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Gospel Reflection 20070128

Let go of your fear!
We have so many fears—the fear of failure, the fear of others' opinions, the fear of being disliked, misunderstood or rejected, the fear of disease, injury or death. Fear hides from us our potential for love. Fear restricts us and makes us feel small and excessively cautious. It poisons our relationships. Driven by fear we seek to prove other people wrong. We justify revenge. We make other people feel inferior to ourselves. Fear causes us to see the world only in terms of division, separateness and fractured relationships.

Jesus invites us to see the world in a new and exciting way. It is like being born again. Our first step is to let go of our fear. Drop it in the nearest imaginary stream and let the water take it away. The Spirit breathes new life into us.

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I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
January 28, 2007


Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Luke 4:21-30
Jesus began speaking in the synagogue, saying, "Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing." And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, "Isn´t this the son of Joseph?" He said to them, "Surely you will quote me this proverb, ´Physician, cure yourself,´ and say, ´Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.´" And he said, "Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land. It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian." When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong. But he passed through the midst of them and went away.

Our Gospel passage this morning describes the beginning of the ministry of Jesus. In the passage preceding today’s text, Jesus has emerged from his 40-day fast in the desert. We are told: “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news of him spread throughout the whole region. He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.” Initially, the reaction to Jesus preaching in Nazareth is also very positive. The Gospel states: “And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.”
Then a doubt emerges. We are only told that the people asked: “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” Evidently, much is summarized in this very cryptic passage. Jesus attempts to answer questions about his authority by citing the evidence in the Old Testament of the prophets not being appreciated by their own people. Jesus offers the examples of Elijah and Elisha finding more faith in gentiles than in Israel.
Again, we can look back to the author of today’s first reading, Jeremiah, and discover the price for speaking the truth to God’s people. Jeremiah was flogged, put in stocks, and thrown into a dungeon, and eventually exiled. The life of a prophet was not easy.
The Gospel today relates that the people in the Nazareth Synagogue became “filled with fury” at Jesus’ words and message. We are told that they “drove him [Jesus] out of town” and they were preparing to hurl him over a cliff, when Jesus was able to stop this angry mob by the sheer power of his gaze.
This incident, of course, was not the last encounter of Jesus with hostility. As we read on in the gospels, we discover that the conflicts between Jesus and the religious leaders of Israel intensify. It would finally end with another angry mob shouting their desire for Jesus’ fate with the words: “Crucify him! Crucify him!” Jesus would be led to another hill – the hill of Calvary. This time, Jesus would not walk away, but would allow himself to be submitted to a cruel, painful, and humiliating death—death on the cross.
The disciple of Jesus cannot reflect on Jesus’ fate dispassionately. What happened to Jesus is personalized for us as we recall Jesus’ own sober warning, “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first….. `No slave is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.” The good news is that we share in the mission of Jesus. The challenging news is that Jesus promised us that following him would not be a “rose garden.”

Last Sunday the Gospel Reading showed us that Jesus had just started to preach in the synagogues. Saint Luke, this Sunday, tells us that when Jesus preached in Nazaret, his hometown, he picked up on the reaction of several of his neighbors who received his words poorly and, in some cases, with hostility. His preaching was well liked and some even admired it, recognizing that his words were wise and that every word that came out of his mouth was the pure truth. Nevertheless, he also observed that many of them, looked at each other and derisively said, “Isn’t he the son of Joseph?”
To many people this will not seem strange. Surely, many have experienced the same type of welcome from others. Not only among friends but possibly even from members of their own families who obstinately refuse to recognize successes gained. When others who are possibly more industrious, more willing to work, or more willing to sacrifice or who have been given special talents by the Lord because they are more willing to follow him, triumph in life, they can see around them the looks of envy. They can see with that others are not happy to see a brother or sister do well, as God asks us to do. Thos how have to suffer through this should do so as Our Lord did. We saw in the Gospel Reading that he had a sense of humor. Surely he did not like the reaction of his neighbors. It was, after all, his hometown. But, even so, he took things generously and said to the, “Surely you will quote me this proverb, ‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’” And he added more. He told them that he knew that no prophet is admired and accepted in his own land.

In today’s gospel we read of as incident that gets very little emphasis .... the crowd threatened to kill Jesus! What could so incite a group of people that they would consider such a violent action? The cause was not indicated but Jesus may have been questioning their commitment. He tells His audience that during the drought the prophet Elijah did not go to a widow in Israel but instead went to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Also, He indicated that while there were many lepers in Israel the prophet Elisha chose to cleanse Naaman, a Syrian.
Why would Jesus comments so enrage the crowd? I would assume they were angry because Jesus was indicating the people of Israel were not worthy to be the beneficiaries of these miracles. He was criticizing them for their lack of faith. Those listening to Him did not accept his comments with a feeling of remorse or even with a conscious acceptance of His criticism. Rather, their attitude seemed to be, “How dare you talk to us in this manner? You are only the son of a humble carpenter. We don’t have to listen to you.”
The crowd was angry and did not issue an empty threat. Listen once again. “They rose up, drove Him out of the town and led him to the brow of a hill to hurl Him down headlong.” They weren’t kidding. They meant to kill Him. Can you imagine the feeling of awe they had when He looked them right in the eye and, with no fear, simply walked away from them. They were powerless to stop Him.
Does this remind us of any other society that seems to have the same reaction to the teachings of Jesus Christ? Could it remind us of our society here in the United States? If so, do we have the courage of Jesus that would strengthen our will to oppose many of the evils in our society?

Who was He? Listen to His words at the beginning of the gospel. “Today, the Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” He was saying, “I am the Messiah. I am the son of God. I bring salvation to those who will follow Me.” But ... they didn’t want to follow Him, they wanted to kill Him. I believe that many rich, important people in the United States might well react as did His Jewish audience.
So, what does this mean to us assembled here in His church? Well, first of all, instead of threatening to throw Him off the brow of the hill, we have all come here of our own free will to hear His words. We believe. In our society we are probably in the minority just as Jesus was in the minority as He faced the Jewish congregation that had assembled to hear Him.
Some may be thinking, “It’s not really that big a deal. Coming to Mass one day a week isn’t that difficult.” That’s true but when you read the statistics of the recent survey of the United States bishops and learn that of those in this country who claim to be Catholic, only 29% regularly attend Sunday Mass, we can conclude we are following the teachings of Jesus Christ by being here this morning (evening).
However, is there the possibility that we too can take our faith for granted? After all, the Jews who heard Jesus speak were initially very supportive of Him. The gospel tells us, “All spoke highly of Him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from His mouth.” But when, He challenged them their attitudes changes drastically. And isn’t that the same attitude we must fear? If He would speak to us of how we are living our lives, would we continue to agree with His teachings? This is His challenge.
In particular, I think this is His challenge to the young people among us. You are the targets of many different people trying to convince you that His way should not be your way. They well tell you, “Don’t follow His instructions about sinning against the 6th commandment.” They will also try to convince you that abortion is a solution to a problem rather than the cause of additional problems. Society may tell you that drugs and alcohol are merely instruments by which you show your individuality and that it’s fun to go along with the crowd. But ... they are lying. By your presence here today you are professing that only Jesus has the real secret to your happiness, here and in the hereafter.
Those of us who are older also face the problem of following Jesus and not being tempted be a society that tells us, “Get rich .. have fun ... don’t spend your precious time in prayer and in helping others.” Is that what Jesus teaches us? In this gospel, when those who heard Him realized He was talking to them about their lack of faith they suddenly became hostile, didn’t they? “Don’t listen to the words of that Man. After all, isn’t He the son of Joseph? Isn’t He just a carpenter? He’s no rock star, He’s no powerful politician, He’s no economic wizard?” No, he wasn’t. He was just the Son of God, sent to save the world from sin. He was sent to save all of us from the very excesses prevalent in our present society. No wonder there are others who would preach against Him.
The teenagers, the young adults, the married and the senior citizens here this morning have been promised by the God of Moses and by Jesus Christ that we need not throw away our lives just to “be popular and join the crowd”. If we will truly recognize what is happening, if we see how our modern society preaches destruction while our God promises us salvation, peace and love with Him, He will give us the courage to continue following His words.
As we come to communion this morning consider the words of today’s psalm,
“For you are my hope, O Lord; my trust, O God, from my youth,
On you I depend from birth from my mother’s womb,
you are my strength.”
His grace will be there to strengthen us so that we can follow His example, today. If we follow Him, we too will be able “to pass through the midst of those who would kill our faith and we, too, will be strong enough to walk away from the false promises of this society.

We Share the Mission of the Crucified
Each one of us in church today has been called in some way to share in the mission of Jesus. We have been called by God, since before our birth, to receive the life of Christ but also to give the life of Christ to others. The Lord is depending on us to be the instruments in announcing in words, but even more so by our deeds, the good news of His love to others. There are others who are depending on our acceptance of Jesus’ mission for their own opportunity to understand and experience the love of God for them revealed in Jesus Christ.
If we share in the mission of Jesus, then we must inevitably share in His cross. We should not be surprised when the world does not praise us or does not accept us or is even openly hostile to us. Jesus–in the Beatitudes–warns those of us who would follow Him: “Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you [falsely] because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” How can we hear these words of Jesus and not expect to suffer if we are true to our mission? How can we be surprised when we find ourselves rejected and ridiculed by our culture and society?

Pray for the Grace to Welcome the Cross
In light of acts of great Christian heroism in the last century and thousands upon thousands more through the two millennia of Christianity, can we ever complain about the small ways we are permitted to share in the cross of Jesus? It is bearing these hardships—whatever they may be—with joy and love, that God can use us most powerfully to change hearts and enlighten minds with the truth of the Gospel.
Conclusion
Let us give thanks that each one of us has been given a wonderful life; a life filled with meaning and purpose. Let us ask for the grace to follow Jesus with fidelity and joy, even when that leads us to share in His passion and His cross. It is at these moments particularly that Jesus desires to use our courage and perseverance to open the hearts of others to the truth and beauty of the Gospel. In the Eucharist today, let us renew our gratitude for the privilege of sharing in Jesus’ life and mission. Let us pray for the grace to follow Him faithfully as He leads us through the mysterious events of our lives to the threshold of eternal life and joy.




Using the beautiful words of Isaiah, Jesus identified Himself to His home-town folks as the Messiah who had come to proclaim a “year of favor from the Lord.” The folks were delighted by His lovely words, but clearly had little intention of accepting “the son of Joseph” as the Messiah. At most, they felt, He might be a good speaker and perform some miracles; He should stay in Nazareth and have the decency to cure His own folks and make His home-town famous, and maybe even rich, by attracting strangers. Jesus, of course, had no intention of being domesticated by the narrow-mindedness and faithlessness of the Nazarenes. He tells them as much by reminding them of two other men sent to Israel by God who were also confronted with a lack of faith, viz. Elijah and Elisha. The Nazarenes react to this reminder with furious disdain and mob violence. Jesus’ only course of action was to leave Nazareth in hurried dismay. Apparently, His first experience of preaching had been, as Cardinal Martini once pointed out, a total disaster: no-one listened, no-one believed and no-one wanted Him any more.
We might ask: was Jesus unnecessarily provocative? Shouldn’t He have “done what Jesus would do”, understanding here by “Jesus” our oft too comfortable caricature of the real Jesus? “Now, now, Jesus –we might say- be nice! Be understanding! Have patience … and … well, never mind that little sin of theirs! Don’t be harsh, Jesus dear: remember what good St. Paul writes about love not being pompous or inflated or rude or quick-tempered.” So, was Jesus lacking in love the way He spoke and acted in Nazareth? Was He acting like an Old Testament prophet, like Jeremiah, thinking only in terms of being a “fortified city, a pillar of iron, a wall of brass against the whole land”? Was He looking for a fight? Was He suffering from an inferiority complex and just trying to prove Himself some kind of biblical macho?
We could take this even further and suggest that, again using the words of St. Paul, Jesus was being short-sighted in the way He handled Himself at Nazareth. St. Paul makes it clear that prophecy will one day fail, and only love will remain. “What’s the point, then, dearest Jesus, of all your prophesying when, at the end, God’s love will prevail and everyone will be happy ever after . . .?”
With this, I hope to have stirred you to focus on what is really at stake in the almost tragic episode of Jesus’ visit to Nazareth.
Undoubtedly it was the hope of Jesus that He would be accepted by the people of His own home town, but He was not looking for the kind of acceptance we associate with an Olympic gold-medallist. Jesus did not seek acclaim. Nor did He seek the kind of acceptance that would require of Him to fit the preconceived notions of the Nazarenes. Remember, He declared fulfilled in Himself the prophecy of Isaiah about the Messiah, and it was as the Messiah, or the Christ, that He sought acceptance. He therefore sought acceptance by faith. When, however, He heard the people say, “this is Joseph’s son, surely?”, He knew that their hearts had remained closed in the realm of human appearances and human respect, and He told them: “just as Elijah and Elisha found no faith in Yahweh among the Israelites, so I find among you Nazarenes no faith in me as the divine Messiah.” That is why they desire to kill Him: He was guilty of blasphemy, equating Himself with Yahweh.
You might still object: “why could He not have gone about giving His reprimand more lovingly? Do we not speak of Him as gentle and humble of Heart?”
Here we touch upon one of the most difficult aspects of our experience as human beings and as believers in Jesus Christ. One of the major problems is our use and our understanding of the word “love”. Today, this word has, to some extent, been hijacked and reduced to meaning a commodity that has been privatized and commercialized. By commodity, I mean an object of self-satisfying consumption: “I need to get my love, I need to feel my share of love.” By privatized, I mean love is treated much the same way as morality and religion are mischaracterized today: “keep it to yourself, it’s merely your private business.” By commercialized, I mean advertised, bought and sold and, if needs be, discarded. Now, I am not saying that there is no genuine love around in our time. But this kind of watered-down understanding of love has become an umbrella to justify everything from casual sex to divorce and from pornography to so-called reality TV. Of course, when the true wine of love is so watered-down that it itself becomes water, then people begin to believe that the water is wine. Should someone then insist on seeking real wine, they are considered as being too demanding, too hard to please, yes, and even too provocative.
A significant reason, if not the reason, behind this dilution of love is the separation of love from truth. Again, truth is also a word that has suffered a sort of kidnapping and dilution, to the point of meaning almost anything anyone wants it to mean. Most disturbing is that positive science has sought to reserve for itself a monopoly on the meaning of truth. If something cannot be verified scientifically, i.e. proven by science’s own standards, then it is often dismissed as fable, speculation, opinion, illusion or some other such word. A truth that is not scientific is thought, at best, to be pleasantly irrelevant. Yet in Sacred Scripture, and therefore in the mind, heart and usage of Jesus, the words love and truth mean so much more and are, in fact, inseparable.
Ultimately, truth and love are the reality of God Himself. No love can be love if God is not present: any love, for all that it may call itself love, but which cannot stand in the presence of God, is a fake love, is an untrue love. Love is by definition the profoundest bond between persons, and thus cannot be a commodity for sale or for greedy consumption; nor can it therefore be private in the sense of a solitary, individualistic self-satisfaction. This is because God is present in any true love, and by that very fact unites us to Himself and to one another, even to those whom we do not know. Love is a free and sincere gift of one’s own self, and so cannot be commercialized. To commercialize love is to usurp the power to sell God, something Judas did cynically with nothing less than a kiss.
Similarly, truth in its deepest and biblical sense refers to God’s fidelity to the love He has shown us in creating and redeeming us in His Beloved Son, who is the Truth itself. Scientific truth is, of course, a wonderful thing: it shows forth the beauty of God’s creation in the insight and inventions it discovers. But you cannot put Christ, the Truth of the Gospel, under a microscope; Einstein himself can say nothing about the Eucharist or the Resurrection. Hence, scientific truth must remain at the service of the truth about the human person, and that truth is fully revealed only by Christ and in Christ. When science oversteps that service, for example, in human cloning, it encroaches upon the Kingdom of Christ. Scientific truth is but one reflection of the fullness of God’s truth; so is political truth (when it is actually true), legal truth (both in its constitution and interpretation), aesthetic truth and every other truth that is truth. They all form part of the manifold fidelity of God to Himself and to mankind, although that fidelity far surpasses the sum of all these different dimensions of the truth.
Therefore, Jesus did not fail to love the Nazarenes when He proclaimed the truth about Himself and about them. Rather, He would have failed to love them had He not done so. When someone who truly loves speaks a truth to the beloved that is difficult for the beloved to accept, because it is perceived by the beloved as criticism or rejection, then that love and truth are themselves declared suspect or false by that same beloved. In fact, of course, they are neither false nor suspect. Rather, both are authentic, for it is a genuine love, a true love, which seeks to free the beloved from the sin or evil which afflicts them. How can my love be true if I fail to save my beloved from their affliction, especially when they do not see it or do not want to see it? It is the sin in the beloved which seeks to convince the same beloved that the lover who challenges them to be rid of sin is himself evil. The old deception is: “if you loved me, you wouldn’t tell me I’m not living the truth, you’d tell me what I want to hear.” The older truth is, however: “because I love you, love impels me to tell you where the lack of truth in you is destroying you, and so, I will tell you precisely what you do not want to hear.”
This is what motivates the prophets to speak, because it motivates God who sent them. More radically still, it motivates Jesus of Nazareth since the very reason for His coming among us was to free us, who are His beloved, from sin. It also motivates the Church in Her prophetic mission to denounce evil in any and all its forms irrespective of the reaction of the world or, indeed, of Her own sons and daughters. Sensitivity to modern living and thinking must surely be present in Her, but it cannot silence Her voice to proclaim that the truth of the human person and the true love of the human person is revealed only and fully in Jesus Christ. To some that may seem provocative, to others obsolete, to yet others politically imprudent, to others still, hypocritical or simply irrelevant. So be it. The Church and Her prophets may suffer the same fate in the modern city that the Nazarenes wished to foist upon Jesus by hurling Him headlong out of their town. The Church may be misunderstood for the motivation of Her clear teaching on what is right and what is wrong. Yet, irrespective of that, Her love for all the children of mankind will remain steadfast because Her fidelity to the truth of Christ will not, cannot, fail. And, at the threshold of heaven, She will be there to assist all who seek Her help to enter upon the eternal year of favor from the Lord, in the truth and the love of Heaven.

posted by Mike Young @ 5:41 PM