FACING THE FRAY WITH FAITH

“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,

and on earth nations will be in dismay.

People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world.

When these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads

because your redemption is at hand."

Luke 21:25-28,34-36

A whole lot of people these days believe that the world is going to hell in a handbasket. Some have even given up on trying to be any better than the miserable "losers" they see all around them even to the point of joining them in their "every dog for himself" hopelessness. Even some so-called Christians, rather than doing the hard work of turning this world around, are actually yearning to see God blow the world up and "get it over with" so they can go to a "better place." While they are waiting for the end to come, they love to wallow in the doom and gloom of apocalyptic readings like we have in today's gospel. They read it selectively and focus on words like "dismay," "perplexed," "fright," "assault" and "tribulations" and overlook the hopeful bottom line about "standing erect and raising your head when these things happen because your redemption is at hand!"

Instead of giving into their brand of lazy despair. the second reading tells us how we are to live while we are here. "May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another, so as to strengthen your hearts at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his holy ones."

Yes, the Scriptures do talk about the painful struggles the world has been though, the painful struggles the world is going through and the painful struggles the world will go through until the end of time, but it also is very clear that you and I are called to "stand erect" and "raise our heads" in face of that struggle because we know where we are headed and we know how these struggles will end! Good will conquer evil! It is no up for grabs! It has already been decided. We need to act as if we know and believe that truth to be a fact! No, we should not be among the "hand-wringing" types!

Yes, even in the midst of the darkest darkness, you and I are called to be "the light of world!" To impress that fact on us, each one of us was given a candle at our baptisms with a share of the flame that was burning atop the big "Christ candle." When a share of that flame was handed to us, these words were said to us. "You have been enlightened by Christ. Walk always as a child of the light and keep the flame of faith alive in your heart." (And in words that are very similar to the words of our second reading, it continues.) "When the Lord comes, may you go out to meet him with all the saints in the heavenly kingdom."

Brothers and sisters! A problem bigger than the darkness of our struggling world is the fact that so many so-called "believers" have forgotten who they are and the seriousness of their calls! The problem is not that evil is more powerful than goodness. The problem is that we have become so ambivalent about the certainty of power of goodness in the face of evil. The problem is that we don't even believe in our own innate goodness as children of God! The problem is that we don't believe the serious of our own baptismal commission - our calls to infect the world with goodness. The truth of the matter is, plain old religious mediocrity is our biggest enemy! Fundamentally, if the world is in such bad shape, it is not because evil is more powerful, but simply because we have a shortage of people willing to stand up to evil, a shortage of saints-in-the-making!

All this reminds me of something I read many years ago. In his classic autobiography, “Seven Story Mountain,” our own Thomas Merton, one of the 20th-century’s most insightful Christian thinkers, recalled a conversation he had after becoming a Christian at the age of 24. Merton’s conversion bewildered and alienated the young and rowdy unconventional crowd he had surrounded himself with, but one friend, the poet Robert Lax, fully appreciated what the weight of Merton’s conversion meant.

Strolling with Merton in Greenwich Village shortly after his conversion, Lax challenged him. "Now that you’ve become a Christian," he asked, “what do you want to be, anyway?” Merton was taken aback by the question. “I don’t know,” he replied, “I guess what I want to be a good Catholic.” "Wrong!" shot back Lax. “What you should say is that you want to be a saint!”

Merton's friend, Robert Lax, got it exactly right. "Go big or go home!" All of us who consider ourselves Christians are called to be saints-in-the-making. Each of us should be aiming for sainthood!. That’s our destiny. For a serious Christian, in my book at least, anything else is just "half-assed religious dabbling!"

There are two religious extremes that I simply cannot tolerate: "tedious and mean religious fanaticism" and "half-assed mediocre religious dabbling!" I don't have much patience for either, for that matter!

I don't like religious fanatics! Religious fanatics never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when the do it from religious conviction. There are few things more dangerous than inbred religious certainty. History has shown that the most terrible crimes against truth have been committed in the name of fanatically defended doctrines.

I don't like religious dabblers either. Religious dabblers try to "have their cake and eat it too." This is what the Book of Revelation says about "religious dabblers." "You are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were one or the other, but since you are neither hot nor cold, but only lukewarm, I will vomit you out of my mouth." Psalm 119 says this about those who "dabble in religion" - "God hates half-heartedness." Dr. Martin Luther Kings said, "Lukewarm acceptance is more bewildering than outright rejection."

The world doesn't need any more cruel religious fanatics or any more religious mediocrity with its hedged bets. What the world needs are more truly committed Christians. To be a Christian is to be counter-cultural, to stand out, to think differently, to act differently and to believe differently. To be a serious Christian means to be able to "stand erect" and to "raise your head" because you believe something else than everybody around you who is stooped over in hopelessness and negativity and can't see beyond the present moment.

What I am trying to say today is this: we do live in a world that appears to be in chaos, but we are called to "stand erect" "with our heads raised" in the midst of all of it because of our trust is in Jesus who said, "I will be with you always!" We are not the kind of people who give up, cave in and go with the flow because we believe that "eyes has not seen, nor ear heard, the great things God has in store for those who love him!"

When I was ordained fifty-one years ago, I knew from day one that I would carry out my ministry in a chaotic world and a turbulent church. I knew what I was getting into so it has come as no surprise. I knew it was going to be tough to keep on "standing erect with my head raised." With all the churning going on even back then, I knew I was going to get "see-sick" from all I could see, so I picked a few things to help me stay focused and retain my peaceful center. (1) I chose the Greek word "sophronismos" from St. Paul's Second Letter to Timothy. Sophronismos means "knowing how to keep your cool" or "knowing how to act in the face of panic." I even picked "sophronismos" as the name of my little publishing company, Sophronismos Press. (2) I love Psalm 1 where it talks about a "tree planted near running water whose leaves never wilt no matter how hot the weather gets, because its roots go deep underground and into that water." I have always prayed to be like that tree. (3) I chose the Quaker hymn, "How Can I Keep From Singing," for my First Mass and I have had sung or played on all 51 of my anniversaries since. All three of those things have been great reminders to "stand up straight" and "keep my head raised" in the midst of turmoil in this country and in this church!   

Let me close my words about "facing the fray with faith" by quoting that hymn once again.

My life flows on in endless song

Above earth´s lamentations,

I hear the real, though far-off hymn

That hails a new creation.

Through all the tumult and the strife

I hear its music ringing,

It sounds and echoes in my soul.

How can I keep from singing?

While though the tempest loudly roars,

I hear the truth, it liveth.

And though the darkness 'round me close,

Songs in the night it giveth.

When tyrants tremble sick with fear

And hear their death knell ringing,

When friends rejoice both far and near

How can I keep from singing?

No storm can shake my inmost calm,

While to that rock I´m clinging.

Since love is lord of heaven and earth

How can I keep from singing?