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Daily Scripture

+ Ascension Thursday

There is no proof; there are only witnesses.

Readings: Acts 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:14-23 Luke 24:46-53

You are witnesses of all these things. And now I am sending down to you what the Father has promised. Stay in the city then, until you are clothed with the power from on high. [Luke 24:50-51]

In an age of technology and scientific progress, we have an explanation for everything or at least the promise of the same. Yet, there are still truly human experiences – both positive and negative—that defy human explanation. Death is one such experience. Doctors know the medical reasons for death but an autopsy doesn’t tell the whole story. Conversely, who can explain the field of energy that binds lovers for life?

During his life on earth Jesus created a field of energy that changed the course of history and it did not cease at his death or even at his resurrection. It continues to this day – locally and globally. Or else how explain the heroism of the saints of yesterday and the saints of today? Women and men, energetic witnesses who have said ‘yes’ to unconditional love under any and all circumstances continue to change the course of history in the face of those who attempt to chain the Word of God. No, most of them are not formal preachers or even religious teachers per se, but people who live the message of the Gospel of Jesus day in and day out.

The gospel today is typical of the departure of a hero. We might even consider it the conclusion of a hero story. Jesus assures his disciples that he is not abandoning them. Not only that but he will send an advocate who will empower them to continue his mission. “You will be clothed with power from on high.” They will be clothed with the mantle of Christ just as the ancient Elijah was clothed in the mantle of Elias before Elias departed in his chariot to the heavens. It’s metaphor and allegory, of course but the underlying truth of Jesus mission will continue to be proclaimed as Good News for all.

But hang in there until Pentecost when the gifts of the Spirit will be renewed and we will be empowered once more to preach the Good News—using words only when necessary.

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time 'C'

Sunday February 11, 2007

Good for You. You Are Blessed!

I searched through several commentaries for a way out, an escape hatch that would get me off the hook. I found none. There are no loopholes. This is one of those weekends when the preacher is challenged to “tell it like it is!” But what is the ‘IT’ we are talking about?

I think ‘IT’ refers to the energy that drives our lives as individual believers, as a parish faith community and as a worldwide Church, in fact the energy that drives our world. Is the ‘IT’ narcissism or greed or is it the thirst for wellness, justice, integrity and peace? Is ‘IT’ the demand for global success, economic and political within a ‘catch 22’ web in which we are all caught? In order to feed ourselves, we need to feed the economy — national and global—and the word ‘economy’ of course applies to more than dollars and cents. It requires a great deal of common sense.

‘Feeding’ the economy demands creativity and requires hard work. After all, creativity and hard work are expected by the God who, we are told in the book of Genesis, drove our ancestors from the garden to labor and work by the sweat of their brow for their bread.

Does this mean, therefore, that whatever it takes is justified as long as it works for us? Well, not quite. We are social beings by nature intended by God not just to care for ourselves but also to care for others with the help of one another next store, around the block and across the globe.

The strong words from Jeremiah were selected to introduce “the great sermon” of Jesus containing the Beatitudes. Luke’s gospel is addressed to Jesus’ disciples, ‘on the plain, to his peers as it were, i.e., his early followers and to those who were already committed to his teachings in the early Church when Luke wrote this gospel. Matthew, on the other hand, places the Beatitudes within the context of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount because he was addressing himself to Jews for whom the great law came from Mount Sinai. For Matthew, the Beatitudes are the the constitutional document for the new age.

“Are you poor? Good for you! You are blessed! Don’t worry, in my dominion, you will have enough to get by.” Are you hungry? Good for you! You are blessed because in my dominion you will be satisfied.” Blessed are they who trust in God. Woe to those who trust only in their own resources.

Luke’s gospel is often called the “Gospel of the poor” because Jesus blesses those who are literally poor. However, Luke’s Jesus does not romanticize poverty as if indigence were an ideal to be pursued. Rather, he is challenging the wealthy members of the early Christian community not to depend on prosperity as if it was a reward for virtuous living. Jesus is confronting avarice and greed in all its forms, material and otherwise but he was not into politics. He was neither a capitalist nor a socialist; neither a Democrat nor Republican; neither a liberal nor a conservative. I would say he was pretty independent, wouldn’t you?

He was into justice and human rights, which do not depend on one’s political or social status but on one’s status before God. Humans left to their own ingenuity can easily become self-centered and selfish, piling up wealth in the face of the poor. He challenged the rich to be mindful that their possessions were not entitlements but the fruit of the earth [cf. Psalm 24] as well as the work of human hands and therefore ‘on loan’ as it were from God. The more a person possesses, the greater is the obligation to make sure that the poor do not go hungry and that the homeless have a place to lay their heads.

Justice is more demanding than charity. It’s not something one gives to another out of largesse. It is the acknowledgement of something to which others have a right before God—an entitlement. It is an empowerment in which the giver partners with the poor in the process of building a just society. Justice demands that we respect and promote the rights of the poor and enable them to cultivate and exercise their own creativity. Justice demands that we change systems that oppress or exploit anyone, especially the poor. It’s a justice issue when a small minority controls most the world’s wealth and resources leaving the poor with no control over the land and its fruits as has often occurred in Latin America with the help of the richest nations.

It’s a justice issue when the working poor and increasing numbers of the middle class need two and even three jobs to make ends meet while some of their employers are able to spend as much time away as they do on the job or receive a nice parachute package when the going gets rough. It is a justice issue when we demand the lowest retail prices forcing competitors to turn to cheap labor which in turn results in job losses for the middle class.

The comment has been made more than once that “the poor need to pull themselves up by the bootstraps as we and our ancestors did.” Many victims of sexual abuse have done just that—pulled themselves up by the bootstraps after over 20 years of silence but when they spoke out for justice in law, they were told they should keep quiet and get on with their lives. “Catch 22!”

We may be tempted to write off the strong message of Jeremiah and the woes articulated by Luke’s Jesus as an outdated hermeneutic on the Word of God. However, we do so at the risk of watering down the power of the Word. Luke’s uncompromising message challenges the Church today as much as it challenged Jesus’ disciples.

The Beatitudes are the great equalizer for those who want to take the Gospel seriously, the force that drives faithful Christians to do the right thing and not to count the cost.

Are you with Jesus? Good for you! Blessed are you! You shall live in the dominion of God forever.

___________

Check my website bulletin board for the list of recent postiings and current announcements. A special meditation, ‘Dancing With Wolves,’ on the passing scene was posted yesterday. Click ‘Sidebar Comments’ on the website sidebar to the right.