The Courage of Your Convictions

 

12^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Cycle A

I find these readings today to be especially disturbing and challenging. It has a call to action that is very uncomfortable for me, because it is causing me to dig deep into what I believe and what I am being called to profess and defend. Whoever denies me before others I will deny before my Heavenly Father. How horrifying if that were the case.

As I’ve been following Justin Hibbard’s podcast, Why Catholic, which, by the way, I highly recommend, where he so clearly and articulately explains why he became a Catholic and also various Church teachings and beliefs, I have tried to discern for myself why I remain a Catholic. I mean, it’s not easy. I guess what it’s all boiled down to, it is here that I find the truth, and the answers to the most fundamental questions humanity faces. Who am I, why am I here, what is my purpose in life, how am I to live best with other people, and what is my future? I assume we all face those questions from time to time in our lives. At least I hope we do. I think it’s really important to find the truth, to know the truth, and to live the truth. Wouldn’t that be the definition of living my true self? Nobody wants to be living a lie. The truth is that God-shaped hole in ourselves that can be filled with nothing else.

But is there such a thing as truth? We hear people say all the time today that they want to live “their truth”, which supposes that truth is subjective, changeable, fluid. What does that mean? Can there be more than one truth? Is truth unchanging or is it just a matter of what you believe it to be? There is the saying that perception is reality, and that how we see things through the lens of our experience is how they really are, but that’s really just interpretation, not necessarily the truth. And when it comes to Jesus, does he change because our perceptions and experience of him may be different? Is he a different Lord to you than he is to me, just because we believe him to be different? That might be true if he is just a man, but not if he is God. God never changes, and neither do his commandments.

 If two people hold diametrically opposed beliefs on the truth of something, either one is right and the other is wrong, or they are both wrong. They can’t both be true.

Some things are what they are. Isn’t truth reality, and reality truth?  Your belief about them does not change their reality. If it can then we are standing on shifting sand, and we are living in confusion and fear. Relativism like that leads to chaos and upheaval and ultimately violence.

What is truth? That is what Pontius Pilate asked Jesus at his trial. It was in response to Jesus’ claim that he had come into the world to testify to the truth. And if I am a Catholic because I am seeking the truth, then I must be a disciple of Jesus whose purpose and mission was to testify to the truth. The supreme truth we profess is that Jesus is the Son of God, that he died for our sins and has opened heaven to us. The supreme truth we believe is our hope in eternal life. Jesus did not say he is a way, a truth, and a life. He did not say it was his way, or his truth, or his life. He said he is the way, the truth, and the life. There is no gray area there. He didn’t say we are to live our own truth, but his truth. And if I claim to have my own truth, isn’t that setting myself up as God? Either he is truth or he is a liar. If there is one God, and that God is truth, then there is one truth. And that is why I must follow him. That truth is the most powerful truth in all of history, and the most wonderful thing for all of humanity, and we are called as disciples to not only shout that from the rooftops but to defend it to the death, if necessary.

 It seems like Christianity, and particularly Catholicism, is under heavier attack these days in Western civilization than any other time in my lifetime. It is not just an undercurrent of bias and bigotry, it is now out in the open, brazen, and widespread. There have been waves of persecution throughout the ages, but this time it feels different. It is prevalent in the common wisdom, and has now become common practice in places and amongst large groups. It seems that truth itself is purposely under attack.

 Have you noticed anything like that? Maybe you have experienced that yourself in your interactions with people you work with, on social media, in your family? What are we as Catholics to do in response, especially in the public square? If we are living in a post-Christian, almost pagan society, it’s sort of like returning to the earliest days of the Church, and so Jesus’ message to his disciples is especially meaningful to us today.

How are we to react and respond, and defend the gospel these days? Sometimes the good that was done in secret comes to light, but not often. I think one of the problems we have as a church is that the good we do is often not brought to light. The darkness so easily obscures the light. Evil seems so overpowering. How do we build up the image of the Church in our own community? The good news of the gospel is that eventually the good will come to light, justice and peace will prevail. There is always hope.

Whoever denies me before others I will deny before my heavenly Father. We know the story of St. Peter, who denied Jesus three times. His denial was that he didn’t even know Jesus. He didn’t denounce Jesus or join in on the shouts for his condemnation that day during the trial. He simply denied that he even knew him. But the other apostles also denied Jesus by running away.

I can fully understand and relate to the apostles predicament. It is easy to be a disciple when you are in the presence daily of Jesus, witnessing his miracles, hearing his teaching, and basking in the light of his love. But when confronted by opposition, especially with mob violence, it is much harder to have the courage of your convictions. I think for us today it is easy to hold our beliefs to ourselves, to not rock the boat, to not be confrontational when we see our faith and our Lord being attacked.

How do we deny we know Jesus? I guess the first question should be, do we really know Jesus? Do we truly have a relationship with him through prayer? Do we get to know him through scripture? Do we fully participate in the holy sacrifice of the Mass and receive him worthily, body, soul and divinity, in the eucharist each and every week. Have we recognized his deep presence in our everyday lives, or is he on the periphery? We can’t defend what we do not know.

And then I guess we need to not be part of the problem. How often do we ourselves join in the chorus of criticism of the Church and not shout the goodness and joy of the gospel from the rooftops? Or, even worse, we are so apathetic and unaware that we don’t notice or even care? Is our denial the belief that there is not even anything to defend?

We also deny Jesus when we say nothing when he is blasphemed and belittled and attacked by society, by the mob. We deny Jesus when we allow his name to be dragged through the mud of popular opinion. Our Lord said we would suffer persecution for his sake, and that we are to take joy in that. Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of slander against you because of me. And we have and we do.

But we are also called to defend our Lord. We can turn the other cheek personally ourselves and not return like for like, but we are not to deny our Lord. We can take our blows silently as he did, but we are not to say we do not even know him. The name of the Lord is sacred. Hallowed be your name, we pray. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, we are commanded. The same St. Peter who denied Jesus’ name wrote that there is no other name by which we are saved. If we do not defend that name, we in effect are denying Jesus to others. Take it personally. Defend your Lord as you would defend your children if they were being bullied.

And the best way to defend our Lord and confront our enemies is to pray for them. It has been great to see how some of our leaders and large groups of laity have responded to recent attacks. Through peaceful protests and prayer. Jesus said to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute you. Some people think that is too passive and ineffective, and it is truly powerful. Jesus even prayed on the cross for forgiveness for those who were crucifying him. So keep praying, keep persevering in doing good and living your life as a true disciple. Don’t give up on the truth. Know it, understand it, and proclaim it from the rooftops.

It takes courage to defend what we believe. It is often a lonely path we take, and like Jeremiah the attacks can be overwhelming. Jesus tells his disciples today, “Fear Not”; have courage in the face of the opposition they will encounter when the preach and live the gospel. I tell my RCIA classes that when they make the decision to become Catholic and live as disciples, they are taking a risk. But it has really become real for me seeing what Justin Hibbard has been experiencing as he courageously states his beliefs in the public square. He has taken some hard hits from some of his closest friends and has actually lost some who could not understand nor accept his conversion.

Why are you Catholic? What do you believe to be the truth? How important is that truth to you, to your family, to your community, to the world, and to what ends will you go to defend it? It will take the courage of your convictions, and you may lose a lot, but you have so much more to gain. The flip side of Jesus’ admonition to us today is that if we defend him to the world he will also defend us to his Heavenly Father. It’s a two-way street.

But then, I am amazed that Jesus would acknowledge me at all. How wonderful an advocate I have in Jesus. I am so valued that he will stand up before the throne of the Father and plead my case. Why wouldn’t I be one of his messengers here on earth? I know that I am an imperfect disciple. I know that I fail spectacularly in living the gospel. I also know who is on my side.