We are in the last weeks of our present
liturgical year. We’re just 4 weeks away from the beginning of Advent, from a
new Church year which begins on Nov 27.
Advent is not only a time when we prepare for Christmas and for the
birth of Jesus into our world, but it is a penitential season where we look
into our hearts in a special way to see those ways we need to turn away from
sin and to receive renewal and conversion in our lives. Today’s readings get us thinking about these
themes, about how we need to repent and amend our ways, to look at those things
that perhaps are eroding our faith, that are keeping us from growing in our
relationship with Christ.
The
prophet Malachi spoke to the people of ancient Israel in the fifth century,
just a generation or two after the Israelites returned from exile in
Babylon. At that time, the people had
once again turned their backs on God.
Many had married outside of their faith and had turned to the worship of
foreign idols. Malachi is very direct in
his message, in identifying the sins of the people and the sins of their
priests. The prophet tells them that it’s
not enough to go through the empty motions of religious rituals if they are
doing so for their own glory and to make themselves look good in the eyes of
others and in the eyes of God. Malachi
prophesies that the priests will be held accountable for having strayed from
their faith, for leading the people astray as well.
Jesus
is very hard on the Pharisees and the Scribes in today’s Gospel, because he saw
them not only leading so many of the faithful astray, but they took the glory
that was due God, and in a very sneaky and hypocritical way, turned it into
their own glory. Yet, in contrast to the
scribes and Pharisees that Jesus warns us about, I bet we can all think of
those who have been examples of faith for us, who truly have lived and served
for the glory of God, who have led us closer to the faith rather than leading
us astray. When I was in Ecuador serving
as a missionary, I saw so many priests and nuns who had left their countries
from all over the world in order to serve the poor throughout this vast jungle
region of South America. I met one
elderly nun from Italy – Sister Gemma – who had been there in the jungle for
almost forty years. Even though she had
gone through some very difficult times, I was struck by the love, grace, and
humility through which she served the Lord as a missionary. She never drew attention to herself, she
never was announcing to others how great she was. She knew that God called her as a missionary,
as his servant, so she served him simply and humbly, through patience,
perseverance, and hard work. That is so
different from the message we see in the Pharisees and scribes in today’s Gospel,
who follow all the laws of the faith, but who do so rigidly and
dogmatically. In flaunting the way they
take the seats of honor, in drawing attention to themselves and lording their
power over others, the scribes and Pharisees really are serving only themselves.
Let
us look at a very different example. Our
psalmist humbly comes before the Lord this morning, telling him: My heart is
not proud, Lord. My eyes are not
haughty. I don’t spend my time trying to
accomplish great things. I don’t not
worry about those things that are too complicated or sublime for me. Instead, the psalmist declares that he has
found his peace with the Lord, that his hope is in the Lord both now and
forever.
The
Pharisees and scribes would not have understood one of the main messages St
Teresa of Avila brings to us in her teachings, that love begets love, that even
though we are all still truly beginners in loving in the same way that Jesus
loved, we are to strive to implant this love in our hearts and to bring this
love to others. And we can bring this
love to others in so many different ways, in so many creative ways, even in
some fun ways. Our parishes here in
Yazoo City had a Halloween carnival that was a very important social activity
for many years, but it had been a long time since we’ve had this event. Out of love for our parish community, out of
love for our children and youth, some of the ladies of our parish wanted to
revive this event this year. For many in
our parish, the Halloween carnival brings back a lot of memories. So, we look forward to having this social
time together this afternoon in this revival of an old parish tradition. If we try to be a community where Christ’s
love is present, where we want to share this love with others, then that love
will multiply, and be a true sign that we are living out the Gospel message in
our world.
Just
last week, we saw our own Pope Benedict using our Catholic faith to bring the
message of God’s love to the world. He
convened religious leaders from all over the world to Assisi, Italy, the
hometown of St Francis of Assisi, to stress the importance of all of us working
together for world peace. Pope Benedict
pointed out that it had been 25 years to the day that Pope John Paul II convened
the first world day prayer for peace in Assisi.
Leaders from Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, traditional African religions,
and from different Protestant faiths all pledged to work toward dialogue,
justice, peace, and friendship. In a
world where a lot of terrorism and violence has been perpetuated in the name of
God and in the name of different religions, a world day of prayer for peace
tells the world what all these faith traditions truly stand for.
Yes,
there are a lot of things that can erode our faith, that can lead us astray,
that can bring us down. However, if we
make a conscious decision of living out a faith that is more than going through
the motions, then God’s love will truly be present.
No comments:
Post a Comment