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. +
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