Homily Notes 3rd Sunday of Easter 2018
3rd Sunday of Easter, “God is not Finished with Me Yet.”
We have many themes running through the Resurrection accounts that we see repeated. One of the themes that we cannot help but notice is that the apostles do not recognize Jesus after the resurrection. Only by interacting with him, in a variety of ways, do they come to know him. Most often it is by sharing a meal with him. Coming to understand the implications of the Resurrection of Jesus seemed to happen over time.
We might think that the way people come to accept Jesus as Lord is by having an experience like St. Paul. Paul, as we remember, came to faith on the Road to Damascus while he was traveling there to persecute Christians. Suddenly, there was a flash of light. He was knocked to the ground. The risen Jesus spoke to him. He was blinded. Only after Baptism was his sight restored. His conversion was sudden, complete.
But if we read about the life of St. Paul, we see that Paul did not come to fully embrace Christianity right away. He disappears from Christian history for several years. He goes away to reflect, to study, to quiz the Apostles who knew Jesus while he lived. Only then does start his missionary activity. He had to prepare for his life’s work. His faith was not fully mature all at once.
Growing to be an adult follower of Jesus is a process. We could compare it to how we learned to read. We might remember how we started. First, we had to learn our ABC’s Usually, we did that by singing the jingle which ended with the words, “Now I know my ABC’s tell me what you think of me.”
We followed this up by reading our first book. With me, as well as a lot of other people, it was a book about Dick and Jane. In that book we had a lot of pictures while we only had a few words. Dick would run. Jane would run. Who know where they were running to? And then suddenly, a dog named Spot was thrown in the story. Because of repetition we become familiar with words. Slowly, we build our vocabulary. We branch out into reading things that we are interested in. Before you know it, we are sending snap chat messages. We are doing face book. My point is that one technique for learning to read leads to the next. Reading opens whole new worlds for us. We have many revelations that result.
Pope Francis wrote a Papal Exhortation this week. The letter that he wrote was about holiness. The Exhortation called “Gaudete et Exsultate” or Rejoice and be Glad. The exhortation is not heavy on Theology, but it is a very practical description of how to live out our Christianity in the world. Like most of his writings any lay person can pick it up and read it.
What are some of the ideas he expounds on? One thing he says is that any person has the capability of becoming holy no matter what your station is in life. Another thing he believes is that holiness revolves around charity. We are not holy if we have a prayer life that never leads to action. We must get into the messiness of human relationships Francis says. Part of that process is becoming a part of the church community. If you want to see what true holiness is, he says, then look at the person who is involved in others lives trying to help whenever possible. The person who does not give up on relationships but keeps interacting.
The main thing that Francis emphasizes is that becoming holy is a life long process. We never fully arrive, but we keep striving. We fail in our charity at times, but if we do, we then start anew. Holiness is not about going through a check list of religious activities, but it is about loving our neighbor as our selves.
As Roman Catholic Christians we believe in life long conversion. We adhere to the bumper sticker that says, “God is not finished with me yet.” If feel like we have all the answers. Or, if we run into a religious person who thinks they know what God wants, beware, Pope Francis warns. Holiness can be found in the person is still searching. The first disciples did not understand when they first saw Jesus, but deeper and deeper belief came over time. Let’s be patient with ourselves. If we are seeking the Lord in all things we are going to grow in holiness.
Please note: rough draft grammar may not be perfect