Climbing Down

It is called “climbing the ladder.”

In today’s society, we view our lives as climbing a ladder, trying to get ahead. We rise in the ranks by getting better jobs, earning a larger salary and showing off flashier toys than the people below us. Our value lies in how high and how fast we are able to rise. We look down on those below us on the ladder because they are obviously not as smart or as hardworking as we are. If they suffer because they lack the resources we enjoy, we consider it their own fault. As for the people above us, we look on them with envy and spite. We call them names like “fat-cats” or “the one percent”. To get as high as they did, they must have inherited their money or earned it by cheating others. All the while we are trying to get up to where they are.

This idea of climbing the ladder which is so pervasive in our world today may be successful at motivating us to get ahead but it has devastating consequences for society. It teaches us that our worth as individuals can be measured in material possessions. Goodness, integrity and honesty are only valuable if they help us get ahead. It splinters society by creating divisions based on class and income. Finally it gives us an excuse for not reaching down to help those who are less fortunate than ourselves. As we see it, it is their own fault for not getting ahead. Their misfortune is their own problem. We are not responsible for their hardships. We are only responsible for our own successes or failures.

As we see in today’s gospel, even Jesus’ disciples were not immune from jockeying for position in the rank of apostle. Saint Mark tells us that on the way to the town of Capernaum, they were arguing among themselves about which one was the greatest. We are not told exactly what they were saying, but we can imagine that one claimed to have more faith, another probably claimed to know Scripture better and yet another probably claimed to be a closer friend of Jesus. While they would not have been arguing over who made the most money or who had the finest tunic, their mentality was the same as ours. Each was trying to climb the ladder by stepping on the person below.

However, Jesus tells them - and us - that nothing could be further from the message of love He came to teach. In fact, He came to take the climbing the ladder mentality and turn it on its head by saying, “The last shall be first and the first shall be last.” Unlike the corporate world of power and politics, in God’s kingdom we show our status not by trying to get ahead of others but by reaching down to help others get ahead of us. We do not climb the stairway to heaven by asserting our own rights and interests but by promoting the interests of those less fortunate than ourselves. Jesus came to preach a revolutionary message of love that tears down the divisions of class, status and income that society creates and replaces it with unity, solidarity and cooperation.

Saint James picks up on this theme in today’s second reading. The type of jealousy and selfish ambition which drives our idea of climbing the ladder is the cause of endless strife in society and much injustice. But God shows us a better way. It is the way of wisdom which is peaceable and full of mercy. Such wisdom leads to peace. If we want a more just world in which all people have an opportunity to practice their faith and support their families, then it is clear that we have to jump off the ladder, put aside our selfish ambition and begin to serve one another out of love.

Jesus shows us how in the gospel. By taking a child into His arms, He tells us, “If you are going to envy someone, envy this child.” Love comes naturally to children. Everything they have comes from their parents. They look to others to have their needs met. Money, power and prestige mean nothing to them. Jesus makes it clear, that unless we become like children, unless we put aside the drive to get ahead at all costs, we cannot enter His Kingdom.

As followers of Jesus living in a world driven by greed, it can be difficult for us not to get caught up in the mindless pursuit of wealth and possessions. However, we are called to something greater. We are called to store treasure in heaven. So while we participate in the economy by working and investing our money, we must be driven by more than just trying to get ahead. As a witness to our faith, we should be living simpler lives so that we will have more money to give to charities. By volunteering at soup kitchens or at suicide hotlines, we point out to others that we have a responsibility to come to the aid of those who have fallen into misfortune. And if it happens that we lose our job or fall on hard times ourselves, we can rest assured that although we may be looked down upon or ignored by others, we are still valuable members of society and that we will be richly provided for by our Heavenly Father.

As in all things, Jesus shows us the way. Although He was more powerful than any other man who walked the earth, He used His power to help others rather than to gain an advantage for Himself. When He was rejected, He did not resort to vengeance or violence but to forgiveness, offering Himself up to death so that we could live. Our world which is caught up in divisions, strife and violence is so in need of that example, and we must give it by God’s grace by refusing to get ahead at the expense of others and refusing to look down on those who have less than we do. To transform our world, we must become like the child Jesus held in His arms, trusting that our needs will be provided for as we seek to serve others. Then the peace of God’s Kingdom can begin to take hold in our world.

Surrendering In Faith

What is faith? What do we mean when we say that we have it?

Having faith means believing in something without hard evidence. For instance, I do not need faith to know that two plus two equals four because it can be shown to me. However, I do need faith to believe God exists because we cannot see or touch Him.  

Faith, however, also means something more. It means trust. It means not only knowing that God exists, but loving him and placing our lives in his hands. 

Because faith is both belief and trust, it can be at work in our lives on two levels.

On the first level, we accept certain truths of Catholic teaching. For instance, we believe that God exists, that we should go to Mass on Sundays or that babies should be baptized. This is a faith of the head, an intellectual faith, dealing mainly with doctrines and catechism. It is a faith of belief which is centered on facts and data.  Most people have at least this level of faith at work in their lives.

However,  there is a deeper level of faith which not only agrees that God exists and that he loves everyone, but believes it so deeply that it changes the way a person thinks, acts and speaks. If the first level of faith is a faith of the head, this second level is a faith of the heart, a faith that drives us to believe with our whole being. People who have been given such faith love everyone because they believe that God loves everyone. They forgive whomever may hurt them because they believe that God forgives all wrongs. This level of faith goes beyond mere belief in God to trust in God.  People who have such a gift of faith are willing to stake their lives on what they believe, not just their intellect or their opinions.

It is this second level of faith that James describes in today's second reading. When he says that faith without works is dead, he means that if our beliefs do not lead us to change the way we live, then our faith has no power to save us. If it is not making a difference in the choices we make, then we really do not have it. We all know this from our personal lives. People may tell us they love us. But we know that our true friends are the ones who stand by us in the bad times as well as the good times. It is the actions of our friends that reveal whether or not they have love for us in their hearts. Just so, it is our actions that reveal whether or not our faith is real.

In today's gospel reading, both levels of faith -faith of the head and faith of the heart - are tested in Peter. When Jesus asks his disciples, "Who do you say that I am?", Peter alone has the right answer: "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." But when Jesus pushes beyond this faith of the head to see if he has a deeper faith of the heart, Peter flunks. Peter could not accept that being the Messiah meant that Jesus would have to suffer. Though in his head he could believe that Jesus was the Son of God, in his heart he was not ready to accept the consequences.

As with Peter, it is suffering oftentimes which tests on what level our faith is operating. It is natural to want to avoid suffering and even more natural to not want to see the people we love suffer. Sometimes, however, suffering is unavoidable. It is at those moments that our faith is tested.  Faith that is merely at the level of the head will not be able to survive the ordeals of disease, divorce or death. It takes a faith of the heart to continue to believe that God loves us no matter what difficulties we or our loved ones face. The good news is that God uses suffering not only to test the faith we already have, but to offer us a deeper faith.  If we can accept difficulties with patience, God can make the faith in our head trickle down into our heart. That way, we can learn to trust that no matter how senseless our suffering may seem, God still loves us and can still make all things work for our good.

Suffering is very often an inevitable part of life. Jesus came not to take our suffering away but to suffer with us and to make our suffering an opportunity to have a deeper faith of the heart. And so Jesus says to all of us who want to follow him: "Pick up your cross and follow me. Pick up your suffering and follow me. Pick up your loneliness and follow me. Pick up your broken marriage and follow me. Pick up your failed business and follow me." These difficulties need not be obstacles in following Jesus, but they are the ways God uses to help us grow in holiness and trust. It is the way God uses to place in our hearts a faith that can really save us.

The Power Of Speech

Imagine what it would be like to spend your whole life not being able to speak. Imagine the frustration of not being able to tell others what you are thinking or what you need. Imagine the humiliation of being left out of conversations or having others talk about you as if you weren’t there. Imagine the helplessness of having to rely on others to speak for you.

Then, imagine Jesus healing you and you are suddenly able to talk. What would be the first words you’d want to say? Who would be the first person you would want to talk to? Who would be the first person you’d want to say “I love you” to?

It is easy for us to take for granted just how powerful words are. What we say and how we say it can affect others for a lifetime. Words have the power to build us up or knock us down.  If we look back on our lives we can see just how true this is. How many of us can still remember hurtful words our parents or teachers spoke to us when we were young and how they continue to haunt us today? How many times do we make decisions just to prove to ourselves that what others said about us in the past was wrong? People may have spoken many encouraging words to us in the past, but it always seems to be the hurtful ones that stay with us.

For that reason, we should always be aware of the power our words have to help or to harm others. We should always be careful to speak words of encouragement, that give people hope and that comfort them. This is the message of the prophet Isaiah in today’s first reading: “Say to those whose hearts are frightened: ‘Be strong, fear not!’” Who are the people in our homes, schools or workplaces who could benefit from a kind word or a simple “hello”? Who are the people in our lives who go unnoticed, whose hard work is not appreciated or who seem isolated and lonely. A simple word of thanks or appreciation can go a long way in lifting their spirits and giving them a sense of self-worth. That is how powerful our words can be.

Respect for the power of words should also make us aware of how we talk about others, especially behind their backs. It does not take much to ruin someone’s reputation. If we take part in spreading stories about other people, especially false ones, we are committing a very serious sin. Imagine how we would feel if someone spread rumors about us. How could we ever get our good name back? Just so, we each have a duty not only to avoid gossip but to stand up for those whose good name is being sullied. None of us should stand by silently while someone is spreading rumors about another person. Rather, we must use our power of speech to challenge those who gossip to see how hurtful their words are.

Using our power of speech responsibly also requires that we tell the truth and avoid lying. We sometimes consider lying to be only a minor sin, but that itself is a lie. Anytime we use our power of speech to say anything other than the truth we are harming our neighbor. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us: “Lying consists in saying what is false with the intention of deceiving the neighbor who has the right to the truth” (2508). Think about why we tell lies. In our relationships, we lie to hide our faults and weaknesses from others. We fear that if people knew us as we really were, they would not be able to love us. When that happens, all our relationships are built on falsehoods. We do not feel truly loved and our friends end up feeling deceived. Relationships built on lies can never last.

We also lie in our business dealings. Perhaps we try to convince others that we have more expertise or experience than we really do. Or we might try to hide the defects in a product we are selling. Sooner or later, the truth will come out. It will become clear that we are not as competent as we are making ourselves out to be or that whatever we are selling is not as effective as we claim. Then our reputations will be ruined permanently. Business built on lies and deceit can never enjoy long term growth and prosperity. As the saying goes, “Honesty is the best policy.”

Nothing that is built on lies can last long. If we are going to build a just and peaceful society, then the first place to start is by being truthful with one another. This is especially true of politicians who have a duty to tell us the truth so that we can make good and wise decisions about our life together. We also have a duty to tell the truth to people in authority so that they can make good decisions. Many times we choose not to tell the truth, especially to the police, thinking that we are protecting our friends or family members. However, all it does is make it harder for the authorities to keep us safe. Then we turn around and blame them for the levels of crime and corruption in our cities. Instead, we all have to learn to work together to build a society where people are encouraged and rewarded for telling the truth rather than covering it up.

In today’s gospel, Jesus healed a man with a speech impediment. Perhaps the healing that we need is to be able to use our words more wisely to build one another up and to be more honest in our dealings with one another. All of us should be speaking a lot less and choosing our words more carefully. Just as Jesus opened the ears of the deaf man, we should pray that He open our ears so that we can listen more carefully to the fears, joys and struggles of those around us. Then we will be able to speak words that heal and encourage them as we work together to build a more just and peaceful society grounded firmly in the truth.

Hearing And Listening

There is a big difference between hearing and listening.

If you have ever been to a party, asked someone his or her name and then halfway through the conversation forgotten it, then you know the difference. We sometimes tell ourselves that we are just bad with names. But the fact is that we are really bad at listening.

Have you ever driven home from Mass and asked yourself what the readings were about and could not remember? Have your parents ever asked you to do something and as soon as you left the room forgotten what it was? Have you ever bumped into a friend at the store and stopped to talk but are so busy thinking about all the errands you have to run that you are not at all paying attention to the conversation?

Hearing is simply a matter of letting sounds and words ring in our ears. Listening is something entirely different. It requires focus and attention. We not only hear the words but understand their meaning. Not only do we pay attention to what the person is saying but how he or she is feeling, how important the matter at hand is to them and how in need they are of someone who cares. When we truly listen to others, we are telling them that they are important and that what they care about matters.

Listening brings with it much healing. When marriages are in trouble what is often the issue is that the spouses are not listening to each other. How many marriages would be repaired if the husband and wife took the time to sit down and listen to each other? Or have you ever had the experience of feeling overwhelmed, stressed out or depressed but snapping out of it because someone took the time to listen to you? When we take the time to slow down and really pay attention to one another, we can bring real change into our relationships and even our society. As today’s first reading puts it, “Streams will burst forth in the desert, and rivers in the steppe. The burning sands will become pools, and the thirsty ground, springs of water.”

In today’s gospel reading, Jesus opens the ears of a deaf man. And the first sound he hears is the voice of Jesus. Because of this encounter with the Savior, he is opened up to a whole new world of chirping birds, wind rustling through the trees and music. He can also enter more deeply into relationship with others because he can really listen to them in a way that was not possible for him before.

Jesus can do the same for us. We may not need to have our hearing corrected but we do need a more impressive miracle. We need to be given the ability to listen. And the first person we need to be listening to is God.

We have all heard so many of the gospel stories. But how many of us have taken them to heart? How many of us have changed our lives because of what we have heard proclaimed in the Scripture? How often is our prayer just about rattling off the Our Father without giving much thought to the words such as “thy will be done” or “as we forgive those who trespass against us”? Or how often are we so busy telling God what we need from Him instead of listening to what He requires of us?

Thankfully, God has given us a remedy for our blocked up ears. It is the Bible. When we read the Bible, we become attuned to God’s voice. By taking time every day to open up the Scriptures and truly listen to what it has to teach us, we learn the mind of our Heavenly Father and desire to know Him more and more. As we ask the Holy Spirit to help us understand it, our ears are opened to the marvels of God’s love for us and we become more attentive to His voice calling us to follow Him.

We all need to be listening to one another and in particular, to the cry of the poor. We are too often deaf to the needs of those around us. We cannot hear the groaning of those who do not have enough to feed their families or who are underemployed. Often we cannot hear them because our own concerns are ringing in our ears. Today’s second reading from the letter of James speaks clearly to this. He is speaking to a parish and a community much like our own with a mix of wealthy and poor people. To which are we most attentive? Which are most important in our eyes? How are we listening to the needs of all the members of our community and what are we doing to help meet those needs?

Again, God gives us a remedy for our deafness to the needs of our neighbors. It is the practice of the works of mercy. When we go out of our way to feed the hungry, to instruct the ignorant or to pray for the dead, we become more attuned to the needs of others. Our own needs are put into perspective as we reach out to help those less fortunate than ourselves. We see first hand the pain and burdens that so many of our brothers and sisters deal with daily. We come to treat them as persons created in the image and likeness of God and refuse to look down on them or blame them for their misfortunes. Then we become able to truly listen to them and respond in a way that will really help.

It is often said that God gave us two ears and only one mouth; so we should be listening twice as much as speaking. We are called to pay attention to God’s call to us to live in accordance with His word and also to listen to the groanings of our brothers and sisters in need. We gather here to do just that. As we lift our voices in prayer to our Heavenly Father we hear Him say, “Be strong, fear not!” He will accomplish great things in and through us if we will only take the time to listen and obey.

He Has Done All Things Well

For over 70 years, Alcoholics Anonymous has helped people from all over the world overcome addictions to alcohol, drugs and other destructive behaviors. Through a program comprised of 12 steps, the addicts learn to combat the spiritual sickness at the root of their compulsions by confessing that they are powerless to change their behavior and by giving control of their lives over to a "higher power". As they make their way through the other steps and achieve a certain level of serenity and healing, they learn that it is not enough for them to simply stop drinking or using drugs. If they are to know true and lasting healing, they cannot keep their stories to themselves. Rather, they have to reach out to others with the good news that their addictions can be overcome.  It is part of the healing process itself to help bring others to experience healing in their own lives.

The same is true with those who are healed by Jesus. They are so overcome with joy after their encounter with him that they have to tell everyone about it. It is interesting that throughout the gospel of Mark, Jesus commands people not to tell anyone who he is and what he has done for them. It seems strange to us that Jesus would want to hide his identity, but he needed it to be clear to the people that he would not be a political Messiah who would liberate them from Roman rule, but a suffering servant who would free all people from the tyranny of sin. When he tells the apostles not to tell anyone who he is, they obey him. Even the demons whom he casts out obey him when he tells them to keep quiet. But those whom Jesus heals, though they are warned sternly not to spread the word, cannot help but go around telling everyone they meet about the powerful prophet who restored them to health. For them, telling the story of Jesus' healing power is part of the healing process itself.

Today's gospel is no different. Jesus opens the ears of a deaf man and heals his speech impediment. Throughout his whole life he was unable to hear the sounds all around him. Now the first voice he hears is that of Jesus commanding his ears to be opened. During his life he probably spoke only when necessary because he was ashamed of his speech impediment. Now, with his tongue loosened by Jesus, he cannot help but tell everyone about the miracle that God performed in his life. His first clear words were praise of God for the gift of healing he received in Jesus. How could he now be expected to keep silent about the great work God performed in his life?

Jesus continues to be in our midst exercising his healing powers. Though it is rare, it still happens that people are cured of diseases or physical impairments through the power of prayer. Most often, however, the healings we experience through faith are of an emotional or spiritual nature. Because of our own prayers or those of others, we may find ourselves finally able to forgive someone who has hurt us. Or we may find the strength to let go of a burden of anger which we were carrying for many years. Or we may simply be overcome with a sense of God's infinite mercy and believe that our sins have been forgiving. No matter how we may experience it, each of us here has been touched by Jesus and healed. Now it is up to us to tell others about it so that they too may meet Jesus, the healer. If we want to hold on to the healing we have received, and if we want it to deepen in our lives, we must spread the word.

It could also be that many of us have been waiting for a healing that just has not come yet. Whether the cure we are seeking is for ourselves or someone we love, we have prayed, offered up Masses and asked others to pray for us, but God has not chosen to touch us with his healing power as yet. It could be that, for reasons only he can know, he wants us to bear that suffering so that we can grow to be more like his Son. Or it could be that he wants us first to bear witness to what he has already done for us to others. Many times when we take the opportunity to speak to others about the wonders God has worked in our lives, we look back and see that the healing has already been granted to us. We just have not noticed it. If we are seeking a healing and have tried everything from prayer to counseling to try to get it, could it be that God is asking us to try one more thing - making known to others the good things Jesus has already done for us?

Before we approach this altar to receive the Body of Christ, we will pray: "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed." The Eucharist is the greatest source of healing for our body, mind and spirit. The man in today's gospel was privileged to have Jesus touch his ears and his tongue, but we have the awesome gift of receiving him into our entire body. If we approach him with faith, he will open our ears to hear his word and loosen our tongues to proclaim his praises. If we seek a healing, he knows it and most certainly will want to grant it to us in some form or another. It will then be up to us to spread the word that our God heals and saves.

Cafeteria Catholics, Ticket Punchers and Religious Police

There were many types of Jewish religious groups when Jesus preached. There were the Essenes who lived out in the desert and dedicated their lives to studying the word of God. Many scholars believe John the Baptist was one of them. There were also the Sadducees who worked to promote the Law as handed down by Moses in the first five books of the Bible. The Zealots were another group who fought to expel the Romans from the Holy Land and restore rule to the Jews. Judas Iscariot is believed to have been one of them. And, perhaps the most well known group were the Pharisees. They were a group of lay Jews who tried to live every prescription of the Law down to the letter.

While Jesus had something challenging to say to all these groups, it was the Pharisees who most often got His blood boiling. Jesus criticized them for letting attention to the letter of the Law blind them to the needs of the people around them. Because of their discipline and status in the community, they felt free to judge others who did not meet their rigorous standards. They reduced God’s Law to a list of rules to be followed rather than as a way of growing in goodness and mercy. In today’s gospel, Jesus takes them to task for their concern about the ritual washings that are part of Jewish religious practice. He calls them “hypocrites” because they appear to be good and pious on the outside but in their hearts they are full of bitterness and pride.

Just as there were many different types of Jews in Jesus’ day, we can say that there are many different types of Catholics in our own day.

Perhaps everyone has heard of  “cafeteria Catholics”. Such people want to pick and choose what they believe. They like the Church’s teaching on the poor but think her stance on abortion and marriage are outdated. Or, they may defend the Church’s teaching on the dignity of unborn life but  believe that poor people are to blame for their misery and that we have no obligation to help them. Not only do they pick and choose between beliefs but also between religious practices. For instance, many cafeteria Catholics are happy to receive communion every week but never want to go to confession. For cafeteria Catholics, God, the Bible and the Church are not the foremost authorities on what is true but their own personal tastes and preferences. They reduce God and faith to what is comfortable for them and reject anything that might call them to change and grow.

There is another group of Catholics we might call “the ticket punchers.” For them, religion is about meeting all the duties of their faith. They come to Mass every Sunday out of obligation, punching their ticket to say they showed up and then leaving without having any idea what the readings were. They are sure to show up for Ash Wednesday to receive their ashes and for Palm Sunday to get their palms blessed. During the Fridays of Lent they will not touch meat. They are sure to send their children to religious education classes and receive all the sacraments right on schedule. However, their religious practices have no effect on their attitudes or behaviours. They have reduced faith to a list of duties that they have to meet as insurance that they will have all the holes punched on their ticket when they get to heaven. Like the Pharisees, they do all the right things but their heart is never changed.

Finally, there is a group we might call “the religion police.” They follow all the rules and make it their business to ensure that everyone else does too. They are the ones who write to the bishop every time their parish priest does something they don’t like. They do everything right and take notes on who is doing anything wrong. Like hawks, they scan the congregation looking for any excuse to criticize others. Rather than make them more merciful and compassionate, their religious practices make them judgemental and angry. They reduce faith to only keeping the rules.

I’m not trying to point fingers or single anyone out. Much less do I want to judge anyone. However, I think that there is a bit of the cafeteria Catholic, the ticket puncher and the religion police in each of us. What do they all have in common? They reduce faith to something that they can control, whether it is rules that are easy to follow or mere obligations that they can meet without much difficulty. They also keep faith at arm’s length. They never allow faith to challenge or change them. Rather than as a means of growth, faith becomes a way to stroke their egos.

How different is the faith that the Bible teaches and the Church professes! It is a faith that always challenges us to go outside our comfort zone. It is never content with outward shows of belief but demands that we have hearts filled with love and compassion. The faith of the Bible and the Church is never content with just following the rules but requires us to go above and beyond the call of duty to focus on the poor and needy and how we can best serve them. It puts people before practices. Most especially, it does not simply accept society’s standards of right and wrong but looks to the unchanging God and His word for guidance. As Saint James teaches us in today’s second reading: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this - to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

Rules and beliefs are important. They are given to us by God to guide us and teach us His ways. However, their primary purpose is to help us grow in love and compassion. If our practice of the faith is making us more self-centered, more judgemental or if we use it merely to massage our egos, then we have lost our way. Fortunately, God is merciful and is always ready to welcome us back. We need only ask His Holy Spirit to illuminate our minds and to lead us in the right way. Then our faith will bear fruit in good works and in hearts that truly love.

A God Who Dreams

God had a dream for Israel when he called them out of slavery in Egypt to form a new nation. He dreamed that they would be a sign to the whole world of his love. As we hear in the first reading, The people of Israel were meant to live by God's commandments in such a way that people in surrounding nations would be attracted to God because of their holiness. For this reason the Jewish people did not look upon the commandments as burdens -  as a bunch of hoops God placed before them - but as a gift by which they could radiate to the whole world God's love and goodness.

For the most part, Israel lived up to this great expectation God placed upon them. They taught the nations the truth that there is only one God who is the Father of all. They witnessed to the value of human life by speaking out against child sacrifice which was rampant in the cultures around them. By prohibiting divorce and not allowing men to have more than one wife, Israel did much to begin promoting the equal dignity of women. And by insisting that orphans, widows and immigrants be treated justly, they testified to the responsibilities of society to its weakest members. There were also times when they failed as a people to live up to these lofty values. But they never stopped turning to God to seek his mercy and renew their commitment to his commandments. The Jewish people to this day strive to be a light to the nations.

God's dream, however, does not end with Israel, but continues with us who profess belief in Jesus Christ as the Messiah. Christians are to live in such a way that the people around us say, "Hey, they have something that I want." The joy we manifest in our lives, the concern we show for strangers and our willingness to tell others about our faith in Jesus are all meant to make an impression on others and leave them with the question: "Why have I never known that believing in Jesus was so important to leading a happy life."

Like the people of Israel, Christians for the most part have done a good job through the grace of God in witnessing to the truths of our faith. It was Christians who led the way in abolishing slavery and establishing civil rights in our country. It is Christians who are the strongest voice for the dignity of all persons both born and unborn. And the Catholic Church is the largest provider of education and health care in the world today. The witness of Christians has been indispensable to guaranteeing that justice is done for all people created in God's image and likeness. By the grace of God, we have much to be proud of about our Christian faith and heritage. 

Unfortunately, many people in today's world don't see things this way. There is a lot of cynicism about religious people. Those who choose to live the way Jesus lived are often labeled as fanatics or hypocrites. So many widely publicized scandals involving religious leaders make people suspicious that we Christians do not practice what we preach. And what we do preach is often looked upon as backward, not up to date with the findings of science and with the way people live today. Because of this, many people find it hard to believe in Jesus, to read the Bible and to participate in Mass. 

Though much of what I have mentioned is caused by prejudice against Catholics and ignorance, we have to be honest with ourselves and admit that we have not always been the examples of holiness and goodness that God dreamed we would be. People have not turned to Jesus often because we have not shown by our lives or by the way we act that belief in Jesus does make a difference. I think the reason Jesus got so frustrated and angry with the religious leaders of his day, as he does in today's gospel,  was that so many people in Israel needed to hear about God and his love for them, but they were too busy worrying about matters of little importance. 

There are people all around us who need to hear that God loves them - people in whose lives God could make a big difference. What can convince them more movingly than any words we say or any arguments we come up with is for them to see us loving others as we love ourselves, forgiving others as God has forgiven us and giving to the poor and needy just as God has provided for our needs. As Saint James tells us in the second reading, such is the religion which is pure and undefiled in the eyes of our heavenly Father. And the world, despite its prejudices, cannot help but take notice of the good we do when it is done in the strength provided by God.

Saint Francis of Assisi said: "Preach always. When necessary, use words." As followers of Christ, it is our mission to bring him into the world by living holy lives. Through our baptism, we are the hands of Christ stretched out to the world. We all know someone who needs God. Maybe we need to make it a point this week to reach out to them, give them a phone call and invite them to have coffee with us. By showing love and concern, we can witness to them about the love of God and perhaps change their lives. It may be the only opportunity that person will ever have to hear the good news. That is God's dream for each one of us - to live lives marked by such holiness that others will say, " I want to know your God."

Something Other Than God

Jennifer Fulwiler was raised in what she describes as a “happy atheist home.” From an early age, her father taught her “to seek truth and question assumptions”. He went so far as to say that she should not believe anything she hears without questioning it first, even if it came from him. So she made it her goal in life to always pursue the truth.

Unfortunately, she believed that pursuing the truth meant abandoning any idea that God exists. And, although she was raised to question assumptions, some unquestioned prejudices reinforced her atheism.

First of all, she thought all believers were ignorant hypocrites. She reasoned that only an uneducated and unenlightened person could believe the stories in the Bible. Also, she would run into Christians whom she thought judged her and treated her disrespectfully for her atheistic beliefs. All this lead her to the conclusion that she would not find any truth in religion.

Secondly, like many atheists, she believed that truth only comes from science. If it cannot be measured or observed than it cannot be real. This lead her to dismiss any idea that human beings had souls or that there was any life after physical death. To her mind, we were only animals who randomly evolved. The only thing that made a human person different from a pig was that we had the ability to reason.

Her unquestioned assumptions and prejudices about religion began to be challenged, however, through a few experiences.

The first was when she met the man she would eventually marry. There was no question that he was intelligent because he had been educated in some of the country’s finest universities.  And, yet, he believed in God and was a Christian. No matter how she tried to convince him that God did not exist, he remained firm in his belief. Through her relationship with him, she came to understand that intelligent people could also be people of faith.

The second experience was the birth of her son. Holding him in her arms for the first time, it occurred to her that the intense love she felt for him was real even though it couldn’t be put under a microscope. She also realized that her baby was more than a randomly evolved life form. He was more than just an animal with the ability to one day walk upright and think. Through the birth of her son, she came to understand that there were other ways to discover truth besides the scientific method.

All these experiences were just the beginning of her journey to truly question her assumptions and seek truth. Eventually, it lead her to the Catholic Church.

She writes about her experience in her book, Something Other Than God: How I Passionately Sought Truth And Accidentally Found It. The title comes from the following quote by C.S. Lewis, “All that we call human history...[is] the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.” She searched for truth and happiness but it remained elusive until she found it in God.

In today’s gospel, many of Jesus’ disciples reject and abandon Him. His teaching was just too disturbing. Obviously hurt, Jesus turns to the apostles and asks, “Do you also want to leave?” Speaking for them all, Simon Peter replies, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”

Simon Peter found the truth in the person of Jesus Christ. Like the other disciples, he may have been baffled and bewildered by Jesus’ words. Yet, he could not leave Him. There was nowhere else to go. Like Jennifer Fulwiler, Saint Peter realized that the truth is found not in a bunch of ideas but in a person - the person of Jesus Christ, the Holy One of God.

We are painfully aware that, like the disciples in today’s gospel, there are many people who abandon the faith and the Church. Sometimes it’s because the Church’s teachings are too much for them to bear. Unfortunately, they often leave because they see Christians acting like hypocrites. They begin to look for happiness and fulfillment in “something other than God”.

It is true that many Church teachings run counter to popular opinion and the values of our modern culture. However, it is the mission of the Church not to accommodate herself to the fads of the day but to hand down the teaching of Jesus who has the “words of everlasting life”. Everything the Church teaches, in particular when it comes to morality, stands up to reason. If people are really interested in discovering the truth and questioning assumptions, then they should look into the teaching of the Church rather than dismissing it. I guarantee they will find compelling arguments. Even if they still do not accept the Church’s teaching, they will be hard pressed to claim that they are not reasonable.

It is also true that many people in the Church are judgmental hypocrites who fall short of living the Christian life with integrity. That has been true throughout our history beginning with Judas. However, it is also true that there have been many good and holy people of faith. If people are truly questioning assumptions and seeking truth then they should  judge the Church by her great saints. No one ever judges a sport by the athletes who played it poorly. Rather we judge the greatness of soccer, basketball and hockey by its Hall of Fame players. Just the same, the Church should be judged not on the basis of the people who failed to live by her teachings but by those who put it into practice and, thus, changed the world.

The truth is out there for those who wish to seek it. It can be found in Jesus Christ, the Holy One of God who alone has the words of everlasting life. Seeking truth, happiness and fulfillment in something other than God is a fool’s errand. Time and time again it has lead only to failure and despair. At this Mass, Truth and Love offer themselves to us in the Eucharist. Unlike the disciples who turned away and abandoned Jesus, let us run to Him. Then we will know the Truth in all its fullness and be able to share Him with others.