-Last Sunday's homily is available by email
-This Sunday's Scriptures can be found at USCCB.org >
-I will be celebrating mass this weekend at 4pm and 11am
Remain in me! Revolving Door
I am interested in the concept of not simply believing but understanding. This Easter season has been challenging for me to conceive of and express the complexity of Easter faith. While I do not like making things more complicated than they are, I believe simplistic preaching and teaching has led the household of God astray.
Specifically "Jesus only" preaching that excludes life in Christ and Christ in life. If Jesus's promise to us is that he will remain in us and we are called to remain in him, this notion of Jesus' only purpose is to get me into heaven is really deceiving.
The fundamentalist scheme is two separate believers from the body of Christ, the church. They do this by telling us that what God did in Jesus was simply and historically come down from heaven, die a horrible death, and with his blood forgave my sins so that anyone who accepts this idea (believes) has a guaranteed ticket to heaven when they die.
This "accepting the idea believing" is insufficient and not completely catholic. It most specifically and tragically leaves the believer wondering "what would Jesus do?".
The last time I consulted the Scriptures or the Holy Spirit I was reminded that God is all-powerful and almighty and had long ago, before Jesus died on the cross, created us, the human family, in communion with Him and in communion of heaven. In fact, that creation in the image and likeness of God is the center of our story of salvation.
The incarnation of God in Jesus, his life, ministry, death, and resurrection did not simply accomplish a necessary task by God on behalf of the human race. What the incarnation, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus did was to reveal our life in God and to re-establish the fullness of our humanity(read god-likeness) REAL life IN God. So, Jesus liberates our broken hearts and broken understanding of human life and reveals the fullness of life IN him. Therefore, our human life is changed in its purpose, meaning, and power.
So baptism is not a ceremony in which we become members of the group of people who believe in the good idea that our sins have been forgiven and that heaven is assured for us. Baptism is the entrance and initiation into the spiritual and godly reality, realm, communion with Jesus Christ risen from the dead. This is the one who could not be kept out by the door being locked. This is a life force, a truth, a reality, and we must understand how our lives are lived in it. Remain in the heart of Christ dwelling among us - it is a new and resurrected life.
"Now this is how we shall know that we belong to the truth". We Catholics do not only BELIEVE in the truth, we belong in the truth of Jesus risen from the dead. It is a passage into deeper communion with the resurrected Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit through the life of the church, understood through the Scriptures and celebrated and made real in the sacraments.
Wow, I think I understand
