Homily Notes Sixth Sunday of Easter
6th Sunday of Easter: “It is Good to Suffer for What is Right.”
“Sanctify Christ as Lord in your Hearts.” We hear these words in our second reading today from the First Letter of Peter. Somehow this sounds strange to us. When we think of sanctifying something we think of using something that is secular for a holy purpose. We take a table, for example. We sanctify it to make it an altar. We Christians must sanctify our hearts which means our hearts must be undivided.
Peter goes on further to say that his readers must be ready to defend what they believe. We need to remember the situation of the first Christians. Disciples of Jesus were a persecuted minority in the Roman empire. Some endured physical punishment as they tried to hold on to their Christian faith. Christians were imprisoned, beaten, even executed.
But Christians were also ridiculed in more subtle ways. Christians were mocked by non-believers. Some were even shunned by their families. How were Christians supposed to handle these persecutions? The natural temptation would be to withdraw from the faith. Most of the time we just want to blend in when we are confronted about matters of faith. We don’t want to be conspicuous. Another reaction may be despair. It feels a lot better to be complimented for our beliefs. No one feels good about being constantly criticized.
In today’s world, religious people are not necessarily respected. We can be labeled as people who do not think. We also can be accused of being judgmental. Religious is a label that carries all kinds of connotations. Most of them seem to be negative in the modern times. Perhaps that is why 23% of people in our country claim not to belong to any religion.
St. Peter’s advice in his epistle is still relevant today as we seek to cope. He offers several suggestions for us. The first thing we must do if we wish to defend ourselves against attack is that we need to be able to be reasonable in what we say. As Christians, we must be able to give a well thought out reasons as to why we live the way we do. Too often, Roman Catholics have not reflected on what we believe and do. Just take a simple thing like why we are here worshipping here today. 75% of Catholics will not take time this weekend to attend Mass. If someone were to ask us why we are here praying would we be able to give them a well thought out answer? A rational response might cause someone else to join us. If we give answers that we ourselves have formulated and believe it will cause others to rethink their position.
The second thing St. Peter suggests is that we be gentle in our response to those who are irreligious. Too often religious people state their beliefs from a position of arrogance. We might feel like anyone who does not believe as we do is stupid. The case for Christianity must be presented with tolerance. We get a better response if we say to others that everyone is searching for the truth. We are all seekers, that we do not have all the answers, that no one does. People need to be attracted to the faith, not bullied into it.
Another thing that we can do, according to Peter, is to argue with non-believers with reverence. People should detect a tone of joy as we speak of our faith in Jesus Christ. If we are afraid when we speak of the things of faith then probably there is going to be a hostility in our voice. We have all heard that religion is a taboo subject in a social setting. The reason is that Theological debates often turn into ugly arguments.
The last way that St. Peter encourages Christians to act is that he recommends that Christians be above reproach. If we are hypocrites. If we are saying one thing while doing another then few people are going to be attracted to our way of life.
What virtue is paramount if others are going to see us as authentic? The most important virtue is hope. What does a hopeless person do? The hopeless person is that person who moves in the direction of least resistance. We could say that they are like the politician who will not speak the truth because they are afraid that they will lose the next election. Such a leader waffles back and forth until they know which way is safe. The person who exudes hope is the one who is willing, as St. Peter says, “to suffer in order to do right thing.” We feel hope when we are around people who don’t compromise integrity.
If non-believers see that we will live out our Christianity, even if it involves great sacrifice, they will believe. Christianity has credibility if Christians walk in the footsteps of Christ, unafraid of the cross with confidence in the ultimate victory of resurrection. If that is the case, then Jesus is truly Lord of our hearts.
Please note this is a rough draft and grammar may not be perfect.