY SPEND TIME DIGESTING THE SERMON YOU COULD. AFTER ALL, NOW THAT EVERYONE CAN READ, LISTENING TO A SERMON SEEMS SORT OF ANTIQUATED.

SO WHAT'S GOING ON? WELL, IT HAS TO DO A WITH A SIMPLE PHRASE IN THE NEW MASS. WHEN A PRIEST OR DEACON SAYS, “THE LORD BE WITH YOU,” WE USED TO SAY, “AND ALSO WITH YOU.” THAT ALMOST SOUNDS LIKE “HAVE A GOOD DAY.” AND “SAME TO YOU.” BUT NOW WE SAY, “AND WITH YOUR SPIRIT.” WHEN THE PRIEST OR DEACON SAYS, “THE LORD BE WITH YOU,” HE IS ABOUT TO START A PRAYER ON BEHALF OF THE CONGREGATION, OR PROCLAIM THE GOSPEL. HE PRAYS THAT THE LORD COMES INTO OUR MIDST TO PRAY WITH US, OR TO HELP US HEAR THE GOSPEL. THE PEOPLE REPLY, “AND WITH YOUR SPIRIT.” CARDINAL GEORGE SAYS THAT WE ARE REFERRING TO THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST, WHO COMES TO AN INDIVIDUAL IN A SPECIAL WAY THROUGH ORDINATION. WHEN WE SAY “AND WITH YOUR SPIRIT” WE ARE REMINDING EACH OTHER THAT REGARDLESS OF THE MINISTER PERFORMING A LITURGICAL PART, IT IS REALLY CHRIST WHO LEADS OUR LITURGY. WE HAVE THIS EXCHANGE FIVE TIMES DURING MASS, AND EACH TIME WE ARE PRAYING THAT WE WILL ENCOUNTER CHRIST IN THE ACTION TO FOLLOW.

AND THAT GOES FOR THE SERMON AS WELL. THE PURPOSE OF THE SERMON IS NOT TO TEACH, ALTHOUGH IF YOU LEARN SOMETHING, THAT'S GREAT. IT IS NOT TO FIRE YOU UP, ALTHOUGH IF YOU LEAVE WITH A LITTLE MORE ENTHUSIASM FOR PRACTICING YOUR FAITH, THAT'S WONDERFUL. THE PURPOSE OF THE SERMON IS TO CONNECT YOU, AND I, MORE CLOSELY TO CHRIST. AND THAT ISN'T ACCOMPLISHED BY THE SKILL OF THE PREACHER, OR HOW CAREFULLY YOU LISTEN, BUT BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. THE WORST SERMON I EVER HEARD WAS IN A CHAPEL ON THE CAMPUS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF DALLAS. IT WAS DELIVERED BY AN ELDERLY PRIEST WHO I THINK HAD LUNG CANCER, AND IT WENT ON FOR 50 MINUTES. IT WANDERED THROUGH DENSE AND DEEP PHILOSOPHY AND THEOLOGY, AND WAS DELIVERED IN A MONOTONE, INTERRUPTED BY LOTS OF COUGHING. I COULDN'T TELL YOU WHAT THAT SERMON WAS ABOUT, BUT TO THIS DAY MY MIND GOES BACK TO THE PRIEST, AND I THINK ABOUT HOW HE HAD GIVEN HIS WHOLE LIFE TO CHRIST. AND I HOPE SOMEDAY I WILL LOVE JESUS AS MUCH AS HE MUST HAVE. I BELIEVE THAT SERMON BROUGHT ME CLOSER TO JESUS. BUT THAT'S AN EXTREME. EVERY HOMILY CAN CONNECTING US WITH CHRIST. THAT'S BECAUSE JESUS SPEAKS THROUGH THE MINISTER, UNWORTHY AND CLUMSY AS HE MIGHT BE.

AND THAT'S WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE GOSPEL TODAY. THE PEOPLE WHO HEARD HIS TEACHING WERE ASTOUNDED. THEY WERE USED TO SCRIBES, WHO TAUGHT WHAT THEY HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN TAUGHT. THEY GAVE FOOTNOTES, AND REFERRED TO WHAT OTHER PEOPLE HAD SAID ABOUT THE TOPIC. BUT JESUS TAUGHT IN A WAY THAT ASTONISHED PEOPLE. BEING ASTONISHED IS NOT AN INTELLECTUAL EVENT; IT IS AN EMOTIONAL, EVEN A SPIRITUAL EVENT. THE DEMON DRIVEN OUT OF THE POSSESSED MAN WAS ASTONISHED AS WELL. THE WORDS AND ACTIONS OF JESUS REVEALED TO THE DEMON THAT JESUS WAS THE HOLY ONE OF GOD. AND THE PEOPLE WHO LISTENED TO HIS TEACHING THAT DAY HAD A TOUCH OF REVELATION THEMSELVES. THEY CAME TO KNOW JESUS THROUGH HIS TEACHING, AND THROUGH HIS ACTIONS. AND SOME OF THEM DEVELOPED THAT CONNECTION THAT WE ALL WANT, THAT UNION WITH JESUS OUR SAVIOR.

NEXT TIME YOU REACH THE POINT IN THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS WHEN THE PRIEST OR DEACON PREACHES, DON'T READ THE BULLETIN; DON'T LET YOUR MIND WANDER OFF TO WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO DO WITH THE REST OF YOUR DAY. OPEN YOURSELF UP TO THE GRACES OF THE EVENT, THE GRACES THAT YOU PRAYED FOR WHEN YOU ASKED THAT THE LORD BE WITH HIS SPIRIT, SO THAT HIS SERMON WOULD BE AN INSTRUMENT OF GRACE, A MOMENT WHEN YOU AND THE SAVIOR WOULD CONNECT. AND LET THOSE PRAYERS BE FULFILLED. SOMETHING IN THAT MOMENT WILL TOUCH YOU; IT MAY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH WHAT IS SAID, OR IT MAY COME ABOUT IN SPITE OF WHAT IS SAID.

A GREAT SERMON CAN BE A WORK OF ART; IT CAN BE A STIMULUS TO THE INTELLECT; IT CAN MOVE PEOPLE TO GO ON A CRUSADE. BUT IF A SERMON DOESN'T BRING YOU AND I TO CLOSER JESUS CHRIST, IF IT DOESN'T REVEAL SOMETHING OF HIS PERSON TO US, IF IT DOESN'T CHANGE US FOR THE BETTER IN SOME WAY, THEN IT WAS A FAILURE.

Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle B

MARK 1:14-20

THIS LAST WEEK WE CELEBRATED MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY. I WAS IN COLLEGE WHEN HE WAS SHOT. IT WAS 1963; HE WAS ONLY 39 YEARS OLD. HE GREW UP IN SEGREGATED ATLANTA, GEORGIA. IN THOSE DAYS THERE WERE TWO SOCIETIES LIVING SIDE BY SIDE, MAYBE EVEN INTERPENETRATED. WE THINK OF THE AFRICAN AMERICANS AS POOR AND THE WHITES AS RICH, BUT IT WASN'T QUITE THAT WAY. IN THE AFRICAN AMERICAN SOCIETY, THERE WERE CLASSES; THERE WERE EDUCATED, WEALTHY PEOPLE AND PEOPLE WHO HAD NOTHING AND COULDN'T READ. AND IT WAS TRUE IN THE WHITE SOCIETY AS WELL. THIS ISN'T TO SAY THE AFRICAN AMERICANS HAD IT GOOD; THEY DIDN'T. WHEN PUSH CAME TO SHOVE, THEY WERE THE FIRST TO SUFFER FROM ECONOMIC DOWNTURN, AND OF COURSE THERE WERE THE SEGREGATION LAWS; WHERE YOU COULD RIDE IN A BUS, WHAT WATER FOUNTAIN AND RESTROOM YOU COULD USE, WHICH RESTUARANTS YOU HAD TO STAY OUT OF. BUT MARTIN LUTHER KING GREW UP PRIVILEGED, IF YOU COULD CALL IT THAT. HIS FATHER WAS THE PASTOR OF ONE OF THE LARGEST CHURCHES IN ATLANTA. KING GOT HIS DEGREE IN THEOLOGY, AND THEN STUDIED AT BOSTON UNIVERSITY WHERE HE GOT HIS DOCTORATE IN PHILOSOPHY. HE RETURNED TO ATLANTA AND BECAME ASSOCIATE PASTOR AT HIS FATHER'S CHURCH, AND HE WAS WELL LIKED AND RESPECTED AND EVERYONE EXPECTED HIM TO TAKE OVER WHEN HIS FATHER RETIRED.

BUT THEN HE HEARD A VOICE – COME, FOLLOW ME. AND HE DID. HE BECAME PASTOR OF A BAPTIST CHURCH IN MONTGOMERY, WHERE SEGREGATION WAS MUCH MORE SEVERE; AND WHEN ROSA PARKS REFUSED TO YIELD HER SEAT TO A WHITE MAN IN A BUS, KING ORGANIZED A BUS STRIKE. DURING THE NEXT FEW YEARS THERE WERE HIGH POINTS: HE WON A NOBEL PRIZE, HE BECAME A HERO TO MANY. BUT HE ALSO WAS BEATEN, THROWN IN JAIL, SHOT AT, AND ACCUSED OF TERRIBLE THINGS. AND ONE DAY HE WAS KILLED. SO WERE THE APOSTLES THAT WE MET TODAY, ALL BUT JOHN. THEY WERE KILLED AS WELL, FOR FOLLOWING THAT VOICE.

WE CHRISTIANS BELIEVE THAT DEATH IS JUST ANOTHER STEP IN OUR JOURNEY TO GOD, AND WE LEAVE KING AND PETER AND ANDREW AND JAMES AND JOHN IN GOD'S HANDS. SURELY THEIR LIVES HAVE MEANING, SURELY GOD REWARDS THEIR SACRIFICES. AND WE SEE WHAT GOD DOES WHEN SOMEONE ABANDONS THEIR COMFORTABLE LIFE AND SETS OUT IN RESPONSE TO THAT CALL, “COME, FOLLOW ME.” THE WORLD IS CHANGED; THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS BROUGHT CLOSER TO FULL REALIZATION. AND THE KINGDOM WILL COME; HOW WONDERFUL TO BE SOMEONE WHO HELPS TO BRING THE KINGDOM INTO EXISTENCE.

WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU OR ME TO GIVE UP EVERYTHING AND FOLLOW THAT VOICE? REALISTICALLY, FEW OF US WILL DO THAT. WE WILL CONTINUE THE ORDINARY PATH TOWARDS GOD; WE WILL TRY TO BECOME BETTER IN INCREMENTS, WE WILL BE SORRY FOR SINS AND ASK FORGIVENESS, WE WILL HOPEFULLY, AS WE AGE, GET TO KNOW JESUS A LITTLE BETTER; BUT IN THE END, WE WILL LOOK BACK AND SAY, I COULD HAVE DONE MORE, I COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER; AND WE WILL BE GRATEFUL THAT GOD FORGIVES AND FORGETS, AND THAT BECAUSE OF OUR BAPTISM WE HAVE BEEN ADOPTED INTO HIS FAMILY. AND WE WILL BE MOST GRATEFUL THAT OUR SALVATION DOESN'T DEPEND ON WHAT WE DO, OR HOW WE PRAY, OR WHAT WE GIVE UP OR WHAT WE DO; IT IS THERE FOR THE TAKING, BECAUSE JESUS OFFERED HIMSELF FOR US.

BUT WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU OR I TO GIVE UP EVERYTHING LIKE THE FOUR FISHERMEN WE HEAR ABOUT TODAY, LIKE MARTIN LUTHER KING?

WHAT KIND OF CAUSE COULD MOVE US THAT STRONGLY?

WELL, THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF CAUSES. MOST OF US KNOW OF SOMEONE WHO DIED AS A SOLDIER IN A WAR, OR PERHAPS AS A FIREMAN OR POLICE OFFICER. SOMETIMES PEOPLE PUT THEIR LIVES ON THE LINE TO PROTECT THEIR COUNTRY OR THEIR FELLOW CITIZENS. UNTIL THE SECOND COMING SUCH PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS BE NEEDED, AND NONE OF US ARE GRATEFUL ENOUGH FOR WHAT THEY DO.

BUT THE OTHER KIND OF CAUSE IS TO STRUGGLE FOR A VISION, TO GIVE ONESELF UP FOR SOMETHING THAT IS NOT NOW BUT SHOULD BE. OUR APOSTLES DID THAT, AND DOWN THROUGH THE AGES, THE CHRISTIAN VISION HAS INSPIRED THOUSANDS TO STRUGGLE TO BRING IT ABOUT. AND THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS THAT HERE AND THERE, IT BREAKS THROUGH; HERE AND THERE WE SEE GLIMPSES OF THE REALITY, AND WE BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF THE WORDS, “THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS AT HAND.”

AND MAYBE THE ORDINARY PATH MOST OF US TAKE IS NOT SO ORDINARY; MAYBE WE TOO BRING THE KINGDOM A LITTLE CLOSER. IN THE OLDEN DAYS THEY USED TO TALK ABOUT MARTYRDOM. ORIGINALLY IT MEANT TO BE A WITNESS. IT CAME IN TWO FLAVORS; RED, WHEN THERE WAS A GREAT MOMENT WHEN EVERYTHING WAS ON THE LINE, AND THE MARTYR SACRIFICED HIMSELF FOR THE CAUSE; MARTIN LUTHER KING WAS LIKE THAT, NOT JUST WHEN HE WAS KILLED, BUT WHEN HE GAVE UP HIS COMFORTABLE LIFE TO GIVE HIMSELF TOTALLY TO THE CAUSE OF CIVIL RIGHTS.

BUT THE OTHER KIND OF MARTYRDOM WAS CALLED WHITE. IT WAS WHEN A PERSON SPENT HIS WHOLE LIFE GIVING HIMSELF UP LITTLE BY LITTLE, TO HIS FAMILY, TO HIS WORK, TO HIS NEIGHBORS. IT WAS A MARTYRDOM WITHIN THE REACH OF EVERYONE, FOR WE MAKE HUNDREDS OF CHOICES EVERY DAY, CHOICES TO LIVE IN THE KINGDOM, OR TO DRIVE IT AWAY. EVEN A COMPLIMENT FREELY OFFERED, EVEN TAKING THE TIME TO LISTEN TO SOMEONE WHO IS TROUBLED; EVEN A BRIEF VISIT OR PHONE CALL TO SOMEONE WHO IS SHUT IN; ALL OF THESE THINGS BRING THE KINGDOM A LITTLE CLOSER. AND MAYBE A LONG LIFETIME OF WHITE MARTYRDOM MAY BE GREATER THAN A MOMENT OF RED MARTYRDOM IN TERMS OF BRINGING ABOUT THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. PROBABLY ALL OF US COULD NAME ONE OR TWO PEOPLE WHO MAKE THE WORLD BETTER BY LIVING IN IT.

FEW OF US WILL BE ASKED TO ABANDON EVERYTHING TO FOLLOW JESUS. BUT ALL OF US CAN ASPIRE TO BE WHITE MARTYRS. WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU AND I TO GIVE UP EVERYTHING TO FOLLOW JESUS? WE MAY NEVER KNOW. BUT WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU AND I TO CHOOSE SOME SMALL ACTION TODAY , TOMORROW, THIS WEEK, TO BRING THE KINGDOM OF GOD A LITTLE CLOSER? I HOPE FOR OUR SAKE, IT WOULD NOT TAKE VERY MUCH AT ALL.