“Why Love?”
May 14, 2023
Dear brothers and sisters, grace and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.
Today, on this Mother’s Day, we give thanks to God for all our moms, and those whom we have regarded as mother figures, as being special gifts from God. And, of course, today I am thankful for my own mom, whose influence on me as a Christian, when I was growing up, and even shortly before I moved here, continues to be really strong. Many of you have asked if my parents would be able to come visit us in Farmersville, and I’m sad to say, the answer is no: given my dad’s current vulnerable health condition, and particularly with him needing to avoid any and all situations where he could contract a viral illness, as well as other obligations my mom has at home, they are unable to do any long-distance travelling at this time. Nevertheless, I’m still thankful for the many ways I’m able to keep in regular touch with my parents, and especially the discussions about faith and what being a Christian means in certain situations to them, that, even in middle age, I greatly appreciate being able to have. Which is a lesson to every one of us: no matter how old we may be, and no matter how much life experience we may have had, we always can continue to benefit from the wisdom and experience our parents, and grandparents, have to offer. Which also means that we ought to enjoy and take advantage of the time and moments we still have with our parents and grandparents, hear their memories and experiences, and learn from what they have to tell us.
And, again, there were, and continue to be, many things I learned and still learn from my parents. One thing in particular that my mom would always encourage me to think about, especially when I was younger, was how a Christian would act in certain situations. What I mean is, there would be more than a few times when I would become angry or frustrated with someone, and would want to lash out, take revenge, or express anger in some other way. My mom would then gently ask if that would be the right Christian response – and, of course, the answer would be no. She would then encourage me to calm down, think about what the best thing to do would be, pray, forgive the people involved, and keep moving forward. She was basically encouraging me to think about what living out my relationship with God would look like, to be able to have as good a relationship with other people as possible. In other words, what the best Christian witness would be at those times. Her advice to think about what the right Christian response to a frustrating person or situation would be, has, throughout my life, helped me to deal with some particularly challenging times, of which I have particularly had a lot in recent years. Which, once again, shows how much she, and my dad, continue to have a strong influence on me, and one which, I hope, they will continue to have even after they both go to be with the Lord. Also, the implication of what my mom counseled me back then is really to try to practice love in all situations. Love for God, certainly, but also love for other people.
And that is indeed what is needed today. We need more love in this world – both love for God and love for other people. We can say we love God, yet Jesus presents us with an even greater challenge, which, again, is needed more than ever: “If you love me, keep my commands.” Despite the way it may seem, Jesus is actually not issuing an ultimatum, or some sort of threat: what He’s saying is that since we love Him, we will do what He says. Just as, when we are in a healthy relationship with someone, we respect their wishes because we both want to be happy in the relationship, the same is with Jesus: because we have a relationship with Him, and He with us, we do what He wants because He knows what would give us the most satisfying, fulfilling life – because He loves us and cares about what would be best for us. A relationship with Jesus, despite the way it has sadly been presented, is not one of “follow and obey me or else bad things will happen to you, you will be punished, and you will be forever condemned.” That would be a one-sided, or dysfunctional relationship. Jesus never forces anyone to be His friend, nor does He force His friendship on anyone – He always gives everyone free will. He offers Himself freely to everyone who wants Him. So, the best way to think of Jesus is as someone who is our friend – the best, wisest, most knowledgeable, most reliable, most encouraging, and most dependable friend we could ever hope for. But this also does not even mean simply following blindly: instead, by following His example which comes out of being formed to become more like Him each day. This happens both by the power of the Holy Spirit, as well as simply being in a relationship with Jesus, the same way that being in a relationship with someone influences who we become.
Which also means, whatever sort of close relationship we have with someone, whether as parents or friends, we are to be mindful of what sort of people we are, because that influences what the person we are in a relationship with is becoming. So, for example, if we want the other person to be happy and healthy, then we are to become happy and healthy ourselves. And, since Jesus is someone who is open, caring, and concerned about everyone’s well-being, that is who we become by being in a relationship with Him. He demonstrated this by dying on the cross, and then rising again, winning victory over sin and death for us, and promising us forgiveness. Also, by being baptized, we are joined to Him in a firm relationship, and also to each other, as family and friends, since we all share baptism in common.
But why is all this really important? Because, once again, it is needed. The covid pandemic and its aftermath unfortunately divided us in a lot of ways, and even broke up friendships between individuals and groups. Jesus is our friend, He wants to be friends with us, to be friends with everyone, and so He wants us to be friends with each other again. The only way to bring the world back to peace and unity is through the love of Jesus. If we think about it, we try to find ways to get out of trying to love other people: by dividing up society, and even people we know personally and encounter on a daily basis. We divide people by political, moral, social, or even theological classes and stances. We make everything about “us” and “them,” while forgetting to realize that we have more in common with “them” in many cases – and we are to look for those things we have in common, to become friends with people first, in order to open up people to us witnessing to the message of Jesus through our own words and actions.
One example is in today’s First Reading, where Paul goes to a place called the Areopagus in Athens, Greece. This was a place where various philosophies were debated, and various teachers attempted to assert their understandings as being the truth. Also, many altars to many different gods were built. Paul notices one dedicated to the “Unknown God.” He uses this as an opportunity to show his audience something they have in common – they have both been worshipping this “Unknown God,” and now, because Paul has opened them up to hearing him because they have this thing in common, he is going to tell them who this “Unknown God” really is – the true God, revealed in Jesus. Notice he does not go for a full frontal attack on their beliefs, which would cause them to become defensive and reject him from the beginning; instead, he tries to find something they can agree on, which helps them listen to him. And we too can learn from this example: if, in our own relationships and interactions, we focus on those things we have in common, and we both enjoy, we are able to be heard more effectively. Also, not every relationship we are in has to be for the purpose of bringing someone to Jesus. But, Jesus still may use us as an opportunity to bring some other change or positive influence to someone’s life. This does not mean that we in any way compromise our belief in Jesus as being the only true God and Savior. Paul certainly did not compromise his message, because what he was not saying in any way was that the one true God was the same as the pagan gods the Gentiles had been worshipping at the other altars. On the contrary, as Peter encourages us in today’s Second Reading, we are to hold on to our belief as true, and be able to articulate and assert it whenever we are challenged – but we are to do so not in a defensive, offensive, or belligerent fashion, but instead with gentleness, being sensitive to those to whom we speak, and with reverence, knowing that the impression we give by our conduct and response will influence how others think about the God we believe in. Everything we do, we are to do out of concern and compassion, not looking at a relationship or interaction as a “win/lose” situation, where we have to win and be right, but instead asking:
How can I help? What does someone need, that I can provide? How can I be a friend? How does Jesus want me to be a friend to that person? What encouraging and uplifting word, thoughtful action, or caring deed can I do for the person who happens to be with me at that moment? What is God wanting me to tell or show someone? To go back to what I talked about with my mom earlier, in times of conflict, frustration, or anger, especially towards another person, what would be the right Christian response? This is how we can bring love and friendship back into this world – through the example of Jesus, and His love and friendship. So on this Mother’s Day, let us honor the example our own mothers, and families, have set for us, by living according to the commands – the example – of Jesus, so that everyone will know who Jesus really is.
Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
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