The Shepherds

Nativity of the Lord: Mass at Night
    Merry Christmas!  As we assemble tonight to celebrate the birth of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ, we do so at the same, or at least a similar time, as the shepherds just outside of Bethlehem.  Luke records that the shepherds were “keeping the night watch over their flock.”  And yet, in the midst of the darkness, “the glory of the Lord shone around them” as they witnessed angels and heard one of the first proclamations of the beginning of the Gospel, that, “‘today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord.’”

Painting of the shepherds from Shepherds' Field in Bethlehem

    I started a tradition when I became a priest to add, each year of my priesthood, to a Fontanini nativity set.  In the first year I had to buy the basics, and besides Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, and the angel, the only other figure who was included was a shepherd and two sheep.  There’s something about the shepherds that belongs at the heart of the nativity, just slightly behind the necessary figures of the Holy Family themselves.
    Perhaps part of their importance connects to how many times in the Old Testament God refers to shepherds.  Psalm 80 states, “O Shepherd of Israel, lend an ear, you who guide Joseph like a flock!  Seated upon the cherubim, shine forth.”  Probably one of the currently most popular psalms, 23, states, “The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack.”  God appoints Joshua, son of Nun, “that the Lord’s community may not be like sheep without a shepherd.”  God likewise calls David as the king to shepherd God’s people by ruling over them. 
    God also condemns bad shepherds.  In Jeremiah he states, “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the flock of my pasture…I myself will gather the remnant from my flock…and bring them back to their folds.”  Through Ezekiel God says:
 

Woe to the shepherds of Israel who have been pasturing themselves!  […] I myself will search for my sheep and…I will bring them back to their own country and pasture them….In good pastures I will pasture them….I myself will pasture my sheep; I myself will give them rest…The lost I will search out, the strays I will bring back, the injured I will bind up, and the sick I will heal.

Shepherds hold an important place in the Old Testament, both as an image of God who cares for His people, and as a warning for those who have authority but do not exercise it well.
    Many have also noted that shepherds were poor.  They did not, beyond their flock, have much to their names.  They recognized their dependance on God, and relied on Him to provide for their livelihood.  And so it is the poor, those who not only lack material goods, but also who recognize their need for God, who first hear the message of the Gospel, and are drawn to worship the newborn king, “‘wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.’”
    Tonight the Lord invites us to come before Him like the shepherds, no matter what our adjusted gross income.  We come in our poverty of spirit, our recognition that we need God, and bow before the Shepherd of Israel, the one who leads us to good pastures, who rules over us, who seeks us out when we are lost, and places us upon His shoulders when we are injured.  As Psalm 100 states, “we are his people, the flock he shepherds.” 

Door of Humility

    Poverty in spirit is an exercise in humility.  At the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem, there is a door, which was added in the sixteenth century, that was built purposefully with small dimensions.  Practically, it kept people from bringing horses and cattle in the church.  But that was quickly theologized and the door was called the “Door of Humility,” because each person, no matter how rich or how poor, how powerful or how insignificant, had to bow down to be able to enter.  As we come before the Lord, we bow down in the presence of our God and King.  While not required, kneeling when we receive Holy Communion, is a beautiful expression of our humility and poverty in spirit as we receive the same Jesus who was born in Bethlehem in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.  And during the Creed, we usually make a profound bow from the waist when we mention the Incarnation, but tonight, the day we came to know it happened, we genuflect, lowering our very bodies in each case which is meant to remind us to humble our souls as well. 
    Lastly, while not part of tonight’s Gospel passage or pericope, verse seventeen of this same chapter states, “When [the shepherds] saw [the infant lying in the manger], they made known the message that had been told them about this child.  All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds.”  This great celebration is not something that the shepherds could keep to themselves, nor should we be able to keep this great celebration to ourselves.  When we appreciate God as our shepherd; when we recognize the great humility that God first showed us by taking on our human flesh, with all its limitations and weakness, we should share that news with others.  So many celebrate Christmas, but they have forgotten what it means, beyond presents and big meals with family and friends.  Christmas, at its heart, is about the Lord, our Shepherd, seeking us out, and taking us upon His shoulders so that He can carry us to the verdant pastures of repose in heaven.  God did not have to do this.  God would not have lost anything in Himself if He had let us pay the price for our disobedience in Adam.  But so much did He love us, that He got rid of the bad shepherds who only cared for themselves, and shepherded us rightly, taking us to Himself in love and truth. 

    Tonight, may the lights of this great temple shine like the angels in the heavens.  May our celestial hymn of “Glory to God in the highest,” not only ring out in the ceilings of this church, but re-echo outside and in the witness of our lives, so that others may also come to adore our newborn King, and find the life that God desires for all His sheep.  

The Mob

Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord

The mob.  No, not the mafia or organized crime.  The mob, as in a group of people with a unified mentality.  Our readings today start and end with the mob.

As we gathered at the beginning of Mass, blessing the palms, we heard St. Luke’s account of the triumphant entry into Jerusalem.  The crowds are there for the Passover, and Jesus enters the Golden Gate, the only eastern gate leading into the Old City of Jerusalem.  It was also called Sha’ar HaRachamim, the Gate of Mercy.  According to Ezekiel, it was through this gate that the Messiah would come, and in fact, as those who went on the pilgrimage to the Holy Land with me heard, it is currently closed up by bricks, because there is a prophecy that the Messiah will go through that gate again at the end of time.

The Golden Gate in Jerusalem

 

The crowds, probably thinking about the prophecies of Ezekiel (that the Messiah would enter through this gate), and the prophecy of Zechariah (“Exult greatly, O daughter Zion!  Shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem!  Behold: your king is coming to you, a just savior is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey”), acclaim Jesus as the Messiah, and recite Psalm 118: “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”  They are excited, as a whole, about Jesus entering the Holy City for the Passover feasts.  They no longer really operate as individuals, but are now a mob, joyfully celebrating the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.

But in our Passion Narrative, the same people are clamoring, now not for Jesus as a Messiah, but for the death of Jesus.  They no longer shout with the words of Scripture, but rather, “‘Crucify him!  Crucify him!’” to fulfill another prophecy of Zechariah which states: “they [shall] look upon him whom they have thrust through, they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and they will grieve for him as one grieves over a firstborn.”

Mobs are, by their nature, fickle.  It doesn’t take much for people to set aside their rationality and give in to their emotions.  They do not consider so much what they do or what they say, but simply do what feels good.  And notice that Jesus does not placate the mob in either case.  He neither basks in their adulation, nor shrinks from their murderous howls.  Jesus is intent on doing the will of God, in good times and bad, no matter what people think of Him.

As those who have been configured to Christ in baptism, that is our task as well: not to give into mobs in our life, but to set our face like flint to do the will of God the Father.  It’s easier to disregard when we disagree with the negative shouts that they hurl at us.  Our natural instinct for self-defense usually tries to justify us and rationalize our behavior.  It’s much harder to avoid the mob and cave to them when they are pumping us up and saying things that we want to hear.  Especially in these days, we tend to surround ourselves with those who agree with us, and they become nothing else than an echo chamber for our mind and ego.  When people disagree with us,  rather than engaging in calm dialogue and rational debate, we cut them out of our lives, we unfriend them on Facebook or unfollow them on Twitter, and so the chances that those to whom we do listen encourage us becomes pretty likely.  But in the face of that, Jesus reminds us both not to give in to the negative or positive shouts of the mob, but to calmly and confidently do the will of God.

Another example of the mob mentality comes from our enemy, the devil.  He’s the one who does his best to entice us into doing evil, telling us that it will feel good, that it won’t hurt anyone, that it’s just a small sin that no one will know about.  But then, if we fall, he is also the first to condemn us, to tell us how evil we are, and undeserving of God’s love.  Again, Jesus tells us not to listen to the cacophony of voices from the devil: don’t give in to the temptation, but if we do, don’t despair of God’s mercy.  Rather, try our best to do God’s will in every circumstance in life, as best as we know it, but if we find ourselves having caved to sinful activity, then to run to the Gate of Mercy, the confessional, to be granted absolution from our merciful Father.  

While today’s readings began and ended with the mob, they also began and ended with Jesus, two stark examples of how to live our life.  May we not be part of the mindless mob, being blown on a whim from emotion to emotion, but be like Jesus, heart, mind, and body set on doing the will of God the Father.

Be a Prophet!!

Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

            So often I think when Catholics hear the word “prophet,” we think of someone who can foretell the future.  In fact, in the Biblical accounts, while prophets do sometimes tell people what will happen as a result of their sin or conversion, the prophets are the ones who speak for God.  Their job is not to say on what exact date the world is going to end (apparently that job was already taken by the Mayans), or which lottery numbers to play, but to speak for God.  And in our first reading, we hear how God pours out a spirit of prophecy of 70 elders.  Towards the end of the passage today, Joshua gets a little envious, and is upset that Eldad and Medad, who were outside the camp when they were supposed to be with Moses, still received the spirit of prophecy.  Moses then prophesies, “‘Would that all the people of the Lord were prophets!  Would that the Lord might bestow his spirit on them all!’”  That prophecy was fulfilled at Pentecost, when the Lord poured out His Spirit upon the Blessed Mother, the Apostles, and the Disciples gathered in the Upper Room.  And then the Lord poured out His spirit on the new believers. 

            We, for our part, have also been made prophets.  The Lord has poured out His Spirit on us in Baptism and Confirmation.  At Baptism we were anointed with the Sacred Chrism, which reminded us that we are now a member of the Anointed One, the Messiah, the Christ, and we share in his priestly, prophetic, and kingly ministry of all the faithful.  In Confirmation, the Bishop or Priest called down the Holy Spirit upon us through prayer, and then anointed us again with the Sacred Chrism to seal us with the gift of the Holy Spirit.  And so, the prophecy of Moses was fulfilled in us as we were made prophets, those who speak for God.

            As a good examination of conscience we can ask ourselves: how do we speak for God, both by our words (the prophets of the Old Testament are always saying, “Thus says the Lord”) and by our deeds (like when Jeremiah made the clay pot, or Ezekiel acted as if he were in exile)?

            Are we a prophet when it comes to defending the dignity of the poor and truly assisting them?  People can debate the best way to help the poor legitimately.  But, as prophets, we must ensure that the poor, widows, and orphans, those whom the Lord favors, are protected from neglect and are not punished for their lack of means.  Are we a prophet when it comes to defending the dignity and definition of marriage?  Our culture is really confused about marriage right now.  But we know that marriage was created by God as the union between one man and one woman for life, and that good, happy, holy marriages should be protected because of the important role they play in forming good, happy, and holy societies.  Are we a prophet for the infant in the womb and the homebound, who are so often neglected?  Do we give those who do not have a voice our voice and speak for God so that mothers and fathers can make the only good choice, the choice for life, and so that the homebound are not “done away with” because they are a burden to society?  Are we prophets for religious freedom, the God-given right that we have to worship and to take what we have received in worship into the public sector and not be punished for our beliefs or for serving those who are not Catholic?

            Are we prophets by what we say and what we do (and in this election year, being a prophet includes speak for God when we vote)?  When we are not prophets, by what we say and by what we do, then we causes others to sin by assisting them in thinking that God’s message does not really matter; that we can separate what we believe and how we live.  That is the sin of scandal, and it occurs when, by our words or actions, we provide a witness that does not live up to our prophetic call to speak for God, so that others do not consider, for example, protecting the poor, the infant in the womb, the homebound, the true definition of marriage, and religious freedom.  When we don’t exercise our prophetic vocation that we received in Baptism and Confirmation, others notice: when they know that as Christians we are called to assist the poor as an act of charity, and yet we make wealth and possessions our little idols; when we say we’re pro-life but then our actions don’t reflect that belief; when we don’t assist married couples, especially when times are difficult for them; when we are silent in the midst of the government telling us that they will decide who qualifies for conscience protection; then we cause scandal and lead others to think that those issues don’t really matter.  And if that happens, woe to us, because Jesus is quite clear what we can expect: “‘it would be better for him [or her] if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.’”

            But, when we live up to our prophetic call to infuse the culture, our families, our neighborhoods, our jobs, politics, and all aspects of life with the message of God, the Gospel, then we will not lose our reward.  When we speak for God and not for ourselves, then others will know what God wants for this world in order that all people might life in peace, justice, and the love of God.  The Spirit of the Lord is upon you, because He has anointed you.  Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.

Awkward Moments

Twenty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time

            There are many awkward moments in life: moments when you realize your shirt is inside out…and backwards; moments when you start laughing at something which everyone else considers quite serious; moments when you’re at your friend’s house and your friend gets yelled at by his mom and/or dad; moments when someone says something embarrassing about you at work.  These are not fun moments to be in.  Perhaps another awkward moment is having to correct someone, especially someone to whom you’re close.

            And yet, both our first reading and Gospel give us a handbook of what to do when we see our brother or sister doing wrong, especially to us.  In the first reading, God is telling the prophet Ezekiel what the expectations are for being a prophet.  Ezekiel is to tell the wicked when they’re doing wrong.  Otherwise, not only the wicked person will die for his sins, but also Ezekiel will be responsible for his death because he did not warn the wicked person.  Some of us might be thinking right now, ‘Phew!  It’s tough being a prophet!  I’m glad I don’t have that responsibility!!’  But, the reality is that we are all called to be prophets, that is, those who speak for God in the world.  ‘I never signed up for this!’ you might be saying.  But, just as you and your parents and godparents heard at your baptism, you were anointed with sacred Chrism and joined, in your own way, into the prophetic office of Jesus Christ.  We are all called to speak for God.  Of course, we better make sure that we know that it’s God’s message that we are spreading, not our own.  But we are all prophets because of our baptism.

            This is the point where well-meaning pious people say, “But Jesus said not to judge!”  And that’s true.  Jesus said, “‘Judge not, lest you be judged.’”  But what the Church has understood that to mean is that we cannot judge motives for actions.  But we can judge actions themselves.  Otherwise why would Jesus have given St. Peter and the apostles the power to bind and loose on earth?  We can tell people that they’re doing wrong, and, in fact, as we hear from the prophet Ezekiel, we have a duty to do so.  But we can’t say that they’re horrible, rotten people, or that they are fully culpable for what they do.  Only God judges motives and guilt of conscience, not us.

            Of course, as St. Paul reminds us, love is the fulfillment of the law.  And so, even when we’re correcting others, we must do so out of charity.  Tattling, where we just get someone in trouble because we don’t like them, or without any real concern for their conversion, is not responding to the duty that we have as prophets of God.  It’s simply being petty. 

            Luckily, Jesus gives us some parameters to make sure that our correction of each other is connected with charity.  He tells us to first talk to the person who has sinned against us if we have a problem with them.  Don’t tell your friends, your family, strangers, or anyone else until you have talked to that person who wronged you, and let them know that they have wronged you and that you are concerned that their action doesn’t reflect Jesus’ teachings.  Of course, and this bears repeating, this has to be done in charity, in love.  A lot of times when we are wronged, we get angry (the soul’s response to justice), but we tend to go overboard in responding to that injustice.  So it’s often better to cool down a bit first, whenever possible.  But go to that person first. 

            Then, if he or she will not listen to you, involve some others, maybe others who were present to see the fault take place, or who know well the person who sinned against you.  And let them hear your complaint to the person.  Sometimes it takes hearing something from a few people to realize that it is truly a problem.  And, those who are not directly connected can sometimes have a better perspective because they’re not involved in the same way.

            Then, and only then, do the authorities and the Church, get involved.  Only when the person who sinned is so obstinate that he or she will not listen to reason does the offense become pretty public.  Only then do you call in those who have authority over those who, in the faith, are equals.  And if they don’t listen to the Church, then all that is left is to pray for their conversion (which should be happening all along as a sign that the correction is based in love, not vengeance).

            Of course, to correct someone, we have to believe that there are things that are wrong, and not just the major things: murder, adultery, stealing, and perjury.  We live in a very relativistic culture which basically holds, “if you’re ok, I’m ok” as a way of operating.  We don’t like to challenge people to live holy lives because it’s awkward.  And it’s especially awkward because we are likely afraid that if we tell someone else that they are not living a holy life, then they might respond in the same way with us.  And who likes to be told to change?  No one.  And yet, Jesus didn’t come saying, “You’re all basically good people, so just keep up the good work, and maybe tweak it a little.”  Instead, he said, “‘Repent!  For the Kingdom of heaven is near!’”  He challenged people to a life of radical trust in God, radical following of the law of love, even if it means laying down your own life, and thus radical holiness. 

            Whether we like it or not, if we are baptized God has called us to be prophets, to speak for him to His people, each according to our level of responsibility.  Do not be afraid to speak the truth in love, even when it’s awkward, even when it means correcting someone.  Do not be afraid to challenge others, and be challenged ourselves, to live lives of radical holiness.  This is our vocation as prophets.  This is what it means to be a disciple of Christ.