Fr. Albert
St. Peter Catholic Church, New Iberia
“And so they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern… There was no water in the cistern, only mud.” I guess it’s a good thing Jeremiah didn’t live in South Louisiana. His little adventure in the cistern would have ended quite differently. He may have been stuck in mud, but this weekend, we’ve been just as stuck in the water. Of course, there’s a crucial difference. We certainly pray for and do everything we can to help those who are suffering because of the flooding, but we know that no individual person caused this to happen. It is simply the byproduct of our climate and where we live. It happened before we were here and it would keep happening if we were to leave.
Jeremiah, however, is stuck in the mud because of what human beings have done. He is stuck in the mud because he loves God. Jesus tells us that he has not come to bring peace but division, and that is exactly what Jeremiah did all those years ago. Jeremiah the prophet was wildly unpopular, even though he knew all the rich and powerful people in Jerusalem. Like all prophets, Jeremiah was onlyconcerned with doing what was right in the eyes of God, regardless of what people in the world said and regardless of how educated, powerful, or wealthy they were. He knew something that many of us try to forget. The simple fact is that there are no loopholesfor God. There is no trick, no clever scheme, and no amount of persuasion that can save us from facing the absolute fullness of truth about ourselves, our actions, and where we stand before God. God is not a legalist, he is Truth itself – what I am saying is this: we will answer for our sins and for the false things we say and believe. I believe this point is often lost on us, especially since we are so familiar with games, laws, and business contracts that have technicalities, loopholes, and ways out.
“I have come to set the earth of fire. I have not come to bring peace, but division. A household will be divided against itself.” What about the time when Christ says “Peace I leave you, my peace I give to you” which the priest prays at every mass? What about all the times we talk about unity as a church? About unity in the family? How can Christ tell us he plans to tear families apart? Like most times that Scripture seems to contradict itself, the answer is found in context.
Remember last week? When Christ tells the parable about the faithful steward and what will happen at the second coming? That passage is right before this one. He has just taught his disciples that the last judgment is inevitable and that his followers will be judged on their actions. This teaching is continuing that same point.
The sad reality is that, left to its own devices, the world gets really comfortable with sin. When you try to get away from sin, you will inevitably face conflict, as Jeremiah clearly did. Jeremiah was given the task of telling the Jews to surrender to Babylon, which did not sit well with their patriotism – they weren’t happy with him, but he was set on God’s commands. And today, the government doesn’t like it when we refuse to include contraception in our health insurance. Businesses don’t like it when we refuse to support their decision to use sweat shops. Our own family members don’t like it when we refuse to participate in a wedding outside the Church. There are even Bishops and Priests who get upset when we insist on following what the Church teaches about liturgy, or about the male-only priesthood. These can be tense moments, filled with confusion, anger, and sometimes even violence – that’s why our second reading reminds us of Christ’s own example on the Cross and says “In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood.”
Almost every time we find ourselves in this conflict, it will be the sinful world who will say “why can’t you just get along?” “Why can’t you just be nice to other people?” “Why do you have to be judgmental and act superior?” At those moments, we are faced with a tough decision. We can either give in to their definition of peace or just go with the flow, or we can, with as much gentleness and love as possible, stand with our decision. It’s very tempting to stop making such a big fuss – to stop making the mess Pope Francis calls for. Especially when you are on the phone with an angry parent or when you’re faced with crippling governmental fines. Often, if you just let it go and do what they ask, you may not even see negative effects right away. Catholic hospitals might continue to serve the sick, you can still enjoy the cheap clothes and gadgets, and your family can keep being nice to each other at reunions. It’s easy to agree with them: What’s the big deal?
God. God is the big deal. His teachings are not arbitrary and they are ultimately rooted in love. Just because we can’t always feelhow it is love to obey him doesn’t mean it isn’t true. To love is to will, to intendthe good of the other. Often what is truly good for them is unpleasant. Eventually, Christ will return and we will stand before him and all will become clear. Then, we will see how every moral compromise led to evil. We will see how every teaching was really for our good and the good of others. We will see how that temporary and worldly peace wasn’t worth it. But then, it will be too late. And there will be no technicalities or loopholes to save us. Christ has come to bring division – division between sin and love, truth and error. He knows that everyone of us will have to come face to face with the Truth about our sins one way or another. We can either face it now, and face all the conflict that comes from that in ourselves and in our families. Or we can wait to see what happens at the end, when it’s too late to make a change.
Have I lost you with all this fire and brimstone?
Indeed, I’m talking some fire here, but I’m talking about the fire of divine love. Jesus and Jeremiah suffered greatly and were killed for what they taught, so why did they keep going? Because that Divine Love is worth it. Because, when that Love is given its proper place, when it is given the chance to burn away sin, we do see real peace and unity in ourselves, in families, perhaps in businesses, and on rare occasion even in the government. But to get there, we have to be willing to suffer for the Truth and for real love.
Right now, our love should move us to help the victims of the flood however we can, even if it hurts a little. That will be good for the health and safety of others, but we cannot forget their spiritual good as well. Pray and hope that we Christians respond well to these difficulties so that others may see Christ’s love in us and become more open to him themselves. Of course, bearing witness to Christ’s love with our actions includes doing good for others as well as avidly avoiding evil.
Christ promises division and fire. If we are wise, we will start by recognizing the division in ourselves and letting the fire of God’s love and grace purify us. This will give us the freedom to respond in a more authentic way to those in need. It will strengthen us to “endure the cross… for the sake of the joy that lay before” us.