Pastor's Letter 20220227 - 27 February 2022 - Honesty in Christian Witness

[Father Michael]

February 27^th, 2022

Eighth Sunday-Ordinary Time

A Message from Father †Michael

Today’s Theme:  “Honesty in Christian Witness” 

Reflections on Today’s Scripture

Our First reading (Sirach 27: 4-7,) authored by Jesus, son of Eleazar, son of Sirach, saw extensive use in the early Church, as a primer for catechumens and the faithful.  Imbued with love for the Law, the priesthood, the temple and divine worship, he was a wise and experienced observer of life.  Tasked with teaching piety and morality, these four sentences make one point:  a person’s speech shows one’s character.  

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†Paul continues speaking of Christ’s resurrection in our Second Reading (1 Corinthians 15: 54-58.)  Telling the Christians at Corinth that death has been “swallowed up in victory,” and is “no more a tyrant,” for it has “lost its sting,” he equates sin with death—which leads to a false mode of being, in opposition to God.  For †Paul, the only responsible way of living—the only way to authentic being—is to exercise our free will to make personal decisions.  He assures us, meanwhile, that we have access to encouragement and grace through Jesus and the Holy Spirit, Who is at work in us, and that all labor can be endured.  The work we achieve is that of the Lord, within us, Who makes all difficulties bearable.    

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It is apparent in today’s Gospel, that †Luke understands one cannot attempt to guide others unless we have a good grasp of the Christian way of life (Luke 6:39-45.)  We avoid being a “blind guide” by striving to be genuinely good people.  We must guard not to see ourselves more advanced in the spiritual life than someone else.  Similarly, we must not “write off” a neighbor as hopeless because they do not think the way we do.  How quickly judgments form in our hearts—becoming so habitual that we do not even realize it.  We should be ever willing to ask the Lord for help to examine our hearts in order to bring us deeper repentance and healing.  So selfless was Jesus’ love for His fellows that even His last breath was not an appeal for our punishment, but a prayer for our forgiveness.  He swallowed up the darkness of self-love with the light of His self-giving, and by His Spirit, He can empower us to do the same.

Attending to our own Faults

Without realizing it, we can become professional fault-finders and critics.  But critics are not the ones who reform the world.  Jesus tells us to take the “beam” out of our own eye before we can think about removing a “splinter” from someone else’s.  We must put our own house “in order” before we dare to try to manage someone else’s.  If we neglect this, we will not judge others from a sense of caring, but rather, from hatred—wishing to “expose” them.  There are few things that give as much satisfaction to our egos as pointing out the mistakes and faults of others….  How anxious we are to correct others, thinking, “If only we could tell (them) about their faults, and get them to see the error of their ways, how fine our community would be!”  When we think like this, we are thinking only of ourselves.  But how we hate and dread being corrected ourselves….  We find it unbearable, especially if it is done by “certain people!”  Jesus called it “pseudo-religion,” the hypocrisy of forever trying to make other people better.  True religion tries to make oneself better.

Leaders, too, can only lead effectively if they see the true way, for themselves.  Likewise, teachers can only impart knowledge from what they have learned.  If we are to avoid becoming that “blind guide,” we must exercise self-criticism.  

The “Sting” of Death

Not so long ago, diabetes was a killer disease for which there were no remedies.  But then, insulin was discovered, and suddenly, sufferers were given hope.  Insulin doesn’t stop people from getting diabetes, nor does it rid them of its distress, but it does take the “sting” out of the disease.  Those affected know it doesn’t have to be fatal anymore.  That makes a huge difference in their lives, and enables them to “live with it.”  

Because of Christ’s victorious resurrection from the dead, we too know death does not have the “final say” for us.  But this doesn’t mean all the pain, sadness and anguish have been taken from living.  Maya Angelou once said:

“I can accept the idea of my own demise, but I am unable to accept the death of anyone else.  I find it impossible to let a friend or relative go into that country of no return.  Disbelief becomes my close companion, and anger follows in its wake.  I answer the heroic question, ‘Death, where is thy sting?’ with ‘It is here in my heart and mind and memories.’ ” (from, “Wouldn’t take Nothing for my Journey Now”)

Death is an enormous reality.  Today there is a tendency to deny it, or at least to cover it up.  Undertakers do their utmost to make it “pretty.”  Preachers often use soothing phrases and euphemisms when talking about death.  The next-of-kin are sometimes given drugs to cope with it. However, all of this is counterproductive.  People must be helped to confront death and to become reconciled with it.  It is necessary to work through grief, and not deny it.   Those who do so will find their lives enriched.  

Our Christian faith helps us to best confront death, with courage and hope, because we know we can conquer it in Christ.  We know the “sting” is there, in reality, but it’s no longer fatal to our immortal souls.  We may not have all the answers about what happens to us after death, but we don’t need to know.  It is enough that we trust in God.  In a world where many desperately seek to know all the answers, it is not easy to admit this.  

Each night, when we abandon ourselves into the “arms of sleep,” we make a big act of faith.  We let go of everything, and for all practical purposes, become like dead people, in the hope of rising again the following morning.  Many people like to say some prayer before abandoning themselves in this way.  Mine is a simple one, I’ve remembered from childhood:  “Now I lay me down to sleep; I pray dear Lord, my soul You’ll keep.  But if I die before I wake, I pray, Lord, God, my soul You’ll take.”  Then, I always add: “Thank you for my life!”

Mother †Teresa’s prayer is also poignant:

“Dear Jesus, help me to spread Thy fragrance everywhere I go.  Flood my soul with Thy spirit and life.  Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly that all my life may only be a radiance of Yours.  Shine through me and be so in me that every soul I know will feel Thy presence in my soul.  Let them look up and see no longer me but only You.   Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as You shine, so to shine as to be a light to others. Amen.”

Our Blessed Lord knows our hearts and whether or not we are truly sorry for our sins and offenses, by the extent to which we have taken responsibility for them.  Conducting ourselves in this way means we routinely attempt to make amends to anyone we may have harmed, or disadvantaged.   (People who feel compelled to add a recitation of “contrition” for their misdeeds, to their nightly prayers, asking God for forgiveness—although a thorough nightly recounting of our transgressions could make this an elaborate regimen.)  This takes us back to the subject of the previous section, wherein we may be guilty of being unfairly judgmental of others, and being harshly critical.  Such sins and offenses sometimes escape our scrutiny. 

If we culture a pattern of continual self-examination to the point that it becomes our design for living, it will enable us to better emulate Christ at all times.  God knows we are imperfect beings, and can only strive toward saintly lives.  That is why He sent His only Son, to be our Savior; and the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, as our help and refuge.    

  May God Richly Bless You!

To view this week's Holy Mass, click here:

Let Your Light Shine.docx

 

Edited February 27, 2022 by Father Michael