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All posts for the month July, 2001

Ordinary 17

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on July 29, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

July 29, 2001 Genesis 18: 20-33 + Colossians 2.12-14 + Luke 11 1-13

It is our fifth week in the Jerusalem Journey, exploring the instruction Jesus gives to those who would be his disciples. Poverty, Joy, Mercy, and Hospitality were the first four qualities of discipleship, and I remind you, that what we are discovering here is not what disciples do, but what they are: Poor, Joyful, Merciful, and Hospitable. Today, we look to the First Testament’s reading for our clue as we explore the Gospel passage. Without domg so, we might simply say that it tells us that a disciple is prayerful and let it go at that. Of course of disciple is prayerful, that’s not the point of what Luke has Jesus telling them. The message emerges m the story that follows the prayer

That is where the first reading from Genesis comes in. It’s not about God. It’s about Abraham. There is no need to establish God’s power and reputation. After all, God is God. The ancient one who kept this story alive did so, apparently, in order to praise Abraham as a worthy contender for mercy, even before his Maker Sitting with that story, reading 1t over and over again, I became more impressed with Abraham than with God. There’s no surprise nor revelation about God in this story, but it certainly says a lot about Abraham and his constant, steady, unwavering persistence.

Now, when you hold on to that memory of Abraham, and then listen to the whole of today’s Gospel passage, there is something more going on in Luke’s plan than simply giving us a prayer formula. What the disciples ask of Jesus is not so much how to prayer in words, but how to be successful in prayer, and the response of Jesus is more to be found in the story that follows than in the formula itself.

Abraham discovers that God will have mercy, and what we seem to see here is that mercy is that mercy comes by a partnership: God responds to human compassion to become compassionate. Without compassionate and merciful people, God’s compassion and mercy is not available. Does this mean that without Abraham’s mercy God would not have had mercy? Who knows? What is obvious is that it didn’t happen that way What did happen is that a someone pressed God for mercy and it was granted. There is a partnership revealed here that we dare not ignore.

Herein lies this week’s quality of discipleship: “persistence” or “perseverance.” The application of this quality lies in one’s recognition of the partnership or coalition the disciple has with God, just as those disciples had with Jesus.Perseverance is the key It is the real secret to affective prayer; not the use of the right words, the right formula, or the right sequence of dates. It is perseverance in the relationship no matter how things are going. Yet everything in our culture and this age would make this look foolish. Throw away relationship that fail to make  us feel good all the time, a relentless search and demand for perfection in others, and a growmg sense of entitlement that makes us impatient and intolerant of anything that is slow or a pleasure that is not instant make the disciple whose life is formed around perseverance look oddly out of place. But so it shall be for those who have set their face on Jerusalem and chose to be formed by Jesus Christ along the way

Those who say· “Lord, teach us to pray ” are not seeking a repetition of words, but a breakthrough to the one thmg necessary to keep them on their journey. It is the one unique element of Luke’s lesson on this issue, and a constant theme in his whole Gospel. the Holy Spirit. That is what will be given to those who ask, the very Spirit and Life of God. It won’t be a matter of the little things with which we all sometimes clutter up our prayers with passmg wants, needs, and fears. It will be the Spirit that can and will sustain us through all temptations, tnals, and fears. This is what Jesus has ultimately come to give us, to teach us, and share with us. It is that Spirit which allows disciples of Jesus to take up the words of the Psalm we just used in this liturgy and make its words our own. “I thank you for your faithfulness and love which excel all we ever knew of you. On the day I called, you answered. you increased the strength of my soul. ”

Ordinary 16

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on July 22, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

July 22, 2001 Genesis 18: 1-10 + Colossians 1:24-28 + Luke 10:38-42

The Old Testament reading today will not let us escape what we find in the Gospel. a story of hospitality. What we discover today in this part of the Journey to Jerusalem however is not just a lesson in hospitality, but another dimension of Discipleship.The lesson comes not just from word, but also from example.The stories of Jesus feeding crowds abound in the Gospel. His mandate to the apostles to: “Feed them yourselves” comes off the page into the face of those who always think someone else will or should take care of the hungry. The response of Jesus to the needs of those who came to him is never just “spiritual” He raises a dead girl, and tells the parents. “Give her something to eat.”All through the Old Testament, God is the Divine host who feeds and sustains those who wander the wilderness.Once in their promised land, they always remained sojourners and passing guests there in God’s eyes.Their prayer and their feasts celebrated the Table God had set before them.

In Jesus, Israel’s divine host became incarnate, and the Old Testament quality of hospitality was seen in the images he used for the reign of God as a banquet and in the way he himself was found at dinners, feasts, and banquets with sinners, pharisees, and folks like Martha and Mary. Yet, while Martha and Mary may seem to the host, it is, in the end, Jesus who feeds them with his presence and his word.

Disciples of Jesus, poor, joyful, merciful, and hospitable never forget that they are perpetual guests of a loving and divine host.As guests, our possessiveness and proprietary attitude toward this world’s goods and resources are kept in check.As disciples we are clear in our minds and hearts that it is the Word of God that really provides nourishment for us, and a life devoted to hear that word is first of all concerns.In some ways, Martha and Mary might be seen as one person – the person who received Jesus Christ.There is a balance proposed here: between doing and being, and the disciple knows the difference.

In an age and culture of work that glorifies the workaholic, and rewards with high praise (and low wages) those who revel in 60 and 70 hour work weeks, there is a serious challenge deep in this storyWork becomes an idol because it can produce the much sought after prizes or  comfort, pleasure, and success.In the meantime, relationships disintegrate, not just the relationship with God, but between parents and children, but between spouses and neighbors as well.

An call to integration of work and play, or of act10n and prayer, is what disciples of Jesus hear in this Gospel walking with Jesus to Jerusalem.Having just told the story of Mercy in the Good Samaritan parable, he quickly reminds us that this discipleship is not all about doing, it is also about being. In this case, being hospitable, being good guests, and gracious hosts in spirit of Abraham and the style of Jesus.

Ordinary 15

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on July 15, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

July 15, 2001 Deuteronomy 30:10-14 + Colossians 1 15-20 + Luke 10:25-37

What is this law the wnter of Deuteronomy speaks of with such passion? What commandment and statute are we so strongly encouraged to keep, and what is it we are to return to the Lord our God with all our heart and all our soul? He’s right, this one who writes to us from so long ago. It is not too mysterious or remote.Every descendant of Abraham has it written on their hearts and in their minds. To this day, faithful Jewish people have at their door posts and some wear it on their person. It is the heart of the Book of Deuteronomy For us it is another of the qualities to be found in disciple of Jesus Christ, one so significant and profound that it will take us two weeks to explore it’s depths and implications. It is the law of Love, the theme of the whole of book of sermons that make up Deuteronomy, and the Law Jesus summarized in his life and his preaching: You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your mind, and your whole soul, and you shall love your neighbor has yourself.

In the tenth chapter of Deuteronomy, the servant of Yahweh is instructed with all the force of law to: “Love the stranger” In the sixth chapter it is “Love the Lord your God” which the scholar quotes so deftly in his response to Jesus. He knows the law very well. It is the violation of the law of love for the stranger that condemns those who passed by the man at the side of the road. It is the keeping of that law by the Samaritan that sets before us this quality of discipleship. Next week, we shall see again in it’s other side: the Love of God.

“Neighbor Love” or perhaps, “Mercy” as Jesus calls it today becomes the third of the qualities we are called to consider in our own lives this week. First there was Poverty two weeks ago, then there was Joy, last week, and now we find this Mercy, Disciples of Jesus know this quality deep within their being. It is a quality of generosity and compassion. It is not just exceptional moments or a response to disasters, but a quality that is consistent and present all the time. The disciple of Jesus does not just show up when a tornado or hurricane blows through, they do not just learn the name of a neighbor when their house bums down.,They are always aware of human need, and never measure out limits to their compassion, concern, and assistance. “Take care of him. If there is more cost, I will repay you upon my return.” It is never a matter of whether or not those in need deserve assistance. The disciple of Jesus is not a social worker concerned with the solutions of social problems. The disciple of Jesus knows Mercy, and can see the face of God in another human being, and they will not pass by Mercy is that quality of love and compassion when there is every reason for there to be none.

I ran across this little story last week that drives home the point with wonderful clarity It spoke of random acts of kindness, and proposed that they could generate  a tidal wave of goodness. It seems that a woman drove up to a toll booth on the highway and handed the attendant seven tokens instead of just one. “I’m paying for mine and for the next six cars.” she said. As each car pulled up to the booth, the attendant announced, “The lady in the red car paid your toll. Have a nice day!”

Now that’s how Samaritan Love works, or “Mercy”    The lady in the car had no idea who was behind her It didn’t make any difference. This story of Samaritan Love offers a challenge to all who believe in Jesus Christ and would be His disciples to make the practice of random acts of kindness their routine, not an occasional exception, the rule of their lives, not just at toll booths, but hour by hour on the phone, at the desk, in the car, at the table, in the classroom, or in the kitchen, wherever there is another in whom we may see the face of God. Mercy is indiscriminate, or it isn’t Mercy at all. It does not measure or hmit. It is never exclusive nor reserved for someone special. Mercy, for a disciple of Jesus, is something very near, already in our mouths, and in our hearts, and it simply waits to be carried out.

Ordinary 14

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on July 8, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

July 8, 2001 Isaiah 66:10-14 + Galatians 6:14-18 + Luke 10:1-12,127-20

We are presently in a series of Gospel readings taken from a special section of Luke’s Gospel that is often called the “travel narrative” It began last week, and it will continue to the Thirtieth Sunday Jesus is on the way to Jerusalem, and Luke uses this occasion to teach about discipleship: about what it means to be a disciple, and about the human qualities of disciples.

Being task oriented as we have become in our culture, we often get the what mixed up with the who. It’s so easy to begin to shape our identity by what we do rather than by who we are. Recently I was listening to a eulogy during which someone was speaking about the deceased. On and on it went about what the man had done, where he worked, who for, and for how long. Inside I was groaning because that wasn’t who this was, that was what he did, and the man we were honoring was far more than where he worked which to me seemed totally msignificant since I never knew the man before he had retired!

We are forever selling ourselves to the tasks of life, measuring our worth or the worth of another by what we earn, where we work, what we have accomplished, what we drive, and how big the house is. Our children start early with this stuff – their judgements have to do with what they wear on the feet, how many megs on their hard drive, and how fast their internet server!

This way of thinking, so at odds with the Christian message, often finds its way into our reflection and our thinking about who we are as disciples. In other words, we begin to think of discipleship as something we do, as something with very serious duties and responsibilities, and while that is an element, it’s not all there is to it. When that’s all there is, we are stuck, and discipleship is reduced to just another thing we’re supposed to do, sort of like another job or chore added on the rest of life. What we can discover in this section of Luke’s Gospel is another way of looking at ourselves and one another in the context of discipleship rather than in the context of consumer or producer There is more to this calling than something we must do. Being a disciple is what we must become, and that happens first by what we are, not by what we do.

Last week, we got the first of several characteristics or attitudes that are important elements of discipleship – or perhaps we might better say, they are part of the identify the disciple. Poverty is the one I spoke of last week. If you remember, I suggested that it had nothing to do with what we own or do not own, but rather with how we relate to and use what we have for others – in short, whether or not we can give it away, or share it without worry over whether it might be broken or lost is the measure of our poverty.

This week, we get another quality of discipleship, and it springs out of the Poverty, that fundamental and first of them all. Notice how Jesus sends them out­ with nothing: poor. With nothing to worry about, nothing to lose, nothing to pack, carry, or slow them down, they are free, and that quality of freedom from worry and the possessive concerns that seem to weigh down the rich who’s stuff is too good to loan or share, is called._JQy. Notice that attitude in the disciples of this story· “They returned rejoicing” Then, lest they think or we think that their joy has something to do with what they have done, he goes on immediately to say· “Do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” It’s who they are, not what they do that matters, that makes them disciples, and fulfills their mission.

Now lest we think that this is about someone else, or about those Apostles, pay attention to the fact that Luke is talking about “others”, nameless ones who are all followers of Jesus – all are sent on this mission of discipleship; all given the divine command; all. All ofus are sent on ahead in Christ’s name. We are emissaries of God. What Christ wants is that others will see Him in us. “Then God said. ‘Let us make humankind in our own image, according to our likeness.” Our calling is to act in God’s behalf, to represent God until he comes in glory..

But, what does this world get? What kind of God do we represent – what is the image this world gets of God from us? It is a profound and a troubling question. A world that longs for a loving, forgiving, God of mercy too often gets a God a judgment, revenge, and punishment. Is that the God we believe in, trust, and hope for? A world that longs for God of patience, and loving understanding often gets intolerance and impatience. Where’s the God we pray to and ask for mercy with confident expectations. Why is it that others cannot find in us the image of the God we want for ourselves? I think it’s because we don’t get the point – fail to understand discipleship and continue to reduce it to tasks, duties, and responsibilities.

As disciples we are called to be poor, and the consequence of that poverty when we have embraced it is Joy, because we are free of anxious concerns and worry about things that have nothing to do with who we are; that have nothing to do with the wonderful news that our names are written in heaven. In the weeks to come through this summer and fall, journey with me to Jerusalem, and let us see what we can discover about what who are called to be, and how discipleship is to be lived. This much we have learned so far· poverty and joy are the first two attitudes by which the disciple lives in this world.

Ordinary 13

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on July 1, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

July 1, 2001 Kings 19:16,19-21 + Galatians 5:1,13-18 + Luke 9:51-62

Those who would follow Jesus are a people called to povertyThose who would follow Jesus are not called to take on a task like working a second job, but rather to make following Jesus everything so completely that it reorders all other duties.

In our quest for Justice, we have gotten a few things mixed up, not the least of them is a confusion of justice with revenge. I’ve said a great deal about that in the past couple of years here, and it would be easy to launch off in that direction again given the fact that Jesus, in this gospel today, rejects revenge entirely But that is not the only example of our confusion about “Justice” It also is evident in our sense of what St. Francis of Assisi used to call. “Sister Poverty” In the clarity of his thinking if not in the radical style of his life, Francis understood poverty For him, and for that matter, all ofus who set our sights on being followers and disciples of Jesus, Poverty is not a social problem. It is not some ill to be solved, cured, and wiped out by an economic system that is “just” “Poverty which makes us uneasy, stirs our passion, and calls into question our economics, laws, and our consumer culture is an issue of Justice. “Poverty” which Jesus commends to his followers, is a mystery to be lived, not a problem to be solved. One is the consequence of injustice, the other is a consequence of a life style and a new way of relating to things and to others.

There is a test of poverty It has nothing to do with annual income. It has to do with what can be shared. If your car is too expensive to let someone use it; it’s too expensive. If your computer is too delicate for anyone else to use, it is too delicate. If your sweater is too god for your sister to wear; it’s too good. The point is not that you have a certain make and model of car, or computer, or designer named sweater If any of it separates you from your neighbor, it is a violation of poverty This has nothing to do with what you may own, but the moment it becomes a problem, you’re in gospel trouble. You see, it’s not about justice, it’s about poverty

It might be “just” to say that someone doesn’t have the ear to use your stereo because they do not share your same refined taste. It might be “just” to think that someone is too plump to look in your sweater, and all of that may be true. But, you are not poor at that point, you are just true. The moment you start finding reasons for not sharing what you have, you are no longer living the virtue of poverty which Jesus proposes is essential for those who would follow him.

You may have good taste. You may have good sense. You may be law abiding, honest, and truthful, but you’re not poor; and you’re in trouble with the gospel.

We are not called to be caseworkers, making distinctions about who should have what, who deserves what, and what will help someone and what will not. That’s what social agencies do. God is poor; God shares the sun and the rain on good and bad alike. What is asked of us is compassion which is an experience of poverty.

Life today is very complicated, but the Gospel is not for those who believe. Jesus still looks for some to follow him, to live in the mystery of poverty It is not a life style that will take diluting, and it cannot be done part time. Faith in Jesus, life in the Gospel is not for Church, Sunday, or times of private prayer It’s for every day and every hour It is everything. We do not take our lives and fit them into the Gospel. We take the Gospel and let it shape our lives, our priorities, our vision, and our relationships. Those who make the way of Jesus their own must be willing to do so first, fully, freely, and forever