3rd Lent True Worship of God

As a Midwest transplant, refugee, or whatever term we can use, I have these moments when I am up on the mountain or in the desert and am struck by an incredible view, and I say “This! This is why I don’t live in Ohio anymore.”

Yet..there is another reason too.

We do have incredible views here, and so much more is hidden from our sight in the back roads, off the pavement. One thing I have encountered too, is that with the magnificent views, some people say they do not need to go to church. They can find God in nature, in the huge vistas.

Okay, but…

A jewel of our Catholic heritage is our aesthetics, the beauty of our architecture, the rituals, the music...some 2000 years of tradition honing this, adjusting to various cultures and innovations…. And people will say amid the ritual, in the building, and in the sacrament they can only find God; no where else.

Okay, but…

There is truth to both, but not the whole truth.  And to grasp a larger truth, it can be necessary to grow in our way of thinking, a way of believing, way of being. This is not always met with open arms.

We humans can become locked into our mode, our way of thinking; a mode that even if absurd, can be hard to escape or let go of.  Look at the phenomena of Qanon and conspiracies; look at people who insist the world is flat, that our world was created in seven days… and then just the misinformation about so much other stuff. There are people on social media who claim to be from the future, and they have come back to warn us!

And people can get locked into a mode of thinking about themselves; low self-esteem, too high self esteem; “I can’t do that…” “I am not worthy…” “I am too good for that” or “Only I can do that.” It becomes a black hole of sorts, difficult to escape…

Yet, when we do escape, when we do open our minds to different possibilities...how much new opportunities await for us.

I have seen a trend in our young persons. They are asking amazing questions and serious ones. One theme that has arisen...How do “I” experience God? How do “I” know that God is real. Questions, because I am willing to be that our current ways of expressing our faith in God do not satisfy them.

Jesus came to break us free from modes of thinking that do not bring life.  Jesus reveals to us ways of thinking and experiencing God that can bring us to a deeper life.  Jesus breaks into our lives.

Look what he does with this woman at the well. She has been caught up in a black hole; of her own making and also a victim of other’s. She has been caught up in a wider conflict, Jew versus Samaritan and their understanding of God and how God is experienced.  There is Jesus; he bulldozes through all that and speaks to the person, and brings her to faith. And what is that faith?

It is a new mode of experiencing God.

Jesus, in his life does not say that God is merely within the Temple, to be worshipped only according to certain parameters, but clearly he honors that. Jesus will go to mountain tops and commune with the Father, but even these moments are rare.

How does Jesus reveal God the Father? How does Jesus say we express our Love of God? In his interactions, in his miracles, in his healings, forgiveness, the moments of compassion… The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. God within the people. Love of God is Love of neighbor.

What Jesus climatically comes to show that God is not confined to a Samaritan viewpoint, nor will it be a Jewish viewpoint. God, true worship of God will be in our service to others. 

Again, his interaction with the woman at the well, it is one of patience, mercy compassion...leading her onto something more. Jesus serves her.

Jesus, as we will eventually read and hear on Holy Thursday, will wash the feet of his disciples and tell them to do likewise; this is all connected with his Eucharistic Theme. We give glory to God when we give of ourselves to others. We honor God as we serve those around us.

Fully revealed in the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.

Can we experience God on top of Mt. Rose? Yes, but…  Can we experience God in our celebration here? Clearly, YES, but…  The end is not that experience, the experience must send us out to others.

To serve them, to share this Good News, to let people know that God is for us.  The woman runs to the people who shunned her; they listen, and they come to find Jesus.

People are making the final steps to the Easter celebration of the Sacraments; to becoming Catholics. This is not the end, but the beginning of a new life, a new way of being in the world. 

Young persons prepare for Confirmation, not an end of itself, but a way to broaden minds and hearts to be in this world.

Our Faith as Christians is about honoring God in those moments in which we forgive and seek forgiveness. In those moments when we listen to the other, rather than judge. In those moments in which we say “my ego is in play, I need to calm down and become more humble.”  It is in the moments of welcome and in the friendships that develop among people (and this, this is why I live in Nevada).

The Mass ends with the command “Go”. The word “mass” derives from the term “to be dismissed and go forth”.   We all need to go, because this world is truly amazing, but it can be so much more. 

So many people are hurting, and we can be a force for healing.   So many people follow lies and untruths, a narrative of power and status, and they need Truth.  Too many live isolated lives, feeling alone in this huge universe...they need welcomed.  Many need to experience God; we can be the means of this.