Monday, October 12, 2015

Homily for 12 Oct 2015

12 Oct 2015

Children and older people tend to do it better: they take things on faith.  And children, especially, are better at just being awed by something; they don’t necessarily have to have something proven to them in order for them to believe it.  And that’s where Jesus seems to be calling us today—as a culture, and as a people of faith.

You know, science and debate are so much a part of our culture—and they have been for centuries—that it’s almost second nature for us to say: “Prove it.”  And, of course, a lot of the time, that’s good.  We hear about global warming, and we say: “Prove it.”  We hear presidential candidates say they’re going to be fiscally responsible, and we say: “Prove it.”

And then we hear Jesus say, “I am the Bread of life,” or something else and people say: “Prove it.”  And there . . . a line has been crossed.  Whenever our culture says: “Prove it,” we set ourselves up as the ones who determine what’s true and what isn’t.  Of course, with politics, finances, and science that works; but not with God.

While many other people tell Jesus to “prove it,” we don’t.  Instead, it’s our pleasure—as a people of faith—to just sit back and let God be the One who knows what’s true and what isn’t.  Whether it’s Scripture or the Eucharist or the way the Holy Spirit works in the Church, as children of God, we can simply marvel at all the Lord does.

If our society today had a motto, it would probably be: “Prove it.”  But the motto of the children of God is: “I believe.”  When it comes to our God, we believe; and we do it joyfully and with wonder.  And that is sufficient for us.    

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