Fifth Sunday of Easter
This past week, and especially Friday night and Saturday evening I was asked a question by a number of parishioners: “Father, is the world going to end?” And, while we know by faith that one day, God will create a new heaven and a new earth, we also know that this will be the consummation of God’s love for humanity, welcoming into heaven those who have lived as his faithful disciples. But, about when it will happen, even Jesus, while He was on earth, said we do not know the day nor the hour. Still, he also tells us in today’s Gospel, “‘Do not let your hearts be troubled.’” And really, if we are living as disciples of Jesus, then we have nothing to fear. The only reason to fear the end times is if we are not being good disciples, and if Jesus is not the center, or you might say the cornerstone, of our lives.
“‘Behold, I am laying a stone in Zion, a cornerstone, chosen and precious.’” “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.’” “‘Like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house.’” These quotes all come from our second reading today, and focus on minds on construction. St. Peter tells us that we are in the midst of a great construction effort: the building up of the house of God, with Jesus Christ Himself as the cornerstone. We are being put together into one large building: the household, the temple of God.
As we build up our own house, our very selves, we are also contributing to the larger complex, almost as if the overall goal is a condominium complex, made up of many smaller houses.
What matters most for us and for the complex as a whole is the foundation. Without a good, strong foundation, the rest of the house, and indeed, the complex, is in danger of collapsing or nothing protecting us from the tornados of life. What is the base of who we are? It’s easy to say Christ, because we know that’s supposed to be the right answer. Besides, when asked a religious question, we have this tendency to think that Jesus is always the right answer. But, if we’re honest, we may have to pause to take some time and think about it. If you’re a type A personality like me, too often the temptation is for my plans to be the foundation of my life. Sure, we can say that Jesus is the cornerstone of my life, but in the day-to-day experiences of life, to whom do I turn more for giving me a solid base? My plans or God’s plans? Likely, all of us struggle with this a little. Or perhaps our struggle is with money being the foundation, or prestige, or power. Whatever our temptation, there are other stones, better looking stones, that want to be established as the foundation to our house. But, to have a house which can stand the test, not only of time but also of eternity, Jesus, the stone rejected by the builders, must become our cornerstone.
Another important fact is to realize that our house is two stories: the basement or earthly floor and the heavenly or first floor. The foundation that we lay here on earth greatly impacts how the first floor turns out. Jesus tells us that in His Father’s house there are many dwelling places. He goes to prepare a place for us. But, we cooperate in building that level, too. Jesus has the plan for us of how to construct it, but we have to follow those plans. Otherwise, we build the basement floor on earth, and, if we get that wrong, we don’t build up towards the heavens, but rather down towards eternal perdition.
By our actions while we are building this level of the house, we establish a good foundation upon which a nice, stable first floor can be built, or we weaken the foundation and end up building down. By every good deed we do in response to God’s grace, we cooperate with the Master Builder to prepare our place in heaven. But, by every sin that we commit contrary to God’s grace and will, we undermine the very end for which we are striving.
Sometimes the construction of our own spiritual house happens quickly. Reading this Gospel in preparation for the homily, my mind went to the funeral of our own parishioner, Alex Powell, a young man whom we commended to the Lord on May 12th. What a short time the Lord gave him for construction. And yet, the more stories I heard about his own life and response in faith, especially during extreme pain and suffering, the more I came to know about a strong foundation that had been laid in preparation for the first floor. Sometimes the construction takes longer, not for any lack of virtue, but simply according to the mind of God. My mind also went to Dave Gagnier, who greatly assisted this Student Center, especially with the Liturgy, during his life. In either case, what is important is not so much the time it takes, but how strong that foundation is in Christ.
If Christ, the stone rejected by the builders, the chosen and precious stone, is our foundation for our lives, then we rest secure in the strength of the base of our spiritual homes. If not, then as long as we have breath we have a chance to strengthen that foundation so that, at the end of our lives our hearts will not be troubled because we will be prepared to allow God to build up for us that first floor heavenly dwelling place. If Christ is the foundation of our lives then we will look forward to hearing, “‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’”
