Homily
7th Sunday in Ordinary Time C
24 February 2019
St. Lawrence Catholic Center at the University of Kansas
I am the enemy. You are the enemy. We are the enemy.
We have to start here. Before we begin a conversation about loving our enemies, which we will indeed have in a moment, we have to acknowledge that we are the enemy. We have sinned against God, whom we should love above all things. He has forgiven us. God shows his mercy in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. There can be no question that before Jesus dares to ask us to love our enemies, he has first loved us in this way. Father, forgive them. They know not what they do. Talk about a guy that walks the walk.
Each week I try to dare you and myself to be real Christians. I hate lukewarm Catholicism. It is so worthless. I hate it in myself. So I try to preach to myself and then to you each week, daring us together to be real Christians.
This week the dividing line between real and fake Christians is love of enemies. The commandment is repeated twice by Jesus. Jesus asks us to imitate him by giving and forgiving without counting the cost. Without expecting anything back. This is the brand promise that we strive for here at St. Lawrence. There is never a hidden agenda. We try to give because that is who we are. We forgive because that is who Jesus is. What happens next is up to God, and we happily place judgement in his hands.
Believe it or not - but I hope you believe it - the Catholic Church is not here at KU to control your behavior and make you perfect little Catholics, so we can tell everyone how great we are in getting you to go to Church, when nobody expects you to come. Gee whiz that would be a pathetic goal. No we are here to give and to forgive, without a hidden agenda, without counting the cost, so that everyone here is known and seen and loved. We are here to invite you to the freedom and fullness of following Jesus. That's it. That's our brand promise. Call us out if we don't live up to it.
What does this freedom and fullness look like? Here's a stab at it. Listen to Jesus. 'Nobody takes my life from me. I freely give it. Can you repeat these words of Jesus honestly in your own life? 'Nobody takes my life from me. I freely give it.' If you can drink this cup that Christ drinks, I dare say that like Him you are truly free. I dare say that you are a real Christian. I dare say that you get in your bones what my hero John Paul II described as the 'law of the gift.'
It was no surprise when after being shot in an assassination attempt in 1981, John Paul II personally forgave and reconciled with the man who shot him, face to face. It was a no brainer for a saint like John Paul. For the Gospel teaches us how to love our enemies, how to throw a pre-emptive strike that robs the ability of anyone to take our life. 'Nobody takes my life from me. I freely lay it down.'
This is real and powerful Christianity. To choose what to die for long before death can choose us. To choose love long before hatred can ever gain a foothold in our heart. To choose giving long before anyone can take anything from us. To choose mercy long before an enemy can hurt us. This is the ultimate pre-emptive strike, and the hallmark of a real Christian.
To be free is to be able to tell anyone who would hurt us that it's too late. Everything is already given and forgiven. In the law of the gift, all is grace and all is mercy. These gifts from God are never meant to be stifled by hatred or rivalry, but are to freely flow in and out of us. This is the meaning of true freedom.
iGen or Generation Z - a generation born after 1997 which makes up the largest percentage of you all in the pews today, reports to be the most anxious generation in history. What the heck are you so anxious about? I dare say it's because too much is measured. The Gospel says everything is mercy and grace - all if gift.. Around us though, everything has a price, with strings attached. . Without thinking we judge everyone and everything. We compare without end. It all leads to terrible anxiety - fear of not being enough or having enough, of running out of love, relationship, time, energy, status, money - the list never ends. Which is why Jesus' words have to find a way to take hold in this generation, your generation - somehow, someway. Stop judging, and you will not be judged!
Our pivotal question this week is a good one. What do you need to let go of? I'll kick off the reflection with two answers. The first is that I need to let go of the fear of running out. The law of tonight's Gospel is simple but hard to trust. If we want more of something, then give what we have away. I need to let go of my fear of really trying this. Of course we all need to be prudent, but we need more to dare the truth that unless we are generous, we are going to run out - of time, energy, faith, hope, love, relationship, status and money. It will all run out, unless we let go of our need to control.
The second thing I need to let go of is my grudges. I bet you have some too. So I'm going to put it to myself and to you straight tonight. You ready? You're going to get hurt badly in life. You will hurt others badly too. It is scary what we are capable of. I dropped a good friend a few years ago cold turkey because I wasn't getting what I wanted out of the relationship. I stopped giving, and hurt the person really badly. A couple years later a good friend did the same to me. I was dropped and betrayed and dumped as a friend. It sucked and I thought I deserved better.
Guess what? Jesus feels and is present to all of it. We can take all of this junk to the cross, where he knows betrayal. He feels the worst thing we have done and the worst thing that has happened to us. And he says so what - there is something greater. He says we really do have the power to forgive in advance. If we are real Christians nobody takes our lives from us. We freely give them. Not counting the cost, and expecting nothing in return. We can do this, because He has done it for us, and wants to do it now through us.
St. John Vianney described this pre-emptive strike in this way. Jesus forgets how we will hurt him tomorrow so that He can forgive us today.
I invite you now to make a similar consecration to mercy with your life. Give everything that you have or are or ever will be to Jesus, and give to him anyone that you have harmed or will harm, and everyone who has harmed or will ever harm you. I am asking you for the rest of your life to live this Gospel - give to everyone who asks of you, and love your enemies.
I know I'm asking you for a lot. But didn't we come tonight to dare a real Christianity? Didn't we come to become truly free?
What do you need to let go of?
7th Sunday in Ordinary Time C
24 February 2019
St. Lawrence Catholic Center at the University of Kansas
I am the enemy. You are the enemy. We are the enemy.
We have to start here. Before we begin a conversation about loving our enemies, which we will indeed have in a moment, we have to acknowledge that we are the enemy. We have sinned against God, whom we should love above all things. He has forgiven us. God shows his mercy in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. There can be no question that before Jesus dares to ask us to love our enemies, he has first loved us in this way. Father, forgive them. They know not what they do. Talk about a guy that walks the walk.
Each week I try to dare you and myself to be real Christians. I hate lukewarm Catholicism. It is so worthless. I hate it in myself. So I try to preach to myself and then to you each week, daring us together to be real Christians.
This week the dividing line between real and fake Christians is love of enemies. The commandment is repeated twice by Jesus. Jesus asks us to imitate him by giving and forgiving without counting the cost. Without expecting anything back. This is the brand promise that we strive for here at St. Lawrence. There is never a hidden agenda. We try to give because that is who we are. We forgive because that is who Jesus is. What happens next is up to God, and we happily place judgement in his hands.
Believe it or not - but I hope you believe it - the Catholic Church is not here at KU to control your behavior and make you perfect little Catholics, so we can tell everyone how great we are in getting you to go to Church, when nobody expects you to come. Gee whiz that would be a pathetic goal. No we are here to give and to forgive, without a hidden agenda, without counting the cost, so that everyone here is known and seen and loved. We are here to invite you to the freedom and fullness of following Jesus. That's it. That's our brand promise. Call us out if we don't live up to it.
What does this freedom and fullness look like? Here's a stab at it. Listen to Jesus. 'Nobody takes my life from me. I freely give it. Can you repeat these words of Jesus honestly in your own life? 'Nobody takes my life from me. I freely give it.' If you can drink this cup that Christ drinks, I dare say that like Him you are truly free. I dare say that you are a real Christian. I dare say that you get in your bones what my hero John Paul II described as the 'law of the gift.'
It was no surprise when after being shot in an assassination attempt in 1981, John Paul II personally forgave and reconciled with the man who shot him, face to face. It was a no brainer for a saint like John Paul. For the Gospel teaches us how to love our enemies, how to throw a pre-emptive strike that robs the ability of anyone to take our life. 'Nobody takes my life from me. I freely lay it down.'
This is real and powerful Christianity. To choose what to die for long before death can choose us. To choose love long before hatred can ever gain a foothold in our heart. To choose giving long before anyone can take anything from us. To choose mercy long before an enemy can hurt us. This is the ultimate pre-emptive strike, and the hallmark of a real Christian.
To be free is to be able to tell anyone who would hurt us that it's too late. Everything is already given and forgiven. In the law of the gift, all is grace and all is mercy. These gifts from God are never meant to be stifled by hatred or rivalry, but are to freely flow in and out of us. This is the meaning of true freedom.
iGen or Generation Z - a generation born after 1997 which makes up the largest percentage of you all in the pews today, reports to be the most anxious generation in history. What the heck are you so anxious about? I dare say it's because too much is measured. The Gospel says everything is mercy and grace - all if gift.. Around us though, everything has a price, with strings attached. . Without thinking we judge everyone and everything. We compare without end. It all leads to terrible anxiety - fear of not being enough or having enough, of running out of love, relationship, time, energy, status, money - the list never ends. Which is why Jesus' words have to find a way to take hold in this generation, your generation - somehow, someway. Stop judging, and you will not be judged!
Our pivotal question this week is a good one. What do you need to let go of? I'll kick off the reflection with two answers. The first is that I need to let go of the fear of running out. The law of tonight's Gospel is simple but hard to trust. If we want more of something, then give what we have away. I need to let go of my fear of really trying this. Of course we all need to be prudent, but we need more to dare the truth that unless we are generous, we are going to run out - of time, energy, faith, hope, love, relationship, status and money. It will all run out, unless we let go of our need to control.
The second thing I need to let go of is my grudges. I bet you have some too. So I'm going to put it to myself and to you straight tonight. You ready? You're going to get hurt badly in life. You will hurt others badly too. It is scary what we are capable of. I dropped a good friend a few years ago cold turkey because I wasn't getting what I wanted out of the relationship. I stopped giving, and hurt the person really badly. A couple years later a good friend did the same to me. I was dropped and betrayed and dumped as a friend. It sucked and I thought I deserved better.
Guess what? Jesus feels and is present to all of it. We can take all of this junk to the cross, where he knows betrayal. He feels the worst thing we have done and the worst thing that has happened to us. And he says so what - there is something greater. He says we really do have the power to forgive in advance. If we are real Christians nobody takes our lives from us. We freely give them. Not counting the cost, and expecting nothing in return. We can do this, because He has done it for us, and wants to do it now through us.
St. John Vianney described this pre-emptive strike in this way. Jesus forgets how we will hurt him tomorrow so that He can forgive us today.
I invite you now to make a similar consecration to mercy with your life. Give everything that you have or are or ever will be to Jesus, and give to him anyone that you have harmed or will harm, and everyone who has harmed or will ever harm you. I am asking you for the rest of your life to live this Gospel - give to everyone who asks of you, and love your enemies.
I know I'm asking you for a lot. But didn't we come tonight to dare a real Christianity? Didn't we come to become truly free?
What do you need to let go of?
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