February 20, 2011 - Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Tetelestai! Jesus says to us in the Gospel reading: Tetelestai! (At least that's the Greek translation of what were probably His Aramaic words that the evangelist gives us. Tetelestai is the plural command form of the verb, teleo, which means "to come to maturity," to "be finished," or "completed." Parents say this to kids, all the time: Grow up! In other words, "become the person you are destined to become!" (And in the case of parents, "We want you to be the person we know you are capable of becoming!") Such, too, is the wish of Jesus. He has confidence in us—all evidence to the contrary! And He asks us to "be ourselves," to "be that good person God has made us to be." The problem with translating the word as "perfect," (Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect!) is that we, though we are not even a dust particle in the universe, have an idea of what a perfect God ought to be, so we also have an idea of what a "perfect human being" would be. So, if we were all "perfect" we'd all be alike—our lives would be carbon copies of each other, and probably NOT very interesting! But, that isn't what "tetelestai" means. It has to do with YOU becoming all YOU can be, and ME becoming all "I" can be, and we won't look at all alike when it's all said and done. We are each to "grow up," and "grow toward the hope God had for us when He designed us." We are to MATURE.

 

Tetelestai is related to the word telos which means "logical conclusion," or "obvious end." The "TELOS" of an acorn is the oak tree--it has grown to its potential. No two oak trees are alike--some are gnarled, some have been snapped by lightening. Some are tall and foreboding, with high branches out of reach, others have low hanging branches that touch the ground and invite children to be climbers. To "become our true selves" is to be satisfied with who and what we are, and to be the best we can at it. An oak can't be an apple tree. It shouldn't try! YOU can only be who and what you are....I can only be who and what I am...but we can raise that bit of humanity that each of us is to noble heights.

 

Such were St. Paul's hopes for the Corinthians. He didn't want to have to feed them pablum forever, but spiritual meat! And spiritual meat meant that they would have to understand that EACH one of them as an individual and ALL of them as a group were the Temple of the Unseen and Unseeable God. Each was an "icon" of the eternal. A walking image of Infinity resided in the flesh and bones of each one, and even more so in the gathered community of all of them. The Light of the Eternal God was shining out of them, individually, and collectively. To harm the "temple" or "icon" of God was to harm something of God and take it from the earth, leaving us ever poorer for the loss. When they trashed each other—as our study of the letter to the Corinthians shows us that they frequently did, their local congregation being broken up into numerous factions that didn't get along well—they trashed the Divine, the Holy. If WE understood this Truth, today, think of the difference it would make in our table conversations, in our Church meetings, and even in our national political discourse!

 

It's one thing to "be yourself" on a personal level. That's hard work. But, it's even harder to be "ourself" as a group of individuals. A parish church is called to be "its Self," realizing that just as the Light of God is in each of the members, so that Light of God is also in the congregation. A parish needs to let the Light of its "holiness", its "wholeness", its "completeness" shine--which is the nature of Light. It always shines....but, it CAN be covered up by bushel baskets of various designs--so that the energy for good for the world is limited. We need to be asking, "What bushel baskets are keeping our Light at St. Agatha's from shining more brightly?"

 

And it gets even murkier when we think of "being our Self" as a nation. Oh, my goodness! Congress fights over how to do this, constantly. We are a multi-cultural nation. It's a debatable point, but I'm not sure that "Christianity" was ever the basis on which we were founded. I think the founding fathers of the nation saw some good things in the Christianity of their youth, and they didn't want to lose those elements, and used Bible quotes effectively. But, basically, they distrusted Christian churches. They had seen too much hatred in the name of love. So we were founded on more basic secular principles of justice. "We find these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator (notice, no God is named) with inalienable rights"....etc. Yet, the bushel basket of their own limited vision allowed them to sign such a document while holding slaves!

 

The point I'm making is that the Light of the Creator, however we define God, is in each American (as it is in each citizen of the planet). And, as Americans, we live in a nation with lots of wealth and power--both of which we seem to be losing--but, nonetheless, we have a vast amount of influence which we can use for the good. Balancing how to "be all we can be" is at the heart of issues national and international. It's at the heart of economic issues, immigration issues, and international peace and justice issues.

Something we need to be doing, here, at St. Agatha, is to be involved in the study of issues national and international in light of our call and our commitment to "let the Light shine!"

 

The guiding principle for the first reading was God's admonition, "You shall be holy for I the Lord your God am holy." This is what Jesus is commenting on in the Gospel. What does the "holiness" (the wholeness, the unity, the totality, the completeness) of God mean for humans? And Jesus said, "Grow up!" The context for his teaching is how we treat others: when we are offended, instead of talking things out and finding peace, we often strike back and get revenge. Jesus saw that, and said, "That's NOT the way to holiness or to spiritual maturity and completion, or fulfillment." The way to spiritual growth is to be mediators and to work at reconciliation in the world. The world has enough bullies and thugs—it doesn't need more! So, when someone tries to bully you or force you to do something, take the time to "be with" the person as you do what he demands. Learn to know him. And then, we come to the next paragraph, and when you really know him, that "enemy" will have turned into a friend and brother. This is the path of peace, and this is the path of spiritual maturity. This is what holiness means in our world.

 

Let's pray for the Grace, today, to be mature, spiritually deep people whose lives reflect the infinite profundity of God, and let us pray that our words and actions will foster the brotherhood and sisterhood of all humanity, and bring some peace to our world. And may God bless you all. +

February 13, 2011 - Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today, I'd like to speak to you not only as your parish priest, but also as your spiritual director. In doing that, I'm sort of imitating what Christ did in his sermon on the mount from which we read today.

 

The spiritual director inside me wants to remind us that all of us - you and I-- live a commanded life. God's commandments existed before us, and  we were born into them; they give us identity, and are capable of giving our lives meaning. When God planned the creation of the world and each of us, He was also creating the commandments which are designed to guide us to a life full of meaning as they lead us to Him. So, what will this mean for the average person?

 

What does it mean to say that Fr. Bill Axe is living a "commanded life"? Well, let's look: in my entire life, so far, at least I have not killed anyone, ever! I have not had enough anger against another person to be driven to take his or her life, and I have not been a soldier, so I have not had the experience of being placed in battle situation with the possibility of inflicting fatal injuries to another human being. So I have not committed any killings, do you think I kept the commandment not to kill?

 

The literalist would say "Yes; the commandment says, 'Thou shalt not kill,' and you, Bill, have not killed, so you have kept the commandment." BUT, Christ was not fundamentalist. In fact, in today's gospel reading, He is saying that we need to look much deeper into the meaning of the commandment and its ramifications for our lives. The surface meaning is important, but shallow. As God is eternal in God's depth, so are the commandments eternally deep. THEN the command to "not kill" when it is seen at a deeper level tells us that we should not be angry at anyone, because if we allow ourselves the luxury of having a scorching, sustained anger, eventually, it is likely that we will allow ourselves, too, the luxury of inflicting violence, which could result in the physical death of another human being, and which, even if it doesn't go that far, will certainly harm our souls. And, going a little deeper, if we must not allow ourselves to dwell in the emotion of anger, we must not allow ourselves to hold resentments, either. We all know that sometimes we do not react with anger against another person at the time of conflict, but later, when we think about what happened, we get angry, and carry grudges, and with all the emotion beneath the surface of our being, the next time we find ourselves with that person we may react stronger than the first time, and this is dangerous to us, spiritually, and to them physically. And, if we go a little deeper, the commandment, "Do not kill," would tell us that we should try to think of excuses, possible reasons to explain the behavior of the neighbor who offends us, as a mental exercise, in order for  us to understand them without anger. So, we might imagine all the possibilities that would excuse and explain his/her offenses. And were we to go deeper, the commandment not to kill, also commands us to make friends with those who trespass against us. DON'T KILL is another way of saying, LOVE THE ENEMY, and become brothers and sisters to all humanity.

 

With this we see that the commandments are not simple things that can be memorized and followed with little thought. The commandments are deep thoughts that come from the depths of the mind of God, and they are filled with endless levels of meaning.

 

Think for a moment about the commandment, "Do not commit adultery." What would you think of me if I were married (and if I was much younger, and not ordained?... We need a lot of imagination, right?), And say that I have been married for ten years or more, and never in my life have I slept with another woman. But, at the same time, my kids are afraid of me, and my wife can't stand my alcohol abuse and my temper. Can we say that I have kept the commandment? Again, Christ would say, "No, Bill, I want more!" Why? Because again, the surface is not sufficient to understand the depth of God's word. The commandment that instructs us that we should not commit adultery, means creating a home in which kids can grow up into healthy Christian adults.  And to have such a home, it is necessary for me to respect my wife, so that she understands me, and I her. If there is no tenderness and affection between the parents, how the kids grow up to be mature Christian men and women? This command also has its many, many levels of meaning. And Christ wants us to focus our attention on these depths of meaning in following it, so that we will be able to show the world the marks of discipleship in our daily lives.

 

Also, the commandment, "DO NOT TAKE THE NAME OF THE LORD YOUR GOD IN VAIN," has as its surface connotation, a prohibition of  the pronunciation of the holy name of God in ugly settings where it doesn't belong. But more than this, it also asks us to care for our language.  Most problems between husbands and wives, between parents and their children, between friends, and among neighbors, is due to sloppy language. The Bible tells us that God creates by word ... "let there be light and there was light" ... and we, made in His image, also create with words. We can create an atmosphere of trust and affection with the words we use, or we can create an atmosphere of hatred. It depends on what we say. God knows we cannot control the thoughts or negative emotions, but we CAN control what we say--and we DON'T have to say everything we think! (Especially negative things.) Each time we express negativity, we put poison in the atmosphere that everyone has to share. Christ wants us to have more discipline over our mouths and our actions so that our lives really become blessings of peace and goodness. And everyone knows that there are times when we cannot think of ANYTHING GOOD to say. We are so discouraged or so disappointed or so angry that we cannot say anything positive. In this case it would be better not say anything at all. We are to remain silent, and if we must speak, to say little. Look at the times when Christ decided to say nothing--two, off the top of my head are when He was in front of Pilate when He was on trial, and when He stooped and wrote on the ground as the crowd discussed the fate of the woman caught in adultery. These are times when He taught us that there are times when it is better to keep a golden silence rather than to say thoughtless words that cannot be recalled. SO,  on a deep level, the commandment "DO NOT TAKE THE NAME OF GOD IN VAIN" is a warning to observe a profound silence and simplicity in daily life, or as Christ put it, "Let your yes be yes, and your no, no."

 

As the "spiritual director" of the congregation, I want you to see that the word of God is deep, with endless levels of meaning, as God is endless and eternal. The teaching of Christ in the Gospel today presents the call given to each disciple - to deepen our understanding of scripture, so that our lives might become the reflection of this deeper understanding. My prayer for each of us, today, is that we may use the grace we receive in the Eucharist, today, to make of our lives benedictions of goodness in our world. And may God bless you all. +

February 6, 2011 - Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Have you been watching the situation in Egypt closely? If you've signed up to go on the trip to the Holy Land with us in November, do you wonder if we'll be going there? Certainly not, if it's dangerous, at the time of the trip. We can take more time in Israel, I suppose, or go to Jordan and see Petra and Jerash or to Greece and visit Corinth and the Delphic Oracle. But let's not think of US, right now. Let's think of a suffering world.

 

Cairo is in chaos. Angry people are screaming all the pain of their lives on international TV. I remember when our streets were filled with students demanding the resignation of a president--then it was Lyndon Johnson over the Viet Nam war. Next it was Richard Nixon over the war, the economy, dissatisfaction at life. Most of our lives, we just live with whatever is dealt us. We don't make a sound. We just move through our nights and our days, trying to laugh a bit, joke a bit, make it all liveable, but then, every once in a while, it's as if the planets have lined up and a VOICE is given us and there we are, in the streets, shouting and screaming out our pain. I don't have the answers for Egypt. You don't. But, I can empathize with the pain of living that they are expressing.

 

You know, I've been a priest for over 35 years--going on 40--that's older than many of you are. And one thing I've learned is that most of us are the walking wounded. We sense that there's something wrong with us, that we are in some sense damaged--it may be wounds that our parents inflicted, or teachers, or girlfriends we once had--but people have done a number on us, and we bear the scars. There's no one in this room that doesn't bear all sorts of scars from what others have done to us.

 

That was part of what Isaiah was speaking of in the first reading. He said, "when you share your bread with the hungry, shelter the oppressed and homeless,  clothe the naked and stop turning your back on your own, THEN YOUR WOUND SHALL QUICKLY BE HEALED. What wound? Did the nation, as a whole, have an open, bleeding wound? No. Nations don't have wounds,  people do.

 

The wounds of the nation in time of the first reading were the wounds of personal grief at the heavy losses they had suffered in a national defeat, much like many of the Iraqi people must be feeling, now. A war had come and gone, people were deported and suffered the humiliation of slavery, rape and murder. They had returned to find their homes destroyed or occupied by interlopers. They were living on the ragged edge of nothing, and they felt personal grief, and deep resentment at what had been taken from them. The task of rebuilding seemed too large.  They felt despair and bitterness. They couldn't see a reason for going on. Maybe life wasn't worth it. Maybe it would never get better. Maybe death was easier.

 

Not ever human being has gone through national defeat, exile, slavery and personal bodily threat, coupled with the total loss of family, wealth and property, but every human being has been in a dark enough place that we've wondered that life might never ever get better. Maybe it was the loss of our first girlfriend, maybe it was being cut from a team, maybe it was not being accepted by a group of friends or associates we thought was necessary for us. Maybe it was at the failure of a marriage, or the death of a child, or the loss of a livelihood. Maybe it was or is a life-threatening illness that could rob us of all we hold dear. There is no human being alive who hasn't suffered, and there is no human being alive who hasn't felt some form of hopelessness and despair. Those emotions go hand in hand with being a human being. We don't have the mind of God, we don't see far enough into the future to see how things will begin to turn for the good. And fear and hopelessness rush in to fill our every waking moment, robbing us of moments of peace and pleasure.

 

Isaiah knew this. He lived it, himself. And, he knew what to do about it. If you want to bring healing to yourself, and make your situation better, then help somebody else who is in difficulties like or worse than your own. Share your bread (at least you have that!) with someone who doesn't have a crumb! Give shelter (at least you have that!) to someone who doesn't have a welcoming home. Clothe the naked--and the naked don't have to be taken literally. There are so many people we all know who have been ripped apart publicly, and their lives made an open book--they are "naked" before everyone they care about, and everyone is talking about them. THEY need friends, too. Shelter them with your care. Isaiah said, "Do these things, and your own sense of helplessness and hopelessness will vanish like dew in the morning sun."

 

St. Paul tells his congregation that he did all that he did in the time he was with them NOT for himself, but for THEM. He had learned how to care for others to heal himself.

 

Jesus calls us "salt of the earth." Salt doesn't do anything at all for itself. It is only useful when used on something else. 

He calls us the "light of the world." Light is what makes activity possible. If you've ever been in a black out, you realize how quickly you don't remember your own living room...as you trip over the coffee table, and step on plate of food you just set down when the lights went out. Light isn't much good in and of itself....it just IS. BUT, it allows us the ability of movement and action.

 

We are BEGGED in today's readings to place our lives in the service of others. The needs of our world are almost infinite. The needs of our neighborhoods are a microcosm of our world. Today's readings hope that we, as His Wounded Broken Disciples, will be helping to heal both ourselves and the world. May we each use the Grace we receive in the Eucharist, today, to make of our lives a benediction of goodness for someone in distress, this week. And may God bless you all. +

acer de nuestra vida una bendición de Dios para una persona en peligro, esta semana. Y que Dios los bendiga a todos. +