WHERE IS THE LOVE?

4th Sunday of Ordinary Time Deacon McMullen Jan 30-31, 2010

Where is the Love?

[The homily begins with me hitting a trash can lid with a ball bat. After which I ask:

Where’s the love? [pause]

Imagine that week after week at Mass, the preacher, in order to not offend anyone, really says nothing of substance. He doesn’t proclaim the Word of God and allow it to challenge the congregation to grow in faith or develop a more personal relationship with the Lord nor does he call the people to look within themselves and see where God is calling them to share their time and talents.

Instead, the preacher continually encourages the people to keep their religion to themselves, reinforcing the old saw that only Catholics go to heaven, women shouldn’t be allowed in the sanctuary, and that everyone ought to focus on their sinfulness and faults, and never stop repeating to themselves how unworthy they are of God’s love!

Unfortunately, there are those who have embraced a warped, frustrated view of Catholicism that I have just described.

But what a completely upside down disturbing view of the gospel message! Yet that is sort of the kind of a mentality Jesus was confronted with when he returned to his hometown of Nazareth.

Jesus proclaims a passage of the prophet Isaiah and announces: “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

The Nazareth crowd initially responds positively to him and his words. But then they begin to question him and his authority. Isn’t this the son of Joseph? He was a stonecutter, a mere carpenter. Who does he think he is? Once again, there is no room at the inn for Jesus, even in his hometown!

I’m sure Jesus could have asked: Where’s the love? Where’s the love!

Jesus recognizes that he is being rejected – but he knew it would be this way – you and I know that the good news of the gospel is often shunned in favor of the bad news of gossip, people’s personal failures, and the latest scandal.

Jesus jogs their memory and rekindles the story of Elijah who went to the widow of Zarapheth rather than any of the widows of Israel; he also recalls the story of Naaman the Syrian who was the only leper cleansed by the Prophet Elisha. God will not be outdone in generosity nor will he be confined to our ridiculous boundary lines. But the people did not want to hear how God loved their enemies, so Jesus is rejected! Jesus’ God was bigger than what they were used to, greater than what they could accept, so he is rejected!
They wanted a god who was only on their side, so he is rejected!

And by his rejection he is letting us know that we can expect rejection as well. In fact, it seems to be a calling card for Catholics and Christians around the world, even now.

We too will encounter opposition and a lack of faith – even among our fellow believers – people with preconceived notions of God that limit grace - but we must not allow their cynicism and doubt to crush our faith!

The Nazareth crowd was filled with religious intolerance and holy anger – often the worst kind! And they sought to kill Jesus by throwing him off a cliff headfirst!

But Jesus passed through their midst and went away. He went away!!! He went away. Where did he go?

He went to those who have open hearts and willing minds to embrace his vision of the kingdom! Do we see him in our midst? What are going to do with Jesus and his message, his mission, and his vision of the kingdom?

Should we beat a trash can lid, telling people what great Christians we are? Where is the Love in that? Or should we live the love?

Jeremiah, Elijah, Elisha, and Jesus all knew their God to be bigger than any of our ridiculous categories or boxes in which we want to keep God. But God cannot be contained. God cannot be limited. God’s love is overflowing.

Being sent to your own people and telling them something that might be hard for them to accept can get you into hot water just like the kind of trouble Jesus got into! Those who think they know all there is to know about the faith are often the scariest people to deal with. Those who should know that we are forever on a journey with and to the Lord are often the least interested in truly hearing the Word of God!

Yet if we take the gospel seriously, we are also called to be prophets! Not to foretell the future, but to speak and do God’s Word in our World! Jesus calls us all to be prophets, speaking the Word of God in and out of season and putting it into action!

As prophets, you and I have business outside these walls of worship. These walls are never to confine God’s Word or action in the world!

So, how can we be prophets today? Saint Paul describes our role very well in today’s epistle. We are to love. And what does love look like?

“Love is patient, love is kind. Love is not jealous, love is not pompous…” and all that…

We are the love in the world. And if we are not love to the world, then we are hypocrites, actors dressed as Christians.

Paraphrasing Saint Paul, if I have the tongues of angels and human and have no love, then I am nothing more than a trash can lid being hammered with a ball bat.

If I had the faith to move a mountain but do not put that faith into practice through acts of love and mercy, then I am as useless as an earthmover without a shovel!

These are strong words. Yet the gospel is strong medicine for a disease ridden world!

Therefore what should move us more than anything is what happens to us when we hear the Word proclaimed and then gather around this altar! When we comprehend the Word of God with our minds and receive the Word into our hearts, we are transformed; then as we approach the altar and receive the Body of Christ, the Eucharist, then we become the very Body of Christ, the Church!

So what happens to us once we hear the words, “Mass is ended, go in peace to love and serve the Lord!”?
Are those merely words? Or do we not realize that we are given a command! We are to boldly go forth as prophets to the nations! We become the sanctuary to the world! We are the Church and we take Christ to the world! We are God’s bread given as manna to the needy! We are God’s love poured out to a thirsty world!

What would the world be like if we practiced the virtues of patience, kindness, hope & love?!

[Ball bat on trash can lid again.] Where’s the love? Where is the Love? Where is our love? Where is the Lord?