Experiencing God - 193 Amazement and Gratitude

"Now as they were going away, the ten were cleansed.  Finding himself cured, one turned back praising God at the top of his voice, and threw himself at the feet of Jesus and thanked Him."
Gospel of Luke

In the above Gospel, Luke gives an account of the cure of the ten lepers, of whom only one thanked Jesus. This Gospel is much more than a story about ten people who were healed of their physical ailment.  It's about the disposition of the heart of those who were cured.  

Back in my late twenties when I had my own deep encounter with Christ, there were two things that I remember most about the experience.  The first was the sense of amazement that such a think would happen to me in the first place.  It was quite unexpected, and it therefore struck me with a sense of awe.  The second thing I remember and it continues to be with me today is the sense of gratitude to Christ that it would happen at all.  It is this immense gratitude that moves us into a new relationship with Christ.  It is this immense gratitude that causes a shift in our priorities.  Our focus and attention is no longer on ourselves but has shifted to Christ.

If you look at stories of miracles and conversion in the New Testament, you will find that these qualities of amazement and gratitude are common. The man who was healed of his physical handicap at the temple gate by Peter and John went away with them walking, jumping and praising God.  The man that Jesus healed at the pool of water called Bathsadia immediately rose up, took his mat, rolled it up, and went on his way in amazement, praising God.  The two disciples on the road to Emmaus were amazed when they finally recognized the person who was travelling with them on the road. In their excitement, they returned all the way back to Jerusalem to tell their companions.  

This amazement and gratitude is what makes us effective witnesses to Christ.  It reveals our true change of heart.  Gratitude or gratefulness expresses a thankful disposition, is related to the receiving of grace, and causes us to respond in acts of thanksgiving.

Recently, many of us attended a workshop where our Archbishop presented his new pastoral plan for the next five years.  His plan focuses on three main initiatives - mission, community and formation.  As we begin to explore these three initiatives, we will be asked to do some discernment surveys in which we will be asked to reflect on a serious of questions.  For example, the first question we will be asked on the mission initiative is:  "Am I comfortable in speaking about my relationship with Christ?

The point I would like to make is that when we have that personal encounter with Christ that leaves us with that sense of amazement and gratitude, then we become effective witnesses of that encounter to others.  The gospel above about the healing of the lepers gives expression to that change of heart.

Ten lepers were healed of their physical ailments, but only one returned in amazement and gratitude praising God.  Only one returned with a changed heart and a changed life.  To this one, Jesus says: "Go your way, your faith has saved you."  What happened to the other nine?  We do not know, but this one, a Samaritan, experienced a true conversion of heart.

From the letter of Titus, we read:  "But when the goodness and loving kindness of God appeared, God saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy.

It is through amazement and gratitude, the actions of Grace, that we are able to freely and easily give witness to Christ.

Experiencing God - Flying On Two Wings 192

I've recently read a little story that has stuck in my mind.  It's about a butterfly.  A butterfly has two wings.  In order to fly, it needs both wings.  Without both, it will go no where.  

The author of this story compares these two wings of a butterfly with the two wings that we need in our relationships with one another in order that these relationships will grow and flourish.  And these two wings that we need in our relationships are "wisdom" and "love".  

"Love" without "wisdom" -that is without commitment, fidelity, responsibility - is not love at all.  

There are many examples of this type of love in our culture which has brought great suffering to relationships.  

"Wisdom" without "love" - that is without caring, compassion, understanding - is not wisdom at all.  

We need both for either to work.  For "wisdom" to be "wisdom" and "love" to be "love", they must work together like the two wings of a butterfly.

In the Gospel Of Luke, we have Jesus singling out the religious teachers and lawyers with some rather strong words of rebuke.  Jesus was angry with the religious leaders because they failed to listen to God's ways, and were misleading the people they were suppose to be guiding.  

What is happening here?  How can we learn from it?

The religious leaders were conveying what they considered to be great spiritual wisdom, but correspondingly, missed the mark.  One example Jesus points out was in tithing, the offering of one's labor, their first fruits, as an expression of thanksgiving and honor for God's loving care.  The Scribes however went to extreme lengths to tithe on insignificant things, such as tiny plants, with great mathematical accuracy.  They were very attentive to minute matters of little importance, but they neglected to care for the needy and the weak.  In becoming self-justified by following their minute rules and laws, they became filled with pride and contempt for those who were unable or unwilling to do so.  

The exercise of their practice of wisdom and scriptural knowledge was not done with caring, compassion, concern or understanding of others, and as a result, they were leading others to a Pharisaism rather than to the love of God and neighbor. 

The essence of God's commands is love - love of God, love of neighbor, and everything that flows from love.  St. Paul went at great length when speaking to the Galatians to speak about the fruits of the Spirit.  Love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  But in order for these fruits to be manifested in our relationships and community, our love must be, as St. Paul says, directed by the Spirit.  This means directed by Wisdom.  We cannot belong to Christ unless we begin the process of crucifying all self-indulgent passions and desires. 

It's a sensitive balance, one that is difficult to maintain, and we often fall off, but with the presence of God's Spirit, we can be guided towards the wholeness and fullness that comes from using both wisdom and love together.     

Experiencing God - What Has God Entrusted to You 191

"From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required, and from the one to whom much has be entrusted, even more will be demanded."
Gospel of Luke

Entrusted, in this sense means: "to be given responsibility for".  A lawyer is often entrusted with funds from his clients.  That's why they are called trust funds.  The lawyer is then responsible for the proper distribution of those funds to the beneficiaries.  If he or she fails to do that, they are in breach of trust.

The concept of "being entrusted" comes out very strongly in Paul's letter to the Ephesians.  St. Paul says:  "For surely you have already heard of the commission of God's grace that was given me for you."  In the Jerusalem Bible, it is translated even more clearly.  "You have probably heard how I have been entrusted by God with the grace that God meant for you."  He has been entrusted with something that must be shared, and of course, he takes this very seriously.  If he did not follow through, he would be in breach of trust.  

In the Gospel of Luke, chapter 12, Jesus is telling little stories to illustrate this point.  Each of us as Christians, as people who live with others in community or society have been entrusted with something that is very special, that must be shared.  It could be this, or it could be that, depending on the individual, but it all relates to our faith in God.  Jesus says: "Happy the servant whom His master will find at work with this task when He arrives.  Truly, I tell you, this person will be put in charge of all of His possessions."  And of course we hear also the other side of the story.  What if we are not about the task that has been entrusted to us?

The question that I ask myself, and I throw it out to you: "If Jesus were to call on us today, would He find us at work with the task entrusted to us, or would He find us squabbling over boundaries, rules, who's right or who wrong, and many other things that serve only to distract us and divide us?

To be entrusted, as I said at the beginning, is to be given responsibility for.  It has to do with missioning.  St. Paul says in Ephesians: "I have been entrusted by God with a grace that is meant for you."  The "you" in this case are the gentiles - those without grace - at least at the moment - the intended beneficiaries of those chosen by God.

What is the mission in our communities in respect to all that has been entrusted to us?

Experiencing God - Balancing Wisdom and Love 190

Do you remember the time when you started to date the one you loved?  During this time, we most often put our best foot forward.  Although we may have noticed little things about our loved one that we did not like, we did not address them because we wanted to be seen at our best. 

Most times after marriage (when the honeymoon is over) and when things become more normalized, we often begin the process of fixing those little things we see that bother us.  But our attempts at fixing the other often leads to problems of hurt, confusion, and arguments.  The other person in the relationship sees our attempts at fixing as non- acceptance, uncaring, and violations of love.  So the early years of marriage for many may be a bit rocky, and if we continue with the approach of trying to fix those things we don't like, it may lead to separation.  People do not like being fixed by another. 

In most growing mature relationships, the persons must learn that love requires the acceptance of the other, warts and all. We come to realize that our attempts at fixing another just does not work. We have to change our approach from "fixing" to "attentive listening",  "caring" and sharing  wisdom in a non-judgemental way. 

A butterfly has two wings. In order to fly, it needs both.  Tear one wing off and it can no longer fly, and will probably die.  In relationships and community, these two wings are "wisdom" and "love".

In order for the relationship to move forward (or fly), it must have both. 

Love without wisdom (that is commitment, responsibility, fidelity) is not love at all.  Our culture certainly gives witness to a love practiced without wisdom and the suffering that springs from it.

Wisdom without love (caring, attentive listening, compassion) is not wisdom at all.  It becomes confrontational and leads to disunity.

We need both!  

The very difficult task in our relationships and community is to carefully balance both wisdom and love.  Like couples involved in a marriage, we must move from trying to fix those in relationship with us (which leads to division), to attentively listen to all concerns, caring for all, accepting the warts and the flaws, and gently offering wisdom from the to heart to those who are open to listen.    

Experiencing God - Child of God 189

"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get. But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, God, have mercy on me, a sinner".
Gospel of Luke

In this Gospel reading from Luke, Jesus said:  "Of the two people that came to the temple to prayer, only one went away justified before God."  Why was the sinful tax collector justified before God where the pious Pharisee was not?  This question can be answered with a story.

Two brothers joined a monastery to become monks.  The first brother was very cleaver, and certainly had the intelligence and attributes to join the order.  The second brother was a little slow and quite unpredictable.  After their initiation into the monastery's way of life, the Novice Master went to the Abbott to give his report on the two brothers. 

"The first brother is very astute and will be able to learn the "rule" of our order, and commit himself to the discipline that is necessary", he reported.  "He is currently enrolled in our program of formation.  The second brother will never be able to learn the rule or exercise the necessary discipline in order to become a monk.  We currently have him cleaning the monks sandals and sweeping the floor of the dust.  I recommend that he be asked to leave."  

The Abbott, a compassionate man, requested that the second brother report to him.

When the second brother arrived before the Abbott, he continued to express a strong desire to become a monk, just like his older brother.  The Abbott saw potential in him and gave the following instructions:  "Whenever you clean the dirt from the sandals of the monks and sweep the dust from the floor, say the following:  With each sandal that I clean, and with each sweeping of the floor, I am purifying the hindrances to being a child of God. Can you remember that?"  The second brother affirmed that he could.  

From that point forward, the second brother repeated this sentence as he went about his work.  Sometimes he forgot the sentence, and had to go back to the Abbot to remind him again, but eventually, he was able to repeat the sentence well, and as he cleaned each sandal, and sweep the floor of the dust, he repeated the words. 

Many months later, the Abbott called for the second brother again and asked him:  "Are you cleaning the dirt from the sandals?" To which he answered:  Yes.  "Are you sweeping the dust from the floor?  And again he answered yes.  The Abbot continued:  "Are you purifying the hindrances to being a child of God?" 

And the brother's heart was suddenly open to what the Abbot was teaching, and he was filled with joy. 

What he became enlightened to understand and know in his heart was: that the sandals, with the dirt, were still sandals;  that the floor, with the dust, was still the floor.  And that he, even with his hindrances, was still a Child of God. 

With this new found awareness, he became a monk and a very faithful and humble servant.  And the least proud of all the monks because he was able to acknowledge his limitations.  Sincere intentions and purity of heart was for him the most important, as he saw in each of those he met a Child of God.  He was able to say with conviction:  Lord, have mercy on this Child of yours, a sinner.

"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.

But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, God, have mercy on me, a sinner".  And he went away justified.

Experiencing God - Humility 188

"I bless you Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children."
Gospel of Matthew

In order to have an understanding and appreciation of the above gospel passage from Matthew, one needs to have an understanding of humility. 

Humility springs from the word "humus" which means; "from the soil or from the earth".  We are from the earth.  Humility, in its ordinary definition means; "not proud; having or showing a low or modest estimate of one's own self-importance.  There's a meekness or mildness associated with humility, but it has nothing to do with being used as a door mat or putting oneself down.  It has to do with seeing ourselves and our reality as they really are.

There are many many biblical references to humility.  For example, in the beatitudes  from Matthew chapter five we read:  "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." 

In the canticle of Mary from the gospel of Luke, we read: "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked with favor on His lowly servant."  Mary acknowledges the gift of Grace given to one who is unworthy.

And in Luke, chapter 18, we have the story told by Jesus abut the Pharisee and the tax collector who went to the temple to pray.  The Pharisee in his prayer uses the words: "God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves and rogues, and even like that tax collector over there.  I fast twice a week, and give a tithe of my income."  While the only words that could be heard from the tax collector were: "God, be merciful to me a sinner."  Jesus would proclaim that it was only the tax collector that went home that day justified:  "For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all those who humble themselves will be exalted."

When children were being turned away, Jesus, in Luke, declared: "Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them.  It is to such as these that the Kingdom of God belongs".

Humility places us squarely into an experience of God being present with us, in the here and now; not a God in a far away place, but a God whose Spirit dwells within.  When we let go of our puffed-up reasoning and rationalization, when we acknowledge the mystery that life brings to each of us, a mystery beyond intellectual understanding and conventional wisdom, then we discover that which Jesus calls "the Kingdom of God".  In humility, we discover ourselves and our reality around us as being in right relationship with God.

So Jesus exclaims: "I bless you Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever, and revealing them to mere children.  Yes Father, for that is what it pleased you to do."  And if we let Him, Jesus will become the way to the Father.  He will become the truth of our reality giving us the life beyond all explanation through His Spirit and through Grace.  "No one knows the Father except the Son and those whom He chooses to reveal Him."  By letting go of our own puffed up reasoning, our stance that leads to self-justification - look at me, I tithe, I fast twice a week - we discover the treasure hidden in the field for which we are willing to sell off all our other trappings in order to possess.

Experiencing God - God's Tenderness 187

"Israel was a luxuriant vine, yielding plenty of fruit.  But their heart is a divided heart". 
Hosea

Hosea spoke to Israel during its long and violent struggle with Assyria who would later over run their little country, and send its people into exile.  Hosea (750-725 BC) was one of the prophets who formed a bridge between the early prophets that we read about in the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings, and the later prophets such as Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel.  

Like Amos, Hosea saw the injustices, deceit, violence and cruelty that was common among the people of his time; but he spoke of it quite differently than the other prophets.  He spoke about it by describing their lack of fidelity or faithfulness, their lack of tenderness towards each other, and their lack of knowledge of a God who wanted a loving relationship with them, a relationship as a father would have with a child.

Hosea is the prophet who describes Israel's relationship with God as being similar to his own painful experience of a marriage with his wife Gormer.  They had made their pledge of love to each other - "you shall be my wife, you shall be my husband" - but Gormer would then repeatedly reject his love and go off with someone else.  To Hosea, the people of Israel showed this same lack of fidelity, this same lack of tenderness that was meant to generate friendship, affection with a desire for union. A covenant with God would require Israel to grow in mutual trust, affectionate love, and tender admiration.  It  would express itself in mercy, kindness, tenderness, and so on; but this was sorely lacking in the hearts of the Israelite people.

Hosea gives the beautiful instruction:  "Sow integrity for yourselves, reap a harvest of kindness.  Break up your fallow ground.  It is time to go seeking the Lord until He comes to rain salvation on you."

In the gospels, we discover this reformed image of the people of Israel in the person of Jesus whose faithfulness, gentleness, and tenderness is not only directed to the One He calls Father, but also directed to all those He meets.  In the Gospel of Matthew, He calls forth His disciples to whom He is entrusting that same faithfulness to God, a faithfulness that will begin a new Kingdom, a new reign.

Jesus calls his disciples, not from the elite of society - those with power, education, or importance - but from the ordinary; those whose hearts can be molded through Grace and love of the Spirit.

In the same manner, He calls each of us to be His disciples, to be faithful in building of God's Kingdom, not for ourselves, but for the glory of God.

"Sow integrity", we hear Hosea saying. "Reap a harvest of kindness.  Break up your fallow ground" - that part of you that lies dormant. "It is time for seeking the Lord until He comes to rain salvation on you".