5th Sunday of Easter
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
OLR, NOLA
“Do
not let your hearts be troubled. . .” Easy for him to say, right?
He's not suffering through a deadly pandemic. International economic
collapse. Political unrest. And the dissolution of western
civilization. How can our hearts NOT be troubled? At 7.00 this
morning, the JHU COVID-19 tracker reports over 4 million cases of
viral infection worldwide. 1.3 million of those in the U.S. The U.S.
unemployment rate is higher than it was during the Great Depression.
We are seeing spikes in suicide, domestic abuse, alcohol and drug
abuse, and psychological trauma caused by isolation and loneliness.
Churches have been closed since mid-March and our political culture
is poisoned with fear, ignorance, and power-grabbing politicians. If
your heart isn't troubled. . .I have to wonder if you're paying
attention! Nonetheless, Jesus commands, “Do not let your hearts be
troubled.” How, Lord? “You have faith in God; have faith also in
me.” When Christ gives us a command, he also gives us the gifts we
need to obey. We are never left on our own to flounder and fail. If
he says our hearts should be at peace, then we have what we need to
make them so.
As
has been the case for the last 2,000 years, as followers of Christ,
we find ourselves straddling two worlds – this world and all its
problems AND the world where we truly belong, the Kingdom of God. And
as has been the case for the last 2,000 years, as followers of
Christ, we are charged with living in this world while never
submitting to it. Never allowing ourselves to be assimilated into the
powers and principalities that deny the kingship of Christ. We are
charged with living in this world as signs of contradiction, as
sacraments of the Father's mercy – visible, tangible, working
priests and prophets for His kingdom. When we become “too much with
the world,” we take on the priorities and principles of the world.
We begin to act and think and speak like those who are ruled by the
world. We cease to smell like the flock, and we start to stink like
the herd. And our hearts become troubled. We lose who we are in
Christ and struggle to see the gifts he has freely given us. With
these gifts we can be at peace. Despite the troubles of the world, we
can choose to be at peace. Jesus says, “Do not let
your hearts be troubled.” Do allow
your hearts to be troubled. Do not choose
to be anxious, worried, upset. Instead, choose to trust in God.
Choose to trust in me.
What
does this mean? Say, we choose to trust in God and his Christ. Does
the corona virus magically disappear? Do we move back into a booming
economy? Are all the psychological problems, drug and alcohol abuse,
domestic abuse, and political unrest magically resolved? No. Will my
mortgage and credit cards be paid off for me? No. Will I be given
free medical insurance? No. Then what's the point of trusting in God
and His Christ? First, it's what you vowed to do at your baptism.
It's what you've been saying you do every time you come to Mass.
Every time you say, “Amen.” Second, trust is a loving
relationship between persons; it's not an incantation that produces
guaranteed results. Much less an incantation that guarantees the
results we want. Third, trusting God – having faith – means
keeping our eyes firmly glued to our final end, our ultimate goal –
eternal life with the Father. Nothing this world can throw us can
force our eyes to shift. We can choose to look elsewhere. But we
cannot be forced to look elsewhere. And lastly, there is no other
viable option for eternal life. Jesus says, “I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
So,
do not let your hearts be troubled. Troubled hearts do not bear
witness. Troubled hearts do not love as they ought. They do not
forgive as they ought. Troubled hearts do not work in charity for
others, or lay claim to their eternal inheritance. Nor do they
produce the good fruits of teaching and preaching the Good News.
Troubled hearts belong to the world b/c the world needs troubled
hearts to maintain control and power. Troubled hearts seek out false
security and safety and believe empty promises of a world perfected
by policies and procedures. The heart at peace in Christ doesn't fear
disease or disability or death b/c such a heart knows that Christ is
always there, always present and in control – come
what may. The heart
at peace in Christ is calmly settled into the kingdom of the Father
and rests confidently in the knowledge that all this too shall pass
and be made right in His time. Yes, there is suffering behind us,
with us, and ahead of us. But the peaceful Christian heart knows how
to suffer well; how to suffer with a divine purpose – for
the salvation of others.
So, while you suffer, “let yourselves be built into a spiritual
house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices.” And
believe in the work Christ is doing through you.
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