Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

JOHN 6:1-15

IF YOU HAVE BEEN PAYING ATTENTION, YOU NOTICED THAT THE GOSPEL WAS FROM JOHN TODAY, RATHER THAN MARK. IF WE HAD KEPT READING MARK, WE WOULD HAVE READ ABOUT THE MIRACLE OF THE LOAVES AND THE FISHES. BUT THE CHURCH DECIDED TO HAVE US READ SEVERAL PARTS OF THE GOSPEL OF JOHN FOR A WHILE. MARK ONLY TALKS ABOUT THE MIRACLE; JOHN GOES INTO GREAT DETAIL ABOUT WHAT THE MIRACLE MEANS. WE'LL HEAR MORE ABOUT THAT IN THE COMING WEEKEND LITURGIES.

EVEN THOUGH WE ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE STORY ABOUT THE FEEDING OF THE MULTITUDE, THEY ARE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT FROM GOSPEL TO GOSPEL. IN JOHN, WE LEARN THAT PHILIP SAYS TO THE LORD, “FEEDING THESE PEOPLE IS IMPOSSIBLE. EVEN TWO HUNDRED DAYS WAGES WOULD BARELY MAKE A DENT.” BUT ANDREW BRINGS A BOY WHO HAS A FEW BARLEY LOAVES AND A COUPLE OF DRIED FISH, AND SAYS, “LORD, HE'S WILLING TO HELP, BUT WHAT GOOD WILL THIS DO?” AND THE REST FOLLOWS ALONG THOSE FAMILIAR LINES.

IF YOU COME INTO THE CHURCH SOMETIMES YOU WILL FIND A LITTLE PILE OF XEROXED PAPERS ABOUT THE NOVENA TO SAINT JUDE. I'M SURE THAT WHOEVER RUNS THEM OFF AND LEAVES THEM HERE IS VERY SINCERE, AND PROBABLY CLOSER TO THE LORD THAN I AM. THEY BASICALLY SAY THAT IF YOU SAY THE PRAYER NINE TIMES A DAY FOR NINE DAYS AND LEAVE NINE COPIES OF THE PRAYER IN THE CHURCH EACH TIME, WHAT YOU PRAY FOR WILL HAPPEN. YOU'VE PROBABLY RUN ACROSS OTHER SUCH PRAYERS. WE EVEN SAY THEM AT THE END OF MASS SOMETIMES; WE SAY THE “MEMORARE” WHICH HAS THE LINES “NEVER WAS IT KNOWN THAT ANYONE WHO FLED TO YOUR PROTECTION, IMPLORED YOUR HELP, OR SOUGHT YOUR INTERCESSION WAS LEFT UNAIDED.” BUT IF WE BELIEVE THAT THESE PRAYERS COMPEL GOD TO DO SOMETHING, AS IT SEEMS THE PRAYER TO SAINT JUDE DOES, WE ARE NOT LOOKING FOR A MIRACLE, WE ARE ASKING, OR MAYBE TELLING GOD TO DO MAGIC. IN MAGIC, YOU SAY WORDS ACCORDING TO A FORMULA, USUALLY IN SOME REPETITIVE FASHION, YOU WAVE YOUR HANDS, YOU BURN INCENSE, MAYBE YOU OFFER AN ANIMAL AND YOU EXPECT GOD TO COMPLY.

BUT A MIRACLE IS DIFFERENT. IF YOU WANT A MIRACLE, YOU HAVE TO BRING SOMETHING TO THE TABLE. AND THAT'S WHAT WE SEE IN THE GOSPEL STORY. ALL THE APOSTLES HAVE SEEN JESUS WORK MIRACLES; IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN THE FIRST THING THEY SAW WAS THE MIRACLE AT CANA, WHEN HE TURNED WATER INTO WINE. THEY'VE SEEN HEALINGS AND DEMONS BEING DRIVEN OUT. AND WHEN YOU GO TO THE ACCOUNTS OF THE MIRACLES, MOST OF THE TIME SOMEONE BROUGHT SOMETHING TO JESUS. IN THE CANA MIRACLE, THEY BROUGHT HIM JUGS OF WATER. IN THE HEALING OF THE PARALYZED MAN, HIS FRIENDS BROUGHT THE MAN TO JESUS BY LOWERING HIM THROUGH THE ROOF. YOU GET THE IDEA. AND IN THIS STORY, AS WELL, ANDREW BRINGS THE BOY WITH THE LOAVES AND THE FISHES. HE'S SKEPTICAL; HE ISN'T CONVINCED THAT JESUS CAN WORK A MIRACLE THIS BIG; BUT HE BRINGS SOMETHING TO JESUS.

WHEN YOU READ ABOUT THE MIRACLES ATTRIBUTED TO THE SAINTS, YOU SEE THE SAME PATTERN. SAINT FRANCIS HAD A DREAM THAT HE WAS TO REBUILD THE CHURCH SO HE WENT OUT AND STARTED TO REBUILD AN OLD ABANDONED CHURCH BUILDING. MOTHER THERESA SAW THE GREAT NEED OF THE STREET PEOPLE OF CALCUTTA, AND THOUGH SHE HAD NOTHING AND SHE WAS ONLY ONE PERSON, SHE STARTED TAKING CARE OF THEM ANYWAY. IF YOU WANT A MIRACLE, YOU HAVE TO BRING SOMETHING. POPE FRANCIS GOT IT. HE SAID, “PRAY TO END HUNGER, AND THEN GO FEED SOMEONE WHO IS HUNGRY. THAT IS REAL PRAYER.”

GOD WHO LIVES IN US LOVES TO AID US WHEN WE START OUT TO DO HIS WILL. AND WE KNOW HIS WILL – HE'S TOLD US WHAT HE WANTS MANY TIMES, THROUGH THE COMMANDMENTS, THROUGH HIS SON, THROUGH THE CHURCH FOUNDED BY HIS SON. SOMETIMES HE DOES SPEAK TO US DIRECTLY; BUT I THINK IF YOU ARE LIKE ME, YOU REALIZE THIS AFTER IT HAPPENED, NOT DURING, NOT BEFORE. AFTER ALMOST 50 YEARS OF A VERY HAPPY MARRIAGE, I KNOW THAT GOD SPOKE TO ME WHEN I MADE A RETREAT ONE SUMMER ASKING WHAT I SHOULD DO WITH MY LIFE. I GOT AN ANSWER, TOO, IN MY HEART. I HEARD GOD SAY TO ME, “WHATEVER YOU DO, I WON'T LOVE YOU ANYMORE THAN I ALREADY DO.” THAT MOMENT SET ME FREE – FREE OF THE EXPECTATIONS OF MY PARENTS, MY TEACHERS, EVEN MY SPIRITUAL DIRECTOR AT THE TIME. AND I COULD TELL YOU OF THE TWO OR THREE OTHER TIMES GOD HAS PROBABLY SPOKEN TO ME SO LOUDLY AND OBVIOUSLY. BUT THE POINT IS, WE KNOW HIS WILL FOR EACH OF US, AND IF WE EMBRACE WHAT HE WANTS FOR US, AND STEP OUT AND BEGIN IT, EVEN IF THE ODDS AGAINST SUCCESS ARE OVERWHELMING, GOD WILL WORK A MIRACLE; HE WILL MULTIPLY WHAT WE BRING IN SOME WAY. FRANCIS NEVER KNEW HE WAS DESTINED TO FOUND THE FRANCISCAN ORDER THAT WOULD CONTINUE TO MAKE THE CHURCH HOLY FOR THE NEXT 800 YEARS. MOTHER THERESA DID NOT EXPECT TO FOUND A MAJOR RELIGIOUS ORDER MORE THAN HALF-WAY THROUGH HER LIFE. AND YOU – WHAT DOES GOD WANT FOR YOU? WHAT WILL GOD DO FOR YOU WHEN YOU STEP OUT AND BRING YOUR FIVE LOAVES AND TWO FISHES TO HIM?

THERE ARE A FEW PEOPLE IN OUR OWN PARISH WHO'VE DONE SO. YOU PROBABLY KNOW ONE OR TWO OF THEM. I WOULDN'T NAME THEM BECAUSE THEY WOULD BE EMBARRASSED, BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO GO TO GREAT SAINTS TO FIND GOD WORKING MIRACLES. ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS LOOK AROUND.

DO YOU HAVE TIME TO ALLOW GOD TO WORK A MIRACLE THROUGH YOU? WELL, THE PEOPLE WHO WORK MIRACLES ALWAYS SEEM TO HAVE ENOUGH TIME. DO YOU HAVE THE RESOURCES FOR GOD TO WORK A MIRACLE? DON'T BE SILLY. HE PROMISED THAT WHAT YOU GAVE, HE WOULD RETURN A HUNDRED FOLD. ARE YOU HOLY ENOUGH? OF COURSE NOT. BUT THAT DOESN'T STOP GOD. DO YOU HAVE STRONG ENOUGH FAITH? ANDREW DIDN'T. AND PHILIP'S FAITH WASN'T EVEN ON A PAR WITH ANDREW'S. SO THERE ARE NO EXCUSES. GOD WANTS TO USE YOU TO WORK A MIRACLE. AND IF YOU STEP OUT AND BEGIN WHAT YOU KNOW NEEDS TO BE DONE, YOU WILL BE SURPRISED. IF YOU DON'T, THOUGH, HE STILL CAN'T LOVE YOU ANYMORE THAN HE DOES. BUT YOU CAN LOVE HIM MORE THAN YOU DO. I'M CURRENTLY WRITING A SERIES OF ARTICLES IN THE BULLETIN ABOUT THE CHARISMS. DO YOU RECOGNIZE YOURS? HOW ARE YOU USING IT ?  

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

MARK 6:30-34
SOME OF YOU KNOW I'M FROM MONTANA, WHERE THEY RAISE A LOT OF CATTLE.  BUT THERE ARE LARGE HERDS OF SHEEP THERE AS WELL.  ONE THING THAT'S TRUE OF CATTLE AND SHEEP IS THAT THEY PREFER REST TO ACTIVITY.  IF THEY HAVE FULL STOMACHS AND THERE IS NO IMMEDIATE THREAT, THEY TEND TO RELAX AND SOAK UP SOME SUN.  THE CATTLE AND SHEEP HERDS ARE NOT AS LARGE AND OBVIOUS AROUND HERE, BUT JUST DRIVE OUT INTO THE COUNTRYSIDE  AND SEE WHAT COWS AND SHEEP ARE UP TO.  NOT MUCH.
ON THE OTHER HAND LOOK AT PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY IN LONGMEADOW.  THEY SEEM TO HAVE TO BE DOING SOMETHING ALL THE TIME.  WHEN I MEET PEOPLE WHO ARE EMPLOYED, THEY ARE MAKING PLANS FOR WHAT THEY ARE GOING TO DO WHEN THEY GET OFF WORK, AND THEY AREN'T TALKING ABOUT RELAXING IN THE SUN.  AND WEEKENDS ARE EVEN WORSE – GETTING ALL THE STUFF DONE THAT HAS BEEN PILING UP DURING THE WEEK.  I'M AS GUILTY AS ANYONE.  JOAN AND I TOOK TWO GRANDCHILDREN ON A SHORT TRIP THIS LAST WEEK.  WHEN WEREN'T DOING SOMETHING, WE WERE TRAVELING TO DO SOMETHING.  ONLY IN THE EVENING WHEN WE WERE EXHAUSTED COULD WE LET OURSELVES JUST RELAX, AND THAT WAS MORE IN PREPARATION FOR SINKING INTO A SLEEP.  WE HAD A GREAT TIME, BUT AGAIN, WE FELT THAT WE HAD TO FILL UP EVERY MINUTE WITH ACTIVITY.
TODAY JESUS GIVES US A VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE:  “COME AWAY BY YOURSELVES AND REST FOR A WHILE.”  AND HE MIGHT HAVE SAID, “COME AWAY WITH ME AND REST FOR A WHILE”.  IF HE WANTED US TO GO OFF WITHOUT HIM, HE WOULD HAVE SAID, “GO AWAY AND REST FOR A WHILE”.
CHRISTIAN LIFE IS MOVEMENT BETWEEN ACTIVITY AND REST, BETWEEN GOING OUT INTO THE  WORLD AND THEN WITHDRAWING.  IF YOU READ THE GOSPELS, YOU FIND THAT JESUS IS ALWAYS GOING OFF TO PRAY BY HIMSELF AFTER PREACHING AND WORKING MIRACLES.  AND SO HE ADVISES HIS APOSTLES, AND US TO “COME AWAY”.  WE CAN'T FIND THAT REST WE NEED IN THE MIDDLE OF OUR DAILY LIVES.  WE HAVE TO LITERALLY MOVE OURSELVES INTO A DIFFERENT SPACE.  SOME PEOPLE HAVE A LITTLE PRAYER ROOM IN THEIR HOUSE;  THERE ARE STILL A FEW PEOPLE WHO DROP INTO THE CHURCH FOR A VISIT.  BUT THE FIRST STEP IS TO COME AWAY FROM DAILY LIFE.  IF WE CAN DO THIS  FOR A  FEW MINUTES EVERY DAY AND FOR A LONGER PERIOD EVERY WEEK – AND MAYBE A WHOLE WEEK EVERY YEAR, WE'RE ON THE RIGHT TRACK.  
WHEN WE COME AWAY, WE WANT TO BE WITH JESUS.  WE SHOULD ALWAYS BE SEEKING A CLOSER RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS, BUT WE HAVE A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY WHEN WE COME AWAY.  BEING OUT IN NATURE IS A WONDERFUL WAY TO BE CLOSER TO GOD.  A GREAT MYSTIC ONCE SAID, “IF MAN COULD KNOW GOD WITHOUT THE WORLD, HE WOULD NEVER HAVE CREATED THE WORLD.”  WE HUMAN BEINGS OFTEN FORGET OURSELVES WHEN WE ARE ON THE SEASHORE OR IN THE MOUNTAINS AND WE EXPERIENCE NATURE DIRECTLY.  AND FORGETTING OURSELVES, BECOMING LOST IN THE PRESENT MOMENT,  IS IMPORTANT IF WE ARE TO LET GOD INTO OUR LIVES.  GOD IS NOT IN THE PAST OR THE FUTURE, WHERE OUR MINDS ARE MOST OF THE TIME; HE IS ALWAYS FULLY IN THE PRESENT.
WHEN WE COME AWAY WITH JESUS WE ARE SUPPOSED TO REST.  THAT DOESN'T MEAN WE LIE FLAT ON OUR BACKS, BUT IT REALLY MEANS THAT WE TRY TO MOVE INTO A SPACE WHERE THE CONCERNS THAT OCCUPY US EVERY DAY  ARE OUT OF OUR MINDS.  I'VE GONE ON VACATIONS WHERE I WOULD CALL BACK TO THE HOSPITAL EVERY DAY TO MAKE SURE THINGS WERE GOING THE WAY I THOUGHT THEY SHOULD.  I'VE BEEN ON VACATIONS WHERE I FELT NERVOUS WHEN I COULDN'T GET ON THE INTERNET.  THAT'S NOT REST.  REST IS WHEN WE ALLOW OUR MINDS TO SLOW DOWN AND ALLOW ROOM FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT TO SPEAK TO US.
FINALLY, WHEN WE COME AWAY WITH JESUS TO REST, IT IS FOR A WHILE.  A CHRISTIAN IS IN THE WORLD, BUT NOT OF THE WORLD.  THE AMISH ARE WONDERFUL PEOPLE, BUT WITHDRAWING FROM THE WORLD IS NOT WHAT CHRISTIANS ARE  SUPPOSED TO DO.  THERE ARE A FEW EXCEPTIONS – PEOPLE WHO DEVOTE THEIR LIVES TO PRAYING FOR THE REST OF US – BUT JESUS NEVER SUGGESTED THAT HIS FOLLOWERS LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND.  HIS MISSION IS TO BRING ABOUT THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IN THIS WORLD THROUGH HIS FOLLOWERS.  IF WE AREN'T WORKING TO BUILD THE KINGDOM, IT WON'T GET BUILT.
SO THERE IS A RHYTHM IN CHRISTIAN LIFE, BUT IN OUR WORLD, WE TEND TO ERR ON THE SIDE OF TOO MUCH ACTIVITY.  WE ARE NOT ALONE, HOWEVER.  SAINT ALPHONSUS LIGOURI, THE FOUNDER OF THE REDEMPTORIST ORDER, USED TO SPEND ALL THE TIME HE COULD WRITING.  IN HIS LATER YEARS HE SUFFERED FROM MIGRAINE HEADACHES AND WOULD HOLD A COLD STONE AGAINST HIS HEAD SO THAT HE COULD EASE HIS PAIN AND CONTINUE TO WRITE.  EVENTUALLY HIS SPIRITUAL DIRECTOR ORDERED HIM TO STOP WRITING ENTIRELY.
OUR LIVES SHOULD BE BALANCED; THERE IS A TIME FOR ENGAGING WITH THE WORLD AND A TIME FOR PULLING BACK.  BUT THESE NEED TO REINFORCE EACH OTHER.  WHEN WE PULL BACK, WE NEED TO OPEN OURSELVES TO GOD'S PRESENCE, LISTEN TO HIS VOICE, AND BECOME REFRESHED IN BODY AND SOUL.  WHEN WE ENGAGE, WE NEED TO BE THE INSTRUMENTS BY WHICH GOD BUILDS HIS KINGDOM.  SPIRITUAL GROWTH IS ONLY ACHIEVED IF WE HAVE THIS RHYTHM; WE TAKE WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED BY ENGAGING THE WORLD AND BRING IT TO OUR CONTEMPLATION.  THAT IN TURN FUELS OUR NEW ENGAGEMENT, AND W BECOME MORE EFFECTIVE IN EVERY RESPECT, SPIRITUAL AS WELL AS MATERIAL.
JOHN PAUL II, ONE OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE PEOPLE OF RECENT TIMES, WOULD RISE IN THE EARLY HOURS OF THE MORNING AND SPEND NOT ONE, BUT TWO HOURS BEFORE THE BLESSED SACRAMENT.  MOTHER THERESA AND HER SISTERS SPENT AN HOUR EVERY MORNING BEFORE THE BLESSED SACRAMENT, THEN ATTENDED MASS, THEN WHEN OUT TO DO THE WORK FOR WHICH THEY ARE MOST WELL KNOWN. THIS IS NOT JUST TRUE OF SAINTS, IT'S ALSO TRUE OF EFFECTIVE POLITICIANS, SCIENTISTS, MILITARY LEADERS, AND OTHERS.
SO TODAY, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SUMMER, WHEN PEOPLE ARE THINKING ABOUT VACATIONS, WE SHOULD ASK, ARE WE IN BALANCE?  DO WE MAKE TIME FOR PRAYER AND CONTEMPLATION NOT JUST A FEW TIMES A YEAR, ON RETREAT, ON VACATION, ON A PARISH MISSION, BUT EVERY DAY?  ARE WE WILLING TO BE RADICAL AND FOLLOW OUR LORD, WHO DEMONSTRATED IN HIS OWN LIFE THE POWER OF RETREAT, AND WHO ADVISED HIS DISCIPLES, CAUGHT UP IN THE EXCITEMENT OF HEALING THE SICK AND DRIVING OUT DEMONS, TO COME AWAY OURSELVES WITH HIM AND REST FOR A WHILE?

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

MARK 6:7-13

I KNEW A PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER IN BUFFALO. A LONG TIME AGO, CONGREGATIONAL CHURCHES WERE ESTABLISHED IN NEW ENGLAND BY PEOPLE WHO FOLLOWED JOHN CALVIN. LATER, ANOTHER WAVE OF CALVINISTS CAME TO THIS COUNTRY TO ESTABLISH CHURCHES. THERE WAS AN AGREEMENT THAT THEY WOULD LEAVE NEW ENGLAND ALONE AND WORK ON THE REST OF THE COUNTRY. IF YOU WERE A PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER PLANNING TO ESTABLISH A CHURCH, YOU NEEDED TO BRING ALONG A LOT OF BOOKS NOT TO MENTION YOUR OWN BELONGINGS. THE TRAINING OF A PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER WAS LONG AND HARD; MOST OF THEM HAD THE EQUIVALENT OF DOCTORATES. SO THEY TENDED TO GO WHERE THE RAILROADS WOULD TAKE THEM. ON THE OTHER HAND, METHODIST MINISTERS DIDN'T TAKE VERY LONG TO TRAIN AND MOST OF THEM HAD AN ABILITY TO PREACH AND A FAMILIARITY WITH THE BIBLE. THEY WOULD GO BY HORSEBACK TO MINING CAMPS, FARM TOWNS, AND WHEREVER THEY COULD FIND AN AUDIENCE. MY FRIEND SAID THAT THIS WAS THE REASON THERE WERE SO MANY MORE METHODISTS THAN PRESBYTERIANS.

JESUS WOULD PROBABLY RELATE MORE TO THOSE METHODIST CIRCUIT RIDERS THAN TO THOSE HIGHLY EDUCATED PRESBYTERIAN MINISTERS. HIS APOSTLES HAD HEARD HIM PREACH, LISTENED TO HIS PARABLES, WITNESSED HIS MIRACLES OF HEALING AND DRIVING OUT DEMONS, AND THEN ONE DAY HE TELLS THEM, GET OUT THERE AND DO IT YOURSELF. HE SENT THEM IN TWOS, BECAUSE ONE PERSON ON MISSION MIGHT BE TOO TIMID, OR GET THE MESSAGE WRONG. THREE OR MORE WOULD BE RIPE FOR DISCORD. JUST TRY TAKING THREE GRANDCHILDREN ON A TRIP. THEY ALWAYS FORM A TWO AGAINST ONE SITUATION, WHICH MIGHT CHANGE DAY TO DAY, BUT IT'S ALWAYS THERE. TWO IS JUST RIGHT; THEY CAN FORM A BOND, THEY CAN SHORE UP EACH OTHER'S COURAGE, THEY CAN CORRECT EACH OTHER ABOUT THE MESSAGE THEY ARE PROCLAIMING. HE TELLS THEM TO TAKE NO MONEY OR EVEN A CHANGE OF CLOTHES; IN THOSE DAYS PEOPLE WERE MUCH MORE HOSPITABLE THAN THEY ARE NOW, AND GIVING HOSPITALITY WAS CONSIDERED A HOLY ACT. BESIDES, IF YOU HOSTED A TRAVELER, YOU GOT TO HEAR THE BEST GOSSIP FROM THE OUTSIDE WORLD, SO YOU GOT SOMETHING OUT OF IT AS WELL. AND JESUS TELLS THEM TO WEAR THEIR SANDALS AND TAKE A WALKING STICK. GOING ABOUT BAREFOOT IN ADDITION TO THE OBVIOUS HAZARDS, WAS A SIGN OF BEING A SLAVE. SLAVES WERE KEPT BAREFOOT BECAUSE IF THEY TRIED TO RUN AWAY THEY COULDN'T MOVE AS FAST AS SOMEONE WITH SHOES. CARRYING A STAFF OF COURSE WAS HELPFUL IN PROTECTING YOURSELF FROM WILD ANIMALS BUT IT WAS ALSO A SIGN OF AUTHORITY. SO SANDALS AND STAFF WERE MORE LIKELY TO GET YOU AN AUDIENCE THAN WITHOUT.

I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE APOSTLES PREACHED. MARK SAYS “REPENTANCE” WHICH IS HOW WE TRANSLATE THE GREEK WORD “METANOIA”. IT LITERALLY MEANS “ABOVE THE MIND” AND HAD THE CONNOTATION OF LOOKING AT THINGS A NEW WAY. LATER, AFTER JESUS' ASCENSION INTO HEAVEN, WE HAVE A LOT OF EXAMPLES OF WHAT THE APOSTLES PREACHED – BASICALLY, THE LIFE, DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS AND WHAT IT MEANT ABOUT GOD AND HUMAN BEINGS. BUT THIS EARLY PREACHING WAS JUST A PRELUDE, ENOUGH TO GIVE HOPE TO AT LEAST SOME OF THE HEARERS THAT SOMETHING NEW WAS IN THE AIR, THERE WAS HOPE FOR PEOPLE WHO HAD UP TILL THEN VERY LITTLE HOPE. AND THE PREACHING WAS ACCOMPANIED BY ACTS OF HEALING AND DRIVING OUT SPIRITS. LATER WE'LL LEARN THAT WHEN THEY GOT BACK TO JESUS, THEY WERE THRILLED AND EXCITED, AND JESUS TOLD THEM HE HAD SEEN SATAN FALLING FROM THE SKY.

IT'S HARD TO BE AN EVANGELIST, ESPECIALLY IN OUR SOCIETY. WE MIGHT BE A RELIGIOUS COUNTRY STILL IN TERMS OF THE NUMBERS OF PEOPLE WHO SAY THEY ARE MEMBERS OF THIS FAITH OR THAT, BUT OUR WHOLE SOCIETY CONSPIRES TO KEEP RELIGION OUT OF THE PUBLIC SPHERE. RELIGIOUS PEOPLE HAVE HAD SETBACK AFTER SETBACK IN TRYING TO MAKE OUR SOCIETY MORE “RELIGIOUS”. PRAYER WAS KICKED OUT OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS; ABORTION WAS FOUND TO BE A CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT; MARRIAGE WAS REDEFINED BY THE SUPREME COURT; AND WITHIN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, THEY WILL PROBABLY DISCOVER A RIGHT TO PHYSICIANS ASSISTED SUICIDE IN THE CONSTITUTION AS WELL. SOME PEOPLE LOOK AT ALL OF THIS AND DESPAIR. WILL WE END UP LIKE FRANCE OR ENGLAND WHERE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY ADMIT TO A FAITH CONNECTION NUMBER FIFTEEN TO TWENTY PERCENT? WILL WE END UP LIKE OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN THE MIDDLE EAST WHO ARE EITHER BARELY TOLERATED OR ACTIVELY PERSECUTED?

BUT MAYBE ITS TIME TO ADMIT WHAT WE TRIED TO DO IN THE PAST DOES NOT WORK, AT LEAST IN THE LONG RUN. IN JESUS' TIME IT DIDN'T WORK EITHER; THE KINGDOM OF THE JEWS, WHICH HAD BEEN TRYING TO ESTABLISH GOD'S LAW IN THEIR OWN TERRITORY, HAD GONE FROM A PROUD INDEPENDENT KINGDOM TO A TINY REMNANT OF WHAT THEY HAD BEEN – AND ALLOWED TO EXIST BY THE ROMANS, AT LEAST FOR NOW. ALL THROUGH THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY PEOPLE HAVE DREAMED OF ESTABLISHING THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN ON THIS EARTH – FORGETTING THAT JESUS HIMSELF SAID, “MY KINGDOM IS NOT OF THIS WORLD.”

SO WHAT DOES WORK? THE ONLY HOPE FOR THE CHURCH IS THAT HER PEOPLE GO OUT LIKE THOSE APOSTLES, PREACHING TO THEIR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS A CHANGE OF HEART. IT'S A LOT HARDER TO EVANGELIZE ONE ON ONE THAN TO PASS LAWS THAT CAN BE CHANGED OVERNIGHT, OR CALL PEOPLE SINNERS WHO HAVE NO SENSE OF SIN THEMSELVES. IT'S A LOT HARDER TO EVANGELIZE BY FORMING RELATIONSHIPS OF FRIENDSHIP AND TRUST THAN IT IS TO WITHDRAW INTO A CIRCLE OF PEOPLE WHO THINK LIKE WE DO AND SHUT OUT THE OUTSIDE WORLD. WE'RE NOT READY! IT'S WAY TO BIG A JOB FOR ME! I DON'T KNOW MY FAITH ALL THAT WELL! WHO AM I TO PREACH WHEN I AM NOT VERY GOOD MYSELF? I LEAD A GOOD LIFE, WHAT MORE DOES GOD EXPECT FROM ME?

BUT THE APOSTLES MUST HAVE SAID THE SAME THING AND STILL JESUS SENT THEM OUT. AS WE WILL SEE LATER, WHEN THEY RETURNED FROM THEIR MISSION, THEY WERE OVERJOYED, BECAUSE OF ALL THAT HAD TAKEN PLACE. JESUS COMMENTED “I SAW SATAN FALL FROM THE SKY”.

EVANGELIZATION IS A DUTY FOR EVERY CATHOLIC. IT IS OUR JOB TO MAKE JESUS CHRIST KNOWN. IF WE REALLY BELIEVE THE TEACHINGS OF SCRIPTURE AND OUR CHURCH, WE WOULD LIKE EVERYONE WE KNOW TO GO TO HEAVEN. WHILE WE KNOW GOD IS THE ONLY JUDGE AND ONLY GOD GIVES THE GIFT OF FAITH, WE ALSO BELIEVE HUMAN BEINGS CAN MAKE CHOICES WHICH HAVE CONSEQUENCES. IF THOSE CHOICES COME ABOUT BECAUSE OF IGNORANCE OF JESUS, THEN THEY ARE OUR FAULT. PRAY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SAVE A FEW SOULS AS YOU JOURNEY THROUGH YOUR LIFE.   

Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

MARK 6:1-6
IF YOU READ THE FOUR GOSPELS CAREFULLY, YOU WOULD BE RIGHT IN THINKING THAT EACH PORTRAYS A DIFFERENT PERSONALITY FOR JESUS.  OF COURSE JESUS DIDN'T HAVE FOUR DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES; THE GOSPELS EACH TAKE THE BASIC STORY AND WRITE IT IN A WAY THAT REFLECTS THE THEOLOGY OF THE WRITER.  SO YOU WON'T FIND ANYTHING IN THE OTHER GOSPELS ABOUT JESUS NOT BEING ABLE TO WORK MIRACLES.   IN FACT, IN MATTHEW'S VERSION OF TODAY'S READING, HE ALMOST QUOTES MARK WORD FOR WORD, BUT INSTEAD OF SAYING JESUS COULDN'T WORK ANY MIRACLES EXCEPT FOR A FEW HEALINGS, MATTHEW SAYS, “HE DID NOT WORK MANY MIRACLES BECAUSE OF THEIR LACK OF FAITH.”  WE KNOW MATTHEW HAD MARK'S GOSPEL IN FRONT OF HIM WHEN HE WROTE HIS, SO TO FIT IN WITH HIS IDEA OF JESUS, HE CHANGED THE WORDS SLIGHTLY.
SO THERE ARE THREE QUESTIONS:  WHY WERE THE PEOPLE OF HIS HOME TOWN SO HOSTILE?  AND WHY COULD JESUS NOT WORK MIRACLES?  AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU AND I, HOW SHOULD WE APPLY THIS IN OUR LIVES?
IN THE PASSAGE WE JUST READ, JESUS STANDS UP IN THE SYNAGOGUE AND BEGINS TO TEACH.  IT SOUNDS LIKE EVERYBODY STARTED OUT PRETTY IMPRESSED, BUT THEN RAPIDLY TURNED ON JESUS.  BUT I THINK YOU CAN HEAR SARCASM AND HOSTILITY RIGHT FROM THE START.  THE CITIZENS OF NAZARETH, WHICH WASN'T A VERY LARGE TOWN, HAD KNOWN JESUS ALL HIS LIFE.  WE THINK OF JESUS AS A CARPENTER, BUT HIS TRADE WAS MORE LIKE THAT OF A HANDYMAN.  HE COULD FIX THINGS, REPAIR THINGS, AND MAKE A FEW SIMPLE THINGS LIKE A TABLE OR CHAIR OR PLOW.  HE WASN'T SPECIALIZED.  BUT BEING A TEKTON, WHICH IS THE GREEK WORD FOR JESUS' TRADE, WAS PRETTY LOW ON THE SOCIAL LADDER.  TEKTONS AND TANNERS AND FARMERS AND DAY LABORERS WERE JUST A NOTCH OR TWO ABOVE SHEPHERDS AND TAX COLLECTORS.  NOW IN THE SYNAGOGUES IT WAS CUSTOMARY TO ASK A VISITOR TO READ FROM THE TORAH, BUT THEY DIDN'T USUALLY PREACH AFTERWARD.  THAT WAS THE JOB OF THE RABBI, OR THE SCRIBE.  SO WHEN JESUS BEGAN TO PREACH, THE PEOPLE ALMOST STOPPED UP THEIR EARS.  THE PEOPLE HAD HEARD THAT JESUS WENT ABOUT WORKING MIRACLES, BUT THAT WAS NOT ANYTHING THEY BELIEVED – AFTER ALL, THEY KNEW HIM.  AND SO WHEN THEY CALL HIM A CARPENTER, IT'S KIND OF AN INSULT.  AND WHEN THEY CALL HIM “SON OF MARY”, THAT HAS IMPLICATIONS BECAUSE THE PROPER ADDRESS WOULD HAVE BEEN “SON OF JOSEPH”.  TO CALL HIM “SON OF MARY” WAS PROBABLY A DIG AT THE FACT THAT EVERYONE KNEW THAT JESUS WAS BORN JUST A FEW MONTHS AFTER MARY AND JOSEPH GOT MARRIED.  SO BASICALLY, THE PEOPLE ARE HOSTILE BECAUSE TO THEM, JESUS IS PUTTING ON AIRS.  THEY KNOW THE REAL JESUS, THEY THINK, AND IT'S NOT THIS GUY.
NOW WHY COULDN'T JESUS WORK MIRACLES?  IF YOU LOOK AT THE OTHER HEALING MIRACLES IN THE GOSPEL OF MARK, THEY ALWAYS BEGIN WITH THE SICK PERSON OR A FRIEND OR RELATIVE OF THE SICK PERSON COMING TO JESUS AND ASKING FOR HIM TO HEAL SOMEONE.  IN OTHER WORDS, THEY HAVE FAITH – BUT IT ISN'T JUST THAT THEY BELIEVE JESUS CAN HEAL.  THEY DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.   LAST WEEK WE HEARD ABOUT THE WOMAN WHO PUSHED THROUGH THE CROWD TO TOUCH JESUS' GARMENT.  WE HEARD ABOUT THE PARALYZED MAN WHO WAS LOWERED THROUGH THE ROOF BY HIS FRIENDS.  WE KNOW ABOUT THE BLIND MAN WHO YELLED OUT TO JESUS, EVEN THOUGH THE CROWDS WERE TELLING HIM TO BE QUIET.  FAITH ISN'T FAITH UNTIL THERE IS ACTION.  THE PEOPLE OF NAZARETH WHO THOUGHT THEY KNEW JESUS HAD NO FAITH, AND THEREFORE NO ACTION.  JESUS COULDN'T WORK HIS MIRACLES BECAUSE ONLY A FEW PEOPLE BELIEVED ENOUGH TO PRESENT THEMSELVES TO HIM FOR HEALING.
THE PEOPLE OF NAZARETH THOUGHT THEY KNEW JESUS.  WHEN THE APOSTLES WITNESSED JESUS TELLING THE WIND AND THE WAVES TO QUIET DOWN, THEIR RESPONSE WAS “WHO IS THIS THAT EVEN THE WIND AND WAVES OBEY HIM?”  THEY RECOGNIZED THEN AND AT OTHER TIMES THAT THEY DID NOT KNOW JESUS, THAT THEY WERE OPEN TO KNOWING MORE ABOUT HIM.  ALL THROUGH MARK'S GOSPEL THE APOSTLES KEEP MAKING MISTAKES, BUT AS THEY DO SO, AND AS JESUS CORRECTS THEM, THEY COME TO KNOW HIM BETTER.  I THINK A LOT OF CATHOLICS TODAY THINK THEY KNOW JESUS.  FOR SOME OF US, HE IS SOMEONE TO BE A LITTLE AFRAID OF, AFTER ALL, HE'S WATCHING US.  FOR SOME OF US, HE'S THERE TO TURN TO WHEN THINGS GET ROUGH, BUT OTHERWISE HE STAYS IN HIS BOX.  FOR SOME OF US HE IS THE GUY WHO IS STANDING IN FRONT OF THE FATHER KEEPING HIM FROM ZAPPING US.  BUT YOU CAN'T REALLY KNOW SOMEONE UNTIL YOU HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THEM.  A RELATIONSHIP MEANS COMMUNICATION, AMONG OTHER THINGS.  IT'S NOT HARD TO TALK TO JESUS – WE BELIEVE HE HEARS US WHEN WE SPEAK TO HIM.  BUT IT SEEMS TO BE MUCH HARDER TO LISTEN TO HIM AND NOT MANY MAKE THE EFFORT.  SO WE GO WHERE WE KNOW HE SPEAKS – THE SCRIPTURES, THE SACRAMENTS, THE CHURCH – AND WE LISTEN.  WE PUT ASIDE SOME TIME EVERY DAY TO LISTEN, NOT JUST TALK.  AND SOONER OR LATER, WE WILL BE REWARDED WHEN WE BEGIN TO EXPERIENCE HIS PRESENCE AND THE PEACE BEYOND ALL UNDERSTANDING THAT HE IS WILLING TO GIVE US.  SO DO WE THINK WE KNOW JESUS, ARE ARE WE ACTIVELY TRYING TO KNOW HIM BY FORMING A RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM?
AND THE OTHER POINT OF THIS STORY – DO WE HAVE THE FAITH THAT JESUS WANTS US TO HAVE SO THAT HE CAN DO MIGHTY WORKS IN OUR OWN LIVES?  FAITH IS NOT JUST BELIEF, IT IS BELIEF ACCOMPANIED BY ACTION.  IF I BELIEVE JESUS CAN DO SOMETHING WONDERFUL IN MY LIFE, HIS HELP ISN'T GOING TO KICK IN UNTIL I BEGIN.  IF YOU BELIEVE THAT OUR CHURCH SHOULD BE A MORE WELCOMING COMMUNITY, HOW ARE YOU ACTING OUT THAT BELIEF?  IF YOU BELIEVE THAT OUR CHURCH SHOULD REACH OUT TO THOSE PARISHIONERS WHO ARE NO LONGER COMING TO CHURCH, WHERE IS YOUR FAITH IN ACTION?  IF YOU BELIEVE OUR PARISH SHOULD BE MORE INVOLVED IN HELPING THE POOR OR MINISTERING TO THE HOME BOUND, YOU ARE THE CHURCH, AFTER ALL, AND JESUS TOLD US TRUE FAITH CAN DO ANYTHING.  HE STILL WORKS MIRACLES FOR THOSE WHO HAVE REAL FAITH.  

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

MARK 5:21-43

THE BRITISH HUMANIST ASSOCIATION PAID FOR ADDS ON BUSES IN THE CITY OF LONDON. THEY READ, “THERE PROBABLY ISN'T A GOD, SO RELAX AND ENJOY LIFE.” IN MARK'S STORY TODAY, WE READ ABOUT TWO MIRACLES – THE HEALING OF A WOMAN WHO HAD BEEN BLEEDING FOR TWELVE YEARS, AND THE RAISING OF A LITTLE GIRL WHO HAD BEEN ALIVE FOR TWELVE YEARS. AND I WONDER WHAT HAPPENED AFTERWARDS? THE WOMAN PROBABLY HAD BEEN DIVORCED, BECAUSE SHE WAS UNCLEAN; SHE HAD BEEN ISOLATED FROM PARTICIPATING IN WORSHIP; SHE WAS PROBABLY VERY ANEMIC, AND WEAK AS A RESULT; AND SHE HAD NO MONEY, HAVING SPENT EVERY PENNY ON DOCTORS. NOW HER PROBLEM HAS BEEN FIXED. WILL THERE BE A HAPPILY EVER AFTER? NOT REALLY. PEOPLE WON'T CHANGE THEIR ATTITUDES OVERNIGHT. SHE WON'T BE ABLE TO EASILY MAKE A LIVING, AND WILL PROBABY CONTINUE TO LIVE HAND TO MOUTH. SHE'LL PROBABLY NOT ATTRACT A HUSBAND, OR HAVE CHILDREN, HER ONLY HOPE OF SECURITY IN THAT WORLD. BUT AT LEAST SHE HAS HER HEALTH, RIGHT? EVENTUALLY MAYBE THE ANEMIA WILL GET BETTER, BUT ON THE KIND OF DIETS THEY HAD THEN, WHO KNOWS?

AND THE LITTLE GIRL. NOW THAT SHE'S BEEN RAISED FROM THE DEAD, DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS HER PARENTS WILL TRY TO FIND A NICE GUY FOR HER TO SETTLE DOWN WITH. THEY WILL GO THROUGH THE TOWN'S ELIGIBLE MEN AND AFTER A LOT OF NEGOTIATIONS, WILL PICK ONE – MAYBE SOMEONE WHO HAS A LITTLE PROPERTY, OR MAKES A LIVING FARMING OR BUILDING THINGS OR PERHAPS THEY'LL FIND A SCRIBE OR AN GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL. ROMANCE WILL HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THEY'LL NEGOTIATE A PRICE AND SET A DATE AND THE LITTLE GIRL, MAYBE FOURTEEN BY THIS TIME, WILL ENTER INTO A MARRIAGE WITH SOMEONE PROBABLY AT LEAST TEN YEARS OLDER, AND JUST HOPE THAT HE IS KIND AND GENTLE. SHE WILL HAVE ONE CHILD AND THEN ANOTHER; SHE WILL WORK FROM DAWN TO DUSK, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE HAD TO DO, EVEN IF THEY CAME FROM MODERATELY WELL-OFF FAMILIES. AND IF THINGS DIDN'T GO WELL WITH HER MARRIAGE, EVERYONE WOULD BLAME HER, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE DID IN THOSE DAYS – REMEMBER THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY? BUT AT LEAST SHE'S ALIVE, RIGHT?

THERE IS A GOD, JESUS SHOWS US, SO RELAXING AND ENJOYING LIFE, WHILE GOOD, ISN'T THE WHOLE STORY. JESUS CHANGED THE FUTURE FOR THESE TWO WOMEN, BUT ONLY HE KNOWS WHY. AND AFTER THEIR MIRACLES THEY SLIPPED BACK INTO OBSCURITY AND THE DAY WOULD COME WHEN BOTH WOULD EVENTUALLY DIE, AS WE ALL MUST.

BUT THIS IS REALLY A STORY ABOUT SOMEONE ELSE. JARIUS – THE NAME MEANS “THE ONE TO BE ENLIGHTENED”. AND MARK USES THESE TWO MIRACLES TO TEACH JARIUS AND YOU AND I SOMETHING ABOUT FAITH.

WE FIRST MEET JARIUS AS A GOOD MAN. HE HAS STANDING IN HIS COMMUNITY. HE PROBABLY IS FINANCIALLY COMFORTABLE. HE IS A LEADER. AND HE COMES TO JESUS BECAUSE HE IS DESPERATE. FATHERS IN THOSE DAYS LOVED THEIR LITTLE GIRLS JUST LIKE THEY DO TODAY. EVEN THOUGH THE GIRL'S DESTINY WOULD BE TO BE MARRIED OFF IN HER MID-TEENS, THAT WAS THE ONLY COURSE OPEN TO THEM. AND JARIUS IS WILLING TO GO PUBLICALLY TO THIS WANDERING PREACHER AND BEG HIM TO DO WHAT PEOPLE HAVE SAID HE COULD DO. BUT ON THE WAY, JESUS IS TOUCHED BY A WOMAN WHO IS AN OUTCAST. NOT ONLY IS HE TOUCHED, BUT JESUS STOPS AND MAKES A BIG SCENE ABOUT IT. TO THE JEWISH MIND, TOUCHING SOMEONE WHO WAS UNCLEAN MADE YOU UNCLEAN, AND YOU HAD TO GO THROUGH A RITUAL TO BE CLEAN AGAIN.

JESUS TELLS THE WOMAN HER FAITH HAS SAVED HER. WHAT DID HE MEAN? WE HEAR THE WOMAN'S THOUGHT PROCESSES: “IF ONLY I COULD TOUCH HIS GARMENT, I WOULD BE HEALED.” BUT REAL FAITH IS NOT JUST HAVING A THOUGHT. IT IS PUSHING THROUGH THE CROWD, KNOWING THAT THEY WILL RECOIL FROM YOUR TOUCH, MAYBE CURSE YOU OR EVEN STONE YOU. REAL FAITH MEANS THAT YOUR BELIEF IS BORNE OUT BY ACTION. POPE FRANCIS SAID THAT IF YOU MET SOMEONE WHO WAS HUNGRY, PRAY FOR THEM AND THEN FEED THEM – THAT WAS REAL PRAYER.

JARIUS HAS TAKEN ALL THIS IN, THEN COMES THE TEST. SOMEONE SAYS, “YOUR DAUGHTER IS DEAD. DON'T BOTHER THE TEACHER.” AND JESUS SAYS, “HAVE FAITH”. ALL EYES ARE ON JARIUS. HIS DAUGHTER WAS AT THE POINT OF DEATH, AND NOW HE IS TOLD THAT SHE IS DEAD. THE PROFESSIONAL MOURNERS HAVE ALREADY STARTED WEEPING AND WAILING. DOES JARIUS JOIN THE MOURNERS, WHICH IS THE LOGICAL THING TO DO, OR DOES HE TAKE THE ADVICE OF THE WANDERING PREACHER, AND BELIEVE? JARIUS CHOOSES TO BELIEVE, AND STANDS WITH JESUS AS THE MOURNERS BREAK INTO LAUGHTER WHEN JESUS SAYS, “SHE IS ONLY SLEEPING”. JARIUS WALKS PAST THOSE MEMBERS OF HIS SYNAGOGUE WHO LOOK AT HIM WITH PITY, SOME WITH CONTEMPT. JARIUS ACTS OUT HIS FAITH, GOING WITH JESUS TO THE BEDSIDE.

NO ONE WITNESSED THE MIRACLE EXCEPT THREE APOSTLES AND THE PARENTS OF THE LITTLE GIRL. ONE MINUTE SHE LAY ON THE BED, NOT BREATHING, HER SKIN PALE AND HER BODY STILL. THEN JESUS TAKES HER BY THE HAND AND TELLS HER TO GET UP, AND SHE DOES, AND THE PARENTS ARE OVERJOYED AND JESUS CALLS THEM BACK TO EARTH AND REMINDS THEM OF THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES – GIVE HER SOMETHING TO EAT, HE SAYS, BECAUSE BEING DEAD MUST WORK UP AN APPETITE – WHEN JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, HE WANTED SOMETHING TO EAT AS WELL. BUT REALLY, EATING PROVED THAT SHE WASN'T A ZOMBIE; SHE WAS REALLY ALIVE.

JESUS TOLD THOSE WHO WITNESSED THE MIRACLE TO SAY NOTHING. AND PROBABLY JARIUS AND HIS WIFE DID JUST THAT. WHEN EVERYONE NOTICED THAT THE LITTLE GIRL WAS NOW UP AND ABOUT, THEY PROBABLY SHRUGGED AND SAID TO EACH OTHER THAT THE TEACHER MUST HAVE BEEN RIGHT, SHE WAS ONLY SLEEPING.

BUT JARIUS HAD LEARNED THAT DAY THAT FAITH WAS NOT JUST BELIEVING IN SOME PROPOSITION; IF YOU BELIEVE SOMETHING YOU ACT UPON IT, EVEN IF IT'S UNCOMFORTABLE, EVEN IF IT MAKES LIFE A LITTLE HARDER. THEN YOU HAVE REAL FAITH.

IN A FEW MINUTES WE WILL BE INVITED TO TAKE PART IN HOLY COMMUNION. OUR CHURCH TEACHES THAT WHAT WAS BREAD AND WINE IS NOW JESUS, PRESENT AS BODY AND BLOOD, SOUL AND DIVINITY. HE COMES TO FEED US WITH HIMSELF, OFFERING TO US THE FOOD THAT WILL ALLOW US TO BECOME MORE AND MORE THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF THE FATHER. WHEN WE HEAR THE WORDS, “THE BODY OF CHRIST” WE ANSWER, “AMEN” WHICH MEANS WE BELIEVE. IF WE BELIEVE THIS, WE MUST ACT ON THAT BELIEF, AND OUR LIVES MUST CHANGE. BECAUSE FAITH IS NOT JUST BELIEVING, IT MUST LEAD TO ACTION.    

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

TWELFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, CYCLE B

MARK 4:35-41

WHEN YOU STUDY THE HISTORY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT, YOU LEARN THAT THE GOSPEL OF MARK WAS THE FIRST TO BE WRITTEN. THIS WAS ABOUT THIRTY YEARS AFTER THE DEATH OF CHRIST. WHEN YOU READ THE OTHER GOSPELS, PRODUCED TWENTY TO 35 YEARS AFTER THIS, YOU CAN SEE THAT THEY'VE TAKEN THE BASIC STORY OF JESUS AND USED THE EVENTS IN HIS LIFE AND HIS TEACHINGS TO PUT FORTH A POINT OF VIEW IN TERMS OF THEOLOGY. MATTHEW WANTS HIS JEWISH READERS TO COMPARE JESUS TO MOSES AND SEE A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE HISTORY OF ISRAEL AND THE LIFE OF JESUS. LUKE WANTS HIS READERS TO KNOW THAT JESUS LOVED THE POOR AND THE OUTCASTS, AND WAS WILLING TO STAND UP TO THE AUTHORITIES FOR THEM – SOMETHING LIKE POPE FRANCIS, I GUESS. AND JOHN MAKES NO BONES ABOUT IT. JESUS IS GOD PURE AND SIMPLE. THERE IS A LEGEND ABOUT THE ORIGIN OF THE GOSPEL OF MARK WHICH IS PROBABLY NOT TRUE, BUT MAYBE TRUTHY. IT IS THAT MARK TOOK DICTATION FROM PETER, AND THAT PETER TOOK PAINS TO SHOW THAT THE APOSTLES, AND ESPECIALLY HIMSELF, SAID FOOLISH THINGS AND DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THERE IS A LOT IN THE GOSPEL THAT SUGGESTS THAT PETER HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT. BUT THAT'S FOR ANOTHER TIME.

IN MARK, THE DISCIPLES ARE GENERALLY PORTRAYED AS BLOCK-HEADED. THEY NEVER QUITE GET WHAT JESUS IS TRYING TO SAY. PETER IS THE WORST OF THEM. AND I THINK TODAY'S GOSPEL NEEDS TO BE SEEN FROM THAT STANDPOINT. WHEN YOU FIRST READ THE GOSPEL, IT SOUNDS LIKE JESUS EXERCISED HIS GOD-LIKE POWERS TO SAVE THE APOSTLES, AND THEY WERE TRULY AMAZED AT WHAT THEY SAW. AND WE GO AWAY SAYING, YES, THAT JESUS – HE'S NOT LIKE YOU AND ME, HE TELLS THE WIND AND WAVES TO OBEY, AND THEY DO. AND SINCE WE CAN'T DO THAT, WE SEE JESUS AS “OTHER”. WHAT CAN THIS GOSPEL STORY TELL US? HOW SHOULD IT IMPACT OUR LIVES? DOES IT MEAN WE SHOULD PRAY WHEN WE ARE IN TROUBLE, HOPING THAT HE'LL COME TO OUR RESCUE? WE PROBABLY ALREADY DO THAT. DOES IT MEAN THAT WHEN WE ARE THREATENED, GOD WILL COME TO OUR RESCUE AND SAVE US? WELL, WE KNOW THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN, AT LEAST NOT CONSISTENTLY, AND WE DON'T REALLY KNOW WHY.

BUT WHEN YOU GO OVER THE STORY, THESE THINGS STAND OUT. JESUS IS ASLEEP. THAT'S BECAUSE HE IS HUMAN. YOU DON'T SEE HIM SLEEPING IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN. BUT JESUS IS SLEEPING ON A CUSHION. THE APOSTLES ARE FIGHTING TO KEEP THE BOAT UPRIGHT AND BAILING WATER OUT LIKE CRAZY, AND THEY WAKE HIM UP. AND YOU CAN TELL THEY ARE IN FULL PANIC MODE. THEY SAY, “DON'T YOU CARE THAT WE ARE PERISHING?” THINK ABOUT THIS FOR A MINUTE. IF YOU, A HUMAN BEING, WOKE UP IN THAT CIRCUMSTANCE, WHAT WOULD YOU DO? YOU'D PROBABLY GRAB A BUCKET AND START BAILING, OR FALL ON YOUR KNEES AND PRAY, OR RUN AROUND LIKE A CHICKEN. BUT JESUS, WHO IS COMPLETELY HUMAN, SIMPLY TELLS THE WIND AND WAVES TO BE STILL, AND THEY DO. HE THEN ASKS THE APOSTLES, “WHY ARE YOU TERRIFIED? DON'T YOU YET HAVE FAITH?” THE APOSTLES CONCENTRATE ON THE MIRACLE, BUT JESUS IS POINTING TO SOMETHING ELSE.

I CAN'T THINK OF A SINGLE EPISODE IN THE GOSPELS, ESPECIALLY THE GOSPEL OF MARK WHERE JESUS APPEARS THE MOST HUMAN, WHERE HE WAS AFRAID. SURE, WHEN HE KNEW HE WAS GOING TO BE CRUCIFIED, HE SWEATED BULLETS AND ASKED THE FATHER TO SPARE HIM THIS. BUT EVEN THEN HE COULD HAVE BACKED OUT. BUT JESUS WAS NEVER AFRAID, BECAUSE HE FULLY UNDERSTOOD AND BELIEVED THAT THE FATHER ONLY HAD HIS BEST INTERESTS AT HEART. WOULD YOU BE AFRAID IF THE VILLAGE PEOPLE WERE TRYING TO THROW YOU OVER A CLIFF? JESUS WASN'T, AND WALKED RIGHT THROUGH THEIR MIDST. WOULD YOU CALL THE KING OF JUDEA, WHO USED THE TITLE “LION OF JUDAH” A FOX IN PUBLIC? THAT WAS A REAL INSULT, AND PROBABLY GOT BACK TO HEROD. JESUS WASN'T AFRAID. AND AS YOU LOOK AT JESUS' LIFE, YOU CAN FIND MANY MORE INCIDENTS WHERE A NORMAL PERSON, EVEN SOMEONE WHO HAD SOME COURAGE, MIGHT BE A LITTLE AFRAID.

IN THIS STORY OF THE BOAT AND THE STORM, I THINK JESUS IS MODELING FOR HIS DISCIPLES AND FOR US WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A SON OR DAUGHTER OF GOD. THERE IS NO CAUSE FOR FEAR. PRUDENCE, YES. DO WHAT YOU CAN, YES. BUT FEAR, THAT USELESS EMOTION THAT CLOUDS YOUR THINKING AND MAKES YOUR HEART RACE AND CAUSES YOU TO MAKE STUPID MISTAKES, THERE IS NO ROOM FOR FEAR IN THE PERSON WHO KNOWS HIMSELF OR HERSELF TO BE A SON OR DAUGHTER OF THE FATHER.

I THINK THE MARTYRS KNEW THIS, THOSE IN THE EARLY DAYS OF THE CHURCH AS WELL AS THOSE WHO ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH BECAUSE THEY ARE CHRISTIANS. IT ISN'T EVEN A MATTER OF BELIEVING IN LIFE AFTER DEATH – IT'S JUST A MATTER OF TRUSTING THAT WHATEVER HAPPENS THE FATHER WILL BRING GOOD OUT OF IT. AND PART OF THAT GOOD IS ALWAYS THE FACT THAT HE WILL NOT ABANDON HIS SONS AND DAUGHTERS; NOTHING IMPORTANT WILL BE LOST, ONLY CHANGED.

SO JESUS SHOWS US THAT BEING A CHRISTIAN MEANS THAT WE CAN LET GO OF FEAR, WE NEVER HAVE TO ALLOW IT IN OUR LIVES. WHEN WE ARE IN A FEARFUL SITUATION, WE KNOW THAT THE FATHER HAS US IN HIS HANDS, THE FATHER IS WATCHING US, LOVING US, AND HAS GUARANTEED THAT NOTHING CAN REALLY HARM US.

THINK ABOUT IT. AFTER JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, HE SPENT FORTY MORE DAYS WALKING THE EARTH. HE ATE AND DRANK WITH HIS DISCIPLES. AND IT SAYS THAT MORE THAN 500 PEOPLE WERE WITNESSES TO HIS RESURRECTION. THEY PROBABLY WEREN'T ALL CHRISTIANS, AND I DOUBT THEY COULD ALL KEEP THEIR MOUTHS SHUT. AND ONE DAY PETER GOES UP TO JESUS AND SAYS, “LORD, YOU'VE GOT TO STOP APPEARING IN PUBLIC, OR AT LEAST GET OUT OF JERUSALEM. ONE OF THESE DAYS THE ROMANS AND THE HIGH PRIESTS ARE GOING TO COME AFTER YOU AGAIN.” AND JESUS COULD SAY TO PETER, “AND DO WHAT? THEY'VE ALREADY KILLED ME AND THAT DIDN'T WORK.” YOU AND I, ONCE BAPTIZED, INHERIT THE RESURRECTION. WE CAN SAY IN CHRIST TO THOSE WHO WANT TO HARM US, WE CAN SAY TO NATURAL DISASTERS, WE CAN SAY TO DISEASE AND PAIN AND LOSS, “YOU'VE ALREADY KILLED ME AND THAT DIDN'T WORK.”

ONCE JESUS SAID, PERFECT JOY CASTS OUT FEAR. SO THE NEXT TIME YOU FEEL FEAR, AND YOU WILL, REMEMBER NOT THE APOSTLES FLAILING AROUND IN THE BOAT, BUT JESUS, WHO WAKES UP AND SHOWS NO FEAR AT ALL, BECAUSE HE KNOWS WHAT YOU KNOW – THE FATHER WILL NOT LET ANYTHING HAPPEN THAT HE WON'T TURN INTO SOMETHING GOOD; AND THE FATHER WILL NEVER ABANDON HIS SONS AND DAUGHTERS, BECAUSE THEY HAVE CONQUERED SIN AND DEATH IN THEIR BROTHER JESUS.

Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle B

\MARK 4:26-34
SO WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU HEAR THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED?  WHAT DID JESUS MEAN?  I THINK MOST OF US WOULD  CONCLUDE THAT THE KINGDOM OF GOD STARTS OUT SMALL AND EVENTUALLY GETS VERY LARGE, RIGHT?  BUT WHY DIDN'T JESUS JUST SAY THAT?
WHEN WE HEAR JESUS TELL A PARABLE, HE IS SAYING SOMETHING THAT IS MUCH MORE THAN IT SEEMS ON THE SURFACE.  HE MAY HAVE TOLD HIS APOSTLES WHAT HIS PARABLES MEANT, BUT THEY DIDN'T ALWAYS TELL US.  THE MUSTARD SEED PARABLE APPEARS IN MATTHEW, MARK AND LUKE, SO THE EARLY CHRISTIANS MUST HAVE CONSIDERED IT IMPORTANT ENOUGH TO PASS ON.  
WHEN I THINK OF MUSTARD SEEDS, BEING A 20TH CENTURY AMERICAN, THE FIRST THOUGHT THAT COMES TO MIND IS A JAR OF MUSTARD – THE YELLOW KIND, MADE OF A MIXTURE OF GROUND UP MUSTARD SEEDS, VINEGAR, AND  SOME SPICES, THE KIND YOU PUT ON HOT DOGS AT THE BALL PARK OR ON THE FOURTH OF JULY.  YOU MAY HAVE A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT IDEA IN YOUR HEAD – MAYBE GREY POUPON?  AND IF I GO DEEPER INTO MY THOUGHT PROCESSES, I THINK OF MUSTARD  GREENS, WHICH ARE KIND OF LIKE SPINACH, ONLY HAVE MORE FLAVOR AND ARE A LOT TOUGHER.  BUT MUSTARD PLANTS DON'T GROW AROUND HERE MUCH.  
WHEN JOAN AND I LIVED IN BUFFALO, WE HAD A PEAR TREE IN OUR BACK YARD.  IT WAS VERY PROLIFIC.  SOMETIME IN LATE AUGUST IT WOULD BEGIN TO DROP RIPE PEARS AND THESE WOULD ATTRACT WASPS AND BEES, AND ALL IN ALL IT WAS A  MESS.  ONE YEAR WE STARTED PICKING THE PEARS AS SOON AS THEY WERE RIPE.  WE MADE PEAR SAUCE, PEAR LEATHER, AND ANYTHING ELSE WE COULD DO WITH PEARS, BUT ONCE WE DID ALL THIS, WE HAD  ENOUGH PEAR STUFF TO LAST A FEW SEASONS.  THE NEXT YEAR WE PICKED THE PEARS AND TRIED TO GIVE THEM AWAY, BUT NO ONE REALLY LIKES PEARS ALL THAT MUCH . WE HAD A LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PEAR TREE – WE APPRECIATED ITS GENEROSITY, BUT THERE COULD BE TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING.  I KNOW GARDENERS WHO'VE HAD THE SAME EXPERIENCE WITH ZUCCHINI OR TOMATOES.  TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING.
THE PEOPLE IN JESUS TIME HAD THE SAME ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE MUSTARD PLANT.  NOBODY GREW THE STUFF ON PURPOSE.  IT GREW  ALL OVER THE PLACE, LIKE A WEED, AND IT GREW RAPIDLY, FASTER THAN MOST OTHER PLANTS.  AND PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY THE VERY POOR, COULD EAT THE TENDER GREENS.  THE SEEDS WERE NOT USED AT ALL.   BIRDS, FOR SOME REASON,  ARE ATTRACTED TO MUSTARD PLANTS BECAUSE THEY LOVE THE SEEDS.
SO THE MUSTARD PLANT WHICH GREW VERY RAPIDLY, WAS A  MIXED BLESSING.  SURE, YOU COULD EAT THE GREENS, BUT IF YOU WERE A  FARMER AND THE PLANTS  SPRANG UP IN YOUR WHEAT OR BARLEY FIELD IT WASN'T GOOD.  NOT ONLY DID THE MUSTARD CROWD OUT THE WHEAT, BUT THE BIRDS IT ATTRACTED WOULD GO AFTER THE WHEAT THAT WAS JUST BEGINNING TO GERMINATE.  FARMERS GENERALLY PULLED UP ALL THE MUSTARD PLANTS THAT GREW WILD IN THEIR FIELDS.
THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS WITHIN US, JESUS SAID.  WHEN WE ARE BAPTIZED, THE SEEDS OF THE KINGDOM ARE PLANTED IN US.  MOST OF US WHO ARE CHRISTIAN, WHO COME TO CHURCH, WHO TRY TO LEAD GOOD LIVES, ARE OK WITH A FEW MUSTARD PLANTS, BUT WE LIKE OUR KINGDOM IN SMALL DOSES.  BECAUSE IF WE AREN'T CAREFUL, THE KINGDOM WITHIN US WILL BEGIN TO CROWD OUT OUR OWN DESIRES, OUR OWN PLANS, AND IF WE AREN'T CAREFUL, WE WORRY THAT WE'LL END UP LIKE MOTHER THERESA OR SAINT FRANCIS, OR ONE OF THOSE OTHER SAINTS WE KEEP HEARING ABOUT, SOMEONE WHO GENUINELY LIVES NOT FOR HIMSELF OR HERSELF BUT FOR GOD AND FOR HIS NEIGHBOR.  SO WHEN WE SEE LITTLE SPROUTS OF THE KINGDOM POPPING UP IN OUR GARDEN, WE PULL THEM UP AND CAST THEM ASIDE.  THAT WAY WE REMAIN IN CONTROL; WHAT WE HAVE PLANTED WILL COME TO HARVEST.  BUT GOD KEEPS TRYING; HE KEEPS PUTTING THOSE IMPULSES IN US, THOSE DESIRES TO BE MORE GENEROUS WITH OUR TIME AND OUR TREASURE.  HE PROMPTS US TO SPEAK UP AND TO ACT WHEN THERE ARE THREATS TO THE LIFE AND DIGNITY OF HUMAN BEINGS, LIKE ABORTION AND DOCTOR-ASSISTED SUICIDE.  HE CALLS US TO WORK FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, ESPECIALLY IN HOW WE VOTE.  HE GIVES US OUR CHURCH SO THAT WE HAVE ACCESS TO TRUTH.  BECAUSE IF THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS  EVER TO BE REALIZED ON THIS EARTH, AND IT WILL, IT HAS TO FIRST BE REALIZED IN YOUR HEART AND MINE.  GOD USES US TO CARRY OUT HIS WILL.  MOST OF US LET A LITTLE MUSTARD GROW, BUT NOT TOO MUCH; A VERY FEW STAND BACK AND LET IT GROW WILD, AND SAY, “HERE I AM, LORD, I COME TO DO YOUR WILL.” THEY SAY WITH MARY OUR MOTHER, “BE IT DONE TO ME ACCORDING TO YOUR WILL.”
BEFORE JESUS TELLS US THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED, HE TELLS US ABOUT THE SEED THAT THE FARMER PLANTS, AND  THEN COMES  BACK LATER TO THE HARVEST, AND IN BETWEEN IT'S  ALL MYSTERY.  THE FARMER DOESN'T KNOW WHAT GOES ON, EXCEPT THAT SOMEHOW THE HARVEST WILL HAPPEN.  AND  THE KINGDOM OF GOD WILL HAPPEN SOONER OR LATER, JESUS PROMISED THAT, WE REALLY CAN'T STOP IT.
BUT WE CAN SLOW IT DOWN, WE CAN PUT ROAD  BLOCKS UP, WE CAN PULL UP THE MUSTARD PLANTS BEFORE THEY GET BIG ENOUGH TO ATTRACT BIRDS AND CROWD OUT WHAT WE WANT TO GROW.
I THINK IT'S INTERESTING THAT IN OUR FIRST READING, EZECHIEL IMAGINES THE KINGDOM TO BE LIKE A MAJESTIC CEDAR TREE ON TOP OF A MOUNTAIN.  IT'S WAY UP THERE, BEING MAGNIFICENT AND SHELTERING BIRDS, BUT WE ARE DOWN HERE, NOT HAVING TO BE BOTHERED BY IT IF WE DON'T WANT TO.  BUT  JESUS IMAGINES THE KINGDOM AS A NUISANCE PLANT, A WEED, WHICH COMES INTO OUR SAFE AND PREDICTABLE LIVES AND BOTHERS US.  WE CAN FIGHT IT OR LET IT TAKE OVER, BUT WE CAN'T IGNORE IT.
ONCE JESUS SAID, “I HAVE COME TO BRING FIRE ON THE EARTH AND HOW I WISH IT WERE ALREADY KINDLED!”  IN YOU AND I THERE IS THE POTENTIAL TO  SET THE WORLD ON FIRE, TO LET OUR SAFE AND PREDICTABLE GARDEN BE TAKEN OVER BY WILD MUSTARD, WHICH GROWS TO BECOME THE  LARGEST OF BUSHES.  AND OUR MEDITATION SHOULD BE, HOW ARE WE HOLDING BACK THE KINGDOM OF GOD WITHIN US AND IN THE WORLD AROUND US?