Tag: Sunday Homilies

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Principles for Preparation – A Reflection on the Gospel for the Second Sunday of Advent

But who may abide the day of his coming and who shall stand when he appeareth? And this is the cry that goes up from the final pages of the Old Testament (Mal 3:2). And the Lord himself gives the answer:

See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; lest I come and strike the land with doom! (Mal 4:5-6)

And thus with these words the Old Testament ends.

And so the New Testament opens in the desert but near the banks of the River Jordan with John the Baptist, of whom Jesus says, “He is the Elijah who was to come.” (Mt 11:14). Yes, in John the Baptist is the fulfillment of the Elijah figure who was to come to prepare the hearts of the people for the great coming of the Messiah.

And all this leads us to today’s Gospel, with John the Baptist summoning the faithful to repentance so that when the Messiah arrived, they would be ready. And for those of us who would be ready, we too need to go in the wilderness and hear the message of John the Baptist: Prepare the Way of the Lord! And though only the Lord can finally get us ready, we for our part must be able to say to the Lord, I’m ready as I can be.

Let us look at this gospel in three stages, going in the wilderness with John as our Teacher:

I. Context – The context of this Gospel is meticulously set forth by Luke: In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert.

OK, so what’s going on here, why all the specifics? It almost seems as if we are reading an Ancient Middle Eastern Phone book, or some list of “Who’s Who in the Eastern Mediterranean!” Yes, notice:

A. The Prestige – You might say there is a parade of the prestigious, a roll call of royalty, a list of leaders! We have an emperor – (i.e. the Federal Government), a local governor – (i.e. the State Governor), Three Tetrarchs – (state and local officials), two religious (and secular) leaders…you name it, all the “somebodies” are on the list. But it was not to any of the these glitterati that the Word of God came.

B. The Person – It was to John, the simple man in the dessert that the word went forth. Who? He was not on anyone’s list! John the who? And where do say he lives? Not in the palace or even in Jerusalem? Hmmm…. And yet recall:

1 Cor 1:27-29 But God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong,  God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.

Luke 10:21 At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.

He hath lifted up the lowly, and the rich he has sent away empty. Yet to this simple man the Word of God came, and many went out to hear this unlettered man speak the Word of God in Wisdom.

C. The Place – Where is the word of God proclaimed and where is John the baptist found and where will Jesus appear? In a palace? In the Ivy League Town of Jerusalem? No indeed, not in a palace, not in some air-conditioned controlled environment, not in a place of power, but in a place of vulnerability, where one experiences one’s limitations. In the desert neediness reaches out and grabs you. Yes, it is in a hot desert where the prophet was found. (Judean Desert upper right in photo)

It is in this hostile climate that we go to hear the call and feel its power. Do you understand the context? The context is not be overlooked. The context is not found in the halls of power, it is found in the desert where thirst and hunger hit rich and poor alike. It is hear that the Word of God is found and heard.

And this leads us to part two:

II. Call. The text says, John went throughout the whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah: A voice of one crying out in the desert.

Here we have a basic Biblical call, “Repent and believe in the good news!” John said this but so did Jesus in his opening call: After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mk 1:14 -15)

There has to be a balance in preaching: Repent, and believe the good news! Modern thinking and practice has strayed from this kerygmatic balance REPENT! and BELIEVE the GOOD NEWS! Today many only want to hear or proclaim “Good News.” But the good news only makes sense if we understand the bad news and that we are in need of a divine physician. “Repent” sets the premise for the “Good news.”

Now as we have seen before, Metanoia (repent) means more than moral conversion. It means, more literally to have your thinking changed (meta = change, noia = thought) , to have your mind renewed, to think in a new way. Thus the basic message is to have our mind converted from worldly self satisfaction and self righteousness, and to be convicted of our need for forgiveness and our need for a savior. Yes, I am a sinner in need of a savior. I am bound for eternal death and destruction and cannot save myself. But there is Good News – the Savior is here, even at the door! And now I must arise and be ready to answer as soon as he knocks.

Our modern world, concerned more with comfort and relief, not real healing, needs to experience something of the desert where John was. There’s nothing like the desert to remind us our our frailty and neediness. In the Church today we have often stressed trying to make everyone feel comfortable. No talk of sin or controversial topics that might unsettle someone. Where’s the desert in that? John wasn’t found in some air conditioned marble palace. He was in the searing desert, with few creature comforts to be found. No padded pews here, no finely tune PA system, and no Air Conditioning, no pleasantries either. Just the call to come to a new mind, to surrender our stinking thinking, our misplaced priorities, our self-righteous, “I’m OK your OK, I’m basically a nice person” stuff and to accept that I am a frail sinner in need of a savior.

Now with the “bad news” established, the good news makes sense and really is good news, the savior is near at hand, even at the door. But for all this, we have to go into the desert and listen to a humble man, no the glitterati and the intelligentsia, John, clothed in camel hair and eating wild honey and locust.

And he does proclaim good news, but only if we’re ready. So on to part three.

III. Content – OK I’ve gotta repent, but what does that mean? John says, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

Notice then elements of the content:

A. READY  – The text says, Prepare the way of the Lord. This is a hectic season where we’re all getting ready for Christmas. But most of this involves social readiness (presents, parties, poinsettias). But will we be spiritually ready for Christmas? We know how to get ready for a lot of things, tax day – We’re on time for work — We know how to catch a plane — We know how to be on time for a movie or a sporting event — We spend years getting ready for careers. But why don’t we spend more time being ready for God? The one thing most certain is that we will die and stand before God. Are you ready? The text says, PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD! This world will pass away but the things of God remain. Advancing careers and promotion are not certain, but death and judgment are. Why do we get ready for worldly and uncertain things and not take spiritual things all that seriously?

B. RIGHT  – The text says, make straight his paths.…The winding roads shall be made straight! A winding road is a symbol of shifting priorities, waywardness, and a heart that is not steadfast or straight. Too often we are all over the moral map, we are inconsistent and crooked. Scripture says,

In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Prov 3:6)

Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Take heed to the path of your feet, then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil. (Prov 4:24-27)

Consider an example. If I am driving from Washington DC to New York, and I see a sign that says, “South -Richmond” I know that to follow such a path is foolish. We know how to set a direct course for worldly destinations, and how to avoid going the wrong way. But what about our course home to heaven? We might sing: I’m on my way to heaven and I’m so glad the world can’t do me no harm. But then we see the exit, “Sin City, Next Exit” And sure enough we take it. Why do we take it? And then so many are outraged to hear that they can’t go whatever way they please and still land in heaven. And then comes all the anger directed at the Church and the Bible and preacher and any one who might wish to remind us that we have to make straight the ways of the Lord. You can’t go down to get up. You can’t turn left or right and say it’s straight. Thus the text says, make straight the way of the Lord.

C. REVERENT  – The text says, Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low. Now the mountain is pride. Every sin is pride since it says my way is better than God’s way, I know better than God, I am a modern man, and the Scripture is old fashioned, the Church is out of touch etc. This is the mountain of pride, and it has to go. God hates pride, He just can’t stand it. There is nothing that excludes us more from heaven than pride, thinking we know better than God.

And the valley is low self-esteem and despair. Now it may not be obvious, but a LOT of sins come from low self esteem. For example, we gossip and denigrate others because we think if they are brought low, we will feel better about our self. We also give way to peer pressure since we can only feel better about our self if we “fit in” and are approved by others, and we’ll even sin to do it. Some young ladies fornicate for the price of a beer and pizza, selling their bodies for less than a prostitute would, because they fear they won’t be loved if they do. Young men pressure young women and disrespect them because they don’t think they’ll be “a man” (or a stud) if they don’t. Many youth join gangs, even drop out and commit crime all to “belong” and be cool. Low self esteem is an ugly business that leads us to lots of sins. These valleys have to be filled in.

The solution to both pride and low self esteem is to fear the Lord, is reverence. The fear of human beings and what they will think is at the root of a lot of sin. That is why the Scriptures admonish us to fear the Lord instead. When I fear the Lord I don’t have to fear any one else. And when I reverence the Lord, my pride is dissolved. Mountains are made low and valleys leveled when we have a reverential and loving fear for the Lord.

D. REFINED – The text says, the rough ways shall be made smooth. Rough ways are filled with obstacles, stumbling blocks and pitfalls. What are some of the things that hinder our ways, are obstacles or pitfalls? Are they relationships, lifestyles, habits? What are the things that cause me to stumble? Are they habits, excesses, or unlawful pleasures? What are the things that make ME rough and difficult to live with? Am I unyielding, unforgiving, unmerciful or unkind? Am I lax, frivolous, nonspiritual, and unaccountable? What are the rough ways in me and in my path that need smoothing? What trips me up and what in me needs softening and smoothing?

E.RECOGNIZING – The text says, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God. The Greek word is ὁράω (horao) which while translated “see” involves an active receptivity, more in the sense “to look” than merely to have something overshadow us or cross our visual path. For the danger is that we can close our eyes. Thus we must remain active, receptive, and look for salvation and redemption, to seek it. It is a gift, but we must open our eyes and accustom ourselves to its light and to its ways.

It is very much like learning a language. Until we learn the meaning of the letters and the words and to make sense of a written language, its writings can look like gibberish. And for many today, the ways of faith are just that, gibberish. But for we who believe, having been made ready for God, making straight his paths, reverencing God and rejecting roughness, we are able to recognize our redemption. and to rejoice at its presence.

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A Recipe for Readiness – A Meditation on the Gospel for the First Sunday of Advent.

As we begin the Advent Season, we are immediately drawn into its principle theme of preparation and readiness for the coming of the Lord. The first coming of the Lord has already been fulfilled at Bethlehem. And while we should prepare spiritually for the coming Christmas Feast, these first weeks of Advent bid us to focus even more on the Second Coming of the Lord in Glory.

Thus, as the curtains draw back on the opening scenes of Advent we are given warning from the Lord that he will come on the clouds with great power and glory and we must be prepared. Beware! He says, Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.

The Gospel is taken from the Mt Olivet discourse, and as we saw two weeks ago, the historical context in which the Lord was speaking was not the end of the world, not the destruction of the cosmos, but was the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem. It was however, for those ancient Jews, the end of the world as they knew it. And for us as well, the destruction of Ancient Jerusalem is also a paradigm (a symbol) of the end of the world, which, for us, will definitively end, either by our death and going to stand before the Lord, or by his coming to us, in the Second Coming.

Whatever the personal context will be for us, the message is the same: Be ready!

With that in mind we do well to study this Gospel and heed its message, set forth in two stages.

I. DOUBLE VISION – The Gospel opens with a description of tribulations that are about to come on the Land. Bu in that description there is a twofold reaction that is described. Note the First the tribulation that is described and first of two reactions that is intertwined with it:

There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

And thus we see all the political powers weak and in dismay, and fixed points in this world such as the sun, moon and stars, the sea and the land, shaken. And this will cause many to be frightened, in shock, bewilderment and dismay. And thus is described the first reaction of one group of human being.

But note that not all human beings do react this way. There is a second reaction that is prescribed and described:

But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.

Yes, a very different reaction, one of expectant joy and of serene confidence. And so we see here a kind of “double-vision.”

  1. Some cry out with fear and say “He is wrathful!” Others with faith say “He is Wonderful!”
  2. To some he is frightening, to others fabulous.
  3. To some, these events are awful, to others Awe-inspiring.
  4. Some shout “Horror on every side!” others sing “Hallelujah to the King of Kings!

Thus, there is the dread of the defeated and the delight of the delivered. Of those who experience dread other Scriptures say

  1. Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, every one who pierced him; and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen. (Rev 1:7)
  2. Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” (Rev 6:15-17)

And of those who experience delight other Scriptures say:

  1. He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! (Rev 22:20)
  2. Come, O Lord! (1 Cor 16:22)
  3. Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book. (Rev 22:7)
  4. He who is coming will come and will not delay. My righteous will live by faith….we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved. (Hebrews 10:37,39)
  5. In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. (Rom 8:37)
  6. Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall. (Malachi 4:1-2)

Yes, a kind of double vision, a double and very different experience of the same reality. The difference of course as we shall see is sin and grace, and with which “army” we have allied ourselves.

Consider as an image, the Civil War. As with any war, the issues were complex which led to arms be taken up. But it is simply not possible to extract from the mix the egregious injustice and sin of slavery. And, as the Northern troops swept (often ruthlessly) through the South there were some who saw only destruction and conquest. But there were others who saw something very different. An old spiritual from the time said:

Oh the slave folk say “Ho! Ho!
And the master says, “Oh No!”
And it must be now that the kingdom’s coming
In the year of Jubilo!

Yes, a double vision. For some, the definitive end to power and the “South” they knew. To others, vindication and freedom.
But in order for us to celebrate on that day when the Lord shall come, there are prerequisites that must be met. And that leads us to the next stage of this Gospel.

II. DIRECTIVES – The Lord goes on to instruct us in how to be ready for the Great and Terrible day of the Lord:

Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that day will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth. Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.

And herein the Lord gives us five basic directives of things to avoid, and practices to adopt in order that we be ready and able to greet him in all his Glory. It may be helpful to alter the order in which the Lord lists them since he announces the effect (drowsiness) and then the causes. This is typical of ancient practice. But for we moderns, it is more common to speak of causes and describe effects. Hence we proceed with a slightly different order:

1. DEBAUCHERY – In our text the Lord warns of the problem of  “carousing.” But the Greek word here is κραιπάλῃ (kraipale), meaning most literally,  the giddiness and headache caused by drinking wine to excess. More generally it means the excessive indulgence of all our passions, or living life to excess. Other translators render this word “dissipation” referring to the general squandering and loss of resources that results from excessive indulgence.

We of course live in times that are skilled in (over)supplying our every need. There is lots of potential for excess.  At the market there is not merely bread, but fifty different types of bread. Our oversupply and overindulgence is literally reflected in our bodies as obesity and its consequent diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol and heart disease plagues us.

But it is not just food that is excessive, it is everything. We are excessively busy in the non-essentials of life and there are innumerable schemes to occupy our minds. Our minds are overstimulated so that we cannot hear that “still, small voice.” Most people have a very short attention span due to over-stimulation. All day long the noise of radio or mp3 player, the TV, DVD, CD’s, PC’s iPads, cell phones, all constantly seizing our attention. It jams our minds and break that union with Christ, even with our self. And then there the 24 hour news channels generating noise an hype about even ordinary events: “BREAKING NEWS!” Our e-mail is flooded with junk mail and every kind of alert and promotional, offering free products, services and false hopes. There are endless money schemes, Powerball, the numbers, sweepstakes. An oh the sales, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, post and pre holiday sales. Excess everywhere: news, money schemes, sales, deals. It is like the carnival hucksters: “step right up!” But it is worse since we cannot get away.

We spend, spend, spend then borrow, borrow, borrow. We need double incomes and to work 6 or 7 days a week, 10- 12 hours a day, so we can afford our lifestyles. Having “the goods” we are never there to enjoy them, and we sacrifice family on the altar of pleasure. We have an excess of everything except children, for they harm our ability to consume by denting our income.

Even our recreation is excessive. Our weekends and vacations often leave us exhausted, disquieted, and unprepared for the coming week. A simple quiet weekend, reflecting on nature and God’s wonders, or spending quiet time at home with family? No way, its off to sporting events of our over scheduled (but fewer) children. The weekends meant for rest feature more shopping, and disquieting events like loud bars and often enervating  events like football games and drinking rituals related to same.

Yes, its all excess. It weighs us down, wearies us, cost a lot of time and money and isn’t really all that satisfying anyway. It is dissipation. In the end we have something like that headache and hung over feeling after a night of drinking of which the Greek word kraipale speaks. But up goes the cry anyway: “More! – Yes, “One more round.” Excess, dissipation, surfeiting, carousing, more, more more! And that leads next to:

2. DIVISIONS  – The Lord warns of the anxieties of daily life. Here the Greek word is μερίμναις (merimnais) meaning more literally “a part, separated from the whole;” “that which divides and fractures a person into parts.” And thus we see the human person, overwhelmed with excess, incapable of distinguishing the urgent from the important, the merely pleasurable form the productive. On account of our over-stimulation, our excess, we are pulled in many contrary directions. We are chasing butterflies. We can’t decide, our loyalties are divided and conflictual. We are endlessly distracted by a thousand contrary drives and concerns.

This is anxiety, the condition of being overwhelmed and divided by many and contrary drives, demands and priorities. Anxiety freezes and perplexes us. There is too much at stake and no central governing principle to direct our decisions. All of this overwhelms and clouds our mind and heart. We are anxious about many things and cannot determine the “one thing necessary” that will order all the details (cf Luke 10:42). This is anxiety and the Lord enumerates it as among those things that destroy our readiness to stand before him with joy. Next comes:

3. DRUNKENNESS – Here the Greek word is very straight forward: μέθῃ (methe), drunk on wine. But why do we drink? Frankly we drink to medicate our anxiety. Overwhelmed by the excess that leads to anxiety (inner division and conflict) we drink to medicate our sense of being overwhelmed. Something has to soothe us. And, instead of slowing down and seeking God, we drink. We anesthetize our mind. And it is not only alcohol that we use. We use things, people, power, sex, entertainment, diversions and distractions, all to soothe our mind, stirred up by tensions and anxieties.

This of course only deepens the central problem. For all these things only add to the very problem that has disturbed us in the first place: the kraipale that is excess and dissipation. For the solution is to get clear about our priorities, seek God and allow him to order our lives. But instead of seeking a clear mind, we do the opposite and tune out. A little wine is a gift from God, (cf Psalm 104:15) to cheer our hearts. But remember excess if the problem, and so we go beyond cheer to dull the mind.

To be sober is to have a clear mind, a mind that knows and is in touch with reality, goals and final ends. To be sober is to be alert, to be honest, to be be reasonable and to be acting in a way that bespeaks thoughtful, and deliberative movement toward a rational and worthy goal. The sober person acts consciously and purposefully toward a unifying goal, the goal that is being with God. St. Paul says, But this one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Phil 3:13-14).

But lacking one unifying thing, and torn apart within and anxious on account of the excesses we insist on keeping, we dull our minds and use alcohol as a medicine for our stress, our anxiety, our inner divisions. The Lord calls us to clarity, but we retreat into an insobriety.We are, in effect hung over by indulging the excesses of this world and then “medicating” the inner divisions it created. Our minds go dull, we tune out. And all of this, the excess which leads to

4. DROWSINESS – The Lord says, Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy – The Greek word translated as drowsy here is βαρηθῶσιν (barethosin) meaning burdened, heavy-laden, overcome, or weighted down.  And thus we see that the effect that all of the above has in our lives is to weigh us down, to burden our hearts. Laden with excess, divided by contrary demands and medicating the stress with insobriety, our hearts become burdened and tired. They are no longer hearts inflamed and animated with love. They are hearts that have become weary, distracted, bored and  tired of holy things and of the Lord. Instead of being watchful in prayer, the drowsy heart weighted with sin, excess, division, and insobriety, sleeps on. It no longer keeps watch for the Lord whom it is called to love.

Yes the world, and our sinful preoccupations with it, weighs our hearts down. It captures our love and attention and we become drowsy toward spiritual things.

In the Garden the Lord asked the Apostles to pray. But they had spent their energy that night at table arguing with Jesus and debating among themselves about who was greatest. And divided within, they wanted Jesus, but they also wanted the world and its fame and power. Struck by the conflict and tension that Jesus’ words about suffering and dying brought, they were divided and anxious. And so they medicated it all, and tuned out. They likely had more than a few drinks of wine that night. Weighed down and exhausted by worldly preoccupations and priorities, their burdened hearts were too drowsy to pray. Drowsy, they slept. (But Satan did not sleep that night).

Consider the words of Jesus to the Church at Ephesus: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. (Rev 2:5-6) Jesus also warns:  Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold (Mat 24:12). Yes, the sinful indulgence of the excess of sin, divides and stresses us. Since it is too much we tune out, and dull our mind, and thus our hearts grow cold, burdened, and heavy with sin. Thus heavy and weary, our hearts go to sleep and we lose our first love. As thus Jesus described the pattern: Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. This is the cycle.

What to do about this awful cycle? And thus comes the answer:

5. DUE DILIGENCE – The Lord says, Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.“

The Lord does not describe this terrible cycle of Debauchery (excess), Division (anxiety), Drunkenness (self-medication), and Drowsiness (heavy hearts) merely to define the problem. Having diagnosed our condition he prescribes the remedy of prayerful vigilance.

To be vigilantly prayerful is to be in living, conscious contact with God. It is to have our hearts and minds focused on the one thing necessary (cf Lk 10:42), and having this focus, to have our life ordered. With this order properly established our excesses regarding this world fall away, and the many anxieties and divisions associated with it depart. That having gone, we no longer need to medicate and soothe our anxious minds. This lightens our heart and its heaviness goes away. No it is free to love and desire with well ordered love.

Having set our sights on God, through vigilant prayer, everything else in our life becomes ordered. And when Christ comes, he will not come to disrupt our world, but to confirm what we are already used to, namely, that Jesus Christ is the center and meaning of my life.

Through prayerful vigilance we can stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand. Why? We are used to seeing him and experiencing his authority. He thus comes not to destroy and usurp our disordered lives, but to confirm and fulfill what has always been true for us, the Jesus is the center of our lives.

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Is He your King? Really? A Meditation on the Gospel of Christ the King

On the feast of Christ the King, we are called to acknowledge that Jesus is, in fact our King. It is one thing to say that he is our King because the song in Church we sang said that, or the preacher said that, or the Bible says that. Yes, faith does come by hearing. But there also comes a moment when WE must say that Jesus is our King. When we must personally affirm what the Church has always announced: “Jesus is Lord, and he is King, he is my king. He has authority in my life.”And this must become more than lip service. It must become a daily, increasing reality in our life.

Kings take care of us, but they also have the authority to command us. Can Christ command you or me? Or are we more typical of the modern person who doesn’t like to be told what to do? Or perhaps we suffer from the more mild form of this attitude that reduces and trivializes Jesus to being the “harmless hippie” who just says pleasant things about peace and flowers, but would never rebuke us or command us to repent.

And so, again the question for us: Is Jesus Christ your King?

And that brings us to the Gospel for today’s Mass. Now, the Gospels are not theater, as though we were in the audience and watching a story unfold, a story that took place 2000 years ago. No, we are in the story. We are not just to observe what Peter, or Pilate, of James, or Mary Magdalene do. They are us and we are them.

One of the things that this means is that when Jesus asks them a question, we cannot merely wait and see how they will answer as though we were watching a movie. No, WE have to answer the question.

In today’s Gospel the spotlight moves to Pontius Pilate. And the Lord asks the critical question of him (i.e. us) that we are here pondering. And we cannot simply wait to see how Pilate answers that question, WE have to answer it. Consider this Gospel in three stages.

I. INDECISION – In a remarkable display of literary artistry, John and the Holy Spirit vividly depict the vacillation of  Pontius Pilate. For in this  Gospel passage of the trial of Jesus, Pilate goes in and out of the Praetorium (i.e. the Governor’s palace) more than a bell-hop through the revolving door of a hotel. Indeed he goes in and out seven times. Note the text with the texts describing his motions highlighted in bold text:

29So Pilate went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” …..33Pilate [re]entered the praetorium and called Jesus…..” 39After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again, and told them, “I find no crime in him…..1Then Pilate took Jesus [back into the praetorium] and scourged him…… 4Pilate went out again, and said to them, “See, I am bringing him out to you, that you may know that I find no crime in him….8When Pilate heard these words, he was the more afraid; 9he re-entered the praetorium and [spoke] to Jesus….12Upon this Pilate [went back out] and sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend…When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and he sat down on the judgment seat…..(John 18-19 selected verses)

Did you count? Seven times Pilate goes in or out of the Praetorium! Such a picture of indecision an vacillation! He’s trying to please the crowds, he’s trying to please his wife (who had warned him to have nothing to do with that innocent man (Mat 27:19)), he’s trying to help Jesus. But he can’t decide! In and out he goes!

He is like us. We say we love God, but we also love the world. We want to please others, we want to please God. We cannot do both. We have to decide. But instead we vacillate, we go back and forth. We are Pilate. We are often locked in indecision, we vacillate, trying to please the world, trying to please others and to please God.

Is Pilate really so different from many of us? Faced with a crucial decision, he weighs the consequences that choosing Jesus will have on his career, his future, his family, his loyalty to country and Caesar, his access to power, and so forth. And while we may rightfully criticize Pilate  for his choice, is it not easy for so many of us to make compromises with the world for the sake of similar things? How often does Jesus our King take a back seat to career, politics, convenience and so on? And so easily we stay rooted in vacillation, compromise and indecision.

II. INQUIRY – And now, in the midst of all this indecision comes the question.

Pilate begins with his own question: “Are you the King of the Jews?” (John 18:33) But Jesus, who is on trial, turns the tables on Pilate and putting him on trail asks him the crucial question:

“Are you saying this on your own or have others been telling you about me?” (John 18:34).

A remarkable question! And guess what?! YOU have to answer it, I have to answer it. Do not wait for Pilate, he has already made his answer and he has faced his judgment centuries ago. But YOU, and ME, how do WE answer the question?

Now notice what the Lord is getting at. He is asking you if you call him a King merely because you have heard others say this or because you personally know him to be King. Is he really your King, or this just a slogan you’ve heard in church before? Do you believe he is King or do you merely parrot what you’ve heard others say?

There is an old Gospel song that says, “Yes I know Jesus for myself.” But is that really the case with us? Too many of us are satisfied with a kind of inferential faith. Inferential faith is based merely on what others have said: “I think, or suppose, that is I infer that Jesus is Lord because my mother said so, or my pastor said so.” This is a good beginning, for after all, faith comes by hearing (Rom 10:17).

But there comes a moment when YOU have to say so. It is not enough that your pastor says so, or your mother says so. And thus Jesus is asking you and me right now: “Are you saying I am King on your own or merely because others have said so?”

Answer him…..It’s a crucial question isn’t it? The faith of the Church is essential, normative and determinative, but at some point you have to step up and say, I personally affirm that the faith of the Church is true and is mine and I hereby declare: “Jesus is Lord and King.”

And what does it mean that he is King? As we have already discussed, A king has authority doesn’t he? Does Jesus have authority in my life? Do I have the obedience of faith (Rom 1:5) and base my life upon his will?

A king also takes care of his people and protects them. Do I allow the Lord to feed me with the Holy Eucharist? Do I allow him to protect me from the poison of sin by the sacrament of confession and the medicine of his Holy Word? Am I willing to live within the protection of the walled city of his Church?

Is the Lord really my King? How do I answer? Is it more than a slogan or is his Kingship real? Let the Lord ask one more time:

Are you saying I am a king on your own or have others been telling you about me?

III. IMPLICATION – You have to answer. To refuse to answer, IS to answer.

A fascinating and wondrous literary device is employed by John and the Holy Spirit in this Gospel passage. We have already seen how Jesus, who was on trial, has turned the tables, and it is now Pilate who is really on trial. Pilate who has the duty to question Jesus is now being questioned by him. And it is Pilate who must now make a decision, not so much about Jesus, but about himself. He has been asked a question he cannot ultimately avoid and now it is time to answer. And here is where the ingenious literary device comes into play. Look carefully at this line from John’s Gospel and see if you notice anything strange:

Upon this [the shouting of Crucify him!]Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend; every one who makes himself a king sets himself against Caesar.” When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and he sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, and in Hebrew, Gabbatha. (John 19:12-13)

So what is strange here? Well notice that when Pilate has Jesus brought out, “he” sat on the judgment seat. Who exactly is sitting on the judgment seat? Well, you might say, Pilate of course!” And historically that might have been true. But the text is ambiguous as to the exact identity of “he” and most Scripture scholars argue that it is supposed to be ambiguous.

From the standpoint of historical facts it was likely Pilate who took that seat. But from the standpoint of Divine Justice it is Jesus who takes that seat.

He has turned the tables on Pilate. Pilate is now on trial and the verdict is about to be revealed. Pilate will seal his own fate when he hands Jesus over to be crucified. His vacillation is over. He has made his choice. He has answered the question.

From this context it is Jesus who sits silently upon the judgment seat. The verdict is in. In deciding to hand Jesus over, in deciding to favor himself and the crowds over Jesus, Pilate has brought judgment on himself.

Too many of us have cartoonish notions about our final judgment. Many today conceive of that judgment as either a benign Jesus giving us a great big hug, or for the condemned, an angry Lord gleefully passing judgment on his “enemies.” Perhaps too there is some notion of the repetition of our deeds, good or bad, and the pronouncing of some sort of verdict, while we cringe and wait. But Jesus is not a King who imposes his Kingdom. He is one who invites our entry into his Kingdom. So ultimately judgment is about our choice, not His.

And. thus what if judgment is finally this: the Lord, who suffered for us, respectfully and quietly seated on the Judgement seat, accepting our final choice, a choice that is the cumulative sum of all our choices, a choice that is now and forever fixed? Isn’t that what really happens here?

The Lord has called the question for Pilate, as he does for us. But the choice is for Pilate and the judgement he brings on himself. A choice either to accept the Lord’s kingship, or to reject it and see the Lord led away, while he (Pilate himself) stands alone, the judgment having been rendered by his own choice.

Yes, there are implications as to whether we accept the Lord for our King or not. Today the Lord asks us all: “Will you let me be your King?” And to those of us who say, “yes,” the Lord has this further question, “Are you saying this on your own or is it just that others have been telling you about me?” Is he really our King? Think about it. There are implications.

The question that we cannot fail to answer has now been answered by Pilate. What is your answer? What is mine?

There is an mp3 of this sermon recorded Saturday night here: King or no

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But the Word of the Lord Remains Forever! – A Meditation on the Gospel for the 33rd Sunday of the Year

As we approach the end of the liturgical year, and winter approaches, we ponder the passing quality of this world and its fading glories. Jesus’ words in the Gospel today must surely have shocked, even horrified his Apostles. Let’s look at his stunning words and seek to apply them in our own life.

1. The Place of this Gospel– This passage completes the liturgical year with Jesus standing just outside of Jerusalem. In the last two months we have followed Jesus on his final journey to Jerusalem, as he left a Galilee, heading south along the Jordan River, passing through Jericho, and now making this assent from Jericho to Jerusalem of some 1900 feet in altitude.

We find him, in today’s gospel, at the top of the Mount of Olives, with his Apostles. From this vantage point on Mont Olivet, Jesus and his Apostles look across the Kidron Valley to the magnificent Temple, and indeed all of Jerusalem spread out before them. The Apostles had marveled at the glorious beauty of the Temple, it’s large perfectly carved white ashlar stones, guilt in gold,  it gleamed like the sun in all of its glory. Indeed, it was one of the wonders of the ancient world: so beautiful, so majestic.

But Jesus challenges their admiration and shocks them with the admonition that all the glory they see is soon to be destroyed, and that not one stone will be left on another, it will all be thrown down (Mk 13:2). Shocked, the apostles ask him when, and what would be the signs that would precede this awful event.

The Lord warns, with great detail, in what has become known as the “Mount Olivet discourse,” of the coming destruction of the Temple, indeed of all Jerusalem. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke all contain similar and vivid descriptions of what Jesus said, on the Mount of Olives, overlooking Jerusalem in her heyday, her days of glory.

He warned of wars, and rumors of wars. He speaks of a time in the near future, when nation will rise against nation, and a terrible conflict will ensue. In effect, he warns his disciples and their followers, to have nothing to do with the coming war. He tells them that, when they see Jerusalem being surrounded by an army, to know that her destruction is at hand. If they are on their rooftop, they are not to go back into their house and gathered their possessions. They are to get out, while the getting is good. If they are out in the field, they must not reenter the city of Jerusalem, they must flee to the hills. Jerusalem is doomed for its lack of faith, and are zealots are picking the war with the Romans that they are destined to lose. (Luke 21; Matt 24;  Mark 13)

And this leads us to today’s gospel from the Mount Olivet discourse, which picks up in the middle. Jesus warns of days of tribulation, where the sun will be darkened, the moon not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky!

In reading a text like this, we must not fall prey to a hyper-literalistic interpretation. Jesus is using prophetic language, a prophetic way of speaking, that is meaningful, but not understood in a scientifically literalistic way. Stars, cannot actually fall from the sky.

If I were to say to you, in modern English, “The world has been turned upside down!” You would not expect to be able to go out into space, look back to earth, and find Australia at the top and North America at the bottom of your view. If I were to say to you, “It is raining cats and dogs!” you would not expect to be able to go out and find animal carcasses on the front lawn. I’m speaking figuratively, but you know what I mean.

And so it is with Jesus use of prophetic imagery. To speak of the heavenly luminaries as being either darkened or cast down, is a prophetic way of saying that all the fixed points, the ways in which we tell time, know the seasons, navigate and find perspective are lost to us! The world, as the Jewish people knew it, centered around the Temple, and rooted  in their liturgical calendar, is all about to be swept away. To the ancient Jewish people, the Temple was like their “Big Ben.”  it was both the clock of the liturgical cycle, and the great visual center of all of Israel.

And the Lord is here teaching them what they have seen as the central hub of all they do, is about to be taken away. For the Temple, and all of its rituals, its liturgical cycle and its endless slaughter of animals in sacrifice for sin, is about to be replaced. These ancient rituals, merely pointed to Jesus, and all he would do. Jesus is now the Temple, and He is also the Lamb Sacrifice. All the Temple pointed to is fulfilled in Jesus. Thus the Temple is at an end. Jesus is ushering in a New Covenant.

In the Mount Olivet discourse, Jesus prophesies the end of the Temple, that will take place in a biblical 40 years. And sure enough, exactly 40 years later, in A.D. 70, the Roman Army, having surrounded Jerusalem for a period of 3 1/2 months, now breaches the walls, pours into the city, destroys the Temple, and all Jerusalem with it. In this epic battle, according to Josephus, 1.2 million Jewish people lost their lives. Of Jerusalem and the Temple, as Jesus prophesied, not one stone was left on another. So complete was the destruction of Jerusalem, that according to Josephus, when the Romans finished their work, it was not clear that the city had ever existed on the site in Jerusalem.

Thus, here is the place of this gospel, an historical place of epic significance in the ancient world. An era of 1000 years came to an end. The world, as the Jewish people knew it, was ending. The Temple has never been rebuilt, it has been replaced by a Judaism without sacrifice, a rabbinic, a synagogue system. In 2000 years, despite several attempts to rebuild, the Jewish Temple has never been rebuilt. Everything Jesus predicted, came to pass. This is the historical place, and context of this gospel

But what does all this mean for us, some 2000 years later? Let us consider three basic themes to follow.

2. The Perspective of Passing– The Lord says, toward the conclusion of this gospel, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. Note the definitiveness of this statement: this world is passing away. That is to say, all the things that impress us at the current moment, the biggie-wow stuff of this world, the impressiveness of the powerful, the influence of the popular, the glory of all the glitterati, all this shall pass away.

Indeed, even now, it is passing away. It’s destruction is at hand. Scripture says,

The world in its present form is passing away. (1 Cor 7:31)
We have here, no lasting city. (Heb 13:14)
Put not your trust in princes, in mortal men in whom there is no hope. Take their breath, they returned to clay, and their plans that day come to nothing! (Psalm 146:3)

Yes, all the glory, even what seems beautiful and fair is passing away. Don’t be so impressed with this world’s offerings. All of it, for matter how powerful, how influential, how sturdy it may seem, is slated for destruction, is already passing away.

Some years ago I was looking through a museum, and there was a picture of a family, from about the 1880s. At the bottom of the photo, was this inscription, “My family, as it appeared for a brief time last summer.” A poignant caption. I thought of all the people in that photo, and concluded, and every one of them was now dead. I also knew, that the house at which the photo was taken, on the front porch, had long since been destroyed, replaced by an expanding city district of buildings. All is passing, nothing remains here for long.

Painful though this is, this is an important, and healing perspective. It brings with it, a kind of strange serenity. The truth, that all things are passing, like every truth, sets us free. Internalizing within our self the truth that, As for man, his days, or the flower of the field are like the grass. The wind blows, and he is gone, and his place never sees him anymore (Psalm 130:15-16), painful as it is, it brings a kind of strange serenity. Wherein this truth we are reminded not to set down too many roots here. And neither are we resentful, when this world, passes away.

3. The Permanence Proclaimed– The Lord tells us that his words will not pass away. Thus, although the world passes away, the truth, and the Word of God, remains forever.

Too many people, root their lives in passing, ephemeral things. The challenge for us, is to root our lives in the Word of God, which remains forever! Worldly glories, worldly power, access wealth, all these things, fade and disappear. But God’s wisdom and his plan remain forever.

Consider for a moment, the Church. The Lord has said that the forces of Hell would strive to prevail, overpower, and destroy the Church. But the Lord promised that such attempts would never be successful! (Matt 16:18). The Church is indefectible, by God’s Word, by his promise. No weapons, no war waged against the Church will prevail.

And in all this, the Lord has been proved true. The Church has seen empires such as the Roman Empire, the Carolingian Empire, Napoleon, the British Empire, the Soviet Socialist Republic, and many others besides, rise to power, and then fade and disappear.

How many heresies, how many philosophies have come and gone in the age of the Church? How many despots and scoffers have risen to laugh at the Church, announced that she was passé, that her day was over, and that they would bury her. And the Church is buried every one of her undertakers, has outlived everyone of her critics, and despite every prediction of her demise has persevered until this very day. She, by God’s grace, has a permanence that outlasts everyone of her critics, every one of her enemies. She has read the funeral rites over every single scoffer and prophet of her doom. And she will continue to do so.

In recounting all this we do not simply gloat that an institution known as the Church has survived. Rather, the Church is the Bride of Christ, and also his Body. The Church cannot be destroyed, not because of human ingenuity, but on account of the power and grace of God. She will endure, though at times suffer, be ridiculed, or marginalized. But she will outlive every enemy. She will emerge from every persecution. She will never be removed. FOr the Church is the Body of Christ, the living Word of God. And though the world does pass away, the Word of the Lord remains forever!

4. The Priority Prescribed –if this is the case, that this world as we know it, is passing away, and the Lord, his Kingdom, his Church, by his Word remain forever, then what should be our priority?

The Lord says, in effect we know very well what our priority should be, but we willfully ignore it:

Learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, know that he is near, at the gates.

Yes, we know very well that the Day is coming, but too easily we dream on and do not follow the prescribed priority of what is certain to happen. Wealth, fame and glory, all of these are uncertain, and clearly passing. But Death, judgment, heaven and hell are certain and/or remain forever. But as it is we too easy fiddle on with things that are uncertain and passing and neglect was is certain and eternal. Such foolishness.

It is clear, it is foolish to invest in or to book passage on a sinking ship. It is foolish to make this world and its demands our fundamental priority. And it is wise to set our sights for, and lay hold of the Kingdom which lasts forever.

It is a sad truth that so many spend all their time rearranging the deck chairs on the “Titanic” of this world. It is tragic how much time, effort, and passion we spend on things that are passing through our fingers like sand.  So much of our effort is expended on career, the building of financial fortune, enlarging our homes etc. And so little time spent on enlarging our spiritual life.

Parents spend more time worrying about where their children will attend college, than where they will spend the eternity. If the child is failing math, they go to great lengths to hire tutors to get the math scores up. But never mind that the child barely knows the four Gospels, the difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament, or even who Adam and Eve where. Never mind all that, we need to make sure they understand polynomials! It is fine that parents care about math scores and college venues, but how sad it is that more eternal things often go unattended.

A parent’s greatest duty is to prepare their child for eternity. But far more time and effort is spent securing a hold on  passing things like career. To be sure, proper schooling, and career are important. But eternal life is far more important. A son or daughter may graduate from Harvard Law school, come out, be a famous lawyer, and still go to hell!

What are our priorities? Frankly, most of our priorities are not about what matters to God. Too often, our priorities are rooted in passing things, which even if attained, slip through our fingers like sand. We obsess over passing things like our physical health, but neglect enduring things like our spiritual health. We should care for our bodies, but even more should we care for our souls. If we would spend as much efferot looking for a place and time to pray as for a restaurant  and time to eat, we would spiritual heavyweights, rather than physically overweight.

Today the Lord stands before the Temple building, impressive, a symbol of power, of worldly glories. But impressed though the Apostles are, the Lord is not impressed with passing things. He counsels us to get our priorities straight, and the focus on things which last, things related to his Word which never passes away, and to things like our ultimate destiny, where we shall spend eternity.

We find time for everything else, why not prayer, Scripture, fellowship in the Church and Sacraments?

What are your priorities? Are mine? Be honest now, be honest.

This world is passing away. Far more essential for us than power, prestige, money, things, worldly philosophies and the latest trends, we must set our hearts on the Word of the Lord which never passes away.

The world will go on and laugh at how God’s word is out of date, old-fashioned, or even hateful, bigoted, intolerant, and surely not up to modern predilections. But in the end, time will prove where wisdom is. Long after the current critics of the Church, those who laugh in scorn at the teachings of the Lord in the Scriptures and the Church, have passed on,  the Church will still be here preaching Christ, and him crucified.

None of this is meant to sound triumphalist. It is simply rooted in a Word of truth that the Lord spoke on a hillside overlooking an age soon to pass away, and glorious buildings soon to be reduced to rubble. He said simply this, Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will not pass away.

In the end, Jesus wins. I know, because I checked the end the of the story. Look it up: (Rev 20-23), Jesus wins. Get on the winning team and stop trying to amass a treasure here that you can’t keep anyway.

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The Paradox of Poverty – A Meditation on the Readings for the 32nd Sunday of the Year

The first reading in today’s Mass, from 1st Kings, speaks to us of the paradox of poverty. And the paradox is this, that it is often our poverty, our neediness, which provides a doorway for God to bless us with true riches. It is our emptiness that provides room for God to go to work.

Yes, in our riches we have “too much to lose,” and to the rich and worldly minded, the Gospel seems too demanding. But in our poverty, our emptiness and detachment from this world, there comes a strange and unexpected freedom that makes it easier to step out in faith. And stepping out in faith is the only thing that can save us.

Yes, poverty brings freedom. You can’t steal from a man who owns nothing, you can’t threaten a woman who has nothing to lose, and you can’t kill someone who has already died to this world.

Are you poor enough to be free? There’s a strange blessing in poverty. Let’s look at the first reading to see how poverty can usher in strange blessings.

I. The Desire Portrayed – In the first reading, the prophet Elijah encounters a widow at a city named Zarephath, a name which means “refining fire.” In those days, Elijah the prophet went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the entrance of the city, a widow was gathering sticks there; he called out to her

Both of them are hungry, for there is famine in the land. But Elijah, as God’s prophet, speaks not only for himself, but for God when he asks this very poor woman to share her meager food. For, truth be told, God has a desire, a hunger for us. The woman too as many desires, but her desire needs to be purified in this place called “refining fire.”

For her hunger for earthly food must be seen as a mere symbol for a deeper hunger, a hunger for communion with God. At some point out hunger must meet God’s hunger. And that point we call Holy Communion. It is a place where our hunger for God and God’s hunger for us meet and we find serenity. Every other hunger but points to this hunger, and every other “food” is but a cruel and temporary morsel until this hunger is satisfied.

Thus, two people meet at a place called “refining fire.” It is desire that has drawn them, a desire that is ultimately satisfied only in God.

II. The Dimensions  of Poverty. The woman articulates her poverty as he makes his request: Please bring me a small cupful of water to drink.” She left to get it, and he called out after her, “Please bring along a bit of bread.” She answered, “As the LORD, your God, lives, I have nothing baked; there is only a handful of flour in my jar and a little oil in my jug. Just now I was collecting a couple of sticks, to go in and prepare something for myself and my son; when we have eaten it, we shall die.

We may wonder why God allows poverty and suffering. The quick answer is because there is such a grave risk in riches and comfort. The Lord is well aware of how hard it is for the wealthy and comfortable to enter the Kingdom of God. In riches we trust in ourselves, in poverty we can only trust God.

And it is only by trusting faith that we can ever be saved. And, as we have noted there is a kind of freedom in poverty. The poor have less to lose. They can operate in wider dimensions and have a kind of freedom that the wealthy often lack.

Not only is it hard to steal from a poor man, but it also takes little to enrich him. A man who has known a great palace with high cathedral ceilings and marble wainscoting will be little more than discouraged with a humble domicile. Whereas, a poor man may be satisfied with a mere 8 x 12 room to call his own. A man who has had no food may appreciate sardines, whereas a man who is satiated may need caviar to be grateful. The rich miss many of life’s little blessings and suffer boredom whereas the poor never miss the color purple and delight in even small pleasures. The rich man’s world gets ever smaller and unsatisfying, the poor are more likely to have wide appreciation of even the humblest things.

Here again is the paradox of poverty wherein less is more, gratitude is easier to find, and losses are less painful. And, as we shall see, it is her poverty that opens this woman to lasting blessings. Having little to lose, she is free enough to accept the next stage of our story.

III. The Demand that is Prescribed. God’s prophet, Elijah, summons her to trusting faith: “Do not be afraid. Go and do as you propose. But first make me a little cake and bring it to me. Then you can prepare something for yourself and your son. For the LORD, the God of Israel, says, ‘The jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, until the day when the LORD sends rain upon the earth.'”

He tells her not to be afraid to share, and in effect, teaches her that the Lord will not be outdone in generosity. At a merely human level, Elijah’s request may seem almost cruel. But from a spiritual perspective, Elijah is summoning her to the faith that alone can truly save her.

And note, that though she expresses a fear, her fear is easily overcome. Why? Again, she has little to lose. So many of our fears are rooted in a fear of loss. And, have more, we are anxious about more. As we have grown quite wealthy in recent decades what are our chief problems? Fear and anxiety about loss, maintenance and proper securing of our “stuff.” Scripture says, The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep (Eccl 5:12). And this is true. The wealthier we have become the more we spend on psychotherapy and psychotropic drugs. We are anxious about many things and sleepiness and stress are common problems.

Too much stuff. Too much to lose. Most of us, hearing Elijah’s request would call him crazy or cruel or both. Funny thing though, this woman is free enough to take him up on his offer. How about you? How about me?

We too must come to realize that merely looking to our own self-interest will only feed us for one extra day. Only in openness to God and to others can we procure a superabundant food, that which will draw us to life eternal.

IV. The Deliverance Produced. Having little to lose, she trusts in God’s word through Elijah and shares her food. She was able to eat for a year, and he and her son as well; the jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, as the LORD had foretold through Elijah.

If we learn to trust God, we come to discover that God never fails. Of course it takes faith, and faith involves risk. And here is where poverty can have its advantages. She takes the risk and shares what little she has. For her the risk is immediate but ultimately less since she has less to lose.

And so the woman is free enough to risk it all. He only gamble is to trust God. And God does not fail. Scripture says,

Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. (Eccles 11:1)

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Luke 6:38)

And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.” (Matt 10:42)

Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. (2 Cor 9:6)

Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. (Deut 15:10)

He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done. (Prov 19:17)

A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor. (Prov 22:9)

He who gives to the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses. (Prov 28:27)

Do you believe all this? Or are these just slogans for somebody else? Well, you don’t know until you try. And if you don’t think you can try, maybe you have too much to lose.

Consider this woman who was poor enough to be free, and free enough to try the Lord. And God did not fail. God never fails. I am a witness, how about you?

This songs says, “God never fails. He abides in me, gives me the victory, God never fails.”

Bonus Track: Too Much Stuff by Delbert McClinton:

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Summarizing the Law and Love, Standing on One Foot – The Gospel of the 31st Sunday of the Year

There was an expression common among the Rabbis of Jesus’ time, and perhaps even now, wherein one Rabbi would ask another a question, but request the answer be given, “Standing on one foot.” Which is a Jewish way of saying, “Be brief in your answer.”

And that sort of expression may be behind the question that is raised today by the scholar of law who asks, “Which is the first of all the commandments?”

And in answering, “standing on foot,” Jesus recites the traditional Jewish Shema:

שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָד.
Šĕmaʿ Yisĕrāʾel Ădōnāy Ĕlōhênû Ădōnāy eḥād.
Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone!

The text Jesus cites from Deuteronomy 6 goes on to say:

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. (Deut 6:4-6)

And Jesus adds, also in common Rabbinic tradition: The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

Do not miss the point that in discussing the greatest “law,” the discussion centers immediately on the word “love.” The fact is, most of us do miss this connection between law and love.

Truth be told, most of us in Western culture put love and law just about as far apart from each other as any two things can be. For us, law is about police officers and courtrooms, it is about forcing people to do things under threat of some penalty. Love, on the other hand is about doing things willingly, because we want to, rather than because we have to.

But the fact is, as Jesus insists, and the ancient Jewish Shema articulates, love and law are in fact together, and law is an articulation of love.

Consider that a man who really loves his wife does not need a law that says “Do not break her arm, do not verbally or physically abuse her, but rather, support, protect, and encourage her.” Nevertheless, though he may not need the law in writing, he is in fact following the law of love when he observes these and other norms. There is a language of love, there is a law of love, there is an out working of love’s works and fruits. In the end, love does what love is, and love is supportive, enthusiastic, even extravagant in keeping its own norms and laws. Love does what love is.

Thus, when asked about the Law the Lord just says “love.” Yes, love God passionately, with your whole heart, soul, and strength. And as you do this, you will love what he loves, and who he loves, for this is the natural fruit of love. The more I love God, the more I begin to love his laws, his vision, what He values. Yes, all the commandments flow from this simple fact, that I love God. Real love has its roots, it has its laws, its methods, its modes.

Here then, is the whole law, standing on one foot: love God. Let His love permeate you wholly and entirely, and every other commandment will implicitly flow from the this love.

When we love God we stop asking unloving questions like:

Do I have to pray? For how long?
Do I have to go to confession? How often?
Do I have to go to mass? how often? What’s the shortest and most convenient one?
Do I have to read God’s word?
Do I have to make his teachings the priority of my life such that they overrule politics, convential thinking etc.?

Love does not ask questions like these, it already knows the answer, it already lives the answer.

Further, love does not ask:

Do I need to honor and care for my parents?
Do I need to respect lawful authority, and contribute to the common good?
Do I need to respect life from conception to natural death?
Do I need to work to cherish and safeguard the lives of others?
Do I need to live chastely and reverence the gift of sexuality that is so much at the heart of human life, and family?

No, love does not ask questions like these, it already knows the answer, it already wants to live the answer.

Love does not ask whether we must respect each other enough to speak the truth in love, to be men and women of our word. It does not wonder whether it is okay to steal from others or to fail to give them what is justly due. It does not wonder if it should be generous to the poor and needy rather than greedy, or whether to be appreciative and satisfied rather than covetous.

No, love does not need to ask these questions, it does not wonder these things. It knows the answer.

Love is the Law, standing on one foot, and all the rest is commentary.

Now God is merciful and does supply the commentary, in His Scriptures and the vast Tradition of the Church. Praise God for it all.

But honestly, listen to the way most of us talk and think. The saints say, “If God wants it, I want it. If God doesn’t want it, I don’t want it.” Is that the way most of us talk? Hmm…most of us are heard to say, “How come I can’t have it? It’s not so bad…..everybody else is doing it.” Doesn’t really sound like lovers talking does it? My, My, My. Somehow the saints knew the Law of God, and could say it standing on one foot. How about us?

All the commentary is nice, and surely needed. But don’t miss the point: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength, and your neighbor as yourself.

Love is the Law, and the Law is to love.

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A Man Who Saw by Hearing – A Meditation on the Gospel of the 30th Sunday of the Year

In today’s gospel there is a very familiar story of the healing of the blind man Bartimaeus. As with any familiar story, the danger is that we, upon hearing its opening lines say, “Oh that story,” and we just sort of tune out. But there are many things in the details of the story that we can easily miss. Ultimately the story of Bartimaeus is also our story, for we too must let the Lord heal our blindness and give us sight. One paradox of this gospel that we shall note, is that the man receives his sight as the result of hearing.

Let’s look at this gospel in 6 stages.

Stage I–Perception of the Problem–the text says, As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples, and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man sat by the roadside begging.

Bartimaeus has many troubles, he is blind, and he is poor. But although he is physically blind, he is not spiritually blind. For he knows he has troubles, he knows he is blind. And to know our troubles, to be in touch with our neediness, is an important spiritual insight that many lack.

It is possible for some to feel self-satisfied and to be unaware of how blind, pitiable, poor and naked they really are before God (cf Rev 3:17). Indeed, so poor and so needy that we depend on God for every beat of our heart. But some who are spiritually blind, lose this insight in becoming proud. They fail to ask for help from the Lord,  they fail to ask for grace. Jesus once said to the Pharisees Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but since you claim you can see, your guilt remains.” (John 9:41)  In other words, physical blindness is not their problem, spiritual blindness is. And because they think themselves righteous on their own power, they do not need God nor do they truly seek him. Only humility and a true “vision” and experience of one’s poverty can help us to call out as we should.

But our blind man knows that he is blind and so he calls for help. As we shall see, however, his cries for help need some direction, a need to be properly specified and directed.

So we begin by simply noting this man is blind, but still, he has spiritual insight.

Do we have this? Do we really understand how blind we are? We struggle to see God, we struggle to see and understand ourselves, we struggle to see others with compassion and understanding. Indeed, God is more present to us than anything in this world. Yet, we see all the things of this world, and still struggle to see God. Neither do we see our own dignity, or the dignity and the gift of others,  yes, even the dignity of our enemies. We do not see or understand how things work together, and we struggle to see and find meaning in the events of our day. We are also blind to our sin, and we seldom understand what harm our sin actually does.

Yes, we have a great deal of blindness, we do struggle to see. But perhaps our worst blindness is it we do not even consider how blind we are. But too easily, like the Pharisees we go on thinking that we know a few things, and that therefore we know many things.

Consider the humility of the blind man, who knows he is blind who knows he needs help, and grace, and mercy. It is a humility that opens the door. Stage one in our journey must be the perception of the problem.

Stage II–the Proclamation that is Prescribed. – The text says  On being told it was Jesus of Nazareth who was passing by, he began to cry out and say “Jesus son of David have pity on me.”

Note the subtle but important transition here. Up until this point he was calling upon anyone, who happened to pass by, for help. But no mere passerby, nor anyone in this world, can ultimately help him with his real problem.

It is the same with us. Though we may turn to science, or medicine, philosophy, economics or politics, none of these can really help us. At best they can specify what is wrong, give us temporary medicines, passing comforts, etc. But all their solutions will be rooted in this world, which is passing away.

True vision can only be granted by the Lord, who opens for us a vision of glory, and who alone can draw safely to that place where joys will never end and visions never cease.

The blind man is told of the presence of Jesus. And hearing this, he directs his cry away from any mere passerby to the Lord who alone can heal him: Jesus, son of David, have pity on me! The world, and passersby can get him money, perhaps a meal, but only Jesus can give him meaning, the true vision that he really needs to see.

And do not miss this point that’s seeing comes paradoxically through hearing. For faith comes by hearing, and hearing from the word of God (cf Rom 10:17). It is a truth that faith is about hearing, not seeing. For most frequently, we doubt what we see. Even if our eyes see marvels, we think, “They have a way of doing that.” No, the eye is never satisfied with seeing (cf Eccl. 1:8). Faith comes by hearing, and faith is obedience to what is heard. We walk by faith, by an inner seeing, not by physical sight.

Thus, it is by hearing that the blind man will come to see Jesus who can help them to see. He hears from others that Jesus is passing by, and he takes up the proclamation that is prescribed, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me!”

Stage III–the Perseverance that Produces–the text says, And they rebuked him, telling him to be silent. Yet he kept calling all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “call him.” So they called the blind man saying to him, “Take courage; get up. Jesus is calling you.”

Is it true fact, that those of us who seek to put our trust in the Lord, and call on him, will often experience rebuke, hostility, and ridicule from the world. Note that the blind man ignores all of this. And so should we. He has heard the Name above all names, who alone in heaven and earth can save, and he calls upon him.

Yes, Jesus does delay, he does not answer him right away. But the blind man persevered, calling out all the more, and eventually, Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

Why does God delay? This is a very deep mystery, but it is clear that one of the effects of his delay would seem to be to test our faith and strengthen it. In the end, it is not an incantation that saves us, but faith. Simply shouting, “In the name of Jesus!” Is not enough. The Name of Jesus is not some incantation like, “Open sesame.” Rather, it is an announcement of faith, and faith is more than words. Ultimately, it is not words alone that save us, but the faith that must underlie those words, “Jesus! Save me”

Stage IV–the Priority that is Presented–the text says, He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.

Do not miss this important detail. His cloak was probably the most valuable thing he owned. In that climate, a very arid climate, it gets cool in the evening after sunset. The temperature drops rapidly. So critical was the cloak, that Scripture forbade the taking of a cloak as collateral for a loan:  If a man is poor, do not go to sleep with his pledge in your possession. Return his cloak to him by sunset so that he may sleep in it. (Deut 24:12-13)

But note, this man cast aside his cloak, and leaving it behind, he went to Jesus. Thus, he leaves behind perhaps the most valuable and necessary thing for his survival in this world. To miss a meal, might be inconvenient but it would not kill him. But to sleep one night, a cold night, without his cloak might well end his life through hypothermia. But leaving everything, he runs to the Lord.

What of us? What are we willing to leave behind to find Christ? An old gospel song says, I’d rather have Jesus than silver and gold. Another old hymn says, There’s nothing between my soul in the Savior. Is there? Are you willing to leave it behind?? Are you and I free enough to do so?

Stage V–The Permission that is Procured–the text says, Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, Master, I want to see!”

Why does Jesus asked this question? Can he not see what a blind man needs? Perhaps.

But honestly, healing takes courage. The fact is, in life, most seek mere relief. True healing takes courage because it brings change, and new demands. If the blind man is healed, it would no longer be acceptable that he should sit and beg. Having been healed, more will be expected of him. His life will be irrevocably changed.

Yes, to be healed requires courage. Many of us wonder, of the Lord’s delay in answering our prayers. Perhaps a question from last week’s gospel is applicable as we cry to the Lord: Do you have any idea what you are asking?” Often we do not.

Truth be told, most of us want relief more than healing. There is a big difference. The Lord is in the healing business, but most of us just want relief. Do not miss what the Lord says here. In effect, he says to the blind man, and to us, “Are you really sure you want healing?” The Lord respects us, and our freedom. He wants our consent before he goes to work. And often, though many of us think we want healing, we don’t really know what we are asking.

The Lord waits, until a request makes real sense. He knows that most of us are not always ready for what he really offers. He asks, and when our yes becomes definitive, he goes to work.

Stage VI – The Path that is Pursued–the text says, Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the way.

As we have already seen, true healing brings forth radical change. And now man who sat by the road begging, sees, but is also up and walking about. And what is he doing? He is  following Jesus. For faith has saved him, and faith not only gives sight, but summons us to obedience, an obedience that has us walk in the path of the Lord.

You see, (pardon the pun), faith is more than an offer of relief. True faith instills real change. A change in direction, a change in the way we walk.

And thus this gospel speaks to us of a man who was blind. And paradoxically he received his faith by hearing. For he heard of Jesus and called on him. Yes, his sight came from his hearing. And faith grants to vision by hearing. True vision, is to see Christ, and having seen him by hearing, to follow after him.

I have it on the best authority that as he followed Jesus up the road, he sang this song:

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Of Crosses and Crowns: A Meditation on the Gospel for the 29th Sunday of the Year

In today’s gospel, the Lord Jesus speaks of crosses and crowns. The apostles have only crowns in mind, but the Lord Jesus knows the price of that crown. And thus, he must teach them, and us, that crowns, namely the things that we value most, come only through the cross.

It may help to remember the context of this gospel. Jesus is making his final journey to Jerusalem. He is on his way to the Cross, and has announced this Cross already, on two occasions, to his disciples. But all through this final journey, they prove unwilling, and or incapable of grasping what he is trying to teach them.

Today’s gospel is a perfect illustration of a common biblical theme known as the inept response. What this refers to is the common pattern in the gospels wherein Jesus will give a profound and important teaching, and within a matter of verses, or even just a few words, the apostles demonstrate that they have absolutely no understanding of what he just told them.

Today’s gospel illustrates the inept response. You may recall that on the previous two Sundays, the Lord gave two critically important teachings. Two weeks ago he stood a young child in their midst and spoke of the child as being truly great. He also warned that we must be able to receive the kingdom of God like a little child. Last week, he warned of the pernicious effects of wealth, how hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.

And yet, as this gospel opens, on very heels of those teachings, James and John, and later all the apostles, wish honors upon themselves. They want seats at the head of the table, high offices in the Kingdom, which they still conceive of, in very worldly terms. Nevermind, that Jesus has taught them that the place of honor is not at the head of the table, or even at the foot of the table. The place of honor is for those who wait on tables.

And thus we see here the “inept response.” The apostles, and us, we just don’t get it. No matter how clear Jesus is, no matter how often he repeats himself, we just don’t get it.

Let’s look at this gospel in 3 specific stages.

I. Misplaced Priorities–the Gospel opens with James and John approaching the Lord with an inept question, even a demand. “Grant that in your glory, we may sit, one that you right, and the other at your left.”

As we have already seen, this is a misplaced priority. Their understanding of the places of honor is worldly. Further, they want to move right to the head of the table. They want the Lord merely to grant them this honor. Even in a worldly way of thinking,  places of leadership, places a high honor, must usually be earned. Some are born into royalty, but most of the rest of us attain to leadership and honors only after years of effort. Thus, even from a worldly point of view, James and John are being utterly bold, and exhibit little understanding that prior to honors comes labor, comes the earning of it. Their priorities are misplaced. They want to crown but without the cross.

II. Major Price–the Lord Jesus, replies to them, “You do not know what you are asking! Can you drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”

Was Jesus astonished, was he amused, or was he sad? It is not easy to say. But the bottom line is clear, they had absolutely no idea what they were asking. And neither do we. So often we want blessings, we want honors, we want seats in the high places. But we give little thought to the crosses that are necessary both to get there, and to stay there.

Those who finally do attain to leadership, often know what cross it is. It can be lonely, there are many pressures, often there are many long hours, and the heavy weight of a sense of responsibility. True leadership has its perks, but it is hard, and most leaders know also the consistent sting of criticism and isolation.

There is an old joke among bishops, to the effect that “When a man becomes a bishop, two things are certain. He will never again have a bad meal. And he will never again hear the truth.” Leaders in many other walks of life know something very similar.

And thus the Lord Jesus wonders if James and John have any idea what they are really talking about, what they are really asking for. His question is also poignant, for he has been trying to teach them of the kind of passion, the pain, the crucifixion that awaits him, and which he must endure before he, even the Lord of glory, must endure before entering into his glory. No, not only do they not know what they are asking, they just don’t get it.

And this must make the Lord very sad. Sometimes we underestimate the kind of suffering the Lord endured long before the garden of Gethsemane that fateful night, as the sufferings of his passion began in earnest. To one degree or another, prior to that evening, the Lord endured a kind of death by a thousand cuts: enemies trying to trap him, crowds wanting medical miracles but no true healing, strident and judgmental Pharisees, and other religious leaders, ridicule, and disciples who walked away from him as he talked on the Eucharist. And even the Twelve  to whom he looked for friendship, seemed completely disconnected from what he is trying to teach them. He also knew that one would betray him, another deny him, and all but one, would abandon him, and never make it to the foot of the cross. Oh the grief that they gave the Lord.

And Oh the grief that we continue to offer up, how we continue to offend his external glory and be difficult cases for the Lord. How easy it is for us to be hardheaded, stubborn, to have a neck of iron and a forehead  of brass! No, it is hard to scorn the apostles, for we do the very same things

To them and to us the Lord can only remind us of the major price, the true cost. No cross, no crown! Ultimately, Heaven costs everything, for we must leave all this world behind to attain to heaven. The Easter Sunday of glory, whether in this world or in the world to come, is accessed only by a journey through Good Friday.

It is a major price,  but it is a price that James and John seem dismissive of. They simply state, categorically, that they are able to drink the cup the Lord drinks, and to be baptized into his death. But again, they have no idea what they’re talking about. Neither do most of us.

III. Medicinal Prescription–the other apostles join in the confusion, and the inept response by becoming indignant that James and John tried to get special dibs on the seats of honor. Their indignity simply shows that they share in the inept response and they have no idea of anything the Lord is talking about.

Thus the Lord tries to bring the big picture of the cross, more down to earth. He tries to make it plain. He says that the greatest in the kingdom is the servant of all, indeed, the slave of all. Is this plain enough? It is not those who sit at the head of the table, even those who sit at the foot of the table, nor any place at the table. The greatest are those who wait on the table, who serve.

Do they get it? Probably not. Neither do we. It takes most of us a lifetime before we finally get it through our thick skulls, that the point in life is not to have the corner office with a view. We have everything upside down, and exactly backwards. We are not rich in what matters to God. We think of bank accounts, addresses, the square footage of homes, salaries and titles, not things of service.

It may take our death beds before we finally realize that the greatest people in our lives are those with the ministry of care, those who feed us, perhaps change our bandages, and give us basic care.

We like these apostles can be so foolish. At the end of the day, and at our final judgment, God will not care about the square footage of our house, our titles and honors. What will capture his notice is when we served, when we gave a cup of cold water, or food for the hungry. When we instruct the ignorant, prayed for the dying and cared for the needs of the poor. He will look for the calluses and the wounds of our service, of our proclamation of his kingdom. And he will tell us that what we did for the least we did for him

Don’t miss the point of this gospel. Life is not what we usually think. There is no crown without the cross. Honors in the kingdom, crowns and the kingdom, are reserved for those who serve, who take up the cross of washing the feet of others, of going to the lowest places.

In today’s gospel, the Lord speaks of crosses and crowns, and in that very order. We will not gain, we cannot gain, any crown in his kingdom without being baptized into his death, into his cross, into the humble servitude of dying for others in loving service.