30th Sunday Homily: Walk Humbly with God

In history, there is the story of Potemkin’s village. The story goes that as the Russian Empress Catherine the Great was going to the Crimea along a river, Grigory Potemkin, the Governor of the area, would cover up the poorest looking villages with a facade and hide all the poor people so that the Empress would not know how bad of a condition the people were in, and he would not get the blame. He did this along the journey, and as they passed through the village, the facade would be torn down, rushed to the next village and set up again and again.

One of the most powerful words in our Catholic Theology is the word “And”. Jesus is Divine AND Human; God is one AND three. The Church is holy AND sinful. “And” creates space and openness to experience mystery.

This powerful parable Jesus gives to us, I would guess most of us take this on a personal level: how am “I” in my prayer? What is my correct attitude? We would be correct in this.  

There is an “And” to this… “ And” we hear this on a Corporate level: As a Church, nation, community, as well as on a personal level.

At its heart, what Jesus wants us to know is that we always need to grow and develop, to be changed. God is the agent of that change; God’s grace is the power of that Change. Our whole lives are about us, growing into the children of God, our true reality. Conversion is a lifelong experience.

Humility acknowledges that we need that change; humility acknowledges that we need God and God’s grace to change. Yet, what gets in the way?

In the Engaged Encounter weekends, one of the talks is about how to argue well. Married couples, in fact all people, will have disagreements. In all relationships there will be those moments when someone messes up; does something wrong. These moments can become moments of grace in which we grow…when we are willing to admit we made a mistake, take ownership of that mistake, and accept we need to change.

If we will not, if our egos get in the way…those relationships will be hurt, damaged, if not destroyed.

History will also bear this out.

Anyone disconcerted, if not generally frightened about our world, and what is going on? This rise of Racists talk, rise of anti-semitism, the rejection of working together, the brutal ad-hominem attacks on perceived competitors and opponents, the rise of Nationalism; this desire to return to the so called Glory days of the Catholic Church.

The Catholic Church used to be the Church Triumphant! We hold the TRUTH, the ONE TRUTH, all are nothing as compared to us. We sounded like the Pharisee in the parable, “thank you God we are not like all the other religions”… and what was happening behind this facade?

Indigenous people were being brutalized in schools and homes; children being harmed, women demeaned; Jewish people attacked. This was by both Catholic clergy and lay persons, men and women. Why would we want to return to these so called “Glory Days.”

Now that these truths have been exposed. Our demeanor needs to be “Have mercy on me, a sinner.” At least Pope Francis has taken on that role. A few bishops too have made the effort to heal.

We can say the same thing of our country, other countries, institutions etc. And of course our own personal lives.

Too many in life want to start from the position of the Pharisee...”I am right! I am great!” We take this position when we argue, when we are challenged by other or different ideas. When we are confronted by new ways that push our own understanding of life.

This Pharisaical position just adds to more conflict, more destruction, more death. Look at the political rhetoric. Look at the divisions. Look at the political ads. We build up these facades of glory, about ourselves and about our institutions, our country, when it is nothing but our fragile egos that we seek to protect.

Again, we look to the history and witness that path.

Imagine if we start from the position of humility; from understanding that maybe “I” and “We” don’t have all the answers, don’t comprehend the whole picture…and we and I need to grow.  

We can read in Scripture that Jesus more often than not when healing people asked them what they wanted. He did not assume to know; he started from a position of listening.  Jesus lived humbly.

Jesus also took that humility to the cross, trusting in the Father, and that the Father’s grace would make all things well. We celebrate that in our Eucharist. We accept that with our hands.

That also means we are called to live that out too.

Our challenge will always be to be those persons and institutions that accept God’s grace and allow ourselves to be changed.

Our challenge will always be to struggle to be true on the outside what we aspire to have on the inside; and not have any facades.

If we truly want to build the kingdom, end the divisions, end the sinfulness that exists within us, this country, our church, it begins with our own humility before God and others.

If we truly seek peace within ourselves…walk humbly with God.