2nd Lent: Mission and Purpose

My family’s immigration story is a lot like others. My great grandparents, along with many others from Eastern Europe including other cousins, came to the US and Canada in the early 1900’s. They came to escape poverty, to escape the Hungarians who suppressed the Slovak language and culture; they came for a new start. Most, if not all, had to leave behind parents, siblings and extended family. It was not easy. Some got lost in alcohol and depression; some took their lives. They endured bigotry from non-catholics, from those hostile to immigrants; a familiar refrain even today. So some returned to Europe unable to cope. Those that remained and made it, such as my great grandparents, they worked hard, they remained stubborn and did what was needed for the following generations. They had a goal.

Vision, purpose, mission, we know these are qualities needed for success. Companies, parishes, even individuals have mission statements; they have goals that help define choices, that give meaning and hope during the down times. These tend to be more specific, especially corporate ones.

We, as persons, often have goals, purpose, mission: get through High School; get a college degree; find a job, find a mate. And more mundane ones… make it through the week to ski on Friday; make it through the spring to get to vacation; get healthier, lose weight,

Some also have a tendency to get very very detailed on their goals. They want their success in a very particular way and in a very particular timeline and if it doesn’t happen that way, they get miserable. In the book “Unbroken”, the story of a POW of the Japanese, there was a part in which our hero, Louis Zamperini was saying that those imprisoned had hope. But some gave up because they had too narrow expectations: to be released on a specific day and time. When that day and time passed and they remained as POW’s, they became depressed and gave up. While those who simply held onto the hope they would get out some day, they remained resilient.

God gives us hope. God gives us purpose. We have been created with a Mission. From the very beginning we have a purpose to be in creation, to live in creation in harmony, to walk with God and work for God to make heaven here on earth. And in doing so we find ourselves, we experience joy and completeness; true freedom. We never lost that purpose even though humanity forgot it.

God calls us back again and again to ourselves; not because God needs workers, but because we are fulfilled as persons as we work with and for God. We experience joy and grow in joy.

The difficulty can be that we mistake God’s will for our own. We get too specific on how we want it; and forget, or lose sight of how God may want.

Abram and Sarah are given purpose, a mission; God declares to them a grand vision, but with few details. One important detail though: leave your land, leave your family, leave behind what would give you, Abram and Sarah, security; trust in God.

It is hard to imagine this, as comfortable as we are in our own lives. And with our ability to communicate and travel. Even my own great grandparents never were able to go and see their own parents again.

Abram and Sarah accept this mission; and they endure trials, and they also cause some difficulties. Yet they persevere in the mission. We know the story and how the great nation promised begins with one single son, born late in life when he was not supposed to have been born.

Jesus culminates this purpose of Abram and Sarah and takes it to the next level; uniting others into the family of Abram/Abraham.

Jesus comes with purpose, with mission: to restore Israel and all of humanity to our glory as God’s children; to reconcile divisions we have with God and each other; to continue to build the kingdom of heaven here on earth, e.g. to do the Father’s will in heaven here on earth.

He knows he faces resistance. He tells his disciples he will face death, but he will rise above it.  And in our gospel for today, this incredible vision is given to the three disciples: Jesus shines forth, like a lamp uncovered, like a city on a mountain for all to see; Jesus’ mission becomes a vision for them.  They will need this to carry on and remain firm in their own mission and purpose.

Peter, always the spokesperson for the human condition, wants to stay in that glory. He wants to remain up there, bask in the glow; to act as if the mission is accomplished.

Jesus says this is not the goal; his glory is not in this moment, but it will be on a cross, dead and then risen. Then the mission will continue in a whole new way…

Are we on mission?

Lent reminds us of this; and reminds us that our mission is not about giving up chocolate, wine or potato chips for 6 weeks, but to get ourselves re-focused, re-purposed on God, in Christ in the Spirit.

All that we do or not do; is but a means to get us to remember who we are as persons, as community, as church; to jump start us, to get us out of our tents in some spiritual stagnation; and move forward.  We can re-engage with our faith and with life.

We can go through the motions of life, the motions of church, the motions of whatever… what will we find?  We can maintain ourselves, but this will lead to nowhere.

Our Church has done this too long already. Many seemingly set up a tent and sat still and maintained ourselves only. The Glory of the Church, the institution was sufficient. The fruits of this stance: people no longer practice our Catholic faith because they see no need; we forgot mission and we don’t provide a vision; people see a community with no purpose, other than serving ourselves; people they see fights over language and superficialities while people suffer from poverty, abuse, racism, sexism…

The Gospel calls us to mission! Jesus calls us to vision and purpose.  The Spirit calls out to the church, and we can see signs of people listening.  The Church returns to a sense of mission, a sense of purpose. Pope Francis continues to push, pull, inspire the church forward to reclaim what was given to all of us in the beginning; to help build the kingdom. We remember the vision of Christ given to us through his words and deeds.  We can see this in efforts to reach out to those estranged, drawing attention to those struggling to escape poverty and oppression and dying for this; calling leaders away from self serving to to self giving.  We see our work here trying to build up disciples, helping those in need; trying to improve the quality of life for others in our community.

And if we forget, if we need to be reminded, renewed, restored..we come here to this sacrament, to this community.  We recall all our efforts in forgiving, healing, welcome, giving, sharing, all symbolized in the bread and wine brought forth.  We celebrate that bread and wine become transformed into something much greater; signifying our own transformation in the Spirit.  We celebrate that this is not my mission, or any one persons’ but ours; together.

We give thanks for having life; for having purpose.