Alright, I got some news for you. It’s difficult news, but I’m sure you can take it! Here it is: your condition is grave, so is mine. We’ve got some serious stuff wrong with us! You might say we’ve got a few issues!
Yes, I’ve got your spiritual “medical chart” and mine open too, and I’m looking at the test results and the numbers don’t look good. We’ve tested positive for a number of things:
It says we tend toward being dishonest, egotistical, undisciplined, weak, immature, arrogant, self-centered, pompous, insincere, unchaste, grasping, judgmental, inpatient, and shallow.
It looks like we’ve tested positive for being inconsistent, unfaithful, immoral, ungrateful, disobedient, selfish, lukewarm, slothful, unloving, uncommitted, and just plain sinful.
Further tests indicate the presence of fear, indifference, contempt, impurity, hatred, laziness, cowardice, and anger.
Likewise, poor test results indicate the presence of greed, jealousy, revenge fullness, disobedience, hardheartedness, pride, envy, stinginess, selfishness, pettiness, spite, self-indulgence, lust, careless neglect, and prejudice.
Our “spiritual” medical history indicates that we have sinned against justice, modesty, purity, and the truth. We have committed sins against the human person, the children and the young, innocent and the trusting, the frail and elderly, the unborn in infants, weak and powerless, immigrants and strangers, and those who are disadvantaged.
A set of further test results indicates the absence of important key indicators, for we have failed to give witness to Christ, we have failed to join our will to God or give good example to others. We have failed to seek God above all things, to act justly you show mercy, and to repent of our sins. We’ve failed to obey the commandments and curb our earthly desires. We have failed to lead a holy life and to speak the truth. We have failed to pray for others and assist those in need; neither have we consoled the grieving.
Well, you can see that we’re kind of in bad shape. And though you might say that I’m exaggerating, yet I suspect, if you’re honest, that you have committed many of these sins if not most of them.
Without a lot of grace and mercy, we are in very bad shape! Indeed, I will say more simply that we are doomed!
But here’s the good news: the doctor is in! Jesus! Likewise, the doctor has a cure:
Daily Prayer
Daily reading of scripture
Holy Communion EVERY Sunday
Frequent Confession, at least 4 times a year, more if mortal sin is a problem!
Frequent doses of the Catechism, the lives of the saints and devotions such as the rosary, and novenas.
Good company
And custody of the eyes and ears.
Yes, we need help; we’ve got some stuff going on that will kill us eternally. But Jesus has a hospital: the Church, and Medicine: the Sacraments. Likewise there is spiritual “medical” advice available, the Word of God, sermons, the teachings of the Church and the presence of encouraging doctors and nurses such as the priests, religious, and fellow Catholics.
Whether you and like to admit it or not we need regular check-ups and serious medicine. And Jesus is guiding his Church to give skillful advice and distribute powerful medicine.
Do you think of the sacraments as medicine? Many simply think of them as rituals. But the truth is they are powerful medicine. I’m a witness. After more than twenty-five years of seeing the doctor, Jesus, and letting him minister to me through Sacraments, the Word, and his Church, a wonderful change has come over me. I’m not what I want to be but I’m not what I used to be.
We got it bad and that ain’t good. But the doctor is in and you know you need him! Reach out for him, what ever your struggles. He’s waiting to minister to you especially in the liturgy and the sacraments. You can’t do it alone. Join us every Sunday at the “holy hospital”, the Church. The Doctor is in!
Here’s a little video humor I put together indicating that sometimes Jesus the Doctor gives a diagnosis that may surprise us. For it is often the case that we say everyone else has a problem, but in fact, the problem is inside us, and so is the solution. Please pardon my video, I have a face for radio.
More often than not, the average Catholic thinks of the Commandments and the Christian moral life, as well as the spiritual life as a task, or list of tasks they must accomplish out of their own flesh power, or else they will face some negative consequence. Hence the moral life is seen by many as a drudgery and is carried out with little enthusiasm. Hence many will hear that they must be less angry, more generous, less vengeful, more chaste etc., and they think rules, and rules though necessary are uninspiring.
Few see the moral life as a magnificent vision of transformation in Christ and a portrait of a soul set on fire with love. More see the moral and spiritual life as a painful prescription more than a delightful description of what happens to the human person when Jesus Christ begins to live his life in them. Most see the most life as something thy must achieve rather than receive.
Of course “achievement” is neither grace, nor the gospel. And if salvation, transformation and perfection can be achieved, then who needs Christ?
Therefore, we must come to see the moral vision of the New Testament, with all its lofty and seemingly impossible demands as a description of what God will do for us, rather than a prescription of what we must do by our unaided flesh.
Consider the first and greatest commandment that we should Love God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength (Deut 6:5). Frankly most people, (in their flesh), have a hard time loving God. They find prayer tedious, and are lukewarm at best in their affection for God. Mass, Scripture, prayer and so forth seem boring endeavors to them and, though they find time for everything else, God often gets no time, or, at best, the leftovers of the day.
On hearing that they should love God, some will attempt to rouse themselves to “do better.” But the results are usually pretty discouraging, since they are usually attempts made out of the flesh which is inimical to God (cf Rom 8:7).
How then shall we get there? How does the human person attain to the normal Christian life which is to have a tender and intense love for God?
Consider the following passage from one of the lesser known Eastern Fathers of the Church:
Anyone who loves God in the depths of his heart has already been loved by God. In fact, the measure of a man’s love for God depends upon how deeply aware he is of God’s love for him. When this awareness is keen it makes whoever possesses it long to be enlightened by the divine light, and this longing is so intense that it seems to penetrate his very bones. He loses all consciousness of himself and is entirely transformed by the love of God.
Such a man lives in this life and at the same time does not live in it, for although he still inhabits his body, he is constantly leaving it in spirit because of the love that draws him toward God. Once the love of God has released him from self-love, the flame of divine love never ceases to burn in his heart and he remains united to God by an irresistible longing.
From the treatise On Spiritual Perfection by St. Diadochus of Photice, bishop
(Cap. 12. 13. 14: PG 65, 1171-1172)
What St. Diadochus is describing here is the normal Christian life. Here the word “normal” is not used in the numerary sense that “most people attain this,” but in the sense of “what is to be expected.” How could it be that if Jesus Christ is living his life in us we would have anything less than a tender and longing love for God?
And note how Diadochus says this love begins in our experience of God’s love for us. Experience here means more than intellectual assent to the statement that “God loves me.” Rather, experience means just that, experience, to actually know, in a first hand way, and to witness the power and tenderness of God’s love for me. As it finally begins to dawn on us that the Son of God died for us, our hearts are steeped in God’s love. Yes, it finally begins to dawn on us that the Father’s providential love for us is unlimited and magnificent. Being filled with that love we now gain a joy, an affection, a serenity and an tender love of growing intensity for God.
More and more we delight to think of him, speak with him and simply sit quietly in contemplative union with God. And thus we journey, by stages to the normal Christian life, which is to have a deep affection and tender love and abiding desire for God.
Go to the Cross of Christ and ask this gift. Ask for the desire for this gift, if you don’t even have that. But ask, seek, knock. Our love for God is not, and cannot be our work. It is God’s work in us. And all He needs to get started is your “yes.” The door to your heart must be opened from the inside. Let God enter, and let him go to work filling you with his love.
There are very few certainties in this world about anything. But one thing is for sure: The Church will prevail, the Church will be here to infallibly lead us to the end of days.
“How arrogant!” you might say. And yet, say it I did! Why? Not because of any human guarantee, but based rather on the firm promise of Jesus himself.
The place is Ceasarea Phillipi, and Jesus is speaking to Simon Peter who had just confessed him to be the Christ and the Son of the Living God. Now Jesus speaks and says, You are Peter (Rock), and upon this rock I will build my church,and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Matt 16:18) The Church will surely be hated, attacked and persecuted, but Hell will never prevail, never defeat the Church Jesus founded.
No Human Power – Now I want to emphasize that this power of the Church to endure to the end is no human power. It is not based on brilliant or perfect human leaders. It is based solely on Jesus’ promise. So it is not arrogant to make this claim, it is simply Biblical and a matter of faith in Jesus.
This prevailing power of the Church can be understood in a couple of ways.
First it means that the Church will be here to the end. Count on it since Jesus promised it. This is what is meant by the “indefectibility” of Church.
Second, this promise means that the Church cannot mislead us or teach falsely in a matter of faith and morals. Herein lies the infallibility of the Church. Of this the Catechism teaches:
In order to preserve the Church in the purity of the faith handed on by the Apostles, Christ who is the Truth, willed to confer on her a share in his own infallibility…The mission of the Magisterium is linked to the definitive nature of the covenant established by God with his people in Christ. It is this Magisterium’s task to preserve God’s people from deviations and defections and to guarantee them the objective possibility of professing the true faith without error. Thus, the pastoral duty of the Magisterium is aimed at seeing to it that the People of God abides in the truth that liberates. To fulfill this service, Christ endowed the Church’s shepherds with the charism of infallibility in matters of faith and morals. The exercise of this charism takes several forms: “The Roman Pontiff, head of the college of bishops, enjoys this infallibility in virtue of his office, when, as supreme pastor and teacher of all the faithful – who confirms his brethren in the faith he proclaims by a definitive act a doctrine pertaining to faith or morals. The infallibility promised to the Church is also present in the body of bishops when, together with Peter’s successor, they exercise the supreme Magisterium, above all in an Ecumenical Council. (Catechism of the Catholic Church 889-891)
Therefore note that the teaching is not simplistically applied. There are rather specific conditions set forth for the invocation of infallibility. But the bottom line is that when the Church formally teaches on matters of faith and morals (as described above), the promise of Christ and the guidance of the Holy Spirit save us from doubt and error.
Now some object to claim. But reason with me for a minute. Jesus promised that the gates of Hell could not prevail against the Church. But if the Church could formally teach error about faith and morals, if the Church could mislead people about what was necessary for their eternal salvation, then it would be a fact that the gates of Hell HAD prevailed. But since Jesus promised it could never happen, then, by God’s grace, the Church is protected from formally teaching falsely on matters of faith and morals.
Do you trust Jesus and believe his word? Then the Church is unsinkable and infallible regarding faith and morals.
Here is a video that humorously depicts the indefectibility of the Church. Though sabotaged by this world, cast down, stoned, struck and hit by this world from all sides, though the world unleash all its power against us, the Church remains ever the same, and to every blow replies, “Still I rise!” Death is detained by the “Spirit.”
Also here is the written text. However, I do not read my homilies, so this is not a verbatim of what I preached yesterday. (Thanks to Sr. Bernadette for Photo)
WHAT – Life is Sacred.
To say that something is sacred is to say that it belongs especially to God; to say that it’s God’s property. It means to say, “Be careful, this belongs to God.”
Well I want you to know that You belong to God, that you are sacred, that your life is sacred. And we are here today to say that all human life is sacred. Turn to somebody and say, “I’m somebody!” I’m a holy, holy, child of the King, thank God I’ve been redeemed!” Yes, your life is sacred, you belong to God. And so does every human person around you. You, and everyone you see here are a work of God, you are his, you are the fruit of His love.
Scripture says, Before I ever formed you in the womb I knew you (Jer 1:4).
Now we say that life begins at conception. And medically we are right. But there is also a great mystery about your life that some how it stretches back, long before you were created. BEFORE I formed you in the womb, says the Lord, I knew all about you. I thought about you and already loved you. And I set into motion everything that would be necessary to create you. I didn’t just get your parents to meet, I got your grandparents, and your great Grandparents, and your great, great, great, great grandparents to meet all in the right combination on both sides of your family, and I had you in mind the whole time!
Again, Scripture says. “I have loved you with an everlasting love, says the Lord; Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness. (Jer 31:3).
Yes, God has always loved you, from all eternity he has know you and loved you. That’s true of everyone here, and everywhere, and every child in every womb in this whole world.
And of the children in the womb, and all of us who have been in our mother’s womb Scripture says,
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. Your eyes saw my unformed body.
And every one of my days were written in your book before one of them ever came to be. (Psalm 139:13-16)
SO WHAT – Do you see? God knows us and loves before we are made. And he knows every thing we will ever do. And then out of love and as a direct decision of his very own he creates us and personally knits us together in our mother’s womb. Human life is sacred. It is holy. We are God’s.
There is no one here who is a surprise to God. No one who is an accident. And there is no child in any mother’s womb anywhere in this world right now, who is a surprise, an accident or an inconvenience to God. Every human person is loved by God, willed by God and desired by God. (Someone say, “I belong to God…I am God’s work).
And no one can claim the right to destroy human life in the womb, to snatch the knitting from God’s hand and say, this is a mistake, this is inconvenient, this shall not be! Abortion doesn’t just say no to life, it says no to God.
NOW WHAT?
There’s a line from an Old African American spiritual that says, “Some go to Church for to sing and shout. But before six months they’s all turned out” . In other words, I’m glad you’re here today, and I’m glad we can celebrate that life is good and Life is sacred. Praise the Lord! But the bigger question is, what will you be doing tomorrow, and next week, and six months from now? Some go to Church for to sing and shout…Before six months they’s all turned out. Yes, that’s all it really was, a lot of singing and shouting. That was good! But now what?
Now I want to give you a few important things to do after this day is over. And I want you to remember what the Lord said in the first reading. He said simply “Choose life.” And that’s a big and fundamental decision: I am for life, I respect the dignity and sacredness of human life. But like any fundamental choice, it has to be support by many smaller and daily choices. We can’t just shout “Pro-life” we have to live it daily.
And how? Let me give you a few things to think about: Chastity, Charity, Courage, Constancy
CHASTITY – Did you know that 85% of abortions of performed on unmarried women? Now think about that. That means that the primary cause of abortion is being unchaste. The bible is very clear that we are not to have sexual relations before, or outside of marriage.
Now one of the first ways you can work to prevent abortion is to be chaste and to encourage your friends to do the same! To be chaste means that you are going to wait until you are married to have sex. To be chaste means that you will dress modestly, act modestly, and prudently avoid situations that might cause you temptation. It means you are going to encourage your friends to do the same. Some may laugh at you. Others call you names. But a lot of them will respect you for it and know deep down inside that you are right. So keep at it. Chastity isn’t easy and there are a lot of temptations and pressures put on you in this world. But stay chaste and call on your friends to do the same.
Remember 85% of abortions are performed on unmarried women. Again, that means that the main cause of abortion is that men and women are being unchaste. And if we want to end abortion we have to talk a lot more about chastity and live it! If you want to say you’re pro-life you have to commit to being chaste and proclaim it loud and clear. St Paul said in the second reading today: set an example for those who believe, in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity!
CHARITY – Another statistic about abortion is that 42% of them are performed on poor women. So I hope you understand that we have to reach out to pregnant women in crisis. Some of them lack financial resources, some others fear the social consequences of being pregnant. And because they are in crisis they don’t think they have options. So we have to reach out and help women and families in this situation. And the Church does! We have crisis pregnancy centers, we have project Gabriel and project Rachael. We also have Catholic Charities to reach out to all the poor and help them. And as you get older please consider helping the Church to help women and families in crisis. Get involved. Remember almost half of abortions are related to poverty and social crisis. We can’t just say no to abortion, we have to help people say no.
COURAGE – I also want to tell you that there is a connection to the disabled. These days most most babies in the womb are monitored for birth defects and disabilities. And one of the great tragedies in our day is that, when families receive word that their baby may have Down Syndrome or other defects or disabilities almost 90% of them choose to abort that child. It’s a kind of hidden genocide.
Disabilities and the demand for “perfect” babies are a big factor in the decision to abort. So I want to ask you to pray that God will give you and all a deep love and respect for the disabled. They bring important gifts to us. My own sister was disabled and died over 20 years ago. But I want to tell you that she brought important gifts to our family and taught me lessons I will never forget. Never conclude that someone else’s life is not worth living. I takes courage to accept the disabled into our families, but they are God’s gift, and their lives are precious and sacred to God.
CONSTANCY – Finally, keep marching, keep walking keep talking! A Gallup poll said last year that we are making progress. It said that 61% of Americans now think abortion should be illegal most if not all the time. That’s up a lot from 20 years ago. Our godly struggle to win the hearts and minds of Americans is working, little by little. It’s a long an uphill journey, but we’re getting there!
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said: We must come to see that human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability. It comes through the tireless efforts and persistent work of those willing to be coworkers with God.
So remember today’s rally and march are like a mountaintop experience for us. We rejoice to declare that human life is sacred and that we exist as the result of a loving decision by God. But remember too, Some go to Church for to sing and shout, before six months they’s all turned out. So, don’t just shout today, be pro-life in your decisions tomorrow and six months from now. Chastity, Charity to the poor and those in crisis, Courage and care for the disabled, Constancy in our witness and practice.
And as we head to the promised land of an increasingly abortion free America I’m mindful of an Old Spiritual that says, Walk together children, don’t you get weary, there’s a great camp meeting in the promised land. Yes, the song goes on to say: work together children, pray together, sing together, shout together children…there’s a great camp meeting in the promised land.
There is a remarkable reading that comes up every year in the Breviary attributed to Saint Macarius, a bishop of the early Church. I marvel at its vivid and pictorial quality. And yet at the same time, I find questions that arise in my mind as to the general application of the text. For the text states, in effect, that if the soul does not have Christ living within, it falls into utter disrepair and a contemptible state.
Allow me to have Bishop Macarius speak for himself and then I would like to pose a couple questions.
When a house has no master living in it, it becomes dark, vile and contemptible, choked with filth and disgusting refuse. So too is a soul which has lost its master, who once rejoiced there with his angels. This soul is darkened with sin, its desires are degraded, and it knows nothing but shame.
Woe to the path that is not walked on, or along which the voices of men are not heard, for then it becomes the haunt of wild animals. Woe to the soul if the Lord does not walk within it to banish with his voice the spiritual beasts of sin. Woe to the house where no master dwells, to the field where no farmer works, to the pilotless ship, storm-tossed and sinking. Woe to the soul without Christ as its true pilot; drifting in the darkness, buffeted by the waves of passion, storm-tossed at the mercy of evil spirits, its end is destruction. Woe to the soul that does not have Christ to cultivate it with care to produce the good fruit of the Holy Spirit. Left to itself, it is choked with thorns and thistles; instead of fruit it produces only what is fit for burning. Woe to the soul that does not have Christ dwelling in it; deserted and foul with the filth of the passions, it becomes a haven for all the vices.
From a homily attributed to Saint Macarius, bishop
(Hom. 28: PG 34, 710-711)
Again, a remarkably vivid and creative description of the Soul without Christ.
But herein lies my question: Is this obviously the condition of all non-believers, or of those who stray from the faith? I have occasionally had an agnostic or atheist write in to insist that they are very happy and fulfilled. I have also known non-believers in my own life who were seemingly happy and did not live reprobated lives. They had married and raised children, they were not horribly lacking in natural moral virtue. Conversely I, like you have met sworn believers who were very lacking in moral virtue or kindness.
Yet to read St Macarius, it would seem that the condition of the soul without Christ is to head straight downhill into a moral morass.
I suppose my own answer to my question is that St Macarius speaks in a general sort of way and that each person’s personal journey will be affected by any number of variables and factors.
But I would like to know what you think.
At one level we ought to be careful to not simplify the lives of unbelievers. They come in many forms and degrees. I am not unsympathetic to the complaints that, at times, we Christians simply presume that all unbelievers are unhappy and must, somehow be depressed. I for my part, am also annoyed when non believers oversimplify the faith, the scriptures and we who believe.
To be clear, I do not accuse St Macarius of over-simplifying. As I have said, I think he speaks in a general sort of way and the dangers he announces are often the case.
I especially think he is right when the “person” in question is a culture or nation. We have clearly seen how our own Western culture has suffered gravely as it has “kicked God to the Curb.” It is not outlandish to describe the Western world as a house that has no master living in it….dark, vile and contemptible, choked with filth and disgusting refuse…darkened with sin, its desires are degraded, and it knows nothing but shame.. Increasingly this is our lot in the West.
But individuals are more complicated. The effects of unbelief are often more subtle in them, and even without faith it is possible to have natural virtues.
At some level this provides hope that no one is beyond remedy or reach. And while natural virtue can never be sufficient to save any soul, it can, at least open a person to God and provide fertile ground for grace, and even prevenient graces.
I’d like to get some of your thoughts on this. What are some important distinctions to make? How do you understand the words of the Bishop St. Macarius? How should we regard the state of soul of unbelievers and those who have relapsed from or renounced the faith?
Please understand, I do not ask these questions rhetorically. I ask them genuinely and do indeed seek your thoughts of St. Macarius’ vivid description and how it may or may not apply today.
If you have ever had the exciting privilege of being in Washington for the Pro-Life March you how true it is that you always leave exhausted, but more alive than you came. The Pro-life March, for a Catholic especially, is really more than just the March, it is a series of activities. In the days immediately before the March there are usually seminars and other focused gatherings around life and bio-ethical issues. Then there is the great Vigil Mass for Life, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the night before the March. The Great Upper Church of the Basilica can comfortably seat about 4,000 people. But the Vigil Mass for Life brings often 8,000 or more. People are standing in the aisles, the side chapels, in every nook and cranny. The Sanctuary around the High Altar is packed with Bishops, priests, deacons, and seminarians from all over the country. Visible in the Church are Religious men and women in consecrated life showing a magnificent display of diversity in their habits. The congregation is filled with men an women and young people of every age group, and every ethnic and racial diversity imaginable. If you want to know how catholic (universal) the Catholic Church really is, just come to the Basilica for the Vigil Mass for Life!
The bigger picture – There are some who want to describe the Church as aging and of declining numbers. Some want to describe the Church as not being able to connect with the young, or with peoples of non-European descent. Some say her clergy and religious are aging. But come to the pro-life vigil Mass and behold the youthful diversity of the Church! And even if you can’t go, watch, as the EWTN cameras pan the congregation. Most of the religious in traditional habits are young. And there are hundreds and hundreds of them! Watch as the seemingly endless procession of clergy and seminarians enter, again, by the hundreds. And there too, youthful vigor is in strong display! So many are the priests and seminarians that they overflow the sanctuary into the side chapel for the Blessed Sacrament and into the ambulatory behind and around the High Altar. Here is a Basilica, one of the ten largest churches in the world, filled to overflowing with life, joy and worship! Yes, the Church is a bride, she is not a widow! Indeed, she is the joyful mother of multitudes.
Rally Riches – And this is just the Vigil Mass. The next day, of your pro-life pilgrimage features a youth Rally at the Verizon Center. The doors open early for music and praise. 18,000, mostly young people, pack the place. Music, inspired talks, the wave and ten trillion watts of youthful energy fill the center in one of its largest functions of the year. A reverent but energetic Mass follows, celebrated by Cardinal Wuerl. One of the younger priests of the Archdiocese usually preaches an energetic and youth oriented homily. And then, after the reception of Holy Communion, concluding prayer and praise, the youthful congregation bursts forth onto the streets of Downtown Washington to head for the March line-up on the Mall.
Overflow! The number of young people vastly outsizes the capacity of the Verizon Center. Last year an alternative overflow site at the DC Armory hosted an additional 10,000 young people. There too, after prayer and praise and the celebration of the Holy Mass the young people and their adult chaperons headed for the Mall to begin the March.
And march itself is also a remarkable display in diversity. The balance is wonderfully tipped toward a youthful appearance. Here, Catholics join non-Catholics, fellow believers and even non-believers to march in six-figure numbers. The joy, the prayer, the hope and the experience of how right and just it is to support life all fill the air. It is usually cold, but the warmth within the crowd is tangible. And again, it is the youth who so often set the tone. They have zeal and zest as they lead chants and celebrate life.
The only angry people I meet at the March are usually the pro-choice counter demonstrators I speak with. There are about a dozen of them in front of the Supreme Court and I go to each one of them and individually, if I can and say, as I look into their eyes, “In your heart you know better, you know abortion is terribly wrong.” I speak as softly as I could in the outdoor environment with a lot of background noise. I am trying to go right for their conscience, which, though suppressed, is still there. For the voice of God ultimately echoes in every human person according to the Catechism (cf CCC # 1776). Deep down they DO know that abortion is wrong.
Last year, I only got about half way through the group before they surrounded me and began to engage me. Their primary accusation against me seemed to be that I was not a woman. Of this I am guilty, but suggested to them that to determine the wrongness of abortion did not require a womb but, rather, a mind and a heart, something both men and women have! 🙂 They grew angrier with me as I didn’t easily go away but continued down the line suggesting to each one that they knew, deep down, that it was wrong to abort babies. I wanted to speak this to each one personally. I wanted to try and reach their conscience. Difficult, but worth trying.
In the end they chose to serenade me! And here was the song they sang:
Hey Hey, Ho, Ho! Pro-life men have got to go!
Hey, Hey, Ho, Ho! If YOU got pregnant then you’d know!
Even here, Life! Well, I just smiled and prayed, and the ladies in the rosary group behind me redoubled their prayers and I stood there and waited for the counter-protesters to grow tired of singing. I was grateful to suffer for the sake of the Name and to be a “fool for Christ” in their eyes (1 Cor 4:10). Yes, even this was life giving for me. Dr. King had once said, “If you find a good fight, get in it!” And here I was on the front line, in the forward trench.
In the end, to stand up for life is to experience life and to experience it to the top! The March for Life shows the Church fully alive, youthful, joyful, numerous and diverse. We have discussed before on this blog with sobriety some alarming trends and numbers in the western branch of the Church. But this weekend shows once again that the Church is a bride, not a widow. That she remains alive and strong, prophetic and enthusiastic. It shows that her young are still numerous, that vocations are rebounding. It shows that zeal for the truth is still deep in a faithful remnant that is glad to be alive, glad to celebrate life, glad to be Catholic and experience that the Church is catholic (universal). To stand up for life is to experience life. Come next year to Washington.
This video shows some glimpses of the Pro-Life Youth Rally at the Verizon Center. The footage is from Catholic.tv
The readings of “Ordinary Time” (the Latin is Tempus per annum) focus a lot on the call to discipleship and the living of the Christian Faith. The readings for today’s Mass are no exception as they present us with a number of disciplines for disciples. These disciplines free us to serve Christ and his Kingdom joyfully, energetically and whole-heartedly. Broadly we can group these disciplines into three areas, such that discipleship is: Undefiant, Unfettered, and Untiring. Within these three categories are some other reflections as well. Let’s consider each area of discipline as reflected in the readings.
I. Undefiant – The first reading today covers the ministry of the reluctant prophet, Jonah. In today’s reading we get only the end of the story. But as most of us know, Jonah was not merely reluctant in accepting his mission as a prophet, he was downright defiant. Recall his story:
His Refusal – The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai, “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it…” But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. (1:1-3). Thus, Jonah defiantly runs from God, he refuses the mission.
His Running – Now, Nineveh was 550 miles east of Israel. Tarshish was 2,500 miles west of Israel. Do you get the picture? Jonah was doing some serious running. Rather than go 550 miles to do God’s will, he was ready to travel 2,500 miles out of God’s will. It’s always a longer trip when you defy God. God wants to spare us the extra mileage!
His Resistance – As Jonah runs, great storms arise at sea on his journey away from God. The storms of defiance rage but Jonah slept. And the storms affect not only him, but those who sail with him. Yes, our moral decisions DO affect others around us, despite our individualistic notion that what we do is no one else’s business. And thus for some of us, great storms can come into our lives. Has it ever occurred to you that some of the storms in our lives may be related to a decision where God said, “This way” but we defied him and said, “No, that way!” ? Maybe we need to wake up and say what does this storm mean?
His Return – Swallowed by the great fish, Jonah is brought back to the very place where he sailed away from God (Joppa). And, in effect God says, lets try this all over again. So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh, according to the LORD’s bidding. Yes, Jonah was smart this time.
So the point is that disciples (us) must learn to be undefiant. In effect, God wants to save us some mileage, and obedience to his will is always easier that disobedience.
Consider too the remarkable fact of how Undefiant the Ninevites are as they hear and heed Jonah’s message. And notice how this lack of defiance saves them from destruction and a world of hurt.
It’s always easier to follow God. I did not say it’s easy; just that it’s easier to follow God. Someone may think sin is more pleasurable and easier in the moment. And frankly it may be. But sin unleashes a world of difficulties and complications in its wake. If you do not think this is so, just buy a newspaper and consider how many of our difficulties are directly tied to our sinful attitudes and choices. Frankly, the vast majority of this world’s sufferings and difficulties are directly attributable to a rebellious sinfulness by humanity.
The first discipline of Discipleship is that we be undefiant. And by this discipline was are spared many difficulties and remain teachable and open to God’s wisdom.
II. Unfettered – To be unfettered means literally to be unchained, unshackled and free to move about. The second reading today presents a vivid and sober portrait of what be unfettered and detached looks like:
I tell you, brothers and sisters, the time is running out. From now on, let those having wives act as not having them, those weeping as not weeping, those rejoicing as not rejoicing, those buying as not owning, those using the world, as not using it fully. For the world in its present form is passing away. (1 Cor 7:29ff)
Now this text does not mean that we have to recourse to these things and people at all, but rather that we live “as” not having them. In other words, we must seek the gift to realize that nothing in this passing world remains, and nothing here, even marriage, is the sole reason for our existence, or the sole source of meaning for us. God and God alone is the source of meaning and the lasting goal of our life. All else will pass.
For most of us, detachment form this world is THE battle, the central struggle we face. On account of our attachment to this world we are strongly hindered from freely following Christ. A couple of passages come to mind.
Mk 10:22ffJesus, said [to the rich young man], “If you would be perfect, go and sell all that you have, (and you will have treasure in heaven) and then come and follow me. At that saying his countenance fell, and he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions. And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
Mat 6:24No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money… So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
But the world so easily has a thousand hooks in us, we are chained, fettered, and our freedom to follow Christ is severely compromised.
The fact is, the battle to be free and unfettered, is a process. And God can give us this freedom but it takes time and obedience from us. Little by little God breaks the shackles of this world and all its treasures come to seem as of little concern. Slowly we come to what St. Paul came to say,
But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ (Phil 3:7-8).
III. Untiring – Consider that among Jesus’ first followers were several fishermen. The text of the Gospel today says, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” As he passed by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
But we may ask, is there some meaning in the fact that fishermen were among his first and most prominent disciples? Perhaps so.
Consider that fishermen have some important qualities that are helpful for discipleship:
Patient – Fishermen often need to wait for many hours, even days for a catch. Disciples need great patience, as do evangelizers.
Professional – Fishermen need to spend time learning about the behavior of fish, learning to observe the water and navigate, leaning the right time of day and season to fish. They need to know the right bait, the proper use of the net. They need to understand the different of types and behaviors of fish, and so forth. All of these traits are good for disciples and especially for evangelization, which is job 1 for the disciple.Through growing in practical knowledge we come to know our faith and learn effective ways to be fishers of men.
Purposeful – When fishermen are out fishing, it is a focused endeavor. That’s all they do, and everything is centered on the main task. They are single minded. Disciples surely need more of this attitude. The Book of James says, The double-minded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1:8). St. Paul says, But this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Phil 3:13-14). Every disciple needs to be more single minded.
Pursuing – Note simply that they go to the fish. Too many Catholic parishes merely open the doors and hope people come to them. This is not evangelization. The key word for disciples and evangelizers is “Go.”
Partnered – Fishermen work in teams. Thus Jesus sends disciples out, two by two.
Persistent – If fishermen don’t make a catch today, they’re back out tomorrow. Disciples surely need to persist, both in their own journey and in making disciples of others.
Thus, in today’s readings are a number of disciplines of discipleship. The green vestments of Ordinary Time remind us of growth, both our own personal growth and that of the Church. Ultimately a free heart is a joyful heart and a heart that is not easily tired, because it is not divided and not serving two masters. It is a heart that ungrudgingly serves the Kingdom.
Here’s a song that speaks of the patient, purposeful, and persistent action on behalf of God’s kingdom. It is a song that can only come from heart that is undefiant, unfettered, and untiring. A heart that says, I keep so busy workin’ for the Kingdom, I ain’t got time to die!
Here’s a little commercial that requires very little decoding. A woman enters an office, and spying a very nice pen, has thoughts of petty theft. Just as she is about to depart, stolen pen in hand, a voice from above says, “Don’t! It’s a trap!” She looks up to see a co-worker swinging in a net that has swooped him up.
And so too for us, when temptation comes our way, we often hear that voice “from above” saying “Don’t It’s a trap!” But the voice we hear is not of some fellow sinner, but is that of God.
For Scripture says,
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21
And the Catechism says,
Deep within his conscience man discovers a law which he has not laid upon himself but which he must obey. Its voice, ever calling him to love and to do what is good and to avoid evil, sounds in his heart at the right moment. . . . For man has in his heart a law inscribed by God. . . . His conscience is man’s most secret core and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God whose voice echoes in his depths.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) # 1776)
Yes, there is that small, still voice of God, who in the midst of our temptations, reminds us that the sinful pleasures the world, the flesh and devil propose are ultimately traps and lies. And whatever good we may imagine in, them through vain reasoning, is ultimately a deception.
