Faithfulness
This is a time of year when we celebrate family, isn’t it? We gather as family, as much as we can; we have meals together; we call family members who are too far to get home, and we write letters or emails, with pictures or video, to those who are too far away to call. We remember those who have died, and we celebrate the new lives among us with “Baby’s First Christmas” ornaments. For many of us, if not most, Christmas is about family.
But Christmas is about more than family, right? Christmas, when you boil it down to the most important thing, isn’t about how much we spend on travel or gifts. It’s not about how many parties we attend or give. It’s not about most of the things the world holds out to us as important.
Our history as God’s people is full of examples of what’s really important about Christmas. And what’s really important…is faithfulness. The faithfulness of our forbears is the real point of Christmas. The faith that led folks to do things that were unreasonable, to do things that were impossible, is the real miracle of Christmas.
And in the story of their faithfulness, we get a lesson for our families, whether they are families of one or of dozens.
In our readings, we see the faithfulness that led to Christ coming to Earth. We see the beginning of His human family in Abram, who decided to listen to God when God promised Him descendants as numerous as the stars. Why should he have listened, Abram? He was old. So was his wife. They’d been childless all their married lives. In the view of the world, they were less than other people because they were barren. But Abram listened, and obeyed God, and God honored that obedience and that faith.
Paul explains more. Abraham went when God told him to. Abraham trusted, even though it was illogical to trust. And he had faith enough to be prepared to sacrifice his only son, because he knew he could count on the God who had done so much for him already.
Mary and Joseph carried on that faithfulness. Think about it: Mary and Joseph trusted God’s messenger, and went ahead with their marriage. They trusted God to take care of them on the trip to Bethlehem. And they were faithful to God’s law in bringing Jesus to the Temple. And in fulfilling their responsibilities as parents, Mary and Joseph raised Jesus, The Christ to manhood!
These families we read about today are the examples we’re asked to follow. We’re asked to be faithful to God’s call on our families, to be as holy as we are able to manage. And God asks a lot of us, doesn’t He?
We’re asked to trust God as our families form, to be open to life however it arrives with us. We’re asked to trust God with our children, to allow Him to guide them as they discern the path they should take in life. We’re asked to be faithful to the guidance of the Church, to do certain things and to avoid certain things, because doing so aids us in our lives of faith.
And most of all, we are asked to put God first in our lives as individuals and as families. Joseph could have been dishonored. Mary could have been stoned to death as an adulteress! Simeon and Anna could have given up on God’s promise, and just crawled off to die! But they all faced their difficulties, and were faithful!
And that’s what we’re called to do, brothers and sisters! Whatever our circumstance in life, God just asks us to be faithful. If our job is threatened, God asks us to believe He’ll help us get through! If we have a child who disappoints, God asks us to believe He’ll work on that child! If we’re faced with an illness, or an unexpected crisis in our families, God asks us to remain faithful to Him through the trial!
But, God, it’s hard to be faithful, isn’t it? So much around us calls us to not be!
Difficult marriage? It’s so easy to seek comfort outside of it! Children who are a disappointment? Well, we can just kick ’em out of the house and wash our hands of them! Unexpected pregnancy? We can just make a trip down to Memphis and “fix the problem”! Old and sick? Or young, but terminally ill and in pain? Well, we can fix that with a trip to a sympathetic doctor! Money problems? Can’t pay the bills, or losing the house? Well, maybe I can hit the number in Lotto this week, or head to Caruthersville and make it up! Or maybe the government will fix it for me!
Funny, thing, though: all of those “solutions” leave out the most important thing: God! Our problems aren’t unique, brothers and sisters. And if our forbears in faith had taken these “easy” ways out, what would we have to celebrate this Christmas? In fact, what would any of this mean, if Joseph had simply “divorced her quietly”, or if Mary had refused God’s request? Nothing!
Christmas celebrates faithfulness. The true meaning of Christmas in our lives is about the faith that led our predecessors in the faith to make the choices they made. And ultimately, Christmas is about the faithfulness of the first Christians, Mary and Joseph, and the faithfulness of their ancestors, that made it possible for Christ to enter the world as a human child, like us in all things but sin.
What a gift to God it would be if we could all be more faithful in the coming year! Does God ask us to be perfect? No! Does He expect us to never sin? No!
But He expects us to try. He expects us to cut those things out of our life that pull us away from Him. He asks us to take advantage of the sacraments He gave us, as conduits of His grace.
And He asks us to be faithful. Abraham and Sarah faithful. Paul and the other apostles faithful. Mary and Joseph faithful. And in our faithfulness, He promises to bless us and our families.
Where have we been less than obedient to God? Where can we improve our relationship with God?
God calls us to faithfulness. Are we listening?
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Gospel Reading for the Second Sunday of Advent
Homily for the Second Sunday of Advent, Cycle B
Road Construction
Have you ever watched a neighborhood go up? Not an easy project, is it? Each time our neighborhood got more houses, the builders would go in and start the work of preparing the way for all of the new construction. They would make the little pathways that were there before wider; they filled in all of the ruts and gullies, and smoothed things out, removing the rocks, tree roots, and other junk from the pathway the new residents would need to take to their houses. They “made straight the path” for those who would follow them.
And the spiritual mirrors the physical. We are called, constantly, by God to build new neighborhoods in our lives for Him to dwell, new places into which we allow the Lord to make things new for us. Advent is a call to the kind of earth moving that has to happen in our lives before the work of building the kingdom can happen. And Advent is a reminder, at the same time that the same Christ, who finally arrived in the midst of Israel over 2,000 years ago, is coming again
And the cry of “the voice in the wilderness” from today’s readings is as much a call to us as it was to Israel at the time of John the Baptist.
What was happening in Israel when Mark’s Gospel begins? Well, the Romans had been occupying Judea and Samaria for years. The people of Israel were being oppressed under a puppet king, Herod, who lived off the largesse of the Romans and the misery of the Jews. And the religious Jews had been waiting, for centuries, the arrival of the Messiah promised by the prophets, especially by Isaiah.
And then this John guy shows up, a scraggly-bearded wild man In camel hair, promising that the One they’d been waiting for was just around the corner! And what did John call them to? Repentance! Conversion! John called them to change the way their lives were going, in preparation for “the One coming after” him!
Paul makes clear what is expected of those who were waiting on the Lord to return, too. Paul talks about how the Lord, when He returns, is going to return like a thief in the night, without warning. And he states plainly what is expected of Christians while they wait: He says they ought to be “conducting themselves in holiness and devotion”. He says they ought to “be eager to be found without spot or blemish” before Christ, “at peace”.
This is how the Church received Christ back in the day; this is how they were taught to await His return.
But isn’t it amazing, the difference a couple of millennia can make? We are so busy, compared to people way back then. And we know so much more than they ever did, about everything, right? And our lives are so full. Our kids are in activities all week; we have homework out the wazoo most days. And work demands so much of our time. And what about the financial crisis? The hit we’ve taken in our 401(k)? Our mortgage interest rate?
And don’t even think about Christmas, and Christmas decorating, and Christmas shopping. Christmas parties. Christmas cards. Christmas ads. All this stuff we have to prepare for. How are we supposed to even find time to sleep or eat, let alone do anything else, with all of this “busi-ness” we’re immersed in?
It’s a funny thing, brothers and sisters, but God really does call us to something different, a different kind of preparation, during this time before Christmas. We call it Advent for a reason: an advent is an “approach” of someone or something, and we are celebrating the approach, the coming, of our Lord and Savior! And that celebration is two-fold: not only are we anticipating the celebration of His birth, but we are also looking forward with hope to His Second Coming into the world!
But…what? What are we supposed to do about something that, oh, well, sure it’s going to happen, but, well, it’s already been over 2,000 years! I mean, it isn’t like He’s coming back tomorrow, right?
Or is it?
And whether He is or not, brothers and sisters…does it really matter when exactly He’s coming back? Paul says, “the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a mighty roar and the elements will be dissolved by fire, and the earth and everything done on it will be found out.” And Paul tells us that that the Lord “he is patient with you, not wishing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” And Paul tells us that our job is simple: to conduct ourselves “in holiness and devotion,” “eager to be found without spot or blemish”.
In other words, Paul is calling us to make straight in our spiritual lives a way for the Lord to come into our lives! And all of that stuff, all of that busi-ness, all the distractions of the world’s Christmas “preparations” make up the rocks and boulders, ruts and gullies, tree roots and other junk that have to be moved aside to make the path straight for the Lord!
So.
What’s in our neighborhoods? Not the neighborhoods where our houses are, but the neighborhoods of our hearts? What kind of roads are we building? And what kind of junk is there that needs to be moved out of the way, to make the path straighter for our Lord to come in?
The world will fill our hearts with all kinds of worries and concerns , all kinds of junk that gets in the way of receiving Christ’s peace. And we can create all kinds of problems for ourselves, with all of the things we let into our lives, both the blatantly sinful, and the things that just clutter things up.
This season of Advent is a time for us to consider what is truly worthy in our lives. It’s a time when the Church points us toward the eternal realities of our lives: that Christ has died and risen, and that Christ will come again. And it’s a time when we are each asked to consider:
How’s the pathway into our hearts? How straight is the way of the Lord in our lives?
When He comes, will He be able to find the way into our neighborhood?
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I Figured it out!
If you’re a glutton for punishment, and you’d like to hear this thing delivered live, here’s the link:
Homily – Feast of the Dedication of St. John Lateran, Nov. 8, 2008
OK, a pop quiz. This is the feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran. Here’s the question:
The Basilica of St. John Lateran is: a. a really big church named after St. John Lateran; b. The main cathedral of the diocese of Rome; c. Mother cathedral of the Universal Church. By show of hands, how many say “a.”? “b.”? “c.”? Both “b.” and “c.”?
The full name of the Basilica is the Arch-basilica of the Most Holy Savior, and Saint John the Baptist and John the Evangelist at the Lateran, Ecumenical Mother Church of the Whole Inhabited World, because it is the parish church of the Pope, and because it was the first cathedral church in all of Christianity. Until the Edict of Milan in 313 AD, Christians met in secret; once Emperor Constantine ended the persecution of Christians, they began to occupy public buildings. The Basilica of St. John Lateran was first dedicated in 324 AD by Pope Sylvester I, who established it as the Cathedral of Rome.
Of course, one might be tempted to say, “Aw, that’s nice!”, and nod off. But I think it might help to consider this: What’s the significance of any church building? Why should we care about this, or any, temple?
Maybe the readings today give us some clue. In the first reading, Ezekiel describes a vision in which he sees waters flowing out of the temple “into the eastern district down upon the Arabah”. He describes how this water makes the “salt waters” fresh. He talks about how this river brings food, and life. Ezekiel describes the temple as life-giving.
In the second reading, Paul describes the Church in Corinth as “God’s building”. He describes the community as “the temple of God”, and “holy”.
Finally, in the Gospel, Jesus himself refers to the temple of His body when He says, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews thought He was talking about the actual Temple in Jerusalem which had been under construction for 46 years; the Apostles only understood this after the Resurrection.
So today’s readings tell us that the temple of God gives forth life-giving water. They tell us that we, the Church, are the Temple of God as a community, as the Body of Christ, and they tell us that this temple cannot be kept down!
But what in the world does any of that have to do with St. John Lateran?
Well, consider this. We worship in buildings; St. John Lateran ranks first among those buildings, and the feast day celebrates that ecumenical mother church’s dedication. The Church, when it started worshiping in St. John Lateran, finally moved out of the shadows and into the light of the world, to be the light of the world. All of this imagery applies directly to us.
Paul tells us that we are the Temple of God, and that the Spirit of God lives in us! So…what? Well, if we’re the Temple of God, then life-giving waters ought to flow from us, and we ought to see the effects of that flow around us! If we’re the Body of Christ, then people ought to see in us the hands and feet of Christ at work! If we, the Church, are Christ’s Body on earth, then, no matter what calamity happens to us, no matter what challenges we have to face as a parish, as Catholics in the US, or as a world-wide Church, we can keep going knowing that nothing can destroy Christ’s Temple, The Church!
But it can seem pretty dark sometimes, in our parish, and in our Church, depending on how you see things. And you may be unhappy about some aspects of our community. But what are we supposed to do with that?
Well, I’ll tell you what I think we’re supposed to do with it: We’re supposed to stand up. We’re supposed to step out. And we’re supposed to be what Christ has already told us that we are: His Body, the temple of God! We’re supposed to be the source of the solutions!
So, if something is not the way it should be in the world, we have to step out! If sin of abortion bothers us (as it should all of us), then we have to step out and be heard. If we don’t think the poor are well cared for, then we have to step out, and not wait for government or anyone else to do something about it! If we think that there is too much violence in the world, then we have to step out, and get involved in the lives of people at risk from violence in our community! If we think that unwed pregnant women should have more options than abortion, then we have to step out, and make sure that those women have the resources and the love they need to be able to give their children life instead of death.
Whatever our issues, at the end of the day, Christ calls us to stand up, and to be His presence in the world. He calls us to take our worship of him inside this building, into the world, outside this building!
So, the Feast of St. John Lateran is not just about a building. This feast day is about the Church, our Church, the Body of Christ, the Temple of God and dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. The building is special, but not just because of its bricks; the building is significant because of what flows from it: the Body of Christ, sent into the world to be Christ’s life-giving presence in that world.
Christ calls us to stand up for Him in the world. Christ sends us to be the waters flowing form His temple, bringing life, and bearing fruit in the world. He calls us to recognize that, no matter what happens in the world around us, this Body of Christ, this Temple of the Holy Spirit that is God’s Church, cannot be destroyed. St. John Lateran has been wrecked by earthquakes and burned by fires more times than one can count over the centuries; it’s still there.
And so is Christ’s Church. And our mission, our calling, is to flow, like the waters Ezekiel saw in his vision, into the desert of the culture around us to bring life. We are the Church. We are the Body of Christ. And we have to get up, get out, and be the force that brings life to the world!
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Are you scared? Seen the news lately?
These days, if you’re watching the stock market ticker, it can make you a little crazy. The Dow dropped, what was it, almost 1,600 points last week? And there’s a steady drumbeat (has been for several weeks now) about potential financial ruin facing everyone in the United States if the government fails to act, and to act quickly! Or is it that everyone is going to lose their homes? Or that everyone’s retirement savings are going to evaporate in a puff of smoke?
It’s a common theme on TV, on talk radio, in campaign ads and YouTube videos that this candidate or that one is going to “save America”, or that one is “too erratic” or “too risky”. And I have been told more times than I care to think about how this one or that one is going to “take care” of me and my family.
But there’s an underlying question we have to answer, brothers and sisters: What are we afraid of? What, exactly, is it that is keeping us awake, or occupying our minds? What is it we are trying so hard to “protect”, or to “rescue”?
And who’s really going to take care of us?
The reading from Isaiah this morning speaks in beautiful images about the banquet of the Lord, and about all the great things that will flow from the establishment of God’s kingdom. But what did Isaiah talk about just before this? Devastation. Ruin. Apocalypse. Fear! Of whom? Of what? Judah in Isaiah’s time was afraid of being conquered. The Kingdom of Israel to the north had been taken over by the Assyrians. Enemies threatened all around, and the kings of Judah were tempted again and again to make alliances with pagans, and to turn away from trust in God. Sound kind of familiar?
Jesus told a story in today’s Gospel about people who’d lost sight of what was important. He compared the kingdom of heaven to a king giving a wedding feast; he sent out invitations twice. His invitations were turned down the first time, and even after he laid the whole party out for the invitees, folks went about their own affairs. Some of them even went as far as to shut his servants up by killing them. And the king decided that was enough! He did away with the first group, and invited others to attend the feast!
But what are they talking about? Are these predictions of the end of the world? The Church would tell you, “No.”
What is it, then? It’s a description of what can happen when we turn away from God, and start to trust only in our own wisdom! Isaiah and Jesus both are talking about what happens when God’s people turn away from Him, and what awaits those who remain faithful to him!
Paul knew this. And Paul says something in the second reading that is profoundly important for us to hear in this current set of circumstances: “I can do all things in Him who strengthens me.” All things. Paul says that he has “learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need.” And because of that, nothing can throw him!
But where did he learn these secrets? Where did Paul go to figure out how to be comfortable whatever his circumstances? To God. Paul turned to Christ. Paul learned to trust, that whatever needs he had, God would supply them. And he learned to count on the communities of believers, who, like the Philippians, provided his support.
So how do we weather this current situation we’re in? Through Christ. Because we can do all things in Him who strengthens us. How do we decide how to vote, and who to support politically? We stay faithful to what we have learned from Christ! And we keep going!
But what about our 401(k) funds? What about our investments that are worth 20% less today than they were on Monday? What about the credit I can’t get for my business to help me make payroll this week? What about the bailout package that is helping all those rich guys on Wall Street, but ain’t doin’ SQUAT for me and my family?
Well, here’s the rub. Playing the “Blame game” right now misses the entire point God could be making with us! And if we’re looking for someone in government to swoop in and save us…well, maybe they will. But the question is…What is that going to cost us?
Isaiah told the kings of Judah time and again that they should look to God…and time and again, they ignored him. They made deals with the pagans in order to survive, and it didn’t work. In Jesus’ parable, the king’s subjects were invited to the feast…and they were too busy. And when they got tired of hearing the king’s invitation, they abused and killed the king’s messengers!
What’s it gonna be for us? Do we ignore God and try to figure this out on our own this time? Do we listen to these talking heads and their promises to save us? Or do we listen…to God? I’m not sure what we can do on our own. But Paul promises that we can do all things in Christ, who strengthens us!
What are we afraid of? More wars? No healthcare when we get old? What are we afraid of? The government “invading our privacy”? Not being able to go get things “taken care of” if we make a “mistake”? Losing our house and all of our “stuff” because we can’t pay our bills? Or are we more afraid of what will happen if we cut ourselves loose from God?
No man, no woman, can “save” us. No “rescue package” is going to magically make everything all better. And no matter what happens this election cycle, everyone who takes office at the local, state, and federal level will still just be a human person, doing a job.
The news would have us think that the world is falling apart, and that the only route to salvation is through things that we humans do, before it’s too late.
But God has a different prescription.
God calls us to be faithful citizens. God calls us to a culture of life.
And God calls us to be fearless.
We can do all things in Christ, who strengthens us. And that includes getting through this current turmoil.
So, who are we gonna believe, and believe in? What are we afraid of?
And who can fix it?
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Have you ever thought about what it would be like…to be able to save the world? What if. Single-handedly, you could end hunger? End war? Stamp out disease? Give everyone a home? What if you could wave your hand and give everyone work that supplied their physical and emotional needs? What if you could teach people how to tell the truth…how to be honest all the time…what if you could keep them from stealing, or murdering, or causing scandal to one another?
That’d be a pretty neat world, huh?
But it’s utterly impossible for any one of us to do! In spite of the speeches and ads we hear in this political season, no vote we cast is going to save the world. No matter the commercials we hear to the contrary, no contribution we make is going to Save The Children.
But does that mean we do nothing, then? If we can’t do it by ourselves, then what is our role?
We know God’s role in all of that. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that he who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” God intends to save the world, or at least, to make it possible for all to be saved.
Jesus is explaining all of this to Nicodemus, who has come to Him under cover of darkness to ask questions, and to try to understand who Jesus is. He understands that Jesus is from God, but Nicodemus doesn’t understand how Jesus fits into it all.
And Jesus makes it clear, at least to Nicodemus, what His role is. And He uses imagery that Nicodemus can’t miss: Moses lifted up an image in the desert to keep the people from dying of snake bites, bites they’d gotten as punishment from God; Jesus would be lifted up in the same way, so that everyone who believes in Him shall have eternal life.
So Nicodemus would have understood the Old Testament reference, even if he didn’t understand exactly how this was all supposed to happen!
How do we understand Jesus in this passage? We have the advantage of 2,000 years of history, and 2,000 years of Church teaching to follow; but how is this supposed to work for us? The Apostles thought Jesus would be returning to Earth in their lifetimes: they figured that God’s kingdom would be established by Christ on Earth just shortly after they watched Him ascend!
But here we are, twenty centuries later, still waiting. So when is all this saving that Jesus is going to do going to get started?
Brothers and sisters, it’s been going on for 2,000 years! God has been saving the world continually ever since Jesus died on the Cross! God has been saving the world through Jesus ever since Jesus humbled Himself to become one like us in all things but sin! God has given us the Way to eternal life!
But there’s a little catch to all of this saving that’s going on. Jesus isn’t waving a magic wand and making things all better. God didn’t just snap His cosmic fingers and make everything all better. He’s been saving the world through the example of His saints, starting with the Apostles, and continuing through all those whose lives have been dedicated to the Truth of the Gospel!
And He’s saving the world…through us!
All those who are listening closely probably just said, “Whoa! Wait a minute, deacon! What do you mean, “through us“? Brothers and sisters, I mean through us.
We are the Body of Christ, here and now. We are god’s instruments, here, and now. There’s no “magic wand” in Jesus’ hands…because we are His hands. God doesn’t have to snap His fingers…because He has us to do His will!
This weekend, or Festival of Ministries focuses on Parish Social Ministries; these ministries are the Hands and Feet of Christ, carrying His Word, and His Will, to the world.
So maybe you can’t End World Hunger…but you can feed a family for a day, or for a week, through St. Vincent DePaul. Maybe you can’t end homelessness…but you can help build a house for one family through Habitat for Humanity. Maybe you can’t cure all disease…but you can help one person keep track of their blood pressure through the Parish Health Ministries. Maybe you can’t end all gang violence or thievery, but you can mentor a young man through the Not Even One program.
Wanna save the world? Get involved. Wanna save the world? Start with one person! One situation! One!
“God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him“.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that he who believes in Him might not perish, but might have eternal life”.
We are the Body of Christ, here on earth. We are the ones who are called to do Christ’s work, so that “the world might be saved through Him”.
No, we can’t save the world. But we can make one situation in the world better, by getting involved in it! Our Parish Social Ministries are where the rubber meets the road: these ministries are Christ, visible to the world, so that people can believe.
I urge you to get involved. Even if it’s only through financial support, the ministries you help will in turn perform corporal works of mercy that make Christ present to those in need.
Wanna save the world? What could do more to save the world, than to make Christ present to our world?
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The apologetics class is right on track. Deacon Bob Skinner and I are excited about the opportunity to present this information to the parish.
Here’s everything you’re going to need to know (I hope; if I missed something, please ask!):
- Classes will begin on Sunday, September 14, at 10:20 in the Science classroom of the school building (enter through the gym doors across from the church entrance, turn right, then left at the first hallway to the end. The classroom with the tall bald black man in it will be the right one!).
- The same class will be repeated on Wednesday, September 17, at 7:15 pm in The Visual Arts Classroom, next door to the Lay Minister’s Sacristy just off the narthex of the main church. (THIS IS A CHANGE FROM PREVIOUS INSTRUCTIONS)
- The class schedule will run about twelve weeks, until Wednesday, December 17. Each class will be taught on Sunday and Wednesday (same class each week, to give you flexibility in choosing a class to attend).
- Child care will be available, if there is enough demand, for both class times. We need to know what the needs are prior to September 14th so that we can arrange for the appropriate number of caregivers. Please plan on a small donation (about $3.00) per class period to defray the cost of the caregivers.
- The books we will use will be available at the first class on September 14th and 17th. The set (text, study guide and a Catholic Verse Finder) costs $10.00; please make checks payable to St. Ann Catholic Church, or bring cash. We’ll have the books at the first several classes; if we run out, we can always get more! In addition to the texts we provide, the following will be helpful:
— a Bible (New American Bible is the best one to use);
— the Catechism of the Catholic Church. - Please do not be put off if you don’t think you can make all 12 classes. The units stand alone, and do not build on one another; even if you can make only every other class, you’ll still get a lot out of it.
- The class is geared to learners high school age or above. Please feel free to enroll your teenagers if you like.
THE PAPER FORM FOR REGISTRATION IS NOW AVAILABLE IN THE BULLETIN, AND IN THE NARTHEX OF THE CHURCH; however, you can register simply by emailing the following information to either me or to Deacon Bob Skinner:
Name(s) of attendee(s)
Class you’re signing up for (Sun / Wed)
Email Address(es)
Contact phone number(s)
Name(s) and age(s) of any child(ren) needing care
And that’s it! We look forward to seeing you in the class. Please holler if there are questions. Take care, and God bless!
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The Jews of Jesus’ time had some funny ways about them. They were pretty particular about who they hung out with; Samaritans and Gentiles, as well as known sinners, were all strictly off-limits! You just didn’t hang out with them. You didn’t talk to them. And sometimes, Jesus appeared to buy into that.
Look at how he reacted to the woman in today’s Gospel. First, He ignores her. Then, He talks about her, but not to her, when He tells His disciples, “I was only sent to the lost sheep of Israel.” Finally, when she’s in the dirt in front of Him, Jesus metaphorically equates her to dogs!
But what’s her response? She keeps after Him! She knows who He is! And she knows that He can help her, that He can change her circumstance! And so she keeps pursuing His help for her possessed daughter!
And what happens? Jesus compliments her faith! He casts the demon out of her daughter because she had faith He would do it! And He did this in spite of the fact that she wasn’t one of them! He does exactly what the Law says He shouldn’t do, because of her faith. She was convinced of the truth of what she had heard about Jesus…and Jesus responded to that conviction!
Have you ever known anyone who was a convert to Catholicism? I know a bunch; heck, I live with one. One thing I notice about converts, almost universally, is that, if they came to Catholicism on their own, if they made a decision to come into full communion with the Catholic Church, there was something that drove them there. There was something positive about being a Catholic Christian that answered a question in their hearts. And, having made that decision to join themselves to Christ in His Church, they are a lot of times the most on fire for the Church!
But what about those of us who were born into this faith of ours? What do they see, these brothers and sisters who have decided to join us, that has them so on fire for the faith? And why is it hard for us to see the same thing, and to have the same fire?
Today’s readings really hit to the heart of that question.
In our day, we would look at someone who showed as much conviction as this gentile woman like she was a nut. Religion isn’t supposed to get you abused. Religion is not supposed to cause “controversy”. In fact, what’s the maxim about conversation among people you don’t know well? Don’t discuss politics…and religion, right? So for us, this Gentile woman is way strange!
But in reality, isn’t that the kind of faith Jesus calls us to, brothers and sisters? A faith that makes us act out of our realizing who Jesus is, and what He’s left us in the Church? Sure it is! We’re called to a faith that motivates us to tell everyone about what we believe! We’re called to be disciples of Christ, spreading the Good News about who He is, and who He’s made us to be!
And we’re even called to be disciples in the face of criticism. We’re called to be disciples in the face of ignorance and prejudice. And we’re called to be disciples to all, even if it causes some people to turn their backs on us, and to reject us for who we are as Catholic Christians!
But…that gets pretty hard, doesn’t it? If you’ve ever had a die-hard Baptist evangelizing you (in your face), and criticizing your faith, then you know how hard it can be. If you’ve ever plucked a flyer from Tony Alamo “Ministries” off of your windshield after Mass, or had someone step up to you at school or at work and ask you “Why do Catholics do this or that?”, and been without an answer, then you know how hard it can be. If you’ve ever lost a family member to some other denomination, or some other faith tradition, because “something isn’t right about Catholicism”, then you know how hard it can be.
But…if you’ve taken the time to learn about the why’s of Catholicism, then you know it doesn’t have to be that hard! If you read the articles in publications like “Word Among Us”, or if you’ve picked up any of the CDs in the narthex, then you know that our faith is reasonable! If you’ve read books by Scott Hahn, or Jeff Cavins, or any other convert to the faith, then you know why these people left everything to find Jesus in the Catholic Church!
And if you’re yearning for that kind of knowledge, if you want to learn more about the “why’s” of Catholicism, then you can start reading, and talking, about it. And you can plan to attend the Apologetics class we’re starting in the parish in September. And you can learn to explain your faith clearly, to defend it charitably, and to share it confidently.
Conclusion
Remember the woman who petitioned Jesus in today’s Gospel? No one asked her what she believed. They just assumed she was wrong, because she was gentile, and they ignored her until she got so loud that they had to deal with her. And it was her faith that Jesus saw. It was her faith in Jesus that saved her daughter from possession.
That woman saw something in Jesus, and in the stories she had heard about Him, that convinced her He could help her. The converts we were talking about also saw something of Christ, in His Church, that caused them, in some cases, to brave persecution (yes, even today!) for the sake of the Church.
What is it they see? What is it about the Church of Rome, the Church of the Apostles, that would cause people to turn themselves inside out in order to get it?
We should know. And we can know, if we just try.
Can we defend our faith charitably? Can we share our faith confidently? It’s what Jesus calls us to be able to do.
But…What do we see?
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In my vanity, I assume most of you have been waiting with bated breath for this post to come along. We finally have the details of our Beginning Apologetics course ready to go, and here are the details:
The class will be presented on Sunday mornings from 10:20 a.m. to 11:20 a.m. in the 8th grade Science classroom of the school building (next to the library, down the hallway that runs beside the gym). This class will be led by Deacon Chip Jones (me). A parallel (and completely interchangeable) class will be presented on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. in Trinity Hall B & C (this location is subject to change) by Deacon Bob Skinner. We will be using the text Beginning Apologetics from San Juan Catholic Seminars; books will be pre-ordered, and will be available on the first days of the class for $10.00.
The first Sunday class will meet on September 14, 2008. The first Wednesday class will follow on September 17. The schedule of classes runs all the way out to Sunday, December 14/Wednesday, December 17. Each class is designed to last 45 minutes to one hour, and will follow the text and study guide exactly. The text we are using breaks things up very nicely; when we are finished, we will have conducted an overview of the most important tenets of our faith, and will have a good enough grasp of them to defend them in charity to our separated brethren.
OK, some logistics.
First, if you would like to participate, I need you to let me know. Please email me at chip.jones@stann.cdom.org with the following information:
Name of each attendee
Contact phone number
Contact email address
Name(s) and age(s) of child/ren needing child care
We are pre-ordering 50 sets of resources (Unit 1 text and study guide, and the Catholic Verse Finder) for this class; it’s my prayer that this won’t be enough. Please bring $10.00 per set to your first class whenever you come, and we will sell our books till they run out. After that (or instead, if you like) you can go to Amazing Grace Catholic Book Store, in the plaza at Appling and US 64, and purchase the books. You should also have a Bible (New American Bible is the best one to use); you might also invest in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. We’ll talk about other resources you may want to consider later.
I am pumped about us getting this off the ground. Please tell all your friends about it, and bring someone with you. Aren’t you tired of your Bellevue Buddies browbeating you about your faith? Let’s get in shape to convert them to the One True Church!
Peace!
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It’s always interesting to me to find articles that talk about how Protestants “discover” some truth in Catholic teaching that they’d previously rejected. With a hat tip to Deacon Greg Kandra of The Deacon’s Bench blog, here’s a very nice article about the “discovery” of NFP by Protestants. God bless ’em; I congratulate anyone who decides to give Truth a try.
Take a look. And feel free to get in touch if you want to talk about it.
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I served the bishop yesterday (August 9, 2008 ) at our parish during the ordination to the diaconate of two men, seminarians who will be ordained to the priesthood next spring. While observing all of the priests in attendance, I was put in mind of this post by Deacon Greg Kandra.
For all that has gone on in our parish over the last few years, I don’t think anyone could deny that prayer is needed for ALL our priests, not only the ones assigned by the Bishop to St. Ann Bartlett, but ALL of the priests of the Diocese of Memphis. They are a tremendous bunch of men; talented every one of them in different ways, and a blessing to us all. But from out here, it’s hard to know *what* struggles any particular priest may be facing at any given time: it’s their job to be strong for all of *us*, and they don’t let on that they themselves are facing challenges every day.
Pray for our priests, people. They need our love and support, and they need our prayer. How much holier a parish, a diocese, a universal Church might we be of we all lifted our shepherds in prayer instead of just observing their faults?
Peace!
Tall, Bald, and Called 