September 28, 2011
Killing the Message
Scripture Readings for Sunday, October 2, 2011
Isaiah 5:1-7
Philippians 4:6-9
Matthew 21:33-43
To all,
In our Gospel reading for Sunday, Jesus tells another parable to the chief priests and elders of the people. This one is about a landowner and a vineyard. In the parable, there are tenants of the vineyard who refuse to give the landowner the produce that is due to him. They beat and even kill the servants the landowner sends to them. When the landowner sends his son, they kill him, too. Jesus asks His audience, “What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?” They answer, “He will put those wretched men to a wretched death and lease his vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the proper times.” Then Jesus turns the parable on them: “Therefore, I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.”
It’s obvious that the parable is a criticism of the Jewish leadership of the time. But it’s also a warning to us, who are supposedly “the people that will produce its fruit.” As Christians, we do believe in the Son of God, who came to save us. In terms of the parable, we do not see ourselves like the tenants who kill the son of the landowner. Perhaps we are not like them, but I think we need to ask ourselves if we don’t participate in killing His message?
At times it can be incredibly easy to let the wisdom of the world influence how we live the Gospel, instead of letting the wisdom of the Gospel influence how we live in the world. When we carry resentments, or condone violence, or hold prejudices, or refuse to love, we contribute to the hindering of the Gospel. When we don’t take the demands of the Gospel seriously, because we find them inconvenient, we, in the language of St. Paul, put up “stumbling blocks” to the Gospel being heard. People can’t hear the Good News if all that they see is Jesus’ followers living according to the ways of the world like everyone else.
This is not to say that following Christ is always easy. Very often, it is not. Showing forgiveness, compassion, and mercy, even to those we may consider enemies, can be extremely difficult. But again, we are reminded of all that Jesus has done for us, so that we might be saved from slavery to sin and fear of death. If we can be open to God’s love for us in Jesus Christ (“Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.” – see our second reading from Philippians), and be open to sharing that love (producing “good fruit”), we will receive “the peace of God that surpasses all understanding.”
Doing God’s will gives us a peace that the world cannot give. May we not be like those who kill the message of the Gospel by hostility or indifference. Instead, may we be good tenants, faithful stewards of the many gifts that God has given us, and live the Gospel to our utmost.
I welcome any comments or questions. Thanks for your time.
In Christ,
Phil, CP
September 20, 2011
Changing Minds
Scripture Readings for September 25, 2011
Ezekiel 18:25-28
Philippians 2:1-11
Matthew 21:28-32
To all,
In our Gospel reading from Matthew, after Jesus tells a parable about obedience, Jesus then says, “Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him.”
It can be very easy for us to judge the chief priests and scribes of Jesus’ time, for not changing their minds and listening to John the Baptist and believing in Jesus. But not changing one’s mind seems to be a highly prized virtue nowadays. It seems to me that a lot of what passes for debate and dialogue today is simply two (or more) camps, fully entrenched in their beliefs, talking at each other. To change one’s mind is considered a betrayal of one’s basic values.
Reflecting on this has led me to consider some questions: When is it right to change one’s mind about important issues? How do we know when the change of mind (and heart) comes from God?
I don’t think there are simple answers to these questions. I’d like to share some personal examples. When I was in the seminary, I was required to take a unit of C.P.E. (Clinical Pastoral Education). I did my unit at a small hospital in Waukegan, IL. I would make rounds in certain parts of the hospital as a member of the pastoral care team. One of the places where I did my rounds was the dialysis unit. One of the patients I visited was a young woman who was considering stopping the treatments. She already had one of her legs amputated, and she was in pain. I thought my duty was to do anything to convince her to continue dialysis, because I knew that if she would stop that she would die. But after some time talking to her, and realizing that she would not change her mind, it seemed to me that the best thing I could do was simply listen. It seemed to me to be the pastoral thing to do.
When I was at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center, I got involved with the NCCJ (National Conference of Community and Justice) in Los Angeles. Some of the volunteers decided to form a group where they would discuss issues of prejudice and discrimination among themselves. It was an eye-opening experience for me, because I learned that “integration” can have negative as well as positive connotations. If integration is experienced as one group trying to make another group in its own image, then integration is usually unwanted, and that is one reason why some minority groups segregate themselves: they don’t want to lose their cultural identity. It was still seen as important to cross the barriers and not be segregated always. While with the NCCJ, I took a course entitled “Training for Facilitating Dialogue among Diverse Groups.” One person taking the course with me was a policeman. Another person was a young, gay, Asian-American. I was surprised when I heard the young man remark that he was surprised that representatives from two institutions (the church and the police) which seemed to reject people like him, were taking this kind of course. These learnings about prejudice and relations among diverse groups were confirmed by my experience in Birmingham, and I am trying to learn from the people who live with us here in Detroit and those who come to St. Paul’s for retreat.
I share all this because it has been my experience that there are times when it is right to change one’s mind, especially when it comes to relationships and perceptions. How do we know when the change is prompted by the Spirit and not something else? I think a good criterion comes from our reading from Philippians (2:1-11): “Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but also for those of others.” I don’t think this is meant in some kind of co-dependent way. Instead, we are to take it as a description of following Jesus. We are not to change our minds about the basic tenets of our faith, but we are to refrain from doing violence, physical or emotional, or otherwise in the name of evangelization. To be steadfast to the point of aggression and condemnation does not seem to jibe with the example of Jesus, who “emptied himself” for the sake of us all.
I welcome any comments or questions. Thank you for your time.
In Christ,
Phil, CP
September 13, 2011
Extreme Generosity
Scripture Readings for Septem,ber 18, 2011
Isaiah 55:6-9
Philippians 1:20c-24, 27a
Matthew 20:1-16a
To all,
In our Gospel reading for Sunday, Jesus tells His disciples a parable about a landowner and the laborers who work in his vineyard. Throughout the day, the landowner hires workers to work in his vineyard. When the time comes for the workers to be paid, the landowner starts with those were hired at the very end of the day. They receive a day’s wage! So the ones hired earlier in the day expect to receive more, but they do not.
I realize that I am writing this, not just from the heart of Ford, GM, and Chrysler, but from the birthplace of the UAW as well. What the landowner does in the parable seems unfair to us, but in the context of Jesus’ time, the landowner was just to the workers hired first. He was simply incredibly generous to the ones hired last. More importantly, the parable is not a position paper on fair or unfair labor practices. It has to do with God’s kingdom and His love for us.
What struck me about the parable this time is what the first workers say in complaint to the landowner: “These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and the heat.” The phrase “you have made them equal to us” is what got my attention. When I look at all the conflicts in our world, in our country, and even in our church, and how we still struggle to form a society free from discrimination and injustice, I can’t help but feel that resentment against others being considered “equal,” is at the heart of much of the strife in our world today. When we deem others unequal to us, it is easy to dismiss them as unimportant. It is easy to condemn them. It is easier to do violence against them.
But even if we were to believe that the kingdom of God is only for those who believe in Christ (or those who belong to some specific denomination of Christianity), and even if we were to believe more in the justice of God than in His mercy, would we then be able to put limits on God’s love? I don’t see how.
And even if I were to somehow believe that I was more deserving of God’s love than you, would that mean that I was deserving of God’s love? I don’t think so. There is nothing I have done, nor is there anything I can do, to deserve Jesus sacrificing Himself for me! At the foot of the Cross, and at the entrance to the empty tomb, we are all like the workers hired last in the parable: We have all received, undeservedly, from God’s generosity.
So, instead of grumbling about God’s generosity to others; instead of trying to justify any feelings of superiority or hatred against others, we should forever be grateful for God’s love for us in Jesus Christ! In our second reading, St. Paul writes: “Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ.” For me, to conduct ourselves worthy of what we hear Jesus tell His disciples today is to rejoice at the generosity of God towards us and the world! We’re called to let go of the biases and prejudices that get in the way of loving others as Jesus has taught us. God has made us equal as recipients of His love. Our response is up to us, but as Christians it cannot involve resentment or condemnation of others.
I welcome any comments or questions. Thanks for your time.
In Christ,
Phil, CP
September 7, 2011
Anger, Forgiveness, and 9-11
Scripture Readings for September 11, 2011
Sirach 27:30 – 28:9
Romans 14:7-9
Matthew 18:21-35
To all,
This is a bit longer than usual, but I ask you to reflect on it with me.
Sunday marks the tenth anniversary of 9 – 11. In the newspapers, on radio and TV and on the Internet, there have been all sorts of remembrances of the event, and reflections on how it changed the lives of individuals and the history of the nation. In the midst of all this, the Scripture readings for Sunday offer us lessons on anger and forgiveness.
In our Gospel reading from Matthew, Peter asks Jesus, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive? As many as seven times?” And Jesus replies, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” And then Jesus tells a parable about a servant whose debt to the king was forgiven, but would not forgive a debt owed to him, and then was punished by the king. Jesus says, “So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.”
Does our Gospel reading have anything to do with our perspective on 9 – 11? When we hear Jesus speak about forgiveness, or we recite the Lord’s Prayer, we may think it only applies to our loved ones, or to fellow members of the church or some other group. Can it really be applied to terrorists, or others, for that matter, who are considered real enemies?
We need to remember 9 – 11. We need to acknowledge the great loss of life. We need to recognize all those on that day who showed great heroism and sacrifice in their attempt to help and save others, some at the point of losing their own lives.
We also need to acknowledge that there might be good reasons for people to be angry and withhold forgiveness. There can be great frustration in our relationships. There are people frustrated at the lack of job opportunities. We can all share some frustration with the politics in Washington and elsewhere. Sometimes we can’t bring ourselves to forgive someone because we know we’re right. We know an injustice has been done.
But however much our anger may be justified, we still need to listen to Jesus. I think some words from our first reading from Sirach can help us understand what we are called to do:
Could anyone nourish anger against another and expect healing from the LORD?
Could anyone refuse mercy to another like himself,
can he seek pardon for his own sins?
If one who is flesh cherishes wrath, who will forgive his sins?
I think often when we are hurt in some way, and get angry, the temptation is to get even. We nurse the grudge along, convincing ourselves how bad or wrong the other person is. In the words of our reading, we are “nourishing anger,” and “cherishing wrath.” When we do that, how can we expect healing from the Lord? It isn’t that Jesus withholds His love from us. When we are nursing a grudge, we are usually unable to listen to anything that Jesus may have to say to us.
When we look at the Cross, we can hear Jesus saying, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” We see Jesus taking our sins upon Himself. If we follow Jesus, can we justify withholding forgiveness?
Still, to forgive the terrorists who perpetrated 9 – 11, or others who have committed heinous crimes, seems unforgiveable itself. We need to remember that forgiveness doesn’t mean we condone the sin. It doesn’t mean we accept injustice. But it does mean we are willing to stop nourishing our anger.
So, can we, should we, forgive those who have killed so many people? I’m not sure I have a good answer to that. But I do know Jesus died so that we might be forgiven, and it seems to me that we have more than enough of people cherishing wrath against another, in almost all aspects of our society. Vengeance is the way of the world, but St. Paul tells us in our second reading from Romans that we are to live, and die, for the Lord. Is it possible to have healing without forgiveness? Have we been healed without God’s forgiveness of us?
May God continue to bless us all, and may all those who died that fateful day, rest in peace.
In Christ,
Phil, CP
Phil'sreflections 