28th Sunday: Saying "thank you"

"He fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him"

Luke 17: 11-19

The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101225.cfm

In this age of medical miracles, antibiotics, pain relievers, cancer treatment, open heart surgeries, organ donors, vitamins, cures and potential cures and vaccinations for many diseases that threaten us, it may be very difficult to imagine a society with none of those medical advancements and protections. We would be helpless victims of just about anything that would endanger our health. With no knowledge of bacteria, infection, and how the human body works, we might well become fatalistic. If you’re terminally ill, that’s it. Your time is up. Those afflicted with physical or mental disabilities, would be labelled as punished for some wrong they must have done. For a moment, imagine such a society.

If we could, we would walk in the world of Jesus’ time. The familiar story in our Gospel this Sunday reveals both cultural prejudice and the outward boundaries which Jesus’ challenged the society of his time.  These poor individuals afflicted with some sort of skin affliction generally termed leprosy, literally were shunned from both society and from worship so they essentially belonged nowhere. And Jesus walks in that same boundary between Samaria and Galilee knowing exactly why he is there.

The story names leprosy as the disease these unfortunate souls, these “ten lepers” suffered with. Would you like to be identified by the condition you suffer rather than by your name or your humanity?  No longer would you be John or Mary being treated for cancer. Now you would be “those cancerous ones” or “those cancerites” or some such dehumanizing identity.  Such a label might cause more pain than the disease itself. Such was true in the time of our Lord.

Our readings this Sunday open with a similar story about Naaman, a man of great influence, who on the word of Elisha the prophet plunged himself in the waters of the Jordan river and was cured of his leprosy. In fact, his flesh, “became again like the flesh of a little child.” While the healing is significant, Naaman’s reaction is even more so. He was filled with overwhelming gratitude and wanted to offer a gift to Elisha who refused to take the gift because he rightly saw that such healing came about through God’s work alone.  It is the God of Israel who would heal Naaman and there is where the gratitude should be directed.

Likewise, it seems that those afflicted all had a sense that Jesus could cure them; they believed in him on that level.  They went to show themselves to the priest according to custom once cured and along their way to the Temple, they were cured.  Yet only one returned to give thanks, the Samaritan, the foreigner who would not be allowed in the Temple precinct, came back to give thanks to Jesus.   His faith in Christ was more than just a surface level of request.

There was also the question of which temple to return to?  Being a Samaritan, they would not be allowed near the Jerusalem temple but would go to Samaria where the Gerezine temple was located. The temple built by the Samaritan peoples and claimed by them to be the only true one.  So, which temple should he go to?  

He recognized what Jesus had done for him, the new life a kind of resurrection experience that he now had and was so moved to gratitude for what Jesus did for him.  How he was saved from a dead-end life no longer in the stigma of sin but in the new life of God’s mercy.

Yet, even more, Jesus is now seen as the new Temple where all are welcome and invited to for healing and wholeness.  Whether the one in Jerusalem or the one in Samaria, does not matter.  He returns to the true Temple of God, Jesus himself, to offer thanks. It is our coming to Christ, our faith in him, that will cure the leprosy of sin we all find in ourselves.

At the word alone of Jesus, those afflicted set out with complete trust.  We see it in the healing stories when he says: “be healed, rise and walk, receive your sight, Lazarus come forth, this is my Body, this is my Blood, and your sins are forgiven.”  Such words ring deep in our hearts knowing, as the Samaritan man in our Gospel came to realize, that faith in Christ Jesus is where our lives need to be centred.  Simply his word alone is all that is needed.

Powerfully, we are also reminded that this healing ministry of Jesus was not alone something of his time.  But that work continues in the sacramental ministry of the Church.  Through the sacraments of Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick and the Holy Eucharist we encounter the living Christ who comes to us as the divine physician as it were, to gather us together in a community of trust, thanksgiving and healed people

So here we might ask, what is my leprosy?  What afflicts me that moves me to turn to God for help?  What wound or sin do I carry that continues to be a burden in my life?  It might be physical, emotional, or spiritual emptiness.  Whatever forms our leprosy may take, and we all are afflicted, we must bring that before Christ for healing and help. 

So, where that leaves us is to recognize how in the Church Jesus continues this same ministry of grace and mercy.  We hear: “I absolve you from your sins," "I baptize you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit," "Be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit," "Through this holy anointing may the Lord free you from sin", "This is my Body, this is my Blood.”

These are the powerful words of Jesus spoken in the sacraments and in particular in that great, central sacrament of thanksgiving, the Holy Eucharist.  Christ comes to us in a substantial presence and invites us to lay our concerns on the altar for offering.

When is the last time you felt truly grateful for the Mass?  The Venerable Bishop Fulton Sheen once said that if we had true faith, we would be crawling up to Communion! Such an image emphasizes the profound, undeserved gift of our Lord given in the Eucharist that we should be so overwhelmed by what Christ has done for us that we would symbolically approach him with heads bowed, hands held out and return to our pew with one giant “Thank you” on our lips. As priest I must constantly remind myself of my own unworthiness to stand at the altar and bring Christ to all.

Yes, gratitude for gift given, for his grace, and for who Christ is for us is seems to having a new birth in many people these days.  The events of the past few months, terrible shootings and violence as a solution to disagreements, has no place in a civilized society.  People are beginning to turn to Christ again but in so many areas, it is still lacking these days. Let us turn that around and truly be grateful and humble servants of the Lord from whom all good things come. That is a faith that will save us.

May your grace, O lord, 

at all times go before us and follow after

and make us always determined 

to carry out good works.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 

who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit

God, for ever and ever.

(Sunday Collect)

27th Sunday: Do more than the minimum

 

(Nitish Narayan with Unsplash.com)

"If you had faith the size of a mustard seed . . . "

Luke 17: 5-10

The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/100525.cfm

Almighty ever-living God,

who in the abundance of your kindness

surpass the merits abd the desires of those 

who entreat you,

pour out your mercy upon us

to pardon what conscience dreads 

and to give what prayer does not dare to ask.

(Collect - Roman Missal)

Some people love details. They focus on what may seem the smallest minutia in order to accomplish a task. Thank God for architects, astronomers, engineers, acoutants, surgeons  whose drawings, designs, numbers, calculations, and medical care must be exact down to the finest lines and measurements in order to be sure the building will stand and be balance well, and the body will heal properly.  I think of the amazing Gothic Cathedrals in Europe.  Flying buttresses, high vertical gothic arches, enormous stained-glass windows, or walls that appear to be paper thin all standing together in one solid beautiful form for hundreds of years due to medieval engineers and architects who understood the balance and counterweight of structures - amazing!

Sometimes we may even do that with our faith for we often speak of our faith in denominational terms:  the Catholic faith, the Protestant faith, the Jewish faith, Moslem religion, etc. here we refer to the lists of beliefs, creeds, traditions that are passed on from generation to generation.  Or maybe someone might ask you, “What faith are you?”  or “What Church do you go to?” or “What religion do you practice?” Such details while important for a religious identity do not have the power by themselves to bring us a more meaningful life. We must build our lives on the deeper question we hear in the word of God this Sunday.

In this Sunday’s Gospel the Apostles ask Jesus a question that seems to have come right out of the blue:  “Increase our faith.”  So, what are these men asking of Jesus?  “Lord, make us more Jewish?”  It’s clear from Jesus' response that they were not asking about their heritage but about something more life changing. Help us trust you more, put our faith in you more, help us to hold on to your teaching and example more than we recognize right now and to form a deeper more personal relationship with you. Make us more courageous and loyal to you.  This sort of thing is the kind of faith that Luke implies and so important to the detailed fundamentals of Christian discipleship.

Likewise, in our second reading from Paul to Timothy, we hear of details, growth and reverence. Paul writes to Timothy, “I remind you, to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give you a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.” (2 Tim. 1: 6-7). The young Bishop, ordained by Paul, is encouraged to recognize the seed of the gift given to him and is reminded to care for it; to allow its growth and to use it for the good of the Church. Paul implies the power of transformation that comes to one as they place their trust more deeply in Christ; this is faith given as gift and grace.

Jesus’ response to the Apostles question was, ‘If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.’” (Lk 17: 5-6). Who wouldn’t want a stronger faith? Is the tiny size of a mustard seed all we need or is God asking for more? Certainly, the Apostles better than anyone knew that following Jesus was becoming increasingly more of a challenge. They witnessed his miracles, they heard his teaching about “love your enemies and do good to those who hate you,” and they knew that despite the overwhelming admiring crowds, there were those in power who threatened Jesus and were determined to stop him. Only with stronger faith, stronger conviction, in the truth of what he preached and a closer trust that he is indeed the one they had been waiting for could they maintain their loyalty to Jesus. He is the risen Lord of our life.  Isn’t the same true for us?

We find ourselves planted firmly in a society that is enamored by everything new. Technology, for all of its benefits, is exponential. There is no end to the possibilities, and it has created a society of artificial communication. We treasure (worship?) what we want, we will stand in line for hours to get it, and we will obsess over the latest gadget, the latest I-phone despite its outrageous price and its strong similarity to the model right before it – is it really that different?

But it has never been easy or necessarily convenient to be a Christian.  From the time of the Apostles to our day the Christian story is one of threats and persecutions.  Of course, there were “glory days” but for those who lived the fullness of the Christian message they found push back in all corners.  So, like the Apostles we pray that we will not be discouraged, loose heart, give up, or compromise.  Sadly, we are always tempted to take the less controversial and more popular stand to avoid confrontation or rejection or to think that we have a right to design the Church in my image. 

I remember being told once very clearly by someone who proudly claimed to be a “cafeteria Catholic,” one who picks and chooses from the “menu” of Catholic teachings what they will believe in and reject.  Lukewarm Catholics or as Bishop Robert Barron has stated: “beige Catholicism.” In order to truly follow the Lord, we need to be profitable servants and to "invest" our faith for it to grow beyond the mustard seed. 

The call of our Scriptures this Sunday is to remind us that we too must ask the Lord for the same as the Apostles desired.  To have the courage of our convictions and to not hide our faith but to live it in a way that we may become loving witnesses to the Gospel even if we pay a price for it.  Jesus calls us to do more than is expected of us – to take the next step and to consider what it means to give our lives over more fully to the Lord. There are no end of moral issues around the dignity of life and the treasure of marriage and the family that have been politicized and polarized.  Where do I stand? 

Faith like that of a mustard seed is not where we stop. Faith that grows, is watered, nurtured, and tended carefully is the only way that we will come to see the treasure that is in each of us, made in the image and likeness of God. It is all gift if we truly recognize that even a little trust in the Lord’s words and our consistent loyalty to him and his Church will bear much fruit and will grow.  May Christ answer the prayer we all make.

 

26th Sunday: "To afflict the comfortable . . . "

(Kelli McClintock - Unsplash.com)

"And lying at his door was a poor man . . . "

Luke 16: 19-31

The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092825.cfm

O God, who manifest your

almighty power above all by pardoning

and showing mercy,

bestow your grace abundantly upon us

and make those hastening to attain your promises

heirs to the treasures of heaven.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God, for ever and ever. 

(Collect of Mass)

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I recall a while back in the summer before my ordination that was to take place that August, the Pastor happened to not be at the Parish I was staying in on a warm, rather quiet afternoon. I heard the familiar doorbell so I answered the door and there stood a middle-aged woman looking as if she obviously needed some help.  She asked if she could have a ride over to the next town about an hour away over the mountains.  Well, I thought proudly this would be a good thing for a Deacon to do so I offered to take her there; just the two of us alone in the car!  It was a sunny summer day, no problem with travel on the interstate so I thought, why not? Well, I was naive, not at all prudent but at least well intentioned.

Along the way everything was fine, nothing happened and we had a chat, so I dropped her off and came back to the parish.  As I returned, I was feeling pretty proud of myself; sort of boasting in my mind about the good impression she must now have of the Church and its ministers.

When I returned to the parish the Pastor was there, and he had discovered I was gone so he asked where I was. Mind you, this was in the day before cell phones. I told him what I had done, and he quickly stated to me, like a father to a son, that I was not very smart about what I did.  He warned me about the potential danger then simply said: “Don’t you ever do that again.” Considering the events of the last several years, and the fear of scandal, I would never take that chance again - unfortunately. After a quick reflection I could not disagree with the pastor and quickly “wised up” and never did such a thing again or since; nonetheless there is a lesson here. Not about giving rides to strangers but more about the dangers of indifference and the divine command for compassion and mercy.

Our readings today make us stop and think not only about the poor beggar Lazarus outside the door but even more so about ourselves in the nameless rich man. Who is sitting outside our door?  That is meant to be but an expression about our awareness of those around us. As the saying goes, this parable is meant “to afflict the comfortable and to comfort the afflicted.”

So Jesus tells the story of a rich man “dressed in purple garments and fine linen who dined sumptuously each day.” And daily outside his door was a poor starving beggar whose name was Lazarus.  The fact that the rich man is not named but the poor man is identified, reminds us of the dignity of the poor. You can imagine the rich man either arrogantly walked by or stepped over the poor. One important point to make is that the rich man did see Lazarus.  He knew he was there, and he knew he was in a desperate situation but did nothing to alleviate his suffering.  He has no name in the story so does he represent all of humanity itself?

Our first reading from the prophet Amos (6: 1A, 4-7) takes a similar tone.  “Woe to the complacent in Zion . . . stretched comfortably on their couches . . . they drink wine from bowls . . . they are not made ill by the collapse of Joseph!” This is quite a description of lavish surroundings with the intoxicated lying back on soft cushions, eating grapes and chocolate truffles. They are so caught up in their luxurious lifestyle they are blind and unmoved by the suffering of the unfortunate around them.  What they really do care about is trivial and meaningless.

Then, “the poor man died” and “the rich man also died and was buried.” Death changed everything. The roles are reversed, and the suffering Lazarus now sits in heavenly luxury in the “bosom of Abraham” (paradise) a sign of privileged position at a banquet table. Tables turned, the wealthy man now begs for relief in a place of torment, (hell) “separated by a vast chasm between himself, Abraham, and the now “wealthy” and comfortable Lazarus.

While the story indicates the rich man very much knew Lazarus since he calls him by name as he now sees him after death.  All the while, he knew of Lazarus’ suffering but remained indifferent to his fate.  He could have easily helped him but refused to do so.  His own comfort and reputation were far more important than to be bothered or inconvenienced by another of the wretched poor.  Like the heartless Ebenezer Scrooge he may have even wished the poor would “Die and reduce the surplus population!”

The overall theme of our readings this Sunday is both about warning and about mercy.  Now, we may somewhat be in shock over the stark lesson portrayed here which may exactly be Jesus’ intention.  Maybe we gasp trying to imagine such blatant complacency towards human suffering. We might see the Pharisees either disgust or embarrassment on their faces as they squirmed in their privileged position.  Sometimes, the truth makes us uncomfortable yet that becomes the agent of change.

While there are many among us, me included, who have given some cash to those begging along the freeway ramps or city intersections, I think Jesus’ lesson is more significant.  Both the rich man and Lazarus are symbols of deeper social inequality and indifference.  The solution to poverty and human suffering in the world is truly complex.  Yet, our overall attitude is perhaps where we begin.

In fact, we may even wonder if my small part really makes a significant difference.    Can we change the world and eliminate poverty and hunger? - Probably not. But we can certainly live a more compassionate and generous life. It may not change the world or eliminate poverty, but it does change the world for Lazarus.

 The rich man wanted to send Lazarus as a warning to his brothers who were apparently living the life of leisure as well. Abraham’s comment that both Moses and the prophets have warned the ancients of their indifference to the suffering poor and that even someone from the dead (the risen Christ) would not change their hearts is disturbing. 

We too have been given the call to mercy from Jesus.  We’ve been reminded about the abundant love that moved the Father to send his Son to us.  We well know that we have many opportunities to assist and do our part in sharing a portion of our comfort with the uncomfortable.

So in these readings, as they always do when Jesus speaks of great inequality and injustice between humanity, we are invited to see things as God does.  The rich man was not punished because he was rich.  It was his greed and indifference to the suffering that caused the eternal chasm between him and Lazarus. There is a special place for the poor and helpless in the heart of God and so there must be among us as well. The late Pope Francis reminded us that no one escapes the responsibility to make a place for the poor at our tables.

Compassion, mercy, selflessness, humility, generosity, and charity that promote human dignity are not some kind of new age social justice virtues. They are deeply rooted values we see enfleshed in the earthly life of Jesus and they become our way to ultimate salvation. Feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the imprisoned, etc.  This is what the rich man could have done but simply choose a  more selfish self-centred way of life.

“My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime . . ." 

 

 

25th Sunday: Serve two Masters?

"You cannot serve both God and mammon"

Luke 16: 1-13

The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092125.cfm

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O God, who founded all the commands of your sacred law

upon love of you and of our neighbor, 

grant that by keeping your precepts,

we may merit to attain eternal life.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 

who lives and reigns with you in the unity

of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.

(Collect for Sunday)

From the time of ancient civilizations to our day, there has always been some method of barter and trade; some form of trade for goods offered. Today, we buy things with money.  We wouldn’t normally think that Jesus had much to say about financial matters but in truth he had much to say about the use of money, both its benefits and its dangers.  In keeping with Jewish rabbinic teaching, he often taught through stories (parables) in order to make his point.  Normally those examples reflected situations of everyday life in his time; events and experiences that people were very familiar with already such as agricultural methods of planting and harvesting.  Today’s Gospel is one of the most perplexing and difficult scriptural passages to understand but it does reflect familiar customs.

The story involves an astute and crafty estate manager, yet immoral for he is stealing from his Master, who was skilled in the art of crooked business deals.  He found a way, when he was dismissed for “squandering” the property of a rich owner, mismanaging his master’s money, both to provide for his own future and to bring praise upon the rich owner of the property who fired him for being dishonest. Although his intent was less than admirable, he was clever in creating a kind of “win-win” result.

The untrustworthy steward created a sense of admiration for the master who fired him – he went to his masters’ debtors and advised they reduce their indebtedness to him. If a recommendation came from the master himself, not knowing the steward was about to be fired, they then would praise the master for his mercy to them and be willing to take in the crafty steward for being the bearer of good news to them. That may be clever, but he essentially was once again steeling from his master in reducing the indebtedness.

Now what Jesus then says about this manager is shocking in one way: “I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” Jesus’ recommendation is not all that clear here. Does he advise we use the same type of tactics as the steward in the parable?  Is he in praise of dishonest methods to gain success? Maybe a look at the first reading for this Sunday would put more in full perspective.

The prophet Amos in our first reading clearly warns his audience about the greedy: “Hear this you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land!” Amos warned those who use power and wealth to their own advantage while they sacrifice the more basic needs of the poor who need assistance to attain their own security.  “The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob; never will I forget a thing they have done!” This is a warning to those who are governed by their own pride and personal security at the expense of the more fundamental needs of others.

Considering that, we may see the Gospel parable as both one of praise for its clever methods but a warning as to how and where we spend our resources. Our Lord essentially is in praise of cleverness and knows that if one is as enterprising with the good use of money, much good can be done and one will win the praise not only of others but more importantly, the praise of God, the true owner of eternal wealth.

The road to discipleship is not an easy one yet is for those who pay attention to the words of Jesus and put those teachings, methods, to practical use: prayer, self-sacrifice, attention to the needs of others, to be charitable for the cause of others, not my own advantage, to live a life formed by the Gospel values and not those limitations of this world.

More, the relationship between the poor and the rich; the “haves and the have-nots” and the social conditions of our time in which so many are suffering from the greed of others is timely with this parable. The greatest sin Jesus railed against was that of greed and injustice.  To be blind to both the material and the spiritual needs of the disadvantaged is a grave injustice and sin.

Wealth in and of itself is morally neutral.  Yet, how we use that abundance either for ourselves or to adopt a more open and enterprising mind and consider the greater needs around us, then to devise ways to assist those who need our help, is I think what Jesus is getting at here.

God looks upon the poor with special favor.  As the late Pope Francis reminded us, he came to us in the guise of the poor as a poor man and spent much of his time with the outcast and the forgotten.

The Gospel closes with a prophetic warning: “No servant can serve two masters.  He will either hate one and love the other or be devoted to one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and mammon.”  (Lk 16: 12-13).

If power, wealth, and the pursuit of success is measured by the “master” of this world that which the world offers becomes our god.  Or if we see the material resources we have as an opportunity to assist the needy or to spread the Gospel more completely in some way, then our “master” becomes God himself and his glory, his praise.  In the end, we must be as enterprising, as clever and intent about our ultimate fulfilment before God as the dishonest steward was about his own reputation and his security. It may feel like a strange comparison, but it does make the point.

So, we must decide who our “master” is.  To whom do we owe our stewardship?  We are stewards of the treasure God has given us: our life, our resources, our opportunities, our faith. God is the Master of the parables, and we are the ones entrusted with his wealth as gift to us. 

Yet the bottom line may be to consider not only my material life but my spiritual life as well.  Simply coming to Church on a weekend is a good and necessary witness.  Yet, if that’s all I do I may find I live more for myself than I do for the spread of the Gospel.  Jesus in short recommends today that we prepare for the future, as the steward did, but to build up not a treasure for greed but spiritual wealth for our eternal benefit. How are we managing?