Monday, February 1, 2016

Making an eternal difference

Homily: 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Cycle C
          Back when I was working as an engineer for Delphi Automotive Electronics in Kokomo, one of the main products that I worked on was development of DVD players for rear-seat entertainment systems that are installed into new cars.  The great irony of that assignment was that, at that time, I didn’t even own a DVD player!  These were the first systems being integrated from the factory into new cars; and so you can imagine that there were some problems getting these systems ready for production.  I worked a lot of overtime chasing down software glitches and improving quality and all of that work started to wear on me.
          I remember having many conversations with a good friend of mine (who was also an engineer and a few years older than me) and saying to him “You know, I just don’t feel like I’m really doing anything.  I’m stressing out and working myself to death, and for what?  So that some soccer-mom’s kids can watch a movie in the back of the minivan?  That just doesn’t seem to be worth it; like it’s making a difference in the world.”  My friend would always remind me not to underestimate how important that five minutes of quiet could be for that soccer-mom, but I could never get over the feeling that I wasn’t making a difference that mattered in peoples’ lives.
          I suppose that all of you should be thankful that my friend’s response didn’t satisfy me, because otherwise I wouldn’t be here.  That dissatisfaction led me to pursue a different job—even a different career path—and ultimately (once I experienced a profound awakening of faith) to discern God’s will that I become a priest, which landed me right here at All Saints Parish.  All because I had this urge within me to make a positive difference in the world.
          I think that all of us have a similar urge within us: an urge to make a positive difference in the world—that is, to do something worthwhile.  And, although we love our vacations (and we wish that we had more of them), we all know that our fulfillment and meaning comes from achieving something that will last, rather than sitting around, soaking up the sun and drinking lemonade.  God made us in his image and God creates.  Therefore, we are, by nature, co-creators with him.  We are built to create things and our unique instincts tell us that we should build things that make positive, lasting impacts on the lives of those around us.
          Unfortunately, too many of us think that the way to do this is to be productive: that is, to make something tangible that will create this positive impact and, thus, stand as our legacy long after we’ve died.  While there many who will truly make a positive impact on the people around them (and, perhaps, even beyond them) by what they produce, there are only a few whose impact will be remembered beyond the generation that follows them.  For the rest of us, there is only one thing that we can build that will truly leave a lasting impact well into the future: the kingdom of God.
          Believe it or not, each and every one of us that bears the name of “Christian” is called to be a prophet: one who builds God’s kingdom by proclaiming Christ and by making the world a more just and loving place through the works of mercy.  Listen to what the Catechism has to say, which quotes the Second Vatican Council:
 “Christ... fulfills this prophetic office, not only by the hierarchy... but also by the laity. He accordingly both establishes them as witnesses and provides them with the sense of the faith [sensus fidei] and the grace of the word.” … Lay people also fulfill their prophetic mission by evangelization, “that is, the proclamation of Christ by word and the testimony of life.” For lay people, “this evangelization... acquires a specific property and peculiar efficacy because it is accomplished in the ordinary circumstances of the world.” (CCC 904, 905)
In other words, Christ himself establishes all of us—the clergy as well as the laity—as prophets in the world, due simply to the fact that we participate as members of his one Body.  The prophetic role of the laity, moreover, is unique: since “it is accomplished in the ordinary circumstances of the world”—that is, in the circumstances of your day-to-day lives.  Thus, by proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ and by living our lives in accord with what we proclaim, we build God’s kingdom and make a positive impact on the world: an impact that lasts.  When we choose not proclaim this message in both our words and actions, we lose our chance to make that change and the world is negatively impacted.  No, there is no neutral ground.  Either we proclaim this message and build God’s kingdom or we fail to do so and the kingdom suffers.
          In our network of relationships, there are literally hundreds of opportunities to call people to "repent and believe in the Gospel".  And so, the question that we need to ask ourselves daily is: “Who in our network of relationships needs to hear this message?”  A son or a daughter?  A friend, cousin, or co-worker?  Let us make a commitment today to reach out to at least one of them: perhaps with a phone call, a letter, an e-mail, or even message on Facebook.  And what about how we live as followers of Christ?  What areas of my life need reform in order to proclaim this good news by my actions?  Let’s also make a commitment today to start working on that reform.  Although both of these may make us uncomfortable (in fact, they make me uncomfortable just talking about them, since I know that, because of my position, I’ll be held more accountable if I don’t follow through), it is better to be uncomfortable for a while here in this life, than to be uncomfortable forever in the next life.
          Friends, let us not be afraid to engage in this good work that God has given to us: for he has given us the same promise that he gave to Jeremiah, the prophet, when he said “They will fight against you but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.”  Consecrated by our baptism and strengthened by this Eucharist, we already have every grace that we need to fulfill it.  May the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and all of the saints keep us faithful to this work so that we might see the kingdom of God flourish among us.

Given at All Saints Parish: Logansport, IN – January 30th & 31st, 2016

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