MATTHEW 9:9-13
DO YOU REMEMBER THAT STORY FROM THE GOSPEL OF LUKE? PETER AND HIS CREW HAVE BEEN FISHING ALL NIGHT, AND HAVEN'T CAUGHT A THING. THEN JESUS TELLS THEM TO GO OUT IN DEEP WATER AND LET DOWN THEIR NETS. WELL MORNING WAS NOT A GREAT TIME, AND DEEP WATER WAS NOT A GREAT PLACE, TO EXPECT TO CATCH FISH, BUT PETER OBEYED, AND THE NEXT THING THEY KNEW THEY NEARLY SWAMPED THEIR BOATS WITH FISH. AND PETER FELL TO HIS KNEES AND SAID, “DEPART FROM ME, LORD, FOR I AM A SINFUL MAN.”
PETER IS WELL-CHARACTERIZED IN THE GOSPELS. HE HAS TROUBLE UNDERSTANDING WHAT JESUS IS TALKING ABOUT. HE IS LOYAL, HE IS LOUD, HE SPEAKS BEFORE THINKING, HE MAKES PROMISES HE DOESN'T KEEP, AND EVEN AFTER JESUS DIES AND ASCENDS INTO HEAVEN, EVEN AFTER PETER BECOMES THE LEADER OF THE CHRISTIAN BODY, HE STILL IS SOMETIMES UNCERTAIN, AND SOMETIMES DEAD WRONG, AS WHEN HE DECIDED NOT TO EAT WITH GENTILE CHRISTIANS, AND PAUL HAD TO REPRIMAND HIM.
WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH PETER'S MIND WHEN HE ACCUSED HIMSELF OF BEING A SINNER? I DOUBT PETER HAD EVER DONE ANYTHING WE WOULD CONSIDER REALLY BAD. BUT MAYBE THAT MORNING, HE HAD QUARRELED WITH HIS WIFE. MAYBE HE COULD HAVE BEEN MORE GENEROUS WHEN THEY PASSED THE COLLECTION PLATE DOWN AT THE SYNAGOGUE, BUT WASN'T. HE MAY HAVE PASSED A BEGGAR ON THE STREET AND LOOKED THE OTHER WAY. HE MAY HAVE DRUNK MORE WINE THAN HE SHOULD HAVE AT THAT WEDDING HE HAD ATTENDED A FEW WEEKS AGO.
SO WE ARE ALL LIKE PETER. OUR DAYS ARE FILLED WITH NOT QUITE MEETING THE MARK, FORGETTING THE WORDS AND EXAMPLE OF JESUS, SAYING AND DOING THINGS THAT WE LATER REGRET, NOT SAYING AND NOT DOING THINGS THAT WE SHOULD HAVE SAID OR DONE. IS THERE A DAY IN YOUR LIFE OR MINE WHEN WE CAN TRULY SAY, “I DID EVERYTHING RIGHT TODAY, I WOULD NOT CHANGE A THING IF I COULD.”
AND YOU KNOW, WE ALL ACCEPT THAT WE AREN'T PERFECT; AND WE FORGIVE OURSELVES, AND GO ON AND TRY TO DO BETTER THEN NEXT DAY.
AND PETER WAS NO DIFFERENT, UP UNTIL THAT MOMENT – THE MOMENT WHEN HE SUDDENLY REALIZED THAT HE WAS IN THE PRESENCE OF THE DIVINE, AND HE LOOKED AT HIS OWN LIFE, THE LIFE WHICH UP UNTIL THEN HE HAD THOUGHT WAS PRETTY GOOD – AND SUDDENLY SAW THAT IN THE LIGHT OF THE DIVINE, HE WAS HOPELESS, HE COULD NOT CLAIM TO EVEN A LITTLE GOODNESS, HE WAS A BUNDLE OF SELFISHNESS AND MORAL FAILURE AND THE FACT THAT HE HADN'T DONE ANYTHING TERRIBLY WRONG WAS MORE DUE TO LACK OF OPPORTUNITY AND FEAR OF BEING FOUND OUT THAN ANY GOODNESS ON HIS PART. AND HE CRIED OUT, “DEPART FROM ME, LORD, FOR I AM A SINFUL MAN.”
IN TODAY'S GOSPEL WE MEET OUR OLD FRIENDS THE PHARISEES. THEY COULD NOT SAY “I AM A SINFUL MAN” BECAUSE THEY DEFINED THEMSELVES BY THEIR PURITY, THEIR STRICT ADHERENCE TO THE LAW. THEY NOT ONLY FOLLOWED THE LAW PERFECTLY, BUT THEY AVOIDED ANYTHING THAT EVEN REMOTELY COULD CAUSE THEM TO BREAK THE LAW. AND FOR THAT REASON, THEY WOULD NEVER ASSOCIATE WITH A SINNER.
AND JESUS SAYS TO THEM, “I DID NOT COME TO CALL THE RIGHTEOUS, BUT SINNERS.” THE PHARISEES, IF THEY WOULD HAVE HONESTLY EXAMINED THEMSELVES IN THE BRILLIANT LIGHT OF THE DIVINE, AS PETER DID, WOULD HAVE COME TO THE SAME CONCLUSION PETER DID, “I AM A SINFUL MAN”. BUT THEY DID NOT, AND JESUS KNEW THAT HE COULD NOT DO A THING FOR THEM UNTIL THEY RECOGNIZED THAT THERE WAS NO HOPE EXCEPT FOR WHAT HE COULD DO FOR THEM.
SO HOW ABOUT YOU AND I? ARE WE CONSCIOUS OF THE CALL OF JESUS, THE CALL THAT OFFERS US THE FATHER'S MERCY, THE CALL THAT HOLDS A PROMISE TO HEAL US, TO ACCEPT US AS WE ARE, TO TAKE OUR MISERABLE HUMANITY AND FORM IT INTO DIVINITY?
WELL, WE CAN'T HEAR THE CALL UNLESS WE KNOW DEEP DOWN IN OUR HEARTS THAT WE ARE SINNERS. WE HAVE TO SEE THAT OUR PETTY LITTLE FAULTS AND FAILURES MAKE US MUCH MORE LIKE ADOLF HITLER OR A MASS MURDERER THAN LIKE JESUS CHRIST. WE HAVE TO SEE THAT WHAT WE THINK ARE LITTLE QUIRKS AND MERE HUMAN FAILINGS ARE VERY SERIOUS IN GOD'S EYES. WE HAVE TO SEE WHAT GOD WANTS US TO BECOME, AND HOW FAR WE ARE FROM THAT GOAL BECAUSE OF OUR OWN FREE WILL. AND ONLY THEN WILL WE BE ABLE TO HEAR THE CALL OF JESUS THAT IS THE ONLY HOPE WE HAVE.
SAINT MATTHEW KNEW HE DIDN'T MEET THE MARK. HE KNEW THAT BEING A TAX COLLECTOR, WORKING FOR THE ROMANS, WHILE NOT SINFUL IN ITSELF, WAS FULL OF OPPORTUNITIES TO SIN. AND MATTHEW DIDN'T CHEAT OUTRIGHT, BUT SINCE HIS LIVELIHOOD DEPENDED ON THE TAXES HE COLLECTED, HE PROBABLY THOUGHT OF HIMSELF BEFORE THE PEOPLE FROM WHOM HE COLLECTED TAXES, AND THE ROMANS TO WHOM HE GAVE THEM. THAT WOULD BE THE HUMAN THING TO DO. AND EVEN WHEN HE DIDN'T SLIP A LITTLE, THE VERY ACT OF COLLECTING TAXES MADE HIS CUSTOMERS TRY TO CHEAT, TO HOLD BACK; IT MADE THEM SIN, IT MADE THEM BECOME LESS HUMAN. BEING A TAX COLLECTOR WAS ALMOST A RECIPE FOR BEING IMMERSED IN SIN. BUT SO IS JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE WE HUMANS CAN DO.
MATTHEW RECOGNIZES THAT HE IS A SINNER, AND FINDS HIMSELF DINING WITH CHRIST, WHILE THE PHARISEES ARE OUT IN THE COLD. MATTHEW HEARS THE CALL OF JESUS, AND THE PHARISEES DO NOT.
TODAY, LET US BE CONSCIOUS OF THE FACT THAT WE ARE SINNERS, AND THAT LIKE PETER, LIKE MATTHEW, LET US REALIZE THAT WE CAN'T ESCAPE THIS REALITY. AND ONCE WE KNOW THIS, NOT JUST IN OUR MINDS BUT IN THE DEEPEST PARTS OF OUR SELVES, ONCE THIS HAPPENS, WE WILL HEAR THE VOICE OF JESUS CALLING US.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Monday, June 2, 2008
Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle A
MATTHEW 7:21-29
MANY YEARS AGO IN BUFFALO A YOUNG PHYSICIAN JOINED OUR TRAINING PROGRAM. HE HAD HAD A HARD LIFE. HE’D BEEN RAISED BY HIS MOTHER, NEVER KNEW HIS DAD; HE HAD STRUGGLED TO PUT HIMSELF THROUGH COLLEGE, AND HAD TO TAKE TIME OFF TO MAKE ENOUGH MONEY TO GET THROUGH MEDICAL SCHOOL. ON THE WAY HE GOT MARRIED, BUT AFTER TWO CHILDREN, HIS WIFE DESERTED HIM AND THE CHILDREN, AND RAN OFF WITH SOMEONE ELSE. HE STRUGGLED TO GET THROUGH HIS RESIDENCY WITH THE HELP OF HIS MOTHER WHO PROVIDED CHILD CARE. AFTER THIS, HE WORKED IN EMERGENCY ROOMS FOR ABOUT SIX YEARS, BECAUSE THIS ALLOWED HIM TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH HIS DAUGHTERS. EVENTUALLY HE MET A YOUNG LADY WHO WAS AN ARDENT SEVENTH DAY ADVENTIST, AND HE BECAME ONE ALSO, AND THEY GOT MARRIED, AND HE FINALLY HAD GOTTEN TO THE POINT WHERE HE COULD PURSUE TRAINING IN CANCER MEDICINE.HIS TIME IN THE TRAINING PROGRAM WAS UNEVENTFUL. HE HAD A HAPPY HOME LIFE AND TOOK HIS RELIGION VERY SERIOUSLY, AND ALTHOUGH I USED TO THINK SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS WERE PRETTY STRANGE, HE WAS LIKE MOST SERIOUS CHRISTIANS, MORE INTERESTED IN HIS OWN RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD THAN WITH PROSELYTIZING OTHER PEOPLE, AND WE FOUND THAT OUR RESPECTIVE DENOMINATIONS HAD MORE IN COMMON THAN WAS DIFFERENT..AFTER HE FINISHED HIS TRAINING PROGRAM, HE MOVED TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. I RAN ACROSS HIM SEVERAL YEARS LATER. HE WAS THE HEAD OF A LARGE CANCER CLINIC, MADE A LOT OF MONEY, HIS KIDS HAD GROWN AND LEFT HOME, HE AND HIS SECOND WIFE HAD DIVORCED, HE HAD A TROPHY GIRL-FRIEND TO WHOM HE WAS NOT MARRIED, AND HE NO LONGER BELIEVED IN GOD.TODAY JESUS TELLS US ABOUT TWO KINDS OF PEOPLE, THOSE WHO HEAR WHAT HE HAS TO SAY AND ACT ON WHAT THEY HAVE HEARD, AND THOSE WHO HEAR, BUT DO NOT ACT. THE FORMER CAN WEATHER THE STORMS OF LIFE, AND THE LATTER CANNOT.WE ALL HAVE STORMS IN OUR LIVES. JESUS PROMISED THAT WE WOULD. HE DID NOT SAY THE HOLY PEOPLE, THE GOOD PEOPLE, THE CHURCH-GOING PEOPLE WOULD BE SPARED. BUT SOME OF US, AND I’M NOT EXCLUDING MYSELF, MIGHT LOOK AT OUR OWN LIVES AND SAY, WHERE ARE THOSE STORMS? WE WHO LIVE IN LONGMEADOW, IN THE 21ST CENTURY, WHO HAVE GOOD HEALTH THROUGHOUT MOST OF OUR LIVES, WHO MAKE VERY GOOD LIVINGS, WHO DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT WHETHER WE WILL GO HUNGRY TONIGHT, OR WHETHER WE WILL HAVE TO SLEEP IN THE RAIN, MIGHT LOOK AT OUR LIVES AND SAY, “I DON’T SEE A LOT OF STORMS.” NOW I AM AWARE THAT MANY OF OUR PARISHIONERS HAVE HAD TRAGEDY IN THEIR LIVES, DEATHS OF LOVED ONES, DIFFICULT MARRIAGES, CHILDREN WHO DISAPPOINT, GOALS NOT ACHIEVED. BUT JESUS IS TALKING ABOUT FAITH-SHAKING STORMS. AND IF YOU ARE STILL COMING TO CHURCH, MAYBE YOU HAVEN’T HAD THAT KIND OF STORM.IN JESUS’ TIME AND IN THE EARLY CHURCH, PERSECUTION WAS SUCH A STORM. AND IF YOU DIDN’T GET PERSECUTED IN DIRECT, PAINFUL WAYS, YOU MIGHT FIND YOURSELF SHUT OUT FROM GOOD JOBS, PREVENTED FROM LIVING IN NICE NEIGHBORHOODS, OR MARGINALIZED IN OTHER WAYS BECAUSE YOU WERE A CHRISTIAN. AND IT WAS NO WONDER THAT NOT EVERYONE STAYED A CHRISTIAN UNDER THESE PRESSURES. I THINK WE CAN ALL IMAGINE OURSELVES GOING THROUGH THIS KIND OF STORM, THE STORM WHERE EVERY DAY YOU WONDER WHERE GOD IS, WHY ISN’T HE HELPING, WHAT DOES HE HAVE AGAINST YOU?BUT THERE IS ANOTHER, MORE SUBTLE KIND OF STORM. MY FRIEND, PERHAPS, WENT THROUGH THIS, AND LOST HIS FAITH. THIS IS THE STORM OF SUCCESS. IT IS ONLY NATURAL FOR PEOPLE TO TRY TO BETTER THEIR LIVES. AND SOMETIMES, AFTER A GREAT DEAL OF HARD WORK, AND A LITTLE LUCK, WE FIND OURSELVES SUCCESSFUL, OR FAMOUS, OR POWERFUL—WE FIND THAT WE HAVE ACHIEVED AND PERHAPS EVEN GONE BEYOND THOSE GOALS WE SET OUT TO REACH. AND IN THIS SITUATION, THERE ARE SOME WHO SEE NO NEED FOR THE RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES THAT THEY HELD SO STRONGLY WHEN THEY WERE JUST STARTING OUT. IT’S KIND OF WHAT HAS BEEN HAPPENING TO EUROPE DURING THE LAST FIFTY YEARS. AND WHEN YOU LOSE YOUR FAITH IN THIS KIND OF STORM, YOU MAY NOT EVEN REALIZE WHAT YOU ARE MISSING, BECAUSE YOU HAVE WHAT YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED, YOU ARE COMFORTABLE, AND YOU DON’T SEE A NEED FOR ANYTHING ELSE.JESUS WARNS US THAT IF WE WANT TO WEATHER STORMS, WE HAVE TO BUILD OUR FAITH ON ROCK, AND THE WAY TO DO THIS IS VERY SIMPLE; WE STUDY HIS WORD, AND WE ACT ON IT. WE LISTEN TO WHAT HE SAYS, AND THEN WE ASK WHETHER OUR LIVES REFLECT WHAT HE SAYS; AND IF THEY DO NOT, WE TRY TO CHANGE. AND THEN WE STUDY MORE, EXAMINE MORE, AND CHANGE MORE. BECAUSE THAT IS HOW WE BUILD, AND IF WE AREN’T DOING THAT, WE MAY THINK WE ARE DOING ALL RIGHT NOW, BUT WHEN THE STORM COMES, THE STORM JESUS PROMISED WOULD COME, WE ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING OUR FAITH, WE ARE IN DANGER OF HEARING OUR MASTER SAY, “I NEVER KNEW YOU, DEPART FROM ME.”WHEN THE STORM COMES, WILL WE BE READY? ONLY IF WE BEGIN BUILDING AND CONTINUE TO BUILD ON A FIRM FOUNDATION. AND THE ONLY WAY TO DO THIS IS TO LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF JESUS, AND ACT ON THEM.
MANY YEARS AGO IN BUFFALO A YOUNG PHYSICIAN JOINED OUR TRAINING PROGRAM. HE HAD HAD A HARD LIFE. HE’D BEEN RAISED BY HIS MOTHER, NEVER KNEW HIS DAD; HE HAD STRUGGLED TO PUT HIMSELF THROUGH COLLEGE, AND HAD TO TAKE TIME OFF TO MAKE ENOUGH MONEY TO GET THROUGH MEDICAL SCHOOL. ON THE WAY HE GOT MARRIED, BUT AFTER TWO CHILDREN, HIS WIFE DESERTED HIM AND THE CHILDREN, AND RAN OFF WITH SOMEONE ELSE. HE STRUGGLED TO GET THROUGH HIS RESIDENCY WITH THE HELP OF HIS MOTHER WHO PROVIDED CHILD CARE. AFTER THIS, HE WORKED IN EMERGENCY ROOMS FOR ABOUT SIX YEARS, BECAUSE THIS ALLOWED HIM TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH HIS DAUGHTERS. EVENTUALLY HE MET A YOUNG LADY WHO WAS AN ARDENT SEVENTH DAY ADVENTIST, AND HE BECAME ONE ALSO, AND THEY GOT MARRIED, AND HE FINALLY HAD GOTTEN TO THE POINT WHERE HE COULD PURSUE TRAINING IN CANCER MEDICINE.HIS TIME IN THE TRAINING PROGRAM WAS UNEVENTFUL. HE HAD A HAPPY HOME LIFE AND TOOK HIS RELIGION VERY SERIOUSLY, AND ALTHOUGH I USED TO THINK SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS WERE PRETTY STRANGE, HE WAS LIKE MOST SERIOUS CHRISTIANS, MORE INTERESTED IN HIS OWN RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD THAN WITH PROSELYTIZING OTHER PEOPLE, AND WE FOUND THAT OUR RESPECTIVE DENOMINATIONS HAD MORE IN COMMON THAN WAS DIFFERENT..AFTER HE FINISHED HIS TRAINING PROGRAM, HE MOVED TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. I RAN ACROSS HIM SEVERAL YEARS LATER. HE WAS THE HEAD OF A LARGE CANCER CLINIC, MADE A LOT OF MONEY, HIS KIDS HAD GROWN AND LEFT HOME, HE AND HIS SECOND WIFE HAD DIVORCED, HE HAD A TROPHY GIRL-FRIEND TO WHOM HE WAS NOT MARRIED, AND HE NO LONGER BELIEVED IN GOD.TODAY JESUS TELLS US ABOUT TWO KINDS OF PEOPLE, THOSE WHO HEAR WHAT HE HAS TO SAY AND ACT ON WHAT THEY HAVE HEARD, AND THOSE WHO HEAR, BUT DO NOT ACT. THE FORMER CAN WEATHER THE STORMS OF LIFE, AND THE LATTER CANNOT.WE ALL HAVE STORMS IN OUR LIVES. JESUS PROMISED THAT WE WOULD. HE DID NOT SAY THE HOLY PEOPLE, THE GOOD PEOPLE, THE CHURCH-GOING PEOPLE WOULD BE SPARED. BUT SOME OF US, AND I’M NOT EXCLUDING MYSELF, MIGHT LOOK AT OUR OWN LIVES AND SAY, WHERE ARE THOSE STORMS? WE WHO LIVE IN LONGMEADOW, IN THE 21ST CENTURY, WHO HAVE GOOD HEALTH THROUGHOUT MOST OF OUR LIVES, WHO MAKE VERY GOOD LIVINGS, WHO DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT WHETHER WE WILL GO HUNGRY TONIGHT, OR WHETHER WE WILL HAVE TO SLEEP IN THE RAIN, MIGHT LOOK AT OUR LIVES AND SAY, “I DON’T SEE A LOT OF STORMS.” NOW I AM AWARE THAT MANY OF OUR PARISHIONERS HAVE HAD TRAGEDY IN THEIR LIVES, DEATHS OF LOVED ONES, DIFFICULT MARRIAGES, CHILDREN WHO DISAPPOINT, GOALS NOT ACHIEVED. BUT JESUS IS TALKING ABOUT FAITH-SHAKING STORMS. AND IF YOU ARE STILL COMING TO CHURCH, MAYBE YOU HAVEN’T HAD THAT KIND OF STORM.IN JESUS’ TIME AND IN THE EARLY CHURCH, PERSECUTION WAS SUCH A STORM. AND IF YOU DIDN’T GET PERSECUTED IN DIRECT, PAINFUL WAYS, YOU MIGHT FIND YOURSELF SHUT OUT FROM GOOD JOBS, PREVENTED FROM LIVING IN NICE NEIGHBORHOODS, OR MARGINALIZED IN OTHER WAYS BECAUSE YOU WERE A CHRISTIAN. AND IT WAS NO WONDER THAT NOT EVERYONE STAYED A CHRISTIAN UNDER THESE PRESSURES. I THINK WE CAN ALL IMAGINE OURSELVES GOING THROUGH THIS KIND OF STORM, THE STORM WHERE EVERY DAY YOU WONDER WHERE GOD IS, WHY ISN’T HE HELPING, WHAT DOES HE HAVE AGAINST YOU?BUT THERE IS ANOTHER, MORE SUBTLE KIND OF STORM. MY FRIEND, PERHAPS, WENT THROUGH THIS, AND LOST HIS FAITH. THIS IS THE STORM OF SUCCESS. IT IS ONLY NATURAL FOR PEOPLE TO TRY TO BETTER THEIR LIVES. AND SOMETIMES, AFTER A GREAT DEAL OF HARD WORK, AND A LITTLE LUCK, WE FIND OURSELVES SUCCESSFUL, OR FAMOUS, OR POWERFUL—WE FIND THAT WE HAVE ACHIEVED AND PERHAPS EVEN GONE BEYOND THOSE GOALS WE SET OUT TO REACH. AND IN THIS SITUATION, THERE ARE SOME WHO SEE NO NEED FOR THE RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES THAT THEY HELD SO STRONGLY WHEN THEY WERE JUST STARTING OUT. IT’S KIND OF WHAT HAS BEEN HAPPENING TO EUROPE DURING THE LAST FIFTY YEARS. AND WHEN YOU LOSE YOUR FAITH IN THIS KIND OF STORM, YOU MAY NOT EVEN REALIZE WHAT YOU ARE MISSING, BECAUSE YOU HAVE WHAT YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED, YOU ARE COMFORTABLE, AND YOU DON’T SEE A NEED FOR ANYTHING ELSE.JESUS WARNS US THAT IF WE WANT TO WEATHER STORMS, WE HAVE TO BUILD OUR FAITH ON ROCK, AND THE WAY TO DO THIS IS VERY SIMPLE; WE STUDY HIS WORD, AND WE ACT ON IT. WE LISTEN TO WHAT HE SAYS, AND THEN WE ASK WHETHER OUR LIVES REFLECT WHAT HE SAYS; AND IF THEY DO NOT, WE TRY TO CHANGE. AND THEN WE STUDY MORE, EXAMINE MORE, AND CHANGE MORE. BECAUSE THAT IS HOW WE BUILD, AND IF WE AREN’T DOING THAT, WE MAY THINK WE ARE DOING ALL RIGHT NOW, BUT WHEN THE STORM COMES, THE STORM JESUS PROMISED WOULD COME, WE ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING OUR FAITH, WE ARE IN DANGER OF HEARING OUR MASTER SAY, “I NEVER KNEW YOU, DEPART FROM ME.”WHEN THE STORM COMES, WILL WE BE READY? ONLY IF WE BEGIN BUILDING AND CONTINUE TO BUILD ON A FIRM FOUNDATION. AND THE ONLY WAY TO DO THIS IS TO LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF JESUS, AND ACT ON THEM.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Feast of Corpus Christi
John 6:51-58
LIKE ALL OF YOU I’VE RECEIVED THE HOLY EUCHARIST TOO MANY TIMES TO COUNT. BUT THREE TIMES COME TO MIND TODAY.
THE FIRST WAS WHEN I RECEIVED MY FIRST COMMUNION. IT WAS THE SPRING OF MY SECOND GRADE. I HAD BEEN ANTICIPATING IT FOR MANY MONTHS. IN THOSE DAYS AND MAYBE EVEN NOW, YOU COULD BUY NECCO WAFERS WHICH WERE LITTLE SUGAR DISKS, AND I REMEMBER PRETENDING THAT I WAS A PRIEST AND HANDING OUT THE NECCO WAFERS TO MY SISTER AND COUSINS, WHO LOOKED AT ME WITH ENVY BECAUSE I WOULD SOON BE RECEIVING THE REAL THING. AND ON THAT DAY, DRESSED IN MY WHITE SHIRT AND BLACK TIE WALKING NEXT TO SANDRA ROOT IN HER PRETTY WHITE DRESS, THE LORD FED ME WITH HIS BODY AND BLOOD FOR THE FIRST TIME. I REMEMBER HOW I WAS CONSCIOUS OF HIS PRESENCE IN ME, AND I WENT THROUGH MOST OF THE DAY WITHOUT ANNOYING MY SISTER, AND TRYING TO BE GOOD.
THE SECOND TIME WAS AT MY WEDDING. JOAN AND I GOT MARRIED DURING THE TRANSITION TIME, WHEN THE CHURCH WAS MOVING FROM THE OLD TO NEW RITUALS. WE KNELT SIDE BY SIDE IN THE SANCTUARY OF THE CHURCH. IN THE PRESENCE OF THE PRIEST WE CONFERRED THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY ON EACH OTHER. AND THEN WE RECEIVED THE EUCHARIST TOGETHER. I WAS CONSCIOUS AT THAT MOMENT OF HOW SHE AND I HAD VOWED TO SHARE OUR LIVES WITH EACH OTHER, AND WITH US THAT DAY WAS JESUS, WHOSE BODY AND BLOOD WE SHARED AS FOOD AND DRINK, IN THE FIRST MEAL WE HAD AS HUSBAND AND WIFE. RECEIVING THE EUCHARIST TOGETHER CONTINUES TO HELP US LIVE OUT OUR MARRIAGE.
A THIRD TIME WAS WHEN I RECEIVED THE EUCHARIST AT MY MOTHER’S FUNERAL. AT THAT MOMENT I WAS CONSCIOUS OF THE FACT THAT EVEN THOUGH SHE HAD PASSED AWAY, SHE AND I HAD STEPPED OUTSIDE OF TIME WHEN WE RECEIVED THE EUCHARIST; IT IS THE SAME JESUS CHRIST IN ETERNITY WHO FED HER AND FEEDS ME. I LOVED MY MOTHER, BUT THERE WERE WOUNDS IN OUR RELATIONSHIP, FOR HER, I AM SURE, AS WELL AS FOR ME. BUT BECAUSE THE BODY OF JESUS WAS OUR FOOD AND DRINK, AND THE BODY IS ONE, WE BECAME ONE, HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ONE, AND THOSE MOMENTS OF HURT AND ANGER AND DIVISION ARE WASHED AWAY.
THINK OF THE WORDS OF CONSECRATION: THIS IS MY BODY, WHICH IS GIVEN UP FOR YOU. LIKE THAT FIRST COMMUNION, ONE REASON FOR THE EUCHARIST IS THAT JESUS WANTS TO BE UNITED WITH US, SO THAT WE WILL CAN BECOME ONE WITH HIM, SO THAT WE CAN LIVE IN HIM AND RECEIVE HIS GRACE HERE ON EARTH, AND SO THAT WE CAN DIE IN HIM AND RISE IN HIM TO SPEND ETERNITY IN HEAVEN.
THIS IS THE BLOOD OF THE NEW AND ETERNAL COVENANT: THE COVENANT WHICH JESUS MADE WITH US IS A SACRAMENTAL ONE. ALL THE SACRAMENTS IN A SENSE FLOW FROM THE EUCHARIST, THE SUPREME SACRAMENT. IN A CONTRACT, TWO PARTIES AGREE THAT IF ONE DOES SOMETHING THE OTHER WILL DO SOMETHING. IN A COVENANT, THE TWO PARTIES AGREE THAT EACH WILL DO SOMETHING FOR THE OTHER UNCONDITIONALLY. JESUS GAVE HIMSELF UP FOR YOU AND I BY ENTERING INTO OUR LIFE, BY BECOMING ONE OF US, AND BY DYING ON THE CROSS FOR US. HE HAS UPHELD HIS END. WHEN WE RECEIVE A SACRAMENT, WE ARE SOLEMNLY PROMISING TO HOLD UP OUR END. IN BAPTISM, CONFIRMATION, MATRIMONY, AND HOLY ORDERS WE ENTER INTO THE NEW AND ETERNAL COVENANT IN DIFFERENT WAYS, FOR OUR SAKE AND FOR THE SAKE OF THE CHURCH.
WHICH WILL BE GIVEN FOR YOU AND FOR MANY, FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SIN: SIN IS DIVISION. DIVISION COMES NATURALLY TO US. SOMETIMES THE DIVISION IS TRIVIAL – YOU ARE EITHER A MEMBER OF MY PARISH OR YOU AREN’T. SOMETIMES IT IS MORE SERIOUS; YOU ARE POOR, I AM RICH; YOU ARE A FOREIGNER, I AM AN AMERICAN. YOU ARE BLACK, I AM WHITE, YOU SPEAK SPANISH, I SPEAK ENGLISH. DIVISIONS MAY MAKE US NOT NOTICE EACH OTHER; MAY MAKE US TRY TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF EACH OTHER; MAY RESULT IN VIOLENCE TOWARDS EACH OTHER; DIVISIONS MORE OR LESS DIMINISH OUR HUMANITY. AND THAT IS WHY THE EUCHARIST IS GIVEN FOR YOU AND FOR MANY, FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SIN. WE EAT THE ONE INDIVISIBLE BREAD AND DRINK FROM THE ONE CUP OF WINE; AND DIVISIONS, EVEN THE DIVISIONS BETWEEN THE LIVING AND THE DEAD, THE PAST AND THE FUTURE, BETWEEN JEW AND GREEK, SLAVE AND FREE, MALE AND FEMALE, ARE ERASED IN CHRIST. WHEN WE EAT THIS BREAD AND DRINK THIS WINE WE PLEDGE TO OVERCOME THOSE DIVISIONS, WHICH ALWAYS LEAD TO DESTRUCTION OF LOVE.
ON FIRST FRIDAY I LIKE TO COME TO SAINT MARY’S IN THE EVENING. THE BLESSED SACRAMENT IS IN THE MONSTRANCE AND GOLDEN RAYS RADIATE FROM IT. I LOOK AT MY LORD FOR A WHILE WITHOUT WORDS. I TRY TO HEAR HIM SPEAK TO MY HEART, AND I TELL HIM WHAT IS ON MY MIND. AND THEN I READ A LITTLE, FROM A SPIRITUAL BOOK, OR A BIOGRAPHY OF A SAINT. SOMETIMES I EVEN DOZE OFF. THERE IS A GREAT PEACE IN BEING IN THE PHYSICAL PRESENCE OF JESUS, KNOWING THAT HE IS LOVES ME AND DOESN'T GIVE UP ON ME, KNOWING THAT HIS GRACES ARE GUARANTEED TO ME THROUGH THE COVENANT SACRAMENTS I’VE RECEIVED AS I GO THROUGH MY LIFE; AND KNOWING THAT WHEN I LOOK AT THE EUCHARIST I SEE MY WIFE, MY MOTHER AND FATHER, MY PATRON SAINTS, MY CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN, -- ALL THOSE I LOVE TAKEN UP INTO THAT ONE BODY BECAUSE THEY HAVE ALL EATEN OF THAT ONE BREAD.
ON THIS FEAST OF THE BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST, THANK OUR LORD FOR THE FACT THAT HE GAVE US THIS SACRAMENT. AND IF YOU COME TO ADORATION ON FIRST FRIDAY, AND I HOPE YOU DO, JESUS WILL WELCOME YOU WITH OPEN ARMS.
LIKE ALL OF YOU I’VE RECEIVED THE HOLY EUCHARIST TOO MANY TIMES TO COUNT. BUT THREE TIMES COME TO MIND TODAY.
THE FIRST WAS WHEN I RECEIVED MY FIRST COMMUNION. IT WAS THE SPRING OF MY SECOND GRADE. I HAD BEEN ANTICIPATING IT FOR MANY MONTHS. IN THOSE DAYS AND MAYBE EVEN NOW, YOU COULD BUY NECCO WAFERS WHICH WERE LITTLE SUGAR DISKS, AND I REMEMBER PRETENDING THAT I WAS A PRIEST AND HANDING OUT THE NECCO WAFERS TO MY SISTER AND COUSINS, WHO LOOKED AT ME WITH ENVY BECAUSE I WOULD SOON BE RECEIVING THE REAL THING. AND ON THAT DAY, DRESSED IN MY WHITE SHIRT AND BLACK TIE WALKING NEXT TO SANDRA ROOT IN HER PRETTY WHITE DRESS, THE LORD FED ME WITH HIS BODY AND BLOOD FOR THE FIRST TIME. I REMEMBER HOW I WAS CONSCIOUS OF HIS PRESENCE IN ME, AND I WENT THROUGH MOST OF THE DAY WITHOUT ANNOYING MY SISTER, AND TRYING TO BE GOOD.
THE SECOND TIME WAS AT MY WEDDING. JOAN AND I GOT MARRIED DURING THE TRANSITION TIME, WHEN THE CHURCH WAS MOVING FROM THE OLD TO NEW RITUALS. WE KNELT SIDE BY SIDE IN THE SANCTUARY OF THE CHURCH. IN THE PRESENCE OF THE PRIEST WE CONFERRED THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY ON EACH OTHER. AND THEN WE RECEIVED THE EUCHARIST TOGETHER. I WAS CONSCIOUS AT THAT MOMENT OF HOW SHE AND I HAD VOWED TO SHARE OUR LIVES WITH EACH OTHER, AND WITH US THAT DAY WAS JESUS, WHOSE BODY AND BLOOD WE SHARED AS FOOD AND DRINK, IN THE FIRST MEAL WE HAD AS HUSBAND AND WIFE. RECEIVING THE EUCHARIST TOGETHER CONTINUES TO HELP US LIVE OUT OUR MARRIAGE.
A THIRD TIME WAS WHEN I RECEIVED THE EUCHARIST AT MY MOTHER’S FUNERAL. AT THAT MOMENT I WAS CONSCIOUS OF THE FACT THAT EVEN THOUGH SHE HAD PASSED AWAY, SHE AND I HAD STEPPED OUTSIDE OF TIME WHEN WE RECEIVED THE EUCHARIST; IT IS THE SAME JESUS CHRIST IN ETERNITY WHO FED HER AND FEEDS ME. I LOVED MY MOTHER, BUT THERE WERE WOUNDS IN OUR RELATIONSHIP, FOR HER, I AM SURE, AS WELL AS FOR ME. BUT BECAUSE THE BODY OF JESUS WAS OUR FOOD AND DRINK, AND THE BODY IS ONE, WE BECAME ONE, HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ONE, AND THOSE MOMENTS OF HURT AND ANGER AND DIVISION ARE WASHED AWAY.
THINK OF THE WORDS OF CONSECRATION: THIS IS MY BODY, WHICH IS GIVEN UP FOR YOU. LIKE THAT FIRST COMMUNION, ONE REASON FOR THE EUCHARIST IS THAT JESUS WANTS TO BE UNITED WITH US, SO THAT WE WILL CAN BECOME ONE WITH HIM, SO THAT WE CAN LIVE IN HIM AND RECEIVE HIS GRACE HERE ON EARTH, AND SO THAT WE CAN DIE IN HIM AND RISE IN HIM TO SPEND ETERNITY IN HEAVEN.
THIS IS THE BLOOD OF THE NEW AND ETERNAL COVENANT: THE COVENANT WHICH JESUS MADE WITH US IS A SACRAMENTAL ONE. ALL THE SACRAMENTS IN A SENSE FLOW FROM THE EUCHARIST, THE SUPREME SACRAMENT. IN A CONTRACT, TWO PARTIES AGREE THAT IF ONE DOES SOMETHING THE OTHER WILL DO SOMETHING. IN A COVENANT, THE TWO PARTIES AGREE THAT EACH WILL DO SOMETHING FOR THE OTHER UNCONDITIONALLY. JESUS GAVE HIMSELF UP FOR YOU AND I BY ENTERING INTO OUR LIFE, BY BECOMING ONE OF US, AND BY DYING ON THE CROSS FOR US. HE HAS UPHELD HIS END. WHEN WE RECEIVE A SACRAMENT, WE ARE SOLEMNLY PROMISING TO HOLD UP OUR END. IN BAPTISM, CONFIRMATION, MATRIMONY, AND HOLY ORDERS WE ENTER INTO THE NEW AND ETERNAL COVENANT IN DIFFERENT WAYS, FOR OUR SAKE AND FOR THE SAKE OF THE CHURCH.
WHICH WILL BE GIVEN FOR YOU AND FOR MANY, FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SIN: SIN IS DIVISION. DIVISION COMES NATURALLY TO US. SOMETIMES THE DIVISION IS TRIVIAL – YOU ARE EITHER A MEMBER OF MY PARISH OR YOU AREN’T. SOMETIMES IT IS MORE SERIOUS; YOU ARE POOR, I AM RICH; YOU ARE A FOREIGNER, I AM AN AMERICAN. YOU ARE BLACK, I AM WHITE, YOU SPEAK SPANISH, I SPEAK ENGLISH. DIVISIONS MAY MAKE US NOT NOTICE EACH OTHER; MAY MAKE US TRY TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF EACH OTHER; MAY RESULT IN VIOLENCE TOWARDS EACH OTHER; DIVISIONS MORE OR LESS DIMINISH OUR HUMANITY. AND THAT IS WHY THE EUCHARIST IS GIVEN FOR YOU AND FOR MANY, FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SIN. WE EAT THE ONE INDIVISIBLE BREAD AND DRINK FROM THE ONE CUP OF WINE; AND DIVISIONS, EVEN THE DIVISIONS BETWEEN THE LIVING AND THE DEAD, THE PAST AND THE FUTURE, BETWEEN JEW AND GREEK, SLAVE AND FREE, MALE AND FEMALE, ARE ERASED IN CHRIST. WHEN WE EAT THIS BREAD AND DRINK THIS WINE WE PLEDGE TO OVERCOME THOSE DIVISIONS, WHICH ALWAYS LEAD TO DESTRUCTION OF LOVE.
ON FIRST FRIDAY I LIKE TO COME TO SAINT MARY’S IN THE EVENING. THE BLESSED SACRAMENT IS IN THE MONSTRANCE AND GOLDEN RAYS RADIATE FROM IT. I LOOK AT MY LORD FOR A WHILE WITHOUT WORDS. I TRY TO HEAR HIM SPEAK TO MY HEART, AND I TELL HIM WHAT IS ON MY MIND. AND THEN I READ A LITTLE, FROM A SPIRITUAL BOOK, OR A BIOGRAPHY OF A SAINT. SOMETIMES I EVEN DOZE OFF. THERE IS A GREAT PEACE IN BEING IN THE PHYSICAL PRESENCE OF JESUS, KNOWING THAT HE IS LOVES ME AND DOESN'T GIVE UP ON ME, KNOWING THAT HIS GRACES ARE GUARANTEED TO ME THROUGH THE COVENANT SACRAMENTS I’VE RECEIVED AS I GO THROUGH MY LIFE; AND KNOWING THAT WHEN I LOOK AT THE EUCHARIST I SEE MY WIFE, MY MOTHER AND FATHER, MY PATRON SAINTS, MY CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN, -- ALL THOSE I LOVE TAKEN UP INTO THAT ONE BODY BECAUSE THEY HAVE ALL EATEN OF THAT ONE BREAD.
ON THIS FEAST OF THE BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST, THANK OUR LORD FOR THE FACT THAT HE GAVE US THIS SACRAMENT. AND IF YOU COME TO ADORATION ON FIRST FRIDAY, AND I HOPE YOU DO, JESUS WILL WELCOME YOU WITH OPEN ARMS.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Trinity Sunday, cycle A
JOHN 3:16-18
THE TRINITY IS A VERY DIFFICULT DOCTRINE TO DESCRIBE OR EVEN TO IMAGINE. AND YET, OUR CHURCH TELLS US THAT GOD HIMSELF HAS REVEALED THIS TO US. SO THE QUESTION THEN BECOMES, WHY? IF I DON’T UNDERSTAND IT, AND THINKING ABOUT IT MAKES MY HEAD HURT, WHY DID GOD REVEAL THIS TO ME?THINK OF ALL THE WAYS THAT PEOPLE HAVE TRIED TO DESCRIBE THE TRINITY. SAINT PATRICK’S FAMOUS USE OF THE SHAMROCK – THREE LEAVES, ONE PLANT – BUT NO, THAT DOESN’T WORK, BECAUSE THE THREE LEAVES ARE PART OF ONE THING, BUT EACH PERSON IN THE TRINITY IS ALL GOD. WORDS LIKE “CREATOR, REDEEMER, SANCTIFIER” HAVE BEEN USED. BUT THAT DOESN’T WORK, BECAUSE WHILE IT MIGHT DESCRIBE ACTIVITY, IT SAYS NOTHING ABOUT EQUALITY OF PERSON, OR THE FACT THAT GOD IS ONE, OR THE FACT THAT EACH MEMBER PARTICIPATES IN EVERYTHING DONE BY EACH MEMBER. ONE ANALOGY I LIKED UNTIL I THOUGHT ABOUT IT WAS THAT GOD THE FATHER IS LIKE THE SUN, GOD THE SON IS LIKE THE SUNBEAM, AND GOD THE SPIRIT IS LIKE THE WARMTH THAT IS CAUSED IN WHAT THE SUNBEAM STRIKES. SUN, LIGHT, AND WARMTH ARE ONE, AND YET DIFFERENT. BUT THE TRINITY IS MADE UP OF PERSONS, WHICH MEANS THAT THEY HAVE FREEDOM TO ACT. THE SUN-LIGHT-WARMTH IDEA IS VERY MECHANICAL, AND THERE IS NO CHOICE. YOU CAN’T DESCRIBE THE TRINITY, AND WHEN YOU TRY TO DO SO, YOU HAVE TO ACCEPT THAT YOU ARE AT LEAST 90% WRONG.BUT MAYBE THERE IS A WAY TO THINK ABOUT THE TRINITY WHICH MEANS SOMETHING TO YOU AND I. INSTEAD OF BEGINNING WITH THE PERSONS, BEGIN WITH LOVE, FOR ST. JOHN SAYS, GOD IS LOVE. IS LOVE A THING? NO, OF COURSE NOT. IS LOVE AN EMOTION? NO, TO THAT AS WELL. MY WIFE CAN TELL YOU THAT THERE ARE PLENTY OF TIMES WHEN SHE’S BEEN REALLY MAD AT ME BUT HAD TO LOVE ME NEVERTHELESS. IS LOVE REAL? YOU TELL ME. I’VE LOVED AND EXPERIENCED LOVE, SO I COULD NEVER DENY THAT IT IS REAL.LOVE, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IS A RELATIONSHIP WHICH SEEKS THE BEST FOR WHATEVER IS LOVED. THE LOVE THAT WE CALL GOD NOT ONLY WANTS THE BEST, BUT IS ABLE TO BRING ABOUT THE BEST. SO THE LOVE BRINGS FORTH THE UNIVERSE, IN SPACE AND TIME – IN REALITY AND IN OUR IMAGINATIONS; AND IN THE COURSE OF ETERNITY, EVERYTHING THAT COULD POSSIBLY EXIST IS BROUGHT INTO EXISTENCE, BECAUSE TO EXIST IS BETTER THAN TO NOT EXIST. AND THAT IS WHY WE CALL LOVE FATHER – EVERYTHING THAT EXISTS IS CHILD TO THAT PARENT.
BUT THE BEST FOR US, FOR YOU AND I AS BEINGS CREATED TO LOVE, IS MORE THAN MERE EXISTENCE. THE BEST FOR US IS TO HAVE OUR ABILITY TO LOVE FULFILLED. IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT THERE IS A GOD-SHAPED HOLE IN EVERY PERSON, AND THERE IS NO SATISFACTION UNTIL IT IS FILLED. AND BECAUSE OF SIN WE CAN'T FILL THAT HOLE. SO LOVE EMPTIES HIMSELF OUT SO THAT WE CAN BE FILLED UP; LOVE BECOMES SIN SO THAT WE CAN BE RIGHTEOUS. AND GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE US HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, THAT WHOEVER BELIEVE IN HIM SHALL NOT PERISH, BUT SHALL HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. AND THAT IS WHY WE CALL LOVE SON.
NOW IT IS NOT ENOUGH THAT LOVE CALLS US INTO EXISTENCE, THAT LOVE MAKES IT POSSIBLE FOR US TO BE COMPLETED BY LOVE, BUT LOVE DOES NOT STOP THERE. LOVE ENTERS US, DWELLS WITHIN US, GIVES US WISDOM TO SEE WHAT IS REAL AND WHAT IS FALSE, GIVES US STRENGTH TO PURSUE THE GOOD AND AVOID EVIL, EVEN GIVES US POWER TO DO THINGS THAT WE MIGHT NEVER BE ABLE TO DO OTHERWISE. AND MOST IMPORTANT, LOVE TURNS OUR ATTENTION TO JESUS, WHO IN TURN SHOWS US THE FATHER, SO THAT WE CAN BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT LOVE HAS DONE, AND COOPERATE WITH WHAT LOVE CONTINUES TO DO. AND THAT IS WHY WE CALL LOVE SPIRIT.NOW IF I STOPPED RIGHT THERE, I WOULD BE GUILTY OF AN HERESY CALLED MODALISM. THAT MEANS THAT I AM GIVING THE ACTIONS OF GOD DIFFERENT NAMES DEPENDING ON WHERE GOD IS ACTING. BUT THESE ARE NOT JUST NAMES, THEY DENOTE PERSONS. FOR A PERSON IS CAPABLE OF ACTING WITHOUT BEING ACTED UPON, A PERSON IS SELF-STARTING. AND ONLY A PERSON CAN LOVE. SO THE SECOND PART OF THIS TRINITARIAN MYSTERY IS THAT GOD IS NOT A PERSON, NOT A THING, NOT A BEING IN THE SENSE THAT YOU AND I ARE BEINGS. GOD IS A COMMUNITY, A COMMUNION. THERE IS NO ZEUS, THERE IS NO ALLAH, THERE IS NO SENIOR GOD AND JUNIOR GODS. EACH PERSON HAS A UNIQUE ROLE, BUT ALL THINK AND ACT IN PERFECT COORDINATION. THE MYSTICS TRIED TO DESCRIBE THIS BY THE TERM “PERICHORESIS” WHICH MEANS “DANCING AROUND”. IF YOU'VE EVER SEEN REALLY GREAT DANCING, THE DANCERS MOVE TOGETHER IN A WAY THAT IS PRECISE AND DYNAMIC AND EVEN BEAUTIFUL.
AND EVEN IN OUR HUMAN LIVES, WE RECOGNIZE THAT FOR LOVE TO BE COMPLETELY REALIZED, THERE MUST BE NOT ONE PERSON, BECAUSE THERE CAN BE NO OBJECT OF LOVE; NOT TWO PERSONS, BECAUSE TWO PERSONS IN LOVE (AND IF YOU'VE EVER BEEN MADLY IN LOVE, YOU KNOW I'M RIGHT) TEND TO LOSE TRACK OF THE REST OF THE WORLD, AND THE LOVE BECOMES SELFISH; THERE MUST BE AT LEAST THREE PERSONS FOR LOVE TO GROW, TO OVERFLOW, TO BE CREATIVE, TO HAVE POWER. SO IT IS BECAUSE THERE ARE THREE PERSONS IN THE COMMUNITY WE CALL GOD THAT WE CAN HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THIS TRINITY, IN FACT, THAT WE CAN LIVE FOREVER IN THE HEART OF THE TRINITY.
TODAY WE HAVE BOOKS BEING WRITTEN BY VARIOUS ATHEISTS, WHO TALK ABOUT HOW JUVENILE, HOW ABSURD, IT IS TO BELIEVE IN A GOD. SAMUEL HARRIS, ONE OF THESE WRITERS, SAYS THAT DURING THE LIFETIME OF THE HUMAN RACE, PEOPLE HAVE BELIEVED IN THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF GODS. HARRIS SAYS THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HIM AND YOU AND I IS THAT HE DOESN'T BELIEVE IN ANY OF THESE GODS, AND YOU AND I DON'T BELIEVE IN ANY OF THEM EITHER, EXCEPT FOR ONE. BUT I WOULD CORRECT HARRIS. THE GOD IN WHOM I BELIEVE IS NOT ANY OF THESE, NOT EVEN THE ONE HE THINKS I BELIEVE IN. MY GOD IS LOVE, AND LOVE IS REAL, AND THE PERSONS IN GOD CAN ONLY BE UNDERSTOOD IN RELATIONSHIP TO EACH OTHER; AND WE ARE INVITED INTO THIS RELATIONSHIP, AND ONLY IF WE SURRENDER TO IT WILL WE TRULY FIND OURSELVES.
IT IS HARD TO THINK ABOUT THE TRINITY. BUT IT IS GOOD FOR US TO THINK ABOUT IT, BECAUSE THE ONLY KIND OF GOD THAT MAKES ANY SENSE IS THE TRINITARIAN GOD REVEALED BY JESUS.
SO THIS WEEK LOOK FOR SIGNS OF GOD THE FATHER IN THE LEAVES AND FLOWERS AND TREES, IN ALL OF CREATION. LOOK FOR SIGNS OF GOD THE SON IN THE GOODNESS OF PEOPLE WHO GIVE SOMETHING OF THEMSELVES TO YOU; AND LOOK FOR SIGNS OF GOD THE SPIRIT IN THE INSIGHTS YOU GET, IN THE IMPULSES TO LOVE THAT YOU WILL HAVE. AND MAY YOU SEE WHAT IS REALLY TRUE, THAT YOU LIVE IN THE TRINITY.
THE TRINITY IS A VERY DIFFICULT DOCTRINE TO DESCRIBE OR EVEN TO IMAGINE. AND YET, OUR CHURCH TELLS US THAT GOD HIMSELF HAS REVEALED THIS TO US. SO THE QUESTION THEN BECOMES, WHY? IF I DON’T UNDERSTAND IT, AND THINKING ABOUT IT MAKES MY HEAD HURT, WHY DID GOD REVEAL THIS TO ME?THINK OF ALL THE WAYS THAT PEOPLE HAVE TRIED TO DESCRIBE THE TRINITY. SAINT PATRICK’S FAMOUS USE OF THE SHAMROCK – THREE LEAVES, ONE PLANT – BUT NO, THAT DOESN’T WORK, BECAUSE THE THREE LEAVES ARE PART OF ONE THING, BUT EACH PERSON IN THE TRINITY IS ALL GOD. WORDS LIKE “CREATOR, REDEEMER, SANCTIFIER” HAVE BEEN USED. BUT THAT DOESN’T WORK, BECAUSE WHILE IT MIGHT DESCRIBE ACTIVITY, IT SAYS NOTHING ABOUT EQUALITY OF PERSON, OR THE FACT THAT GOD IS ONE, OR THE FACT THAT EACH MEMBER PARTICIPATES IN EVERYTHING DONE BY EACH MEMBER. ONE ANALOGY I LIKED UNTIL I THOUGHT ABOUT IT WAS THAT GOD THE FATHER IS LIKE THE SUN, GOD THE SON IS LIKE THE SUNBEAM, AND GOD THE SPIRIT IS LIKE THE WARMTH THAT IS CAUSED IN WHAT THE SUNBEAM STRIKES. SUN, LIGHT, AND WARMTH ARE ONE, AND YET DIFFERENT. BUT THE TRINITY IS MADE UP OF PERSONS, WHICH MEANS THAT THEY HAVE FREEDOM TO ACT. THE SUN-LIGHT-WARMTH IDEA IS VERY MECHANICAL, AND THERE IS NO CHOICE. YOU CAN’T DESCRIBE THE TRINITY, AND WHEN YOU TRY TO DO SO, YOU HAVE TO ACCEPT THAT YOU ARE AT LEAST 90% WRONG.BUT MAYBE THERE IS A WAY TO THINK ABOUT THE TRINITY WHICH MEANS SOMETHING TO YOU AND I. INSTEAD OF BEGINNING WITH THE PERSONS, BEGIN WITH LOVE, FOR ST. JOHN SAYS, GOD IS LOVE. IS LOVE A THING? NO, OF COURSE NOT. IS LOVE AN EMOTION? NO, TO THAT AS WELL. MY WIFE CAN TELL YOU THAT THERE ARE PLENTY OF TIMES WHEN SHE’S BEEN REALLY MAD AT ME BUT HAD TO LOVE ME NEVERTHELESS. IS LOVE REAL? YOU TELL ME. I’VE LOVED AND EXPERIENCED LOVE, SO I COULD NEVER DENY THAT IT IS REAL.LOVE, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IS A RELATIONSHIP WHICH SEEKS THE BEST FOR WHATEVER IS LOVED. THE LOVE THAT WE CALL GOD NOT ONLY WANTS THE BEST, BUT IS ABLE TO BRING ABOUT THE BEST. SO THE LOVE BRINGS FORTH THE UNIVERSE, IN SPACE AND TIME – IN REALITY AND IN OUR IMAGINATIONS; AND IN THE COURSE OF ETERNITY, EVERYTHING THAT COULD POSSIBLY EXIST IS BROUGHT INTO EXISTENCE, BECAUSE TO EXIST IS BETTER THAN TO NOT EXIST. AND THAT IS WHY WE CALL LOVE FATHER – EVERYTHING THAT EXISTS IS CHILD TO THAT PARENT.
BUT THE BEST FOR US, FOR YOU AND I AS BEINGS CREATED TO LOVE, IS MORE THAN MERE EXISTENCE. THE BEST FOR US IS TO HAVE OUR ABILITY TO LOVE FULFILLED. IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT THERE IS A GOD-SHAPED HOLE IN EVERY PERSON, AND THERE IS NO SATISFACTION UNTIL IT IS FILLED. AND BECAUSE OF SIN WE CAN'T FILL THAT HOLE. SO LOVE EMPTIES HIMSELF OUT SO THAT WE CAN BE FILLED UP; LOVE BECOMES SIN SO THAT WE CAN BE RIGHTEOUS. AND GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE US HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, THAT WHOEVER BELIEVE IN HIM SHALL NOT PERISH, BUT SHALL HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. AND THAT IS WHY WE CALL LOVE SON.
NOW IT IS NOT ENOUGH THAT LOVE CALLS US INTO EXISTENCE, THAT LOVE MAKES IT POSSIBLE FOR US TO BE COMPLETED BY LOVE, BUT LOVE DOES NOT STOP THERE. LOVE ENTERS US, DWELLS WITHIN US, GIVES US WISDOM TO SEE WHAT IS REAL AND WHAT IS FALSE, GIVES US STRENGTH TO PURSUE THE GOOD AND AVOID EVIL, EVEN GIVES US POWER TO DO THINGS THAT WE MIGHT NEVER BE ABLE TO DO OTHERWISE. AND MOST IMPORTANT, LOVE TURNS OUR ATTENTION TO JESUS, WHO IN TURN SHOWS US THE FATHER, SO THAT WE CAN BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT LOVE HAS DONE, AND COOPERATE WITH WHAT LOVE CONTINUES TO DO. AND THAT IS WHY WE CALL LOVE SPIRIT.NOW IF I STOPPED RIGHT THERE, I WOULD BE GUILTY OF AN HERESY CALLED MODALISM. THAT MEANS THAT I AM GIVING THE ACTIONS OF GOD DIFFERENT NAMES DEPENDING ON WHERE GOD IS ACTING. BUT THESE ARE NOT JUST NAMES, THEY DENOTE PERSONS. FOR A PERSON IS CAPABLE OF ACTING WITHOUT BEING ACTED UPON, A PERSON IS SELF-STARTING. AND ONLY A PERSON CAN LOVE. SO THE SECOND PART OF THIS TRINITARIAN MYSTERY IS THAT GOD IS NOT A PERSON, NOT A THING, NOT A BEING IN THE SENSE THAT YOU AND I ARE BEINGS. GOD IS A COMMUNITY, A COMMUNION. THERE IS NO ZEUS, THERE IS NO ALLAH, THERE IS NO SENIOR GOD AND JUNIOR GODS. EACH PERSON HAS A UNIQUE ROLE, BUT ALL THINK AND ACT IN PERFECT COORDINATION. THE MYSTICS TRIED TO DESCRIBE THIS BY THE TERM “PERICHORESIS” WHICH MEANS “DANCING AROUND”. IF YOU'VE EVER SEEN REALLY GREAT DANCING, THE DANCERS MOVE TOGETHER IN A WAY THAT IS PRECISE AND DYNAMIC AND EVEN BEAUTIFUL.
AND EVEN IN OUR HUMAN LIVES, WE RECOGNIZE THAT FOR LOVE TO BE COMPLETELY REALIZED, THERE MUST BE NOT ONE PERSON, BECAUSE THERE CAN BE NO OBJECT OF LOVE; NOT TWO PERSONS, BECAUSE TWO PERSONS IN LOVE (AND IF YOU'VE EVER BEEN MADLY IN LOVE, YOU KNOW I'M RIGHT) TEND TO LOSE TRACK OF THE REST OF THE WORLD, AND THE LOVE BECOMES SELFISH; THERE MUST BE AT LEAST THREE PERSONS FOR LOVE TO GROW, TO OVERFLOW, TO BE CREATIVE, TO HAVE POWER. SO IT IS BECAUSE THERE ARE THREE PERSONS IN THE COMMUNITY WE CALL GOD THAT WE CAN HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THIS TRINITY, IN FACT, THAT WE CAN LIVE FOREVER IN THE HEART OF THE TRINITY.
TODAY WE HAVE BOOKS BEING WRITTEN BY VARIOUS ATHEISTS, WHO TALK ABOUT HOW JUVENILE, HOW ABSURD, IT IS TO BELIEVE IN A GOD. SAMUEL HARRIS, ONE OF THESE WRITERS, SAYS THAT DURING THE LIFETIME OF THE HUMAN RACE, PEOPLE HAVE BELIEVED IN THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF GODS. HARRIS SAYS THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HIM AND YOU AND I IS THAT HE DOESN'T BELIEVE IN ANY OF THESE GODS, AND YOU AND I DON'T BELIEVE IN ANY OF THEM EITHER, EXCEPT FOR ONE. BUT I WOULD CORRECT HARRIS. THE GOD IN WHOM I BELIEVE IS NOT ANY OF THESE, NOT EVEN THE ONE HE THINKS I BELIEVE IN. MY GOD IS LOVE, AND LOVE IS REAL, AND THE PERSONS IN GOD CAN ONLY BE UNDERSTOOD IN RELATIONSHIP TO EACH OTHER; AND WE ARE INVITED INTO THIS RELATIONSHIP, AND ONLY IF WE SURRENDER TO IT WILL WE TRULY FIND OURSELVES.
IT IS HARD TO THINK ABOUT THE TRINITY. BUT IT IS GOOD FOR US TO THINK ABOUT IT, BECAUSE THE ONLY KIND OF GOD THAT MAKES ANY SENSE IS THE TRINITARIAN GOD REVEALED BY JESUS.
SO THIS WEEK LOOK FOR SIGNS OF GOD THE FATHER IN THE LEAVES AND FLOWERS AND TREES, IN ALL OF CREATION. LOOK FOR SIGNS OF GOD THE SON IN THE GOODNESS OF PEOPLE WHO GIVE SOMETHING OF THEMSELVES TO YOU; AND LOOK FOR SIGNS OF GOD THE SPIRIT IN THE INSIGHTS YOU GET, IN THE IMPULSES TO LOVE THAT YOU WILL HAVE. AND MAY YOU SEE WHAT IS REALLY TRUE, THAT YOU LIVE IN THE TRINITY.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Pentecost Sunday, cycle A
JOHN 20:19-23
I REMEMBER MY TWIN GRANDSON'S FOURTH BIRTHDAY. THERE WERE TONGUES OF FLAME ON THE BIRTHDAY CAKE AND A MIGHTY WIND WHEN THEY BLEW THE CANDLES OUT. AND TODAY IS THE BIRTHDAY OF THE CHURCH. OF COURSE WE MIGHT HAVE DECIDED THAT THE BIRTHDAY WAS WHEN JESUS WAS BORN, OR PERHAPS ON HOLY THURSDAY WHEN HE ORDAINED THE FIRST PRIESTS AND CELEBRATED THE FIRST EUCHARIST, OR MAYBE GOOD FRIDAY, BECAUSE THE CHURCH WAS IN A SENSE, BORN FROM HIS SIDE IN THE WATER AND THE BLOOD THAT SPILLED FORTH WHEN HE WAS PIERCED WITH A SPEAR. OR MAYBE EASTER SUNDAY, WHEN HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD. THOSE ARE ALL LOGICAL CHOICES, BUT REALLY, WE CELEBRATE THE BEGINNING OF THE CHURCH ON PENTECOST.
IN THE GOSPEL TODAY, JESUS BLOWS HIS BREATH ON THE APOSTLES AND TELLS THEM TO RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. IF YOU LOOK IN YOUR BIBLE, YOU WOULD SEE THAT THIS EVENT TAKES PLACE WHEN JESUS FIRST APPEARS TO HIS APOSTLES, NAMELY, EASTER SUNDAY. BUT WHAT DO THE APOSTLES DO WHEN THEY HAVE RECEIVED THE HOLY SPIRIT? WELL, WE FIND THEM HUDDLED IN THE UPPER ROOM EIGHT DAYS LATER, STILL FRIGHTENED. WE FIND THEM GOING BACK TO GALILEE AND SOME OF THEM TAKING UP THEIR OLD TRADE. AND EVEN THOUGH JESUS MOVES AMONG THEM AND APPEARS TO ABOUT 500 PEOPLE AFTER HE DIES, EVEN AFTER THE ASCENSION, THE BOOK OF ACTS TELLS US THAT THERE ARE ABOUT 120 FOLLOWERS WHO ARE GATHERED THERE, NOT A VERY PROMISING BEGINNING. AND THEN THE HOLY SPIRIT COMES UPON THEM AGAIN, THIS TIME WITH WIND AND TONGUES OF FIRE, AND SOMETHING AMAZING HAPPENS; THEY BEGIN TO PREACH IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES, AND ACCORDING TO THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, 3000 WERE ADDED TO THEIR NUMBER THAT DAY. AND THE BOOK OF ACTS DESCRIBES MIRACLES – PETER RAISING A DEAD WOMAN, CURING A LAME MAN, PAUL WORKING MIRACLES AS WELL, AND MIRACLES ARE WORKED ON THEM AS WELL. THEY ARE BROKEN OUT OF PRISON THROUGH SUPERNATURAL MEANS, PHILIP IS TRANSPORTED BY AN ANGEL, PAUL IS GUIDED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT ON HIS JOURNEYS – THIS TIME THE COMING OF THE SPIRIT CHANGED THINGS IN A BIG WAY.
SO WE MIGHT ASK, DOES THE SPIRIT COME MORE THAN ONCE? AND IF HE DOES, WHY WAS THE SECOND TIME FOLLOWED BY ALL THE POWER, ALL THE MIRACLES, ALL THE GROWTH, AND THE FIRST, BY HARDLY ANYTHING AT ALL? AND WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO US, HERE AND NOW?
OUR FAITH TELLS US THAT WE ALL RECEIVE THE SPIRIT – WE RECEIVE HIM AT BAPTISM, WE RECEIVE HIM THROUGH ALL THE SACRAMENTS, BUT ESPECIALLY IN THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION. HIS CONCERN IN THIS COMING IS THAT WE KEEP OUR EYES FOCUSED ON JESUS, OUR EXAMPLE, OUR TEACHER, THE HEAD OF OUR BODY. AND HE DOES THIS BECAUSE HE WANTS TO MAKE US ONE, TO GATHER US TOGETHER, AND OFFER US TO THE FATHER. HE DWELLS IN US, WE ARE HIS TEMPLE, AND ALTHOUGH WE ALL RECEIVE THAT SAME SPIRIT, HE GIVES EACH OF US WHAT WE NEED IN THE WAY OF GUIDANCE AND PROTECTION FROM WHAT MIGHT TURN US AWAY FROM OUR DESTINY.
BUT THE SPIRIT COMES TO US ANOTHER WAY SOMETIMES. HE TAKES POSSESSION OF US, SO THAT THE GIFTS WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN WILL BE USED FOR THE GOOD OF THE CHURCH, FOR THE GOOD OF OUR FELLOW MAN. AND THIS MAY BE SPECTACULAR OR VERY PEDESTRIAN OR SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN. THE BOOK OF ACTS REPORTS THE SPIRIT-LED ACTIVITIES OF THE EARLY CHURCH, BUT THERE WERE ABOUT 120 WHO RECEIVED THE SPIRIT THAT DAY, INCLUDING MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS. WE DON'T HEAR ABOUT HER PREACHING, OR WORKING MIRACLES, AND IT MAY BE THAT HER CONTRIBUTION TO THE EARLY CHURCH WAS TO MAKE SURE THE APOSTLE JOHN GOT HIS LAUNDRY DONE AND DINNER ON THE TABLE; PERHAPS HER CONTRIBUTION WAS TO SIT WITH LUKE AND RECALL THE EVENTS SURROUNDING JESUS' BIRTH. AND WE DON'T NEED TO EVEN BE CONSCIOUS THAT THE SPIRIT IS WORKING IN US FOR THE GOOD OF THE CHURCH. WHEN THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS GIVE UP THEIR TIME TO PROVIDE A MOTHER'S DAY BREAKFAST, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS MOVING THEM. WHEN OUR SAINT MARY'S GUILD BRINGS SO MANY GIFTS TO THE PARISH, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS POSSESSING THEM. VOLUNTEERS FOR THE SOUP KITCHEN, FAITH FORMATION, EUCHARISTIC MINISTERS, LECTORS, USHERS, THE CHOIR, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THERE BUILDING UP THE CHURCH – AND THAT'S JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG.
SAINT PAUL TELLS US THAT THE SPIRIT GIVES EACH ONE OF US GIFTS FOR BUILDING UP THE CHURCH.
SO THE SPIRIT WAS CONFERRED UPON THE APOSTLES BY JESUS, TO BE THEIR ADVOCATE AND GUIDE, TO BEGIN THE WORK OF MAKING THEM OVER FOR THE FATHER. AND THE SPIRIT RUSHED UPON THE APOSTLES AND THE INFANT CHURCH AND THE BLESSED MOTHER TO GIVE THEM ALL GIFTS -- OF POWER, OF MIRACLES, OF WISDOM, OF STRENGTH, AND MAYBE SOME GIFTS THAT WE HARDLY WOULD CONSIDER GIFTS, BUT JUST AS IMPORTANT FOR CREATING AND BUILDING UP THE CHURCH.
AND THE SPIRIT MOVES AMONG US EVEN TODAY. AND WHEN YOU READ THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, YOU CAN SEE A THEME. AS THE APOSTLES EXERCISE THEIR GIFTS, THE CHURCH GROWS. AS THEY BOLDLY PROCLAIM, AS THEY FAITHFULLY ENDURE PUNISHMENT AND RIDICULE AND PERSECUTION, AS THEY KEEP GETTING UP AFTER BEING KNOCKED DOWN AND KEEP ON EXERCISING THEIR GIFTS, THE GIFTS GET STRONGER, WHAT THEY DO BECOMES MORE EFFECTIVE, AND HERE WE ARE TODAY, A CHURCH ONE BILLION STRONG, A PEOPLE BUILT UP BY 2000 YEARS OF SAINTS WHO EXERCISED THEIR GIFTS AND COOPERATED WITH THE SPIRIT – 2000 YEARS OF MISSIONARIES, OF INSTITUTIONS OF EDUCATION, OF HOSPITALS, OF GREAT PREACHERS AND THEOLOGIANS, OF FAITHFUL MARRIED COUPLES AND HOLY FAMILIES, OF DEVOTED PRIESTS AND BISHOPS AND DEACONS AND RELIGIOUS AND LAY PEOPLE –WE ARE ALL PROOF THAT WHAT THE SPIRIT STARTED ON PENTECOST SUNDAY SO LONG AGO, HE CONTINUES TO THIS DAY.
HOLY SPIRIT, CHANGE US, MAKE US MORE LIKE JESUS, MAKE US MORE WORTHY OF BEING HIS GIFT TO THE FATHER, AND POUR OUT YOUR GIFTS TO US, SO THAT WE CAN STRENGTHEN EACH OTHER, SO THAT WE CAN REACH OUT TO ALL YOUR CHILDREN. AND FINALLY, HOLY SPIRIT, GIVE US THE GIFT OF HOLY BOLDNESS, SO THAT WE WILL NEVER HOLD BACK WHEN YOU INSPIRE US TO USE OUR GIFTS.
I REMEMBER MY TWIN GRANDSON'S FOURTH BIRTHDAY. THERE WERE TONGUES OF FLAME ON THE BIRTHDAY CAKE AND A MIGHTY WIND WHEN THEY BLEW THE CANDLES OUT. AND TODAY IS THE BIRTHDAY OF THE CHURCH. OF COURSE WE MIGHT HAVE DECIDED THAT THE BIRTHDAY WAS WHEN JESUS WAS BORN, OR PERHAPS ON HOLY THURSDAY WHEN HE ORDAINED THE FIRST PRIESTS AND CELEBRATED THE FIRST EUCHARIST, OR MAYBE GOOD FRIDAY, BECAUSE THE CHURCH WAS IN A SENSE, BORN FROM HIS SIDE IN THE WATER AND THE BLOOD THAT SPILLED FORTH WHEN HE WAS PIERCED WITH A SPEAR. OR MAYBE EASTER SUNDAY, WHEN HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD. THOSE ARE ALL LOGICAL CHOICES, BUT REALLY, WE CELEBRATE THE BEGINNING OF THE CHURCH ON PENTECOST.
IN THE GOSPEL TODAY, JESUS BLOWS HIS BREATH ON THE APOSTLES AND TELLS THEM TO RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. IF YOU LOOK IN YOUR BIBLE, YOU WOULD SEE THAT THIS EVENT TAKES PLACE WHEN JESUS FIRST APPEARS TO HIS APOSTLES, NAMELY, EASTER SUNDAY. BUT WHAT DO THE APOSTLES DO WHEN THEY HAVE RECEIVED THE HOLY SPIRIT? WELL, WE FIND THEM HUDDLED IN THE UPPER ROOM EIGHT DAYS LATER, STILL FRIGHTENED. WE FIND THEM GOING BACK TO GALILEE AND SOME OF THEM TAKING UP THEIR OLD TRADE. AND EVEN THOUGH JESUS MOVES AMONG THEM AND APPEARS TO ABOUT 500 PEOPLE AFTER HE DIES, EVEN AFTER THE ASCENSION, THE BOOK OF ACTS TELLS US THAT THERE ARE ABOUT 120 FOLLOWERS WHO ARE GATHERED THERE, NOT A VERY PROMISING BEGINNING. AND THEN THE HOLY SPIRIT COMES UPON THEM AGAIN, THIS TIME WITH WIND AND TONGUES OF FIRE, AND SOMETHING AMAZING HAPPENS; THEY BEGIN TO PREACH IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES, AND ACCORDING TO THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, 3000 WERE ADDED TO THEIR NUMBER THAT DAY. AND THE BOOK OF ACTS DESCRIBES MIRACLES – PETER RAISING A DEAD WOMAN, CURING A LAME MAN, PAUL WORKING MIRACLES AS WELL, AND MIRACLES ARE WORKED ON THEM AS WELL. THEY ARE BROKEN OUT OF PRISON THROUGH SUPERNATURAL MEANS, PHILIP IS TRANSPORTED BY AN ANGEL, PAUL IS GUIDED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT ON HIS JOURNEYS – THIS TIME THE COMING OF THE SPIRIT CHANGED THINGS IN A BIG WAY.
SO WE MIGHT ASK, DOES THE SPIRIT COME MORE THAN ONCE? AND IF HE DOES, WHY WAS THE SECOND TIME FOLLOWED BY ALL THE POWER, ALL THE MIRACLES, ALL THE GROWTH, AND THE FIRST, BY HARDLY ANYTHING AT ALL? AND WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO US, HERE AND NOW?
OUR FAITH TELLS US THAT WE ALL RECEIVE THE SPIRIT – WE RECEIVE HIM AT BAPTISM, WE RECEIVE HIM THROUGH ALL THE SACRAMENTS, BUT ESPECIALLY IN THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION. HIS CONCERN IN THIS COMING IS THAT WE KEEP OUR EYES FOCUSED ON JESUS, OUR EXAMPLE, OUR TEACHER, THE HEAD OF OUR BODY. AND HE DOES THIS BECAUSE HE WANTS TO MAKE US ONE, TO GATHER US TOGETHER, AND OFFER US TO THE FATHER. HE DWELLS IN US, WE ARE HIS TEMPLE, AND ALTHOUGH WE ALL RECEIVE THAT SAME SPIRIT, HE GIVES EACH OF US WHAT WE NEED IN THE WAY OF GUIDANCE AND PROTECTION FROM WHAT MIGHT TURN US AWAY FROM OUR DESTINY.
BUT THE SPIRIT COMES TO US ANOTHER WAY SOMETIMES. HE TAKES POSSESSION OF US, SO THAT THE GIFTS WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN WILL BE USED FOR THE GOOD OF THE CHURCH, FOR THE GOOD OF OUR FELLOW MAN. AND THIS MAY BE SPECTACULAR OR VERY PEDESTRIAN OR SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN. THE BOOK OF ACTS REPORTS THE SPIRIT-LED ACTIVITIES OF THE EARLY CHURCH, BUT THERE WERE ABOUT 120 WHO RECEIVED THE SPIRIT THAT DAY, INCLUDING MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS. WE DON'T HEAR ABOUT HER PREACHING, OR WORKING MIRACLES, AND IT MAY BE THAT HER CONTRIBUTION TO THE EARLY CHURCH WAS TO MAKE SURE THE APOSTLE JOHN GOT HIS LAUNDRY DONE AND DINNER ON THE TABLE; PERHAPS HER CONTRIBUTION WAS TO SIT WITH LUKE AND RECALL THE EVENTS SURROUNDING JESUS' BIRTH. AND WE DON'T NEED TO EVEN BE CONSCIOUS THAT THE SPIRIT IS WORKING IN US FOR THE GOOD OF THE CHURCH. WHEN THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS GIVE UP THEIR TIME TO PROVIDE A MOTHER'S DAY BREAKFAST, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS MOVING THEM. WHEN OUR SAINT MARY'S GUILD BRINGS SO MANY GIFTS TO THE PARISH, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS POSSESSING THEM. VOLUNTEERS FOR THE SOUP KITCHEN, FAITH FORMATION, EUCHARISTIC MINISTERS, LECTORS, USHERS, THE CHOIR, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THERE BUILDING UP THE CHURCH – AND THAT'S JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG.
SAINT PAUL TELLS US THAT THE SPIRIT GIVES EACH ONE OF US GIFTS FOR BUILDING UP THE CHURCH.
SO THE SPIRIT WAS CONFERRED UPON THE APOSTLES BY JESUS, TO BE THEIR ADVOCATE AND GUIDE, TO BEGIN THE WORK OF MAKING THEM OVER FOR THE FATHER. AND THE SPIRIT RUSHED UPON THE APOSTLES AND THE INFANT CHURCH AND THE BLESSED MOTHER TO GIVE THEM ALL GIFTS -- OF POWER, OF MIRACLES, OF WISDOM, OF STRENGTH, AND MAYBE SOME GIFTS THAT WE HARDLY WOULD CONSIDER GIFTS, BUT JUST AS IMPORTANT FOR CREATING AND BUILDING UP THE CHURCH.
AND THE SPIRIT MOVES AMONG US EVEN TODAY. AND WHEN YOU READ THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, YOU CAN SEE A THEME. AS THE APOSTLES EXERCISE THEIR GIFTS, THE CHURCH GROWS. AS THEY BOLDLY PROCLAIM, AS THEY FAITHFULLY ENDURE PUNISHMENT AND RIDICULE AND PERSECUTION, AS THEY KEEP GETTING UP AFTER BEING KNOCKED DOWN AND KEEP ON EXERCISING THEIR GIFTS, THE GIFTS GET STRONGER, WHAT THEY DO BECOMES MORE EFFECTIVE, AND HERE WE ARE TODAY, A CHURCH ONE BILLION STRONG, A PEOPLE BUILT UP BY 2000 YEARS OF SAINTS WHO EXERCISED THEIR GIFTS AND COOPERATED WITH THE SPIRIT – 2000 YEARS OF MISSIONARIES, OF INSTITUTIONS OF EDUCATION, OF HOSPITALS, OF GREAT PREACHERS AND THEOLOGIANS, OF FAITHFUL MARRIED COUPLES AND HOLY FAMILIES, OF DEVOTED PRIESTS AND BISHOPS AND DEACONS AND RELIGIOUS AND LAY PEOPLE –WE ARE ALL PROOF THAT WHAT THE SPIRIT STARTED ON PENTECOST SUNDAY SO LONG AGO, HE CONTINUES TO THIS DAY.
HOLY SPIRIT, CHANGE US, MAKE US MORE LIKE JESUS, MAKE US MORE WORTHY OF BEING HIS GIFT TO THE FATHER, AND POUR OUT YOUR GIFTS TO US, SO THAT WE CAN STRENGTHEN EACH OTHER, SO THAT WE CAN REACH OUT TO ALL YOUR CHILDREN. AND FINALLY, HOLY SPIRIT, GIVE US THE GIFT OF HOLY BOLDNESS, SO THAT WE WILL NEVER HOLD BACK WHEN YOU INSPIRE US TO USE OUR GIFTS.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle A
JOHN 17:1-11
YOU'VE PROBABLY HEARD PEOPLE SAY, “GOD LOVES ME JUST THE WAY I AM.” AND THEY ARE NOT WRONG. BUT LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF JESUS IN TODAY'S GOSPEL: “ ETERNAL LIFE CONSISTS IN THIS, THAT THEY KNOW YOU, THE ONE TRUE GOD, AND JESUS CHRIST, THE ONE WHOM YOU HAVE SENT.” AND JESUS GOES ON IN HIS DISCOURSE TO TALK ABOUT HOW HIS APOSTLES HAVE COME TO KNOW THAT ALL THAT WAS GIVEN TO JESUS CAME FROM THE FATHER, AND HE PASSED THAT ON TO THEM, SO THAT THEY KNEW THAT HE HAD COME FORTH FROM THE FATHER.
SO YES, WE ARE LOVED BY GOD, JUST THE WAY WE ARE, BUT THAT'S NOT GOING TO GET US ETERNAL LIFE. THERE IS SOMETHING IN THIS STATEMENT, DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND, PERHAPS, THAT SEEMS TO HOLD A VERY IMPORTANT TRUTH. I DON'T THINK JESUS MEANS THAT WE HAVE TO KNOW THAT THE FATHER EXISTS, AND THAT HE SENT JESUS TO US. THE WORD “KNOW” IN GREEK MEANS AN ONGOING PROCESS, AND IT HAS SOMETHING TO DO NOT JUST WITH OUR MINDS, BUT BEYOND OUR MINDS AS WELL. JOHN, OF COURSE, TELLS US OVER AND OVER AGAIN, IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS, THAT THE ONLY WAY WE CAN COME TO THE FATHER IS THROUGH JESUS. HE ALSO TELLS US THAT JESUS SPEAKS THE WORDS OF THE FATHER (AND NO OTHER WORDS) AND DOES THE WORK OF THE FATHER (AND NO OTHER WORK). AND JESUS REVEALS THE FATHER TO US IN HIS PERSON, FOR HE AND THE FATHER ARE ONE.
I HAD A GRANDFATHER WHO HAD BEEN A COWBOY WHEN HE WAS YOUNG. I ONLY KNEW HIM WHEN HE WAS MUCH OLDER, AND I STILL REMEMBER A VERY THIN MAN WITH A SCRATCHY BEARD WHO WORE WESTERN STYLE SHIRTS. HE DIDN'T TALK MUCH, AND WHEN I'D VISIT MY GRANDPARENTS, MY GRANDMOTHER WOULD BUSTLE ABOUT, TALKING UP A STORM, WHILE MY GRANDFATHER WOULD SIT IN HIS CHAIR READING THE NEWSPAPER AND SMOKING A CIGARETTE. IN THOSE DAYS YOUNG BOYS GROWING UP IN MONTANA COULD GET OBSESSED BY COWBOYS; WE KNEW ABOUT ROY ROGERS AND GENE AUTRY AND HOPALONG CASSIDY – COWBOYS WERE OUR HEROES AND WE ALL WANTED TO BE ONE. SO WHEN I LEARNED MY GRANDFATHER HAD BEEN A COWBOY, I COULDN'T HAVE BEEN MORE EXCITED, AND WANTED TO FIND OUT EXACTLY WHAT HE KNEW, WHAT IT HAD BEEN LIKE FOR HIM. BUT HE ANSWERED MY QUESTIONS IN ONE WORD SENTENCES AND CONTINUED READING HIS NEWSPAPER.
ONE DAY MY GRANDPARENTS WERE OVER TO OUR HOUSE FOR SUPPER, AND AFTERWARDS THEY SAT IN THE BACKYARD ON A NICE SUMMER EVENING. I WAS PLAYING WITH MY LARIAT, A ROPE WITH A LOOP IN IT, AND I WAS TRYING TO THROW THE LOOP OVER WHATEVER I COULD – THE CAT, MY MOTHER'S GARDENING TOOLS – WHEN MY GRANDFATHER GOT UP AND ASKED TO SEE MY LARIAT. HE TOLD ME TO RUN, SO I DID. HE THREW THE LARIAT AND CAUGHT MY FOOT AND I WENT DOWN ON THE GRASS. HE DID THIS OVER AND OVER AGAIN, AND THERE WAS NO WAY I COULD GET AWAY. THEN HE LET ME TRY IT, AND I GRADUALLY LEARNED TO GET THAT LOOP OF ROPE ABOUT WHERE I WANTED IT, AND EVEN MANAGED TO SNAG MY SISTER ONCE OR TWICE.
I GOT TO KNOW MY GRANDFATHER BETTER THAT EVENING, NOT BY WHAT HE TOLD ME, OR WHAT SOMEONE ELSE MIGHT HAVE TOLD ME, BUT BY DOING WHAT HE DID AND LEARNING FROM HIM.
GOD LOVES US UNCONDITIONALLY, THE WAY WE ARE. THAT IS A GIVEN. GOD GAVE US HIS SON. AS SAINT PAUL TELLS US, GOD MADE HIM WHO HAD NO SIN TO BE SIN FOR US, SO THAT IN HIM WE MIGHT BECOME THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD. SO THE FATHER, THROUGH JESUS, HAS DONE HIS PART.
BUT IF WE WANT TO KNOW THE FATHER, WE HAVE TO DO WHAT THE FATHER DOES, WHAT JESUS SHOWED US THAT THE FATHER DID. THERE IS NO OTHER WAY. BUT WHEN THE LITTLE BOY TRIES TO THROW THE LARIAT, THE GRANDFATHER DOES NOT STAND BACK AND WATCH. WHEN WE TRY WITH OUR IMPERFECTIONS AND WEAKNESS, THE FATHER IS THERE WITH HIS GRACE TO TEACH US, TO ADD TO WHAT WE TRY TO DO. AND THE MORE WE DO WHAT WE SEE HIM DO, THE MORE HE TRAINS US, THE MORE HE SEES TO IT THAT OUR WORK, WHICH IS REALLY HIM WORKING IN US, BEARS FRUIT. WHY, WHEN HE COULD DO THE WORK SO MUCH BETTER HIMSELF? BECAUSE HE DELIGHTS IN HIS PEOPLE, WHEN HE SEES US TRYING TO DO HIS WORK, HE COMES TO US. AND IN THAT PROCESS, WE COME TO KNOW HIM. AND THE MORE WE KNOW, THE MORE WE WANT TO KNOW, AND EVENTUALLY, EITHER IN THIS LIFE OR THE NEXT, WE ARE TAKEN UP INTO THE RELATIONSHIP HE HAS WITH HIS SON, THE RELATIONSHIP WHICH BREATHES FORTH THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND THAT IS ETERNAL LIFE.
ST THERESE, A DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH, TOLD HER SISTERS ON HER DEATHBED, THAT SHE INTENDED TO SPEND HER HEAVEN DOING GOOD UPON THE EARTH. A LOT OF US THINK THAT IN HEAVEN WE WILL FINALLY GET TO REST, WE WILL PARK OURSELVES ON A CLOUD AND PLAY A GOLDEN HARP, OR MAYBE WE WILL GO TO AN ETERNAL BANQUET WHERE WE WON'T EAT OR DRINK THE SAME THING TWICE AND WE WILL NEVER GET FAT OR SICK OR INEBRIATED. BUT SAINT THERESE KNEW WHAT HEAVEN WAS, KNEW WHAT ETERNAL LIFE WAS ALL ABOUT; IT IS NOT TIME THAT GOES ON FOREVER AND EVER, IT IS NOT LIFE ON EARTH WITHOUT ALL THE PAIN AND SUFFERING AND GROWING OLD; IT IS KNOWING THE FATHER BY DOING WHAT THE FATHER DOES, AND TO LEARN WHAT THE FATHER DOES, WE LOOK TO JESUS CHRIST. WE WILL NOT BE SITTING AROUND IN HEAVEN. WE WILL BE DOING WORK, WE WILL BE DOING THE WORK THAT THE FATHER DOES, THE CREATIVE WORK THAT HE NEVER STOPS DOING, AND WE WILL KNOW THE FATHER AND THE SON THAT HE HAS SENT US. AND ALL THAT WE DO WILL BEAR FRUIT, NOTHING WILL GO TO WASTE, WE WILL BE COMPLETELY AND ENTIRELY FULFILLED. IN DOING THE WORK OF THE FATHER WE WILL COME TO KNOW HIM MORE, AND IN KNOWING HIM MORE, WE WILL COME TO BE MORE LIKE HIM, AND THIS WILL NEVER END, FOR THERE IS NO LIMIT TO HIM.
BECAUSE WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT, HELL WOULD BE JUST THE OPPOSITE; AN ETERNITY WITH NOTHING TO DO, AND NO ONE TO KNOW.
YOU AND I ARE ALREADY DOING THE WORK OF THE FATHER. BUT LET US TRY HARDER, LET US ALLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT TO SHOW US WHAT JESUS DOES THAT WE CAN DO, AND GIVE US THE STRENGTH TO DO IT. AND LET US BE CONSTANTLY AWARE OF THE FATHER, WHO STANDS BEHIND US AND TAKES DELIGHT IN US, AND SHOWS US AND TEACHES US AS WE COME TO KNOW HIM.
YOU'VE PROBABLY HEARD PEOPLE SAY, “GOD LOVES ME JUST THE WAY I AM.” AND THEY ARE NOT WRONG. BUT LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF JESUS IN TODAY'S GOSPEL: “ ETERNAL LIFE CONSISTS IN THIS, THAT THEY KNOW YOU, THE ONE TRUE GOD, AND JESUS CHRIST, THE ONE WHOM YOU HAVE SENT.” AND JESUS GOES ON IN HIS DISCOURSE TO TALK ABOUT HOW HIS APOSTLES HAVE COME TO KNOW THAT ALL THAT WAS GIVEN TO JESUS CAME FROM THE FATHER, AND HE PASSED THAT ON TO THEM, SO THAT THEY KNEW THAT HE HAD COME FORTH FROM THE FATHER.
SO YES, WE ARE LOVED BY GOD, JUST THE WAY WE ARE, BUT THAT'S NOT GOING TO GET US ETERNAL LIFE. THERE IS SOMETHING IN THIS STATEMENT, DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND, PERHAPS, THAT SEEMS TO HOLD A VERY IMPORTANT TRUTH. I DON'T THINK JESUS MEANS THAT WE HAVE TO KNOW THAT THE FATHER EXISTS, AND THAT HE SENT JESUS TO US. THE WORD “KNOW” IN GREEK MEANS AN ONGOING PROCESS, AND IT HAS SOMETHING TO DO NOT JUST WITH OUR MINDS, BUT BEYOND OUR MINDS AS WELL. JOHN, OF COURSE, TELLS US OVER AND OVER AGAIN, IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS, THAT THE ONLY WAY WE CAN COME TO THE FATHER IS THROUGH JESUS. HE ALSO TELLS US THAT JESUS SPEAKS THE WORDS OF THE FATHER (AND NO OTHER WORDS) AND DOES THE WORK OF THE FATHER (AND NO OTHER WORK). AND JESUS REVEALS THE FATHER TO US IN HIS PERSON, FOR HE AND THE FATHER ARE ONE.
I HAD A GRANDFATHER WHO HAD BEEN A COWBOY WHEN HE WAS YOUNG. I ONLY KNEW HIM WHEN HE WAS MUCH OLDER, AND I STILL REMEMBER A VERY THIN MAN WITH A SCRATCHY BEARD WHO WORE WESTERN STYLE SHIRTS. HE DIDN'T TALK MUCH, AND WHEN I'D VISIT MY GRANDPARENTS, MY GRANDMOTHER WOULD BUSTLE ABOUT, TALKING UP A STORM, WHILE MY GRANDFATHER WOULD SIT IN HIS CHAIR READING THE NEWSPAPER AND SMOKING A CIGARETTE. IN THOSE DAYS YOUNG BOYS GROWING UP IN MONTANA COULD GET OBSESSED BY COWBOYS; WE KNEW ABOUT ROY ROGERS AND GENE AUTRY AND HOPALONG CASSIDY – COWBOYS WERE OUR HEROES AND WE ALL WANTED TO BE ONE. SO WHEN I LEARNED MY GRANDFATHER HAD BEEN A COWBOY, I COULDN'T HAVE BEEN MORE EXCITED, AND WANTED TO FIND OUT EXACTLY WHAT HE KNEW, WHAT IT HAD BEEN LIKE FOR HIM. BUT HE ANSWERED MY QUESTIONS IN ONE WORD SENTENCES AND CONTINUED READING HIS NEWSPAPER.
ONE DAY MY GRANDPARENTS WERE OVER TO OUR HOUSE FOR SUPPER, AND AFTERWARDS THEY SAT IN THE BACKYARD ON A NICE SUMMER EVENING. I WAS PLAYING WITH MY LARIAT, A ROPE WITH A LOOP IN IT, AND I WAS TRYING TO THROW THE LOOP OVER WHATEVER I COULD – THE CAT, MY MOTHER'S GARDENING TOOLS – WHEN MY GRANDFATHER GOT UP AND ASKED TO SEE MY LARIAT. HE TOLD ME TO RUN, SO I DID. HE THREW THE LARIAT AND CAUGHT MY FOOT AND I WENT DOWN ON THE GRASS. HE DID THIS OVER AND OVER AGAIN, AND THERE WAS NO WAY I COULD GET AWAY. THEN HE LET ME TRY IT, AND I GRADUALLY LEARNED TO GET THAT LOOP OF ROPE ABOUT WHERE I WANTED IT, AND EVEN MANAGED TO SNAG MY SISTER ONCE OR TWICE.
I GOT TO KNOW MY GRANDFATHER BETTER THAT EVENING, NOT BY WHAT HE TOLD ME, OR WHAT SOMEONE ELSE MIGHT HAVE TOLD ME, BUT BY DOING WHAT HE DID AND LEARNING FROM HIM.
GOD LOVES US UNCONDITIONALLY, THE WAY WE ARE. THAT IS A GIVEN. GOD GAVE US HIS SON. AS SAINT PAUL TELLS US, GOD MADE HIM WHO HAD NO SIN TO BE SIN FOR US, SO THAT IN HIM WE MIGHT BECOME THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD. SO THE FATHER, THROUGH JESUS, HAS DONE HIS PART.
BUT IF WE WANT TO KNOW THE FATHER, WE HAVE TO DO WHAT THE FATHER DOES, WHAT JESUS SHOWED US THAT THE FATHER DID. THERE IS NO OTHER WAY. BUT WHEN THE LITTLE BOY TRIES TO THROW THE LARIAT, THE GRANDFATHER DOES NOT STAND BACK AND WATCH. WHEN WE TRY WITH OUR IMPERFECTIONS AND WEAKNESS, THE FATHER IS THERE WITH HIS GRACE TO TEACH US, TO ADD TO WHAT WE TRY TO DO. AND THE MORE WE DO WHAT WE SEE HIM DO, THE MORE HE TRAINS US, THE MORE HE SEES TO IT THAT OUR WORK, WHICH IS REALLY HIM WORKING IN US, BEARS FRUIT. WHY, WHEN HE COULD DO THE WORK SO MUCH BETTER HIMSELF? BECAUSE HE DELIGHTS IN HIS PEOPLE, WHEN HE SEES US TRYING TO DO HIS WORK, HE COMES TO US. AND IN THAT PROCESS, WE COME TO KNOW HIM. AND THE MORE WE KNOW, THE MORE WE WANT TO KNOW, AND EVENTUALLY, EITHER IN THIS LIFE OR THE NEXT, WE ARE TAKEN UP INTO THE RELATIONSHIP HE HAS WITH HIS SON, THE RELATIONSHIP WHICH BREATHES FORTH THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND THAT IS ETERNAL LIFE.
ST THERESE, A DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH, TOLD HER SISTERS ON HER DEATHBED, THAT SHE INTENDED TO SPEND HER HEAVEN DOING GOOD UPON THE EARTH. A LOT OF US THINK THAT IN HEAVEN WE WILL FINALLY GET TO REST, WE WILL PARK OURSELVES ON A CLOUD AND PLAY A GOLDEN HARP, OR MAYBE WE WILL GO TO AN ETERNAL BANQUET WHERE WE WON'T EAT OR DRINK THE SAME THING TWICE AND WE WILL NEVER GET FAT OR SICK OR INEBRIATED. BUT SAINT THERESE KNEW WHAT HEAVEN WAS, KNEW WHAT ETERNAL LIFE WAS ALL ABOUT; IT IS NOT TIME THAT GOES ON FOREVER AND EVER, IT IS NOT LIFE ON EARTH WITHOUT ALL THE PAIN AND SUFFERING AND GROWING OLD; IT IS KNOWING THE FATHER BY DOING WHAT THE FATHER DOES, AND TO LEARN WHAT THE FATHER DOES, WE LOOK TO JESUS CHRIST. WE WILL NOT BE SITTING AROUND IN HEAVEN. WE WILL BE DOING WORK, WE WILL BE DOING THE WORK THAT THE FATHER DOES, THE CREATIVE WORK THAT HE NEVER STOPS DOING, AND WE WILL KNOW THE FATHER AND THE SON THAT HE HAS SENT US. AND ALL THAT WE DO WILL BEAR FRUIT, NOTHING WILL GO TO WASTE, WE WILL BE COMPLETELY AND ENTIRELY FULFILLED. IN DOING THE WORK OF THE FATHER WE WILL COME TO KNOW HIM MORE, AND IN KNOWING HIM MORE, WE WILL COME TO BE MORE LIKE HIM, AND THIS WILL NEVER END, FOR THERE IS NO LIMIT TO HIM.
BECAUSE WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT, HELL WOULD BE JUST THE OPPOSITE; AN ETERNITY WITH NOTHING TO DO, AND NO ONE TO KNOW.
YOU AND I ARE ALREADY DOING THE WORK OF THE FATHER. BUT LET US TRY HARDER, LET US ALLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT TO SHOW US WHAT JESUS DOES THAT WE CAN DO, AND GIVE US THE STRENGTH TO DO IT. AND LET US BE CONSTANTLY AWARE OF THE FATHER, WHO STANDS BEHIND US AND TAKES DELIGHT IN US, AND SHOWS US AND TEACHES US AS WE COME TO KNOW HIM.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Sixth Sunday of Easter, cycle A
JOHN 14:15-21
I JUST GOT BACK FROM A SHORT VACATION WITH MY WIFE, MY 13 GRANDCHILDREN, SIX CHILDREN, THREE SONS IN LAW, AND ONE MAYBE SOMEDAY SON IN LAW. IT WAS A REALLY GREAT TIME, AND I HOPE WE CAN DO IT AGAIN IN TEN YEARS OR SO. WE WENT TO OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND, JUST IN TIME TO EXPERIENCE RAINSTORMS AND ARCTIC WINDS, SO WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME INDOORS. AND POSSIBLY BECAUSE GRANDMA AND GRANDPA'S ROOM WAS CLEAN AND RELATIVELY EMPTY, AND OF COURSE BECAUSE IT HAD LOTS OF FOOD AND LIQUID REFRESHMENT AND A PLACE TO WATCH TELEVISION WITHOUT YOUR PARENTS GETTING MAD, IT ACTED AS A MAGNET FOR GRANDCHILDREN. BUT ENOUGH ABOUT MY VACATION.
SERIOUSLY, I LIKE TO WATCH MY DAUGHTERS AND THEIR HUSBANDS INTERACT WITH THEIR CHILDREN. THE LITTLEST ONES FALL AND ARE IMMEDIATELY SCOOPED UP. THE SLIGHTLY OLDER ONES GET OUT OF LINE AND GET DISCIPLINED, BUT IN A WAY THAT IS BOTH FIRM AND LOVING. THERE ARE TIMES WHEN THE PARENTS FORCE THE OLDER KIDS TO DO SOMETHING THEY REALLY DON'T WANT TO DO – LIKE A DAY TRIP TO ASSATEAGUE ISLAND, OR A WALK ON THE BOARDWALK, OR A VISIT TO RIPLEY'S BELIEVE IT OR NOT. AND THE CHILDREN COME BACK EXCITED, HAVING LEARNED SOMETHING, HAVING EXPERIENCED SOMETHING NEW. AND I WATCH MY DAUGHTERS AND THEIR HUSBANDS PATIENTLY WATCHING THEIR CHILDREN AS THEY ENJOY THE POOL, ON THE LOOKOUT FOR TROUBLE; I WATCH THEM AS THEY KEEP A VIGILANT EYE ON THE KIDS RUNNING AROUND ON THE BEACH, LOOKING FOR SHELLS. AND I SEE THEM MAKING SURE THAT THEY HAVE SOME ACTUAL NUTRITION AT SUPPER, NOT JUST THE ICE CREAM.
THE GREEK WORD THAT ST JOHN USES IS PARACLETOS, THE ENGLISH VERSION OF WHICH IS PARACLETE. THE WORD MEANS “SOMEONE WHO STANDS BESIDE” AND WAS USED TO DESCRIBE A PERSON WHO PLEADED YOUR CASE IN COURT, OR A PERSON WHO TUTORED YOU IN SOME SKILL, OR A PERSON WHO GUARANTEED THAT YOU WOULD PAY A DEBT. JESUS IS SENDING THIS PARACLETE SO THAT HIS DISCIPLES, YOU AND I, WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE SOMEONE TO STAND BESIDE US – IN SHORT, A SORT OF PARENT, TO COMFORT US, TO DISCIPLINE US, TO TEACH US, TO PROTECT US, AND EVEN TO NOURISH US WITH TRUTH, THINGS JESUS DID WITH HIS APOSTLES.
JESUS HAD TO BECOME A PARTICULAR MAN AT A PARTICULAR TIME, BORN OF A PARTICULAR MOTHER, LIVING IN A PARTICULAR PLACE. THIS IS THE ONLY WAY THAT HE COULD BE TRULY, FULLY HUMAN. BUT SOMETHING HAD TO CHANGE SO THAT HE COULD BE WITH EACH OF US, ALL HIS DISCIPLES, DOWN THROUGH THE AGES, LOVING US. THE TRUTH THAT THE SPIRIT REVEALS TO US IS THAT JESUS, ALTHOUGH NO LONGER VISIBLE TO US, HAS LIFE, THE LIFE THAT HE GIVES US; AND THAT THE PRESENCE OF JESUS IS THE PRESENCE OF THE FATHER, SINCE HE IS IN THE FATHER, AND THE FATHER IS IN HIM. THE FATHER IS LIKE THE AIR WE BREATHE, HE IS FULLY PRESENT TO US IN THE DEEPEST PART OF OUR BEING. AND THE SPIRIT REVEALS THAT PRESENCE, AND THE SPIRIT TAKES US UP INTO THE HEART OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN JESUS AND THE FATHER. WHAT AN INCREDIBLE IDEA!
HAVE YOU READ ANY OF THOSE POPULAR BOOKS BY PROMINENT ATHEISTS? THEY HAVEN'T GOT A CLUE ABOUT THE CHRISTIAN IDEA OF GOD. THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT GOD IS NOT A THING, NOT A BEING LIKE YOU AND I; WE ARE IN THIS FATHER, AS JESUS IS IN THE FATHER; BUT THE FATHER IS IN JESUS, SO HE IS IN US AS WELL. AND THIS HAS TO BE EXPERIENCED, AND ONCE EXPERIENCED, ALL THE ARGUMENTS IN THE WORLD WILL NOT CONVINCE US THAT GOD DOES NOT EXIST.
BUT ALAS, THERE IS A CONDITION FOR ENTERING INTO THIS INCREDIBLE RELATIONSHIP; IT IS TO KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS. SO WHAT ARE THEY? WELL, PROBABLY YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT THE GREAT COMMANDMENT, TO LOVE GOD WITH OUR HEART, SOUL, MIND, AND STRENGTH, AND TO LOVE OUR NEIGHBOR AS OURSELF. BUT THERE ARE MANY MORE -- LISTEN: FEED THE HUNGRY, GIVE DRINK TO THE THIRSTY, CLOTHE THE NAKED, AND SO ON. GO OUT INTO THE WORLD AND TEACH ALL NATIONS, BAPTIZING THEM; IF SOMEONE STRIKES YOU ON THE CHEEK, OFFER HIM THE OTHER CHEEK. IF YOU GO TO OFFER SACRIFICE ON THE ALTAR AND YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH A BROTHER, GO AND SETTLE THAT PROBLEM FIRST. LET THE LITTLE ONES COME TO ME. SOMEDAY WHEN I RETIRE, I AM GOING TO MAKE A LIST OF ALL THE “COMMANDS” THAT JESUS IS RECORDED AS GIVING TO US. EVEN THOUGH THEY ALL DO BOIL DOWN TO LOVING GOD AND LOVING OUR NEIGHBOR, JESUS GIVES US EXAMPLE AFTER EXAMPLE OF WHAT HE MEANS BY THAT GREATEST COMMANDMENT, AND THE SECOND ONE LIKE UNTO THE FIRST.
SO IF WE WANT TO RECEIVE THE GIFTS THAT JESUS HAS FOR US – THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, THE GIFT OF LIFE LIKE JESUS' OWN LIFE, THE VERY PRESENCE OF THE FATHER, THE REVELATION OF JESUS TO US, THEN WE MUST LOVE JESUS AND KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS.
AS I WATCH MY DAUGHTERS AND THEIR HUSBANDS, I AM STRUCK BY THE WONDERFUL PLAN OF THE GOD; A YOUNG COUPLE GETS MARRIED, -- AND IF YOU ARE HONEST, YOU KNOW THAT PEOPLE DON'T GET MARRIED FOR PURELY UNSELFISH REASONS – I CERTAINLY DIDN'T. BUT CHILDREN COME ALONG, AND RIGHT AWAY FROM DAY ONE, THE PARENTS, IF THEY RESPOND TO THEIR SPECIAL GRACE OF THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY, BEGIN TO BE SAINTS, THEY BEGIN TO DO ALL THE COMMANDMENTS THAT JESUS GAVE. AND IF ADDED TO THAT THEY HAVE A LOVE FOR JESUS, THEY BEGAN TO EXPERIENCE IN THEIR OWN LIVES ALL THE PROMISES THAT JESUS MAKES – AND THAT SPURS THEM ON TO GREATER LOVE, FOR EACH OTHER AND FOR THEIR CHILDREN, AND BEING A PARENT MAKES IT EASIER FOR YOU TO GRADUALLY EMPTY YOURSELF OF ALL THOSE SELFISH DESIRES AND ATTACHMENTS, TO BE REPLACED BY THE LIFE THAT JESUS PROMISES, AND THE LOVE THAT HE OFFERS. AND THE GOING IS TOUGH, NO QUESTION. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WE MARRIED COUPLES GET 15 TO 30 YEARS IN WHICH WE PRACTICE THE COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS ON THE CHILDREN WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN, AND BY THEN, WE ARE IN THE GROOVE, WE ARE WELL ON OUR WAY TO SAINTHOOD, AND ALL THOSE DIFFICULT TIMES WE HAD ARE JUST SO MUCH DUST.
SO TODAY, IF YOU WANT TO THINK ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT, REMEMBER YOUR MOTHER AND FATHER, AND YOUR CHILDHOOD, AND THAT IS SOMETHING LIKE THE HOLY SPIRIT, THE PARACLETE. AND IF YOU ARE A PARENT, THINK OF YOUR SITUATION AND SEE IN IT, NOT A BURDEN, NOT SOMETHING THAT KEEPS YOU FROM YOUR FULL POTENTIAL, BUT RATHER, A VERY REAL PATHWAY TO SAINTHOOD.
I JUST GOT BACK FROM A SHORT VACATION WITH MY WIFE, MY 13 GRANDCHILDREN, SIX CHILDREN, THREE SONS IN LAW, AND ONE MAYBE SOMEDAY SON IN LAW. IT WAS A REALLY GREAT TIME, AND I HOPE WE CAN DO IT AGAIN IN TEN YEARS OR SO. WE WENT TO OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND, JUST IN TIME TO EXPERIENCE RAINSTORMS AND ARCTIC WINDS, SO WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME INDOORS. AND POSSIBLY BECAUSE GRANDMA AND GRANDPA'S ROOM WAS CLEAN AND RELATIVELY EMPTY, AND OF COURSE BECAUSE IT HAD LOTS OF FOOD AND LIQUID REFRESHMENT AND A PLACE TO WATCH TELEVISION WITHOUT YOUR PARENTS GETTING MAD, IT ACTED AS A MAGNET FOR GRANDCHILDREN. BUT ENOUGH ABOUT MY VACATION.
SERIOUSLY, I LIKE TO WATCH MY DAUGHTERS AND THEIR HUSBANDS INTERACT WITH THEIR CHILDREN. THE LITTLEST ONES FALL AND ARE IMMEDIATELY SCOOPED UP. THE SLIGHTLY OLDER ONES GET OUT OF LINE AND GET DISCIPLINED, BUT IN A WAY THAT IS BOTH FIRM AND LOVING. THERE ARE TIMES WHEN THE PARENTS FORCE THE OLDER KIDS TO DO SOMETHING THEY REALLY DON'T WANT TO DO – LIKE A DAY TRIP TO ASSATEAGUE ISLAND, OR A WALK ON THE BOARDWALK, OR A VISIT TO RIPLEY'S BELIEVE IT OR NOT. AND THE CHILDREN COME BACK EXCITED, HAVING LEARNED SOMETHING, HAVING EXPERIENCED SOMETHING NEW. AND I WATCH MY DAUGHTERS AND THEIR HUSBANDS PATIENTLY WATCHING THEIR CHILDREN AS THEY ENJOY THE POOL, ON THE LOOKOUT FOR TROUBLE; I WATCH THEM AS THEY KEEP A VIGILANT EYE ON THE KIDS RUNNING AROUND ON THE BEACH, LOOKING FOR SHELLS. AND I SEE THEM MAKING SURE THAT THEY HAVE SOME ACTUAL NUTRITION AT SUPPER, NOT JUST THE ICE CREAM.
THE GREEK WORD THAT ST JOHN USES IS PARACLETOS, THE ENGLISH VERSION OF WHICH IS PARACLETE. THE WORD MEANS “SOMEONE WHO STANDS BESIDE” AND WAS USED TO DESCRIBE A PERSON WHO PLEADED YOUR CASE IN COURT, OR A PERSON WHO TUTORED YOU IN SOME SKILL, OR A PERSON WHO GUARANTEED THAT YOU WOULD PAY A DEBT. JESUS IS SENDING THIS PARACLETE SO THAT HIS DISCIPLES, YOU AND I, WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE SOMEONE TO STAND BESIDE US – IN SHORT, A SORT OF PARENT, TO COMFORT US, TO DISCIPLINE US, TO TEACH US, TO PROTECT US, AND EVEN TO NOURISH US WITH TRUTH, THINGS JESUS DID WITH HIS APOSTLES.
JESUS HAD TO BECOME A PARTICULAR MAN AT A PARTICULAR TIME, BORN OF A PARTICULAR MOTHER, LIVING IN A PARTICULAR PLACE. THIS IS THE ONLY WAY THAT HE COULD BE TRULY, FULLY HUMAN. BUT SOMETHING HAD TO CHANGE SO THAT HE COULD BE WITH EACH OF US, ALL HIS DISCIPLES, DOWN THROUGH THE AGES, LOVING US. THE TRUTH THAT THE SPIRIT REVEALS TO US IS THAT JESUS, ALTHOUGH NO LONGER VISIBLE TO US, HAS LIFE, THE LIFE THAT HE GIVES US; AND THAT THE PRESENCE OF JESUS IS THE PRESENCE OF THE FATHER, SINCE HE IS IN THE FATHER, AND THE FATHER IS IN HIM. THE FATHER IS LIKE THE AIR WE BREATHE, HE IS FULLY PRESENT TO US IN THE DEEPEST PART OF OUR BEING. AND THE SPIRIT REVEALS THAT PRESENCE, AND THE SPIRIT TAKES US UP INTO THE HEART OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN JESUS AND THE FATHER. WHAT AN INCREDIBLE IDEA!
HAVE YOU READ ANY OF THOSE POPULAR BOOKS BY PROMINENT ATHEISTS? THEY HAVEN'T GOT A CLUE ABOUT THE CHRISTIAN IDEA OF GOD. THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT GOD IS NOT A THING, NOT A BEING LIKE YOU AND I; WE ARE IN THIS FATHER, AS JESUS IS IN THE FATHER; BUT THE FATHER IS IN JESUS, SO HE IS IN US AS WELL. AND THIS HAS TO BE EXPERIENCED, AND ONCE EXPERIENCED, ALL THE ARGUMENTS IN THE WORLD WILL NOT CONVINCE US THAT GOD DOES NOT EXIST.
BUT ALAS, THERE IS A CONDITION FOR ENTERING INTO THIS INCREDIBLE RELATIONSHIP; IT IS TO KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS. SO WHAT ARE THEY? WELL, PROBABLY YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT THE GREAT COMMANDMENT, TO LOVE GOD WITH OUR HEART, SOUL, MIND, AND STRENGTH, AND TO LOVE OUR NEIGHBOR AS OURSELF. BUT THERE ARE MANY MORE -- LISTEN: FEED THE HUNGRY, GIVE DRINK TO THE THIRSTY, CLOTHE THE NAKED, AND SO ON. GO OUT INTO THE WORLD AND TEACH ALL NATIONS, BAPTIZING THEM; IF SOMEONE STRIKES YOU ON THE CHEEK, OFFER HIM THE OTHER CHEEK. IF YOU GO TO OFFER SACRIFICE ON THE ALTAR AND YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH A BROTHER, GO AND SETTLE THAT PROBLEM FIRST. LET THE LITTLE ONES COME TO ME. SOMEDAY WHEN I RETIRE, I AM GOING TO MAKE A LIST OF ALL THE “COMMANDS” THAT JESUS IS RECORDED AS GIVING TO US. EVEN THOUGH THEY ALL DO BOIL DOWN TO LOVING GOD AND LOVING OUR NEIGHBOR, JESUS GIVES US EXAMPLE AFTER EXAMPLE OF WHAT HE MEANS BY THAT GREATEST COMMANDMENT, AND THE SECOND ONE LIKE UNTO THE FIRST.
SO IF WE WANT TO RECEIVE THE GIFTS THAT JESUS HAS FOR US – THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, THE GIFT OF LIFE LIKE JESUS' OWN LIFE, THE VERY PRESENCE OF THE FATHER, THE REVELATION OF JESUS TO US, THEN WE MUST LOVE JESUS AND KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS.
AS I WATCH MY DAUGHTERS AND THEIR HUSBANDS, I AM STRUCK BY THE WONDERFUL PLAN OF THE GOD; A YOUNG COUPLE GETS MARRIED, -- AND IF YOU ARE HONEST, YOU KNOW THAT PEOPLE DON'T GET MARRIED FOR PURELY UNSELFISH REASONS – I CERTAINLY DIDN'T. BUT CHILDREN COME ALONG, AND RIGHT AWAY FROM DAY ONE, THE PARENTS, IF THEY RESPOND TO THEIR SPECIAL GRACE OF THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY, BEGIN TO BE SAINTS, THEY BEGIN TO DO ALL THE COMMANDMENTS THAT JESUS GAVE. AND IF ADDED TO THAT THEY HAVE A LOVE FOR JESUS, THEY BEGAN TO EXPERIENCE IN THEIR OWN LIVES ALL THE PROMISES THAT JESUS MAKES – AND THAT SPURS THEM ON TO GREATER LOVE, FOR EACH OTHER AND FOR THEIR CHILDREN, AND BEING A PARENT MAKES IT EASIER FOR YOU TO GRADUALLY EMPTY YOURSELF OF ALL THOSE SELFISH DESIRES AND ATTACHMENTS, TO BE REPLACED BY THE LIFE THAT JESUS PROMISES, AND THE LOVE THAT HE OFFERS. AND THE GOING IS TOUGH, NO QUESTION. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WE MARRIED COUPLES GET 15 TO 30 YEARS IN WHICH WE PRACTICE THE COMMANDMENTS OF JESUS ON THE CHILDREN WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN, AND BY THEN, WE ARE IN THE GROOVE, WE ARE WELL ON OUR WAY TO SAINTHOOD, AND ALL THOSE DIFFICULT TIMES WE HAD ARE JUST SO MUCH DUST.
SO TODAY, IF YOU WANT TO THINK ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT, REMEMBER YOUR MOTHER AND FATHER, AND YOUR CHILDHOOD, AND THAT IS SOMETHING LIKE THE HOLY SPIRIT, THE PARACLETE. AND IF YOU ARE A PARENT, THINK OF YOUR SITUATION AND SEE IN IT, NOT A BURDEN, NOT SOMETHING THAT KEEPS YOU FROM YOUR FULL POTENTIAL, BUT RATHER, A VERY REAL PATHWAY TO SAINTHOOD.
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