29th Sunday OT
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
OLR, NOLA
I've
been amazed these last few months at how directly the Sunday Mass
readings have addressed the on-going crisis in the Church. It seems
that every Sunday we are being given the Word of God as a way of
seeing into the diseases that afflict the Body of Christ. Though this
is surprising, it really shouldn't be. Scripture is the faithful
record of how God's people have struggled through the most basic
problems that all of us confront daily. Life, death, illness,
accident, natural disaster, loss of faith, betrayal, commitment, war,
marriage, children, poverty and riches. Three-thousand years ago or
just yesterday, men, women, and children are fundamentally the same.
We want to live, thrive, love, and see our families and friends do
the same. Our sins haven't changed much either. How we choose against
God's will and our own redeemed human nature isn't all that
different. That some seek rank and power through corruption and
deceit is not new. That others abuse their power and wealth for
personal gain isn't new. That a few in the Church live day-to-day to
corrupt, undermine, and eventually destroy the Body of Christ isn't
new. What is new – what is always new – is the Good News of the
Father's mercy to sinners – the reality of forgiveness through the
repentance of sin.
More
times than I can count I've been asked how ordinary Catholics can
hang on to their faith while the Church implodes around them. The
author of Hebrews gives us an answer: hold
fast to your profession of faith b/c you have a great high priest who
has passed through the heavens.
In other words, because Christ Jesus now sits at the right hand of
the Father, having risen from the grave and ascended to heaven, grip
and hold tight to your trust in the Father's promises. No doubt this
is an act of courage! It might even be seen as an act of foolishness.
But if it is foolishness to believe firmly in all that the Father has
promised, then count me among the fools. Christ Jesus has entered the
heavenly temple and there he intercedes for us with the Father. So,
with confidence, we can approach the throne of grace and receive His
mercy to help us endure the temptation to despair. Nothing done here
on Earth can shake Christ's love for us. If we are to follow him, our
love must be unshakable, unbroken, and always freely given in service
to those who need Christ's love.
The
Sons of Zebedee, James and John, show us how NOT to seek to serve the
Lord. They ask Jesus for a favored place in the Kingdom. They want
recognition. They want power and influence. Wealth and rank.
Believing Christ's kingdom to be a worldly kingdom, a kingdom of
property, money, slaves, and armies, the Sons of Zebedee see their
relationship with the Lord as a golden opportunity to cash in.
Despite everything the Lord has said up to this point, despite his
persistent teaching about having a faith like a little child, despite
his encounter with the rich young man, these two still think that
Christ has come to establish a political kingdom in Israel. Jesus
sets them straight, again:
“. . .whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.” We
don't know how James and John reacted to this teaching. Did they take
it seriously? Did they wink at Jesus and says, “Sure, Jesus, sure.
We hear you.” If they didn't believe his words, maybe they believed
his actions. He goes willingly to the cross and dies for their sins.
That's what it means to be a slave of all – to die a slave's death
so that others might live.
How
do we do that in our current mess? For the sake of your souls, I urge
you to turn your anger, disappointment, despair, and disgust toward
holy service. The Devil wants you to dwell on the sins of cardinals,
bishops, priests, and deacons. He wants you to fill yourself with
righteousness indignation. And then, he wants you to stew in those
passions until you are ready to say “Enough!” and walk away from
the faith forever. What he doesn't want you to do is to turn your
legitimate anger and disgust toward repairing the Church. He doesn't
want you looking for ways in your parish to empower your prayer life.
He doesn't want you going out of your way to offer others the love of
Christ they need. And the absolute last thing the Devil wants is for
us to spend some time alone with God looking carefully at our own sin
and coming to repentance and forgiveness. With our faith firmly in
hand, gripped tightly and holding on, we can be absolutely confident
that this crisis has a resolution: repent
and believe the Gospel! Only
then can we as members of the Body of Christ begin to love as we
ought and bring about the justice so many need.
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