Impose nothing, yet propose ceaselessly

I like this admonishment, which comes from the Holy Father's address in Portugal:

We impose nothing, yet we propose ceaselessly, as Peter recommends in one of his Letters: “In your hearts, reverence Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to make a defence to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you” (1 Pet 3:15)

When one has found the greatest of treasures, and not only is it sufficient to share with absolutely everyone, but it is completely logical to do so, we must do no less: propose ceaselessly, because what we have fills us with joy, and we want others to share this joy from the fount of all joy. It is a much better attitude than "live and let die", or even to "live and let live". Better to live and help live, for in Christ alone will our hearts find rest.

[Hat tip to Whispers in the Loggia, which posts the entire homily.

The Challenge of Christ

In today's Gospel readings (Luke 4:16-30), Jesus appears to have deliberately provoked the angry response from his audience in the synagogue of Nazareth:

And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, "Isn't this the son of Joseph?" He said to them, "Surely you will quote me this proverb, 'Physician, cure yourself,' and say, 'Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.'" And he said, "Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land. It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian." When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury.

So it seems that the audience was largely approving at first, and then, one might object to the Lord's provoking words. A cross-reference to Mark 6:1-6, however, clarifies that they were already provoked to begin with:

When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, "Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! Is he not the carpenter, 3 the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him.

Perhaps it isn't presumptuous to consider the way Jesus reads the hearts of the people in his audience. Here he reads skepticism and perhaps a little contempt, that comes from familiarity. Not that any of us are exempt from such human reactions.

So, yes, the Lord seems to provoke the fury deliberately, but this is the challenging side of the gospel. The double-edged Word is presented as a dividing line between an open heart and one that is closed. Despite the works of Christ, he is greeted with skepticism. What then is left to say, except that the good news will now be given to more open hearts?

Lord! That today I may listen to your voice and harden not my heart!

Dim lights

From today's Gospel reading, our parish priest pointed out in his homily that some people pretend that Christ did not have hard words. Today's Gospel reading is about some of those hard words. From Luke 12:49-53, the Lord said these words:

‘I have come to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were blazing already! There is a baptism I must still receive, and how great is my distress till it is over! ‘Do you suppose that I am here to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on a household of five will be divided: three against two and two against three; the father divided against the son, son against father, mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.’

Fr. John points out, however, that while Christ is not here solely to cause grief and division, he does bring a challenge which will always be opposed by many who are firmly embracing this world. Our parish priest also points out if we were to discard this challenge and Christ's hard teachings, then we can truly say that the salt has lost its taste and the light has gone dim.

The image of dimmed lights stands out: when the light has gone dim, it becomes harder to see the truth. In the dim light, it is difficult to distinguish shapes and objects apart. Such dim lights are indeed useless, and such conditions are probably ideal for the Enemy to deceive many so that they stumble and fall.

The metaphorical Christ

The thought came to mind that the "metaphorical Christ" is probably an evolution of the "historical Christ" as propaganda by the Enemy (the Devil). This metaphorical being, whose resurrection is purely spiritual, as my friend suggests as plausible, is most certainly inconsistent with Christ in the gospels, and is a perfect decoy. Not only would those who follow the metaphorical "christ" be worshipping a fictional person, they would also discover, sooner or later, that this being is not worthy of devotion and worship, considering that everything said about Christ in the gospels, in contradiction to this being, can be safely discarded. Out with the Eucharist. Out with the passion and the cross. Out with the fulfillment of prophecy and out with his hard words about the end of the world. What then is left? Nothing but a lofty ideology and comfortable ideals.