13th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Have you found your life?

 

"Whoever receives me receives the one who sent me"

Matthew 10: 37-42

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062826.cfm

O God, who through the grace of adoption

chose us to be children of light,

grant that we may not be wrapped in the darkness of error

but always be seen to stand in the bright light of truth.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 

who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever.

(Collect of Mass)

A principle of motion states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. We know this well and it is why we wear seat belts in a moving car.  If the car stops suddenly without a restraint holding us we won't stop!  We will continue to move forward with possible dire consequences.  If you leave a package on your front seat while driving and you hit the brakes, that package will continue to move forward while you stop. 

In a similar fashion, for every choice there is a consequence.  If I choose to marry or choose freely to enter religious life, the "consequence" is a more limited personal freedom for example.  As a married person I no longer have the freedom to go where I want or to be with who I want to be with.  I must think of the other I have married as my present and lifelong focus and the effects of my choices on my spouse and children.  Same is true in religious life.  

My community, my parish is the focus of my energy, and I have a responsibility to them that outweighs a certain level of my personal freedom. But that is not a negative outcome. Rather, any choice we make for God can only produce something more enriching.

The same principle I think can be applied to our Christian discipleship.  To follow Jesus demands a sacrificial level of personal freedom but also great rewards.  Jesus calls all of us as his disciples to recognize that Christianity, if we take it seriously, will demand of us a choice beyond our comfort level at times. Jesus does not promise success, fortune and fame if we choose him.  But, rather the cross, losing our life to gain it. Hmmm?

In this Sunday's Gospel, Jesus makes a statement that is somewhat harsh and may seem dismissive of such important family connections: “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me . . .” What about the importance of family life? Then he adds to the demand: “. . . whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me . . .” The audience to whom Jesus spoke would have been more than mildly disturbed for family was everything in ancient times.

One source (Sunday Web Site: University of St. Louis) states: "The ancient middle eastern family was very large and extended from father to all his married sons with all their families, living on one place. The ideal marriage partner was a first cousin . . . The resultant mentality was 'our family' against 'everyone else."

That's a tight knit family structure indeed. This is why the parable of the prodigal son was so shocking since no Jewish son would ever betray his living father in that manner and so shamelessly bring dishonour on the entire family by doing so.

Yet, while blood lines and family relationships are important the demands of discipleship are essentially at play here; likewise, is the measure of our loyalty to Jesus.  Do we follow him only when things are easy and comfortable or can we remain loyal as we share in his cross and the personal sacrifices demanded by our Christian way of life? As he prepares his disciples for mission Jesus asks they weigh the level of their commitment to him and his Gospel.

What we hear from our Lord this Sunday is that to be a true Christian, we must think beyond the limits which life imposes.  We would never be asked to renounce our family ties, but the demand of Christian love and sacrifice go beyond the familiar and comfortable.  The mission of the Church may demand a re-prioritizing of our own lives.  The Gospel must be preached to all and not just to those who agree with us.  Called as missionary disciples we are challenged to become witnesses to Christ in this world and there may be times that even our own family members disagree with us.  Can we still be loyal to the truth which Christ has revealed to us? Can we respond to such tension with love and respect?

It's interesting that we often hear from those in the OCIA process for example, that family members of those who seek to be baptized and come into full communion with the Catholic Church do not always understand their choice and in some cases may outright strongly disagree with their embrace of “those Catholics.”  It may even be a spouse who is uncomfortable or a son or daughter who wants nothing to do with Catholics.  It’s tough, of course, and somewhat hurtful.   Yet called to loyalty we are invited to seek the grace to be faithful members and followers of Christ and his Church.

In the end, as Catholic Christians, we are essentially agents of Jesus Christ and his Church. The Church we are born into by baptism, in which we gather for Mass, and the community of faith that inspires and supports us in our journey is the Body of Christ and Jesus is the Head of his Church, we are his agents. We all keep in mind the same common purpose: to be agents of Christ in the world and to bring others to his Church: to announce the Gospel in a way that is welcoming and attractive.

In addition, we all who were “baptized into Christ,” as St. Paul speaks today, live a new life in him. And the demands of that life mean that what he asks of his disciples today, he asks of us as well.  Will you be my agent in the world?  This is not a demand that we leave our families behind but rather a challenge to make our position as his agents in the world, the framework by which we measure what we do. This kind of commitment to Christ and the Gospel, and by that to his Church, is a very real thing for many. Sometimes, it is particularly difficult at first.

So, the readings, especially our Gospel this Sunday, are not to disturb us but to remind us that as a Christian I can’t be simply lukewarm or wishy washy, or to live by Bishop Barron’s favorite description of “beige Catholicism.” Faith is more than a title only but a profound life changing choice to follow the Lord who should be the center of our spiritual life. My house built on rock as it were. That choice has its demands not for the short term but for eternity. But so does hospitality and kindness towards others who come as agents of the Lord.

Do I treat my faith as if it was a hobby or a lifetime commitment? Is “Catholic” the Church I attend or the way I see myself in the world? Do I find myself behaving very “Christian” in public or only when I attend Mass yet during the week I fall back into old patterns that are more harmful or certainly not productive for my faith life?  Do I allow the Gospel to frame the kind of person I am?  When my faith is challenged do I really stand up and be counted, or do I hide in the safety of the shadows?

Our gathering to share in the Body and Blood of Christ is to receive a great act of love from the One who calls us to join his winning side as it were.  To follow Christ is to make an intentional decision which means that other priorities must be measured against the Gospel. Still, after receiving so much from him how can we offer any less?