Readings: Acts 6: 1-7 Psalm 33: 1-2,4-5,18-19 1 Peter 2: 4-9 John 14: 1-12
Each week when I prepare the homily, I believe that God speaks to me as well and when I saw this week's Gospel passage, my reactions was: Aggghh! You see, this particular passage is one employed by the Church as a reading during the final rites for a person passing from this life into eternity. It seemed particularly ominous considering that this was my first Sunday here as your new pastor. There are three ways in which this particular Gospel passage can be read and all three are correct and in fact complimentary.
It can be read in the context which I've mentioned and in that context the words of Jesus "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God and faith in me." are particularly tender and very personal. God loves you, he created you, he was with you as you entered this life, he walks with you through life and he will be with you in the transition from life into eternity. The Lord speaks these words because he understands that we are frightened by our own mortality. I recall many years ago I worked at St. Vincent's Medical Center in Hollywood and there was a patient there in the oncology unit who was terminally ill. One day while visiting with her she broke down and cried. She said, I am a woman of faith but, I'm afraid of dying. Death is frightening, it is totally alien to our personal experience. We are comforted at that hour by our loved ones who surround us and by these words of our Lord. He reassures us that he a loving a provident God and that death is not an end but a transition into a new and more full life.
The second way in which this passage can be read is in the sense of the seconding coming of Christ, when the Messiah will take away all of the hateful, evil and divisive realities which plague God's creation and restore the harmony which the Creator intended.
The third way in which this passage can be read is in the context of the Church here and now in the world. Here that first passage from Acts offers us a valuable insight. Acts describes a community divided between the Christians of Greek and Jewish origin. These factions felt that they were both being unjustly discriminated against by the other group. I realize that is is merely a historical reference and that such divisions have probably never occurred in any parish which you have ever belonged to. Guided by the Holy Spirit, the Church decided to institute the diaconate. This was an innovation. It was a practical solution to a real world crisis. It demonstrates that the Church of Christ is not a static institution but, a living body.It also illustrates that the Church of Christ has as its mission to bring healing to a world afflicted by evil and thus is part of the movement towards the Kingdom which the Messiah will usher into reality. Headed by Christ and animated by the Holy Spirit. In the Epistle, Peter says that "you too are living stones, built as an edifice of spirit". How is this accomplished in you?
There are two spiritualizing principles at work here. In the Gospel, Jesus tells us to "have faith". When we look at his own life as an example we soon discover that if Jesus had one overarching passion, it was to do the will of his Father. The first spiritual principle here then, is obedience. Now, when we say the word "obedience" it is a term that is loaded with more baggage than LAX can handle. This is true because and lets be frank here, there have been many individuals in positions of authority who have abused that authority and invoked obedience as a means of manipulating, exploiting and harming others. Here is it helpful to examine the etymology of the word itself, it comes from the Latin "ob" towards and "audire" to hear. Through his lived example Jesus shows us what this means on a practical level. Every time he was faced with a major event or, decision in his life he went off by himself and entered into prayer with his Father. He a) turned toward his father and b) listened to his Father speaking in the silence of his heart. As a disciple of the Lord, do I do this in my decision making process? Do I turn to God in prayer about how I handle my relationships, my finances, my work? Do I listen to God's voice speaking to me in my conscience and in prayer?
The second spiritualizing principle is love. This word, like obedience is loaded with all sorts of layered meanings and understandings. Here I recall a story my mother shared with me about the day I was born. I am the first born and as my mother was in the hospital, holding me in her arms after she had delivered me, she turned to my maternal grandmother and said: Mom, I'm a mother. To which my grandmother responded: " Not yet. She said: When you go hungry so that your child doesn't, when you go cold so that your child has a coat, when you give up a night's sleep to watch over your sick child, on that day, you'll be a mother. Here, my grandmother captured the essence of love, what theologians call kenosis (an out pouring of self). Love, is to place other person, their needs on par with or, above your own.
If followed, these two principles will transform our lives radically, they will make us the living stones that St. Peter mentions in today's epistle. It is in this way in which Jesus promise and prophecy is fulfilled by God, for you, in you and most of all, amazingly through you.