We are called to be ‘fools for Christ,’ not to water down His radical teachings
Many of our holidays have become one-day celebrations, and when that one day is over, so is the holiday. Most of us anticipate these celebrations so that by the time the day comes, we wish it would be over. The Catholic Church has a different attitude toward major religious celebrations. At Easter, we have an extended period of time after Easter Sunday, and we even say that every Sunday is another Easter celebration. Why would we say that if we don’t live that way?
If our celebration of Easter is already over, we might miss the development of Scriptures through the Easter season. The liturgical season develops not only the fact of the resurrection, but also the consequences of the fact that Jesus was raised from the dead.
For the third Sunday of Easter, we hear the familiar Gospel story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus. They’re heading away from Jerusalem. The things they had just witnessed must have caused confusion and disillusionment. The person they thought was the promised one ended up being crucified. How was the kingdom to go on if the leader was dead? Were people fooled by putting hope in someone who could teach well and perform miracles but didn’t end up doing the things they expected Him to do?
If we believe in Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, we might have assumed that life would’ve gone better than it has. Just like the people during Jesus’ time, we might have assumed that He would have gotten rid of our enemies, made life smoother for us and allowed us to share more deeply in the riches and benefits of this life as we prepare for heaven. We might even become disillusioned that some of the benefits of believing in Jesus haven’t happened for us. Are we to continue to have faith in Jesus? Will we head the opposite direction, like the disciples heading to Emmaus?
These are real faith questions for us. We are experiencing much turmoil in our families, our nation and the world. There are some who would lead us to believe that we should abandon the teachings of Jesus and reinterpret Christianity in a way that suits us to a greater advantage. Maybe some would decide it is OK that a group of people are eliminated so that our vision of the world could come about. Perhaps some people say that we only need to forgive each other seven times instead of doing what Jesus asked. Maybe some people would say it is OK to kill innocent people for the sake of being able to get rid of our enemies. Maybe some people would say it is OK to walk away from our personal commitments to each other because life just gets too hard.
In the same way that the disciples in Jesus’ time had to make a decision about whether to continue to believe and act on that belief, we are in a similar situation. We could go back to the old way of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. We could begin to water down Jesus’ radical teachings about the dignity of human life, even our enemies. We might even begin to believe that it is good to hate those who hate us and to get revenge against those who have hurt us.
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that we must be fools for Christ and there’s really no more clear time than now to be called to that posture in life. Who of us is willing to be a fool for Christ?
