The Ring of Authority

  “The people were amazed at the way He taught. He wasn’t like the scribes; instead He taught with the ring of authority.” (Mk. 1:22)

The Ring of Authority

January 29, 2012, 4^th Sunday Ordinary Time

Deuteronomy 18:18    I Corinthians 7:32-35     Mark 1:21-28

First reading from Deuteronomy

Moses spoke to all the people, saying, “The Lord your God said to me, `I will send them a prophet like you from among their own people, and I will put my words into his mouth; he shall tell them all that I command him.’”

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

Glory to you, Lord.

Then they came to Capernaum, and on the Sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at the way He taught. He wasn’t like the scribes; instead He taught with the ring of authority.

In their synagogue was a man possessed by a demon who was loudly crying out, "Why are you bothering us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us demons?  I know who you are—the holy Son of God.” Jesus rebuked the howling demon and commanded him, saying: "Shut up! Come out of him!" The demon convulsed the man, gave a loud cry, and came out of him. All were amazed and asked one another what it all meant. “This man teaches in a brand new way,” they exclaimed. “He teaches with the ring of authority; He gives orders to evil spirits and they obey Him.” His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

Purification, Candlemas and St. Blaise

This coming Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012 is not only Groundhog Day, it’s also the Feast of the Purification of Mary. According to Jewish tradition the mother of a male child was considered unclean for forty days. After that period, she went to the Temple with her newborn son, and brought two turtledoves or young pigeons as a sin offering.  The priest prayed  over her, and she was purified. When Mary went with the infant Jesus to the Temple for purification, there was an old man named Simeon. Scripture says “He had been assured by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s promised Messiah.” (Lk 2:26) When Simeon saw them in the Temple, he took the infant into his arms and proclaimed him “a light of revelation to the Gentiles.” So on Feb. 2 the Church at Mass blesses candles needed for liturgical and home uses in the year ahead. That’s why Feb. 2 is also called Candlemas. Then the day after Candlemas, Feb. 3, two of the blessed candles are used to bless throats on the feast of St. Blaise.

Authority but not the ring of authority

In the first reading from Deuteronomy the Lord God promises to send a prophet in whose mouth He will place His words. The gospel is about that one who came with God’s words in His mouth and who taught with the `ring of authority’ and not as the scribes. The scribes were copyists who made hand-written copies of the Torah[1] and other books of the Bible. They were very meticulous people. They concocted a long list of rules to be scrupulously observed in copying the biblical books. E.g. (1) One must use only the skins of `clean animals’ to write on. (2) Each column of writing must have no less than forty-eight lines and no more than sixty.  Etc, etc. 

The scribes were also teachers and interpreters of the Law of Moses. In fact, some translations simply read `teachers of the Law’ instead of `scribes.’  Scribes gave lectures on the Law of Moses in synagogues, taught it in schools and debated it in public. As interpreters of the Law of Moses, they were also very meticulous people. With their cohorts, the Pharisees,[2] they concocted a mountainous heap of minute rules, regulations and prescriptions which they placed on the backs of the people. Of the scribes and Pharisees Jesus says: “They are the authorized interpreters of Moses’ Law. So you must obey and follow everything they tell you to do. Do not, however, imitate their actions, because they do not practice what they preach.” (Mt. 23:2-3) Then Jesus launches a litany of eight tirades against them - eight “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees.” (Mt. 23:13-29) The scribes did, indeed, have authority but not the ring of authority.

Jesus’ ring of authority over an evil spirit

Unlike the scribes, Jesus had the ring of authority.  On a Sabbath in Capernaum Jesus commanded an evil spirit howling in a possessed man to “Shut up!” and come out of the poor man. The demon obeyed: he convulsed the man, gave a loud cry, and came out of him. (Mk. 1: 25) 

We too must command the evil spirits howling in our lives to “Shut up!”

“Shut up!” to the evil spirit of worry plaguing us.

“Shut up!” to the evil spirit of depression weighting us down.
“Shut up!” to the evil spirit of low self-esteem belittling us.
“Shut up!” to the evil spirit of anger raging in us.
“Shut up!” to an evil spirit of fear nagging us.
“Shut up!” to an evil spirit of the restlessness tossing and turning us.
“Shut up!” to an evil spirit of addiction destroying us.

“Shut up!” to an evil spirit of lust squandering us.

 Jesus’ ring of authority over a roaring storm

That same ring of authority in Mark 1: 25 is manifested in Mark 4: 39. There Jesus commands not a roaring demon but a roaring storm. He is in a boat with His disciples, asleep in the stern with His head on a cushion. A fierce storm blows up, and the terrified apostles wake Jesus. He commands the roaring storm to “Shut up,” and the wind dies down and a great calm ensues. The old Latin translation of these two passages from Mark uses the identically same word for the command to “Shut up!” -- “Obmutesce!”

Some of the storms in our lives (maybe many of them) are not much more than "tempests-in-a-teapot."  Many great storms rose shortly after Vatican II. There were storms over Communion-in-the-hand, Communion from lay-people, meat on Friday, nuns in civilian clothes, English instead of Latin in the liturgy, women ministering at the altar. As we look back now, we see they were not much more than tempests-in-tea-pots, which really deserved a sound “Shut up!” “Obmutesce!” They eventually did quiet down, for the most part.   If we can’t, or do not try, to `shut up’ at least the teapot tempests in our lives, what will we do when a real storm blows upon us?

A churchman lacking the ring of authority.

When Archbishop Rembert Weakland OSB of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee went to Rome in 1993 for his ad lumina visit to the Pope, a letter was hand delivered to him from the prefect of the Congregation for Bishops. The letter made it clear to Weakland that "Among the requirements of Catholic unity there is the need [for you Rembert Weakland] to accept the tradition of the Church. According to ecclesial practice, reinforced by a Synod of Bishops, it is not [italics ours] possible to present married men for ordination to the priesthood." The letter also made it clear to Weakland that "On the question of the ordination of women, your position is perceived to be in opposition to the teaching of the church. Moreover, the charge of 'intransigency' (a word used by your Excellency) on the part of the Church in this matter can seriously damage Church authority and Church government." The prefect, lacking the ring of authority has to call upon authority.

A pope suffused with the ring of authority

On the other hand, the Universal Church experienced the wonderful example of a pope suffused with the ring of authority! On the day of his `coronation’ as pope, November 4, 1958,  Good Pope John XXIII  declared in his homily that  like Jesus the Good Shepherd, he came not to be served but to serve. Then the very next day John sped off in a papal limousine through elaborate Vatican gates to serve. He visited aging brother priests in nursing homes. He visited inmates in the nearby Regina Coeli Prison along the Tiber. “I come to you,” he told them, “because you couldn’t come to me.” When he celebrated his first Holy Thursday as pope, he revived an ancient custom of the church: he girded himself with a towel and bent down to wash the feet of 13 young priests.

John’s ring of authority resounded not only throughout the whole Church but whole world as well. When the Pope lay dying on June 3, 1963, after four short years of a pontificate resounding with the ring of authority, the whole world was at his bedside, weeping and praying. 

John’s ring of authority resounded especially with Morris West. He was an Australian writer (1916-1999) famous especially for his books The Devil’s Advocate and The Shoes of the Fisherman. In A View from the Ridge he wrote,

I believe I can say with certainty that I remained in communion with the Church even when the Church itself excluded me[3], and I remain there still, principally because of the presence of John XXIII, the Good Pastor. Goodness [and the ring of authority] went out from this man to me. I acknowledged it then. I acknowledge it again. 

Conclusion

Authority or the ring of authority

Deuteronomy 30:19 says, “I place before you a choice between  life and death. Choose life.” The gospel today places before us a choice between authority and the ring of authority. And it bids us to choose the ring of authority. If we choose authority in our dealings with others, we become like that prefect of the Congregation for Bishops who dealt abruptly and dismissively with the Archbishop of Milwaukee. On the other hand, if we choose rather the ring of authority in our dealings with others, we are like Good Pope John whose authority resounded mightily in the Church, the world and in Morris West.

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[1] The Torah is the first five books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus,  Numbers and Deuteronomy. It’s sometimes referred to as simply “The Law of Moses.”

[2] Pharisees: a Jewish religious party, very strict in obeying the Law of Moses to which they added a great accretion of their own concoction.

[3] Though West was and always remained a Catholic, his various writings contain a good deal of criticism about the church, and the church was not always pleased with him.

The Mission: not Conquest but Compassion

The bright and shining face of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta

The Mission:  not Conquest but Compassion

January 22, 2012, 3^rd Sunday Ordinary Time

Jonah 3:1-5     I Corinthians 7:29-31    Mark 1: 14-20

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark

Glory to you, Lord.

After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: "This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel." As He passed by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen. Jesus called out to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men." Then they abandoned their nets and followed Him. He walked along a little farther and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They too were in a boat mending their nets. Then He called them. So they left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed Him.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

Super Bowl XLVI

The Christmas season is over. We’re in liturgical `Ordinary Time’ now until Ash Wednesday, February 22, one month from today. Then we will enter into the `Extraordinary Time’ of Lent, and plod along through the forty days of Lenten penance until Easter Sunday, April 8, 2012. In the meanwhile, for a great majority of Americans there’s one great event on the horizons to brighten up the doldrums of these winter days: Super Bowl XLVI, February 5, 2012.

Christianity: a missionary religion

Jesus called twelve apostles, and then sent them on mission. (Lk. 9:1) He also called seventy-two disciples and sent them on mission as well. (Lk. 10:1) Then after Jesus’ death and resurrection, the eleven apostles went to Galilee to the mountain where the risen Lord had told them to go. There they met the Lord, who again sent them on mission. He commanded them, saying,”Go forth into the whole world and make disciples of all men, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Mt. 28: 19) Christianity is a missionary religion, and its mission seems to be to make the whole world Christian.

Islam: also a missionary religion

Islam, like Christianity, is also a missionary religion, and its mission also seems to be to make the whole world Islamic.  One of the five great Pillars of Islam is Shahada: a proclamation of personal faith that there is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet. At the end of the day, Shahada is loaded with a missionary urgency to make the whole world Islamic. Sometimes listed as a sixth Pillar of Islam is Jihad: holy war. That word can innocently mean a holy war of self discipline waged upon one’s self in the struggle to surrender to Allah. (In fact, `Islam’ is an Arabic word meaning `to surrender’ - to surrender to God’s will.) Or Jihad can mean something downright ominous. The horrific event of 9/11, when Islamic extremists drove two 747’s into the Twin Towers in Lower Manhattan, bringing down not only mountainous heaps of mortar and bricks but also 3000 innocent people was indeed a Jihad - a holy war against `infidels.’ The horrendous event of 9/11 which required an operation working day and night for 10 months to haul away 2,000,000 tons of debris (in which were rescued 20,000 body-parts for appropriate burial) was indeed a Jihad - a holy war against `infidels.’

Judaism: not a missionary religion

Unlike Christianity and Islam, Judaism is not a missionary religion. In the  early Church when a problem arose about  Jews mixing with Gentiles, Peter Simon, a Jew, got up and said, “I now realize that God has no favorites but gives welcome to the man of any nation who fears Him and acts uprightly." (Acts 10:28-35)  The same theme that God has no favorites is found in Deuteronomy 10:17, II Chronicles 19:7, Job 34:19,  Wisdom 6:7, Romans 2:11, Galatians 2:6 and Ephesians 6:9.  If God has no favorites but “gives welcome to any one from any nation who fears him and acts uprightly,” then there is no frantic need for Judaism to go forth and make the whole world Jewish. Judaism rests in peace. It lives and lets live, and it wishes itself to be left in peace. It launches no crusades. It plots no attacks on metropolitan areas to bring down not only towering skyscrapers but also and especially `infidels.’

 Not a mission of conquest

Christianity is, indeed, a missionary religion. But what is the nature of the mission on which Jesus sends us? Is it a mission of `universal conquest’ – a mission to make the whole world Christian? The New Testament does, indeed, present Jesus as commanding the apostles to “Go forth into the whole world and make disciples of all men, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Mt. 28: 19) But scholars agree that that command with its very explicit Trinitarian formula (which reads like an excerpt from a baptismal ritual manual) is more the command of the early church community bent on growth and expansion, than the command of the historical Jesus.

That missionary command (which the early church community put into the mouth of Jesus) “to go forth into the whole world and make disciples of all men,” at the end of the day, is an ambitious mission of `universal conquest.’ Such a mission to make the whole world Christian is not only a very ambitious task; it’s also fraught with all sorts of mischief, as the dark history of Christian missionary activity proves.

But a mission of  compassion

If Jesus does not send the Apostles forth on an ambitious mission of universal conquest, then what is the mission on which He sends them?

Matthew says Jesus called the twelve Apostles and sent them forth to “Cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous, and expel demons.” (Mt 10: 8) That’s the mission! It’s not a mission of `universal conquest.’ It’s a mission of universal compassion! Jesus sends them forth not to do something to people (convert and baptize them) but rather to do something for them: “Cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous, and expel demons.”

A legendary missionary who baptized everyone

Mission as a frantic effort to do something to people (to convert and baptize them lest they be eternally lost) was singularly embodied in the legendary missionary, St. Francis Xavier.  Born in Spain in 1506, he joined the Jesuit Order, and became the greatest of all Christian missionaries, with the possible exception of St. Paul.  He is called the Apostle of the Indies and Japan, because he is known to have baptized 40,000 converts. In fact, he is said to have baptized 10,000 people in a single month! When he died in 1552, his body was buried in Goa, India, but his right arm and hand which baptized thousands is preserved in a glass reliquary in the church of the Gesù in Rome for all to see! 

A little missionary who baptized no one

For the legendary Francis Xavier mission was doing something to people: converting and baptizing them. For Mother Teresa of Calcutta,[1] foundress of the Missionaries of Charity, mission was doing something for people.  At the time of her death, September 5, 1997, she had 610 missions in 123 countries. Those missions had hospices and homes for people with HIV/AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis. They ran soup kitchens,  family counseling centers, orphanages and schools. This “Saint of the Gutter”(as she came to be called) together with her fellow-sisters, gathered  up the dying in the gutters of Calcutta (whom the caste system of India walked right by). The sisters carried them off to their hospice, where they bathed and fed them. Then without pouring one drop of baptismal water over their heads, Mother Theresa and her sisters kissed these poor souls  and sent them off to heaven, but not before healing them of the worst malady imaginable: the thought of not being worthy of  being picked up from a gutter!

Two models of mission

Here are two outstanding models of mission: St. Francis Xavier who baptized everyone, and Blessed Teresa of Calcutta who didn’t baptize anyone. The two models are light years apart from each other. For St. Francis Xavier, mission was doing something to people (converting and baptizing them). For Blessed Teresa of Calcutta mission is doing something for people – the very same mission which Jesus sent the twelve Apostles on, when He told them to go forth and “Cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous and expel demons.” (Mt 10: 8) Behold two models of mission: one of conquest and the other of compassion.

A new approach to mission

St. Cyrian, bishop of Carthage (d. 258) is famous for his dictum “Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus” – “Outside the Church there is no salvation.” What an urgent mission that places upon our backs – the mission to have to go forth and “make disciples of all men, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” lest they die without salvation.

Dr. Joseph Hough, President of Union Theological Seminary in New York, invites Christians to take a new approach to other religions, and therefore a new approach to mission.

Born into the Calvinist Tradition, which stresses the absolute freedom and sovereignty of God, Hough uses that freedom and sovereignty of God in a positive and constructive way. God, he says, is free even to come to human beings as a fellow human being. That’s what makes Christmas possible.  God is free to come to human beings in any form that God chooses – free to come to us in the person of Jesus Christ, or in the person of Mohammed. Dr. Hough’s approach enables us to see other believers “not as foreigners or strangers” but as brothers and sisters “in the household of God.” (Eph 2:19)  It enables us to see other believers as “fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys," as Scrooge’s nephew says in Dicken’s Christmas Carol.

Conclusion

A pleasant relief

What a pleasant relief to know that we can be passionately Christian, and still believe that there can be salvation outside the Church (though that does, indeed, deal a blow to old St. Cyprian’s famous dictum). What a pleasant relief to know that the mission is not to make the whole world Christian or, worse yet, to make the whole world Catholic. What a pleasant relief to know that the mission is not to go forth and do something to people (convert and baptize them); the mission is to do something for people (cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous and expel demons).What a pleasant relief to know the mission is compassion, not conversion. Conversion can be dark and ambiguous. Compassion, on the other hand, can only be bright and shining – like the face of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.

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[1] She was beatified by Pope John Paul II and given the title Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.

The Following of Jesus: Compassion

The Samaritan hoisted the poor man onto his beast of burden

 and hurried him off to the nearest inn. (Lk. 10:34)

The Following of Jesus: Compassion

January 15, 2012, Second Sunday in Ordinary Time 
1 Samuel. 3:3, 5-10, 19     1 Corinthians. 6:13-15, 17-20   

 John 1:35-42

1^st reading from I Samuel

Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the LORD where the ark of God was. The LORD called to Samuel, who answered, "Here I am." Samuel ran to Eli and said, "Here I am. You called me." "I did not call you,” Eli said. "Go back to sleep." So he went back to sleep. Again the LORD called Samuel, who rose and went to Eli."Here I am, “he said.”You called me." But Eli answered, "I did not call you, my son. Go back to sleep." At that time Samuel was not familiar with the LORD, because the LORD had not revealed anything to him as yet. The LORD called Samuel again, for the third time. Getting up and going to Eli, he said, "Here I am. You called me." Then Eli understood that the LORD was calling the youth. So he said to Samuel, "Go to sleep, and if you are called, reply, Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening." When Samuel went to sleep in his place, the LORD came and revealed his presence, calling out as before, "Samuel, Samuel!" Samuel answered, "Speak, for your servant is listening."  Samuel grew up, and the LORD was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect.

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Glory to you, Lord.

The next day John was standing there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, there is the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard John say this and went to follow Jesus. Jesus turned, saw them following Him, and asked, “What do you want?” They answered, “Where do you live, Rabbi?” (This word, translated, means “Teacher.”) Jesus replied “Come and see.”So they went and saw where He lived, and spent the rest of the day with Him. (It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.) One of the two who heard John, and followed Jesus, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. At once Andrew found his brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah.” (This word means “Christ.”)Then he took Simon to Jesus, Jesus looked at him and said, "You are Simon, the son of John. Your name will be Cephas. (This is the same as Peter, and it means “Rock.”)

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

Discipleship – the opening theme

With last Sunday’s feast of Epiphany the curtain came down on the Extraordinary Time of the Advent/Christmas season, and we now return now to Ordinary Time. Then on Ash Wednesday, February 22, 2012 we will enter into the Extraordinary Time of Lent in preparation for Easter, April 8, 2012. As the curtain falls on the Christmas drama, we are dismissed not to `business as usual’ but to the unusual business of following Him who came to us on Christmas Day. Discipleship-the following of Jesus-is always the opening theme of Ordinary Time in all three liturgical cycles of A, B and C.

The following of Jesus: not legalism but compassion

At the end of the day, Jesus’ great parable about the Good Samaritan is all about discipleship. Once upon a time a man was going from Jerusalem to Jericho and was waylaid by robbers who left him half-dead. Along came a Jewish priest who crossed the street and passed by the half-dead man. Along came a Levite, the priest’s helper. He, too, crossed the street and passed by the half-dead man. The two men couldn’t tell whether the man was dead or not. If he were dead and if the two got too close to his corpse they would incur severe legal impurity. (Num 5:2) That perhaps was why both men crossed to the other side of the street.

Then along came a Samaritan (considered a half breed and a heretic by Jews). This heretic, not worried about incurring legal impurity if the man were dead, stopped to size up the situation. He happily found the man not dead but only `half-dead.’ So he stopped and poured the oil of compassion into his wounds. Then he hoisted the poor man onto his beast of burden and hurried him off to the nearest inn. There he dug deep into his pocket to pay the cost of the poor man’s care and cure. (Lk. 10:25-37) The following of Jesus is not about legalism but about compassion, and compassion at times can be very costly.

Cheap Legalism & costly compassion

It was legalism which made the priest and Levite cross the street to avoid legal impurity incurred by getting too close to a corpse. Their legalism didn’t cost them one red cent. Compassion, on the other hand, is costly. It is costly in time: the Good Samaritan who was hurrying to Jericho on important business had to slam on the brakes and stop to minister to one in great need. It is costly in money: the Samaritan had to dig deep into his pocket and pay the innkeeper for the poor man’s care and cure.

Compassion, not animal sacrifices

One day Jesus was dining at the home of tax collector Matthew. Many tax collectors and “those known as sinners” came to join Jesus and his disciples at table. When the self-righteous Pharisees saw this, they complained to Jesus’ disciples, “How come your teacher eats with tax collectors and sinners?” Hearing them complaining Jesus said, “People who are well do not need a doctor, but sick people do. Go and learn the meaning of the Scripture, `It is compassion that I want from you people, not your animal sacrifices.’” Jesus was quoting the prophet Hosea.  (Mt 9: 9-13; Hosea 6:6)

That quote from Hosea was a favorite one of Jesus. We find Him quoting it again in chapter 12. One Sabbath He and His disciples were walking through some cornfields, and His disciples, feeling hungry, began to pluck off ears of corn and eat them. The Pharisees noticed this and said to Jesus, “Look! Your disciples are doing something that is forbidden on the Sabbath.” Plucking corn was a form of work, and working on the Sabbath was forbidden by the Law. (Ex 34:21) Exasperated by such legalism Jesus again quotes Hosea to the Pharisees: “Oh, if you people only knew the meaning of the Scripture, `It is compassion I want from you people, not your animal sacrifices,’ you would not be so quick to condemn innocent people.” (Mt 12:1-7; Hosea 6:6)

A Compassionate Pastor

Legalism is an eternal temptation for religion. Sometime ago a compassionate (and also innovative) pastor took it upon himself to substitute rice for wheat in the Communion wafer to accommodate a little girl making her first Holy Communion. She was afflicted with celiac disease – a condition which can’t tolerate wheat and other grains. When the bishop of the diocese heard about the rice substitution, he simply declared the Communion to be”invalid” (!) because, he said, “We must follow Christ; we must do what He did. At the Last Supper He did not consecrate rice wafers but bread.”

Yes, indeed, the bishop was right; we must follow Christ. But we must follow the Christ, who was very short on legalism but very long on compassion. We must follow the Christ who liked to quote Hosea:  “It’s compassion I want from you people, not your animal sacrifices.” If that bishop had known the meaning of that Scripture he would not have been so quick to condemn that compassionate pastor. Instead he would have commended him for his compassion which sought to feed a young girl who was afflicted with celiac disease and who was at the same time hungering for the Bread of Life. He would have commended that pastor for his faithful following of Christ who fed five thousand hungry people, with no questions asked. (Mk 6:30-44)

Bonhoeffer: “Discipleship - a command to all Christians” 

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945), a German Lutheran minister and theologian was put to death by Hitler in 1945. His most noted work is The Cost of Discipleship.  It was written in the context of the Evangelical Church of Germany in the 1920s, 30s and 40s. During that Church’s watch, the inconceivable horrors of the Holocaust were spawned, thrived and went unchallenged. In The Cost of Discipleship Bonhoeffer’s bottom line is that `cheap discipleship’ (the stuff that doesn’t make any great demands on the church institution or its members) is the deadly enemy of the Church. We are fighting, he writes, for `costly discipleship’ (the stuff that makes demands on the institution and ourselves).

In his book Bonhoeffer makes an interesting observation which gives us Catholics pause. The Roman Church, he writes, felt uneasy about dismissing the call to discipleship as unrealistic, or about simply watering it down. So Rome came up with a creative solution: it `farmed out’ the call to discipleship to a few chosen specialists in the Church -- monks and nuns! To them the Roman Church could point and say, “Look at these heroes of mine! In them I have obeyed Jesus’ call to discipleship.”But that creative solution, Bonhoeffer contended, created a double standard in the Roman Church: a maximum one for a few chosen monks and nuns, and a minimum one for the rest of God’s people.  Discipleship, he maintained, “is not the achievement or merit of a chosen few people but is a divine command to all Christians without distinction.”

Vatican II catching up to Bonhoeffer

In 1964 Vatican II caught up to Lutheran Bonhoeffer’s contention that discipleship is a divine command to all Christians. In its stellar document Lumen Gentium, the Council carved out a special chapter (Chapter V) entitled The Call of the Whole Church to Holiness (to discipleship). And the Council purposely placed that chapter immediately before the one entitled Religious (monks and nuns). Chapter V reads,”The Lord Jesus, the divine Teacher and Model of all perfection, preached holiness of life [discipleship] to each and every one of His disciples, regardless of their situation. “ (Lumen Gentium, art. 40) That put an end, at least on paper, to the Church’s `farming out’ discipleship and holiness to a chosen few.

Legalism and compassion at sunset

The sun finally set on that busy day when the priest, the Levite and the Samaritan were on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. All finally made it back home in Jerusalem that night.  Their legalism that day had caused them to fear coming close to a possibly dead man, and so they crossed the street and passed right by the poor man. But as the sun set on that day, that legalism unsettled the priest and Levite, as it clashed with a superior Law written down deep in the depths of their hearts.

The Good Samaritan, too, finally made it home at sunset. Yes, he had been late for his business appointment in Jericho, because he had stopped to pour the oil of compassion on one in great need. Yes, he was exhausted by the energy expended on hoisting the poor man’s heavy weight onto his beast of burden and hurrying him off to the nearest inn. And yes, he was minus a good amount money as he paid the inn-keeper for the poor man’s care and cure. But as the sun was setting on that day, there was a song singing in his heart; it was the song that sings in the heart of all compassionate people.

Conclusion

Compassion’s twofold blessing

Compassion bears a twofold blessing. The Samaritan’s compassion was indeed a great blessing for the man waylaid by robbers on the road to Jericho; it bound up the poor man’s wounds and carried him off to the nearest inn. But it was an even greater blessing for the Samaritan himself: the priest and Levite are dead and forgotten, but the Good Samaritan lives eternally on down through the centuries.

Epiphany: the Good News of Inclusion

 “We have seen His star in the east, and have come to do Him homage.”

 (Mt 2:2)

Epiphany: the Good News of Inclusion

January 8, 2012, Feast of Epiphany

Isaiah 60:1-6    Ephesians 3:1-3     Matthew 2:1-12

First reading from Isaiah

Arise Jerusalem, and shine like the sun; the glory of the Lord is shining on you! The Gentiles will be covered by darkness, but on you the light of the Lord will shine; the brightness of His presence will be with you. The Gentiles will be drawn to your light, and kings will marvel at your shining radiance. The wealth of the Gentiles will be brought to you. Great caravans of camels will come from Midian, Ephah and Sheba, bringing gifts of gold and incense, and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Second reading from Ephesians

I, Paul, the servant of Christ, am here in jail because of you – for preaching that you Gentiles are also a part of God’s household. No doubt you already know that God has given me this special task of showing God’s favor to you Gentiles, as I briefly mentioned before in one of my letters. God Himself revealed to me this secret plan of His, hidden from former generations, that the Gentiles also are included in the kindness of God. (Eph 3:1-3)

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

Glory to you, Lord.

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, astrologers from the east arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We have seen His star in the east, and have come to do Him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet: And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel[1].”

Then Herod called the astrologers secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I, too, may go and do him homage.” After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they returned home by another route.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

The glitz of Epiphany

Epiphany is a Greek word meaning `a manifestation’ or `a pointing to.’ In the Eastern Church Epiphany focuses on the Lord’s baptism when a heavenly voice pointed to Jesus and declared that this is “my beloved son with whom I am well pleased.” (Mt 3: 17) In the Western Church, Epiphany focuses on the adoration of three astrologers (gazers of heavenly bodies). A star pointed out to them a manger where lay an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes. (Mt 2:1-12)

In the course of time, tradition dressed up Epiphany with a lot of glitz. With chapter 60 of Isaiah in mind, tradition turned the astrologers into kings, placing crowns on their heads and gifts of gold and frankincense in their arms for the infant. (Is 60: 1-6) Because Matthew adds a third gift of myrrh to Isaiah’s gold and frankincense, tradition had to add a third king to carry the third gift of myrrh.[2] (Mt 2:11) By the middle of the 3^rd century, tradition even gave the kings names: Melchior of Nubia (a Babylonian scholar), Caspar of Tarshish (a Persian scholar), and Baltazar of Chaldea (an Arab scholar). By the 9^th century, tradition claimed that the three kings represented the whole human family: Baltazar was Asian, Caspar a white European, and Melchior was African and therefore black. Tradition  even claims  that the remains of the three kings were discovered in Persia, brought to Constantinople by St. Helena, transferred to Milan in the fifth century and finally to Cologne, Germany in 1163, where they are now the prized treasures of that city’s cathedral.

A `cute’ little story?

Before Vatican II, Epiphany was an `immovable feast.’ That is to say, it was always celebrated on January 6. Now it may be moved to the Sunday after January 1. In those days the feast also enjoyed a `privileged octave’ in the liturgical calendar. That is to say, for eight straight days the Mass of Epiphany would be repeated verbatim -- using the very same epistle, gospel, and prayers. With Vatican II, however, the feast lost its privileged octave; now it’s simply celebrated once - either on January 6 or on the Sunday after January 1.

Was it because the liturgical revisionists after Vatican II were not as wise as the wise men that the feast lost its privileged octave? Did those revisionists at the end of the day view Epiphany as not much more than a `cute’ little story to tell our kids?

In search of the religious meaning of Epiphany

The Book of Ecclesiastes contains that oft-quoted litany:

 There is a time for everything under God’s sun:

a time to be born and a time to die,

 a time to plant and a time to harvest,

  a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to embrace and a time to abstain,
a time for war and a time for peace.

                                                       

(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

To Ecclesiastes we add a litany of our own:

There is a time for everything under God’s sun. There is: a time to be simple and uncomplicated about the story of Three Kings, as children are. There is a time to take the Magi story at its face value, as children do. But then there is also a time to be grownups, and to go in search of the religious meaning of Epiphany.

The glitzy medieval story which depicts three kings bedecked in fine robes and riding on camels might delight the child in us, but at the end of the day it isn’t very profound. Nor is it very profound to simply debunk the story. The task at hand is to go in search of the religious meaning behind Epiphany. At the end of the day, we remind ourselves that the gospels are not historical documents; their aim is not to be historically accurate. The gospels are religious documents; their aim is to communicate religious meaning. And the religious meaning of Epiphany is the Good News that “the Gentiles also are included in the kindness of God.” (Eph 3:3)

The Good News of inclusion

Up until now, all the main characters in the Christmas drama are Jewish. Joseph and Mary, Zachary and Elizabeth, old Anna and Simeon in the temple are Jews. The shepherds, though unwashed and unkempt, are also Jews. Even the angels singing “Glory to God in the highest” seems to be singing in Hebrew. The lead actor in the Christmas drama, the Messiah Himself, is for sure a Jew -- "a descendant of David according to the flesh." (Rom 1:3)

Up until Epiphany, the Gentiles are missing from the Christmas drama. The drama of universal salvation waits for the last act, and it comes with the arrival of Gentile astrologers. The story of a bright-shining star leading them into the Christmas drama is suffused with religious meaning. It bears tidings of good news that “Gentiles also are included in the kindness of God.” (Eph 3:3)

That, indeed, was shocking news for Jews of old who thought that they alone belonged to the household of God. Epiphany summons the Jews to move over and make room for Gentiles in God’s house. The drama which began on Christmas Eve with no room in the inn for the holy family (Lk 2:7), now ends with much room for everybody. The arrival of Gentile astrologers announces the same good news that Peter announced in Cornelius’ house “that God has no favorites but gives welcome to anyone of any nation who fears Him and does what is right.” (Acts 10:34-35)

The bad news of exclusion

In the second reading Paul writes to the  Ephesians: “God Himself revealed to me this secret plan of His, hidden from former generations, that the Gentiles also are included in the kindness of God.”(Eph 3:1-3) We chuckle at this "secret plan of God, hidden from former generations.” We wonder who hid this Good News about Gentiles being included in the kindness of God. Did God hide that Good News from the Jews of old, or did they hide it from themselves? Why in the world would God want to hide the Good News about the inclusion of Gentiles in His kindness?

The Jews of old scrupulously excluded Gentiles. They built exclusion right into their very Temple. A stone wall five feet tall (called the Separation Wall) divided the Temple’s outer court of the Gentiles from the inner court of the Jews. On the wall were attached xenophobic signs prohibiting any Gentile under the pain of death from going beyond the prescribed line.

By an ironic twist of fate, Gentiles down through the centuries have excluded Jews. With the fires of Holocaust still burning in our minds, we ask who, indeed, hid the Good News from the Nazis that not only German Gentiles but also German Jews were included in the kindness of God? Did God hide that Good News from the Nazis, or did they hide it from themselves?

Excluding women, gays, infidels

Today we ask who hides the Good News that women in society and the Church are also included in the kindness of God? Does God hide that Good News from  society and the Church,  or do these male-driven institutions hide that Good News from themselves?

We also ask who hides the good news that gays are included in the kindness of God? Does God hide that good news from the religious right and homophobes, or do they hide that Good News from themselves?

Who hides the Good News that we Western infidels are included in the kindness of Allah?  Does Allah hide that Good News from Islamic extremists, or do they hide it from themselves? 

If there’s mystery here, it is this: why would God or Allah or anyone else ever want to hide the Good News of Inclusion?

 Conclusion

Dismissal of the Christmas seasons

With Epiphany Sunday the curtain comes down on the Christmas season, and next Sunday, January  15, 2012, we return to the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time. All the great religious stories (whether Jewish, Islamic or Christian) need a last act, and all need the same last act!  All need a Star of Epiphany to purify them not of their diversity, uniqueness and quaintness but of their hostility, hatred and exclusive spirit. All need a feast of Epiphany to summon their adherents to move over and make room for others. And ample room there is, indeed.  When Jesus came into the world the inn-keepers said to Joseph and Mary: “There is no room for you in the inn.” (Lk 2:7) As He was leaving the world, Jesus said to His disciples, "In my Father's house there is much room for everyone." (Jn 14:2)

 A Christmas card of many years past bore a very meaningful dismissal of the Christmas season. It reads:

When the song of the angels is stilled,

when the star in the sky is gone,

when the kings have returned to their villas,

when the shepherds are back in their fields,

the real business of Christmas begins:

to find the lost, to heal the broken,

to feed the hungry, to seek the path to peace,

and to start worshiping a God

who includes everyone in His kindness,

and who asks us to do the same.

The Adoration of the Magi

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[1] Prophet Micah 5:1

[2] An aromatic gum resin obtained from several trees and shrubs in India, Arabia, and eastern Africa, and used in perfume and incense