20th Sunday of Ordinary Time

August 18, 2007

by Reverend Deacon Lawrence A. St. Onge

If we look at the three readings for this Sunday we see how grounded in reality our Catholic faith truly is. For our faith is not afraid to speak about both happiness and sadness. It is not afraid to speak about both virtue and vice. It tells us that if we attempt to love God without loving others, we are living a sham life, a make believe faith.

In today’s first reading we encounter Jeremiah the prophet. Jeremiah had been called to be a prophet from birth. He was a royal prophet, a prophet at the King’s court. He should have been held with the deepest respect. But he refused to tell the king and the people what they wanted to hear, because he stood for truth and would not compromise God’s word. Consequently, Jeremiah was berated and ridiculed, and subsequently thrown into a well where he would have died had not the king eventually relented and saved his life. Jeremiah’s life should have been wonderful and beautiful, and full of honor; but being true to the Word of God resulted in his being treated with contempt.

In the Gospel reading today, we hear Jesus’ words: “I have come to light a fire on the earth…Do you think I have come to establish peace on the earth? I assure you, the contrary is true; I have come for division.”

These words in today’s gospel can be very difficult for some people, because they sound so harsh and so unlike Jesus. But the reality is that the preaching and teaching of Jesus is not a feel-good, upbeat motivational message that will get us through the real hardships of daily living and life. The reality is that those who truly hear Jesus’ message and choose to follow him will be in for some tough decisions and difficult times in their living and life.

Jesus’ warning in today’s gospel is clear. What he is saying to us is that he has not come to bring an easy peace to the world; in other words, to pull the wool over the misery of this world, so that no one can see it anymore, or to pull a blanket over all the coldness of human relations so that the shivering will no longer be felt. No, he did not come to bring us that peace, but rather, to bring a fight, a battle, a struggle, a fire, a sword to undo all the evils in the world; and he is calling for each of us to join him in that fight against that evil, against that sin. No, Jesus didn’t come to establish peace on earth. He came to draw a line in the sand that many would not cross if their lives depended on it.  As a result, even families will be divided, as well as communities and nations, and marriages will falter, and friendships will be put to the test.

In today’s second reading we hear the words: “For the sake of the joy that lay before him, he [Jesus] endured the cross, despising its shame.” The question we must ask ourselves is: what am I willing to risk “for the sake of the joy” of the Kingdom of God. In his letter to the Romans, St. Paul answers this question. He says that neither heavenly nor earthly power exists that can take us from our joy, not even death itself.

Yet when we look around us we find so many who are sad, depressed, bored, bitter, anxious, far from being joyful. And we must ask ourselves, what is it that does separate us from the joy that is waiting for us? The answer is it is our own self-will. The one power that can stay God’s hand is the God-given right to choose differently from God’s will for us. God has set before us life and death. We are urged to choose life, but our decision cannot be forced. The reality is that we, who have been offered indescribable joy, can choose not to take it.

St. Francis of Assisi taught that perfect joy is being free enough to risk rejection, humiliation, and hunger in the service of the gospel. The promise of this kind of joy enabled Jesus to go to the cross. For us living in a culture that tries to sell us happiness twenty-four hours a day, we see few traces of real joy, but, on the other hand, an incredible amount of want. But the truth is all we have to do to attain this real joy is to believe in it, and it is ours.

Being grounded in reality, our faith tells us that it is difficult to stand for what is right and true. It is difficult to stand for the Lord, because by doing so we know that we will most probably be persecuted and ridiculed. Yet, we have to meet the challenges of this life, and we have to overcome all the barriers to the truth that society and, even we ourselves, put in our way.

This is what Jesus did. He stood for the truth and was put to death. But he was not going to compromise the Word of His Father. If this meant denouncing the Jewish leaders, he would do so. If it meant criticizing his closest followers, he would do so. If it meant journeying to Jerusalem, where he knew he would die a cruel death, he would do so. It is in this context that we can understand today’s difficult gospel, with its grim predictions.

Jesus regarded the coming of the Kingdom of God as a time of judgment. His word of judgment was meant to help people take seriously the consequences of their choices in life – either for or against God. Our response to the judgments of God has serious repercussions, both for the present and the future. Jesus states that even family loyalties would be challenged on the basis of whether or not people accepted the Kingdom of God.

The essence of Christianity, then, is loyalty to Jesus Christ, a loyalty that takes precedence over every other relationship. The love of God compels us to choose who will be first in our lives. For us to place any relationship (or anything else for that matter) above God is a form of idolatry – a worship of false gods. Jesus challenges us, his disciples, to examine who we love first and foremost. A true disciple loves God above all else and is willing to forsake all for Jesus Christ. Jesus insists that his disciples give him loyalty which is only due to God, a loyalty which is higher than even spouse or family. If we are to be true disciples, we must be willing to cross that line drawn in the sand and we must “lay aside every encumbrance of sin which clings to us and persevere in running the race which lies ahead; and let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who inspires and perfects our faith.” The true quality of our holiness of life is shown not by what we say, but by what we do in life, and how true and faithful we are to living out the gospel.