12th Sunday of Ordinary Time

June 22, 2008

by Reverend Deacon Lawrence A. St. Onge

There is a story about an elderly woman who had worked all her life as a seamstress and finally saved enough money to fulfill her wish to visit the Holy Land. Never having flown before, she was very much afraid. Even the presence of four bishops on the plane did little to calm her. Only after the jet had reached its cruising altitude and was making its way over the ocean did the woman dare to open her eyes and peer out the window. Just at that moment, one of the plane’s engines broke loose from its bearings and disappeared downward. “We’re all going to die,” she began to shout.

In an effort to calm her and avoid panic on the plane, the flight attendant assured the frightened woman that everything was under control and that the pilot could fly back to New York and land safely with three engines. But the woman just continued to cry out, “We’re going to die.” Again, the attendant reassured her, “Don’t worry, God is with us. We have only three engines, but look, we have four bishops!” To that the woman quickly replied, “I’d rather have four engines and three bishops.”

As funny as it is, the story presents us with a very serious aspect of our human experience – that of fear, and the fact that sometimes our fears can gain the upper hand in our living and life. Of who or what are we afraid? What is it that makes us catch our breath and causes our heart to pound in our chest? For the woman in the story, it was the fear of flying and of crashing. Some people may fear public speaking and the possibility of embarrassing themselves in front of others. Some may fear high places or thunder storms. Some may be afraid of snakes, spiders, rats or roaches. Still others may fear growing old, sickness or the inevitable dying that we all must eventually face. Some of our fears are reasonable while others are not.

Do not be afraid. This is the theme of this week’s readings. There are indeed, reasons for concern in our lives, but in reality there is no valid reason for fear. Jesus says in today’s gospel: “Do not be afraid of those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.”  Yes, we have to take care of our families, particularly our children. Yes, we have to keep bad things out of our homes to protect them and to protect ourselves. And, yes we have to be careful about our own health, going to doctors when we need to, eating correctly, etc. And yes, we do need to be alert to anyone who could threaten our security. But no, we do not need to fear, for no matter what happens to us, God will always be with us.

We do not need to be afraid, for in the end, regardless of whether there are three engines and four bishops or four engines and three bishops, it is faith in God alone that will dispel all our fear, or at least make it manageable.

In today’s second reading St. Paul offers us a good reason why we should “fear no one” when we are responding to Jesus’ call to live out our lives as his disciples. It is because we have received Jesus as “the gracious gift” that God has given to us. St. Paul understands that whereas, Adam the first man, brought sin into the world, and because of it, subsequently death, Jesus Christ brought life into the world, ultimately sparing death for all who profess faith in Jesus. And since Jesus has the power and authority to reverse the effects of Adam’s sin on humanity, why should we fear anyone or anything with Jesus on our side?

In the 1^st reading from the Prophet Jeremiah we hear Jeremiah say: “The Lord is with me like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.” This was Jeremiah’s response to the fear that his persecutors were trying to instill in him. Jeremiah’s enemies were trying to destroy him physically because they did not want to hear the word of God he was speaking to them.

There are many Christians in today’s world who are in danger of their lives. The persecution of Christians in our world rages and continues to gain force. When we consider all the nations known for persecution of Christians, such as North Korea, China, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Uganda, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia – just to mention a few, the tragedy becomes mind-boggling. It is estimated that 200 million Christians currently suffer persecution in 45 different nations throughout the world.

We here in America live in freedom and peace, and so the danger to us is a spiritual one. We face the enemies of our soul. It is a more subtle danger, but it is an immense one. It is so easy for us to accept the comfortable values that our society offers us. It is therefore, easy to understand why so many have come to believe that God is just a concept of the mind for the poor and needy who need an idea like God to keep them happy. In other words, since we in this country have everything we seem to need, many have come to believe that they don’t need God.

Remember the words of today’s gospel: “Do not fear those who can kill the body. Fear those who can destroy the soul.” We in America are rich by world standards but stand in great danger of losing our souls. We, Christians, are constantly being invited by the media and society to a disbelief of God. We are constantly being invited to pursue the pleasures of this world as though the pleasures, themselves, were god. We are told over and over again that we cannot be happy without the pleasures and material goods of the world.

But the gospel of Jesus on the other hand tells us that real happiness comes from belief in God, from seeking the will of our Heavenly Father; from giving to others; from sharing what we have with those who do not have; from having respect for marriage between a man and a woman; from praying and from our forgiveness of others.

Jesus does not demand us to have absolutely nothing; but he does present us with the challenge that is always present: i.e. What are we doing with what we have? Do we love God and one another? What are we doing in our daily living and life? Are we seeking only our own pleasures or are we seeking the Kingdom of God?

These are the real concerns we need to have in our living and life. For we must remember that we Christians are only pilgrims in this world and that our ultimate life is in the Kingdom of God. Our only true fear then should be whether or not our living and life during our pilgrimage in this world will allow us to attain our ultimate goal of everlasting life with God.