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5th Sunday of Lent, Cycle B
Church of the Nativity
March 18, 2018
“Hating
My Life in This World”
Nicholas P. Amato
Struggle with “Hate”
I have to confess; I have some
struggles with today’s Gospel
Jesus says, “Whoever hates their life in this world will
preserve it for eternal life.”
My first struggle is that I
really like my life.
Ø I like who I am; I like Italian food, both cooking it
at home and eating out.
Ø I like my freedom which allows me time to read, write,
and watch good films.
Ø I like spending time with friends and family.
And those are just a few of
the things I like. I’m sure you have a list as well.
Resolution: “Priority”
The struggle had me look more
closely at what Jesus really meant by those words “whoever hates his life in
this world.”
Scripture scholars tell us
that Jesus is really talking about our priorities and choices and that he wants
us to model in our choices his own values and priorities.
So what might that modeling
look like?
Ø Let’s say I’m on my way to Little Italy for that food
I mentioned and I stop at a light and there’s someone asking for handout. In
that moment, I can place the food I’m going to have, second, and give the
fellow a dollar or two.
Ø Or the freedom I enjoy might be placed second and I
take some time to visit a neighbor who is ill or elderly.
Ø Or spending time with friends watching a basketball
game may be placed second, and instead I spend some time with my child or
grandchildren.
So “hating my life in this world” is simply giving
priority, in the moment, to a value of Jesus over something else that may be
perfectly good in itself.
Struggle with “World”
I also had a bit of a
struggle with the word “world” that Jesus uses in saying, “whoever hates his life in this world.”
I have to admit, I rather
like my world: my home, this community we live in, my school, shopping malls,
the Internet. Like it all, yet Jesus seems to speak pejoratively about “the world.” He talks about “judgment of the world” and “the ruler
of the world being driven out.”
The struggle in me is over
the fact that God made the world. The Book of Genesis says that God looked at
what he had made and saw that it was very good.
And yet, this Gospel seems to
hold the world as in opposition to God or in opposition to the spiritual. So
what’s going on here?
Resolution: “Sacred GPS”
A careful reading of the
Gospel tells us that Jesus is talking about those who do not follow his way. Yes,
at times each of us can choose not to follow the way of Jesus.
The “world” then, means
others or us, when we don’t make the way of Jesus a priority. Our parish
mission is like a sacred GPS; it’s meant to help us navigate and choose the way
of God and not the way of the world to get to our destination.
Three easy-to-remember actions
of our sacred GPS can get us to where we want to go in this world: (1) Love God,
(2) Love Others, (3) Make Disciples. Clean, clear, to the point, easy to
remember. (Repeat and then have them repeat.)
Congratulations; you’ve just downloaded
your Sacred GPS! Now:
(1) Your celebrating Eucharist on Sunday and praying each
day will stir up your longing for God.
(2) That stirring up of God’s love within you, in turn, will
empower you to love, to be compassionate, to forgive others.
(3) The crowning glory will be to move out and draw others
into this experience of discipleship.
Conclusion
Our faith is about
ministering to a world that is essentially good and by living out our mission
to make it even better.
Our love for God that is
rooted here, moves through us, and reaches out to Timonium Tim, the
disenfranchised, the lonely, or the underprivileged; it draws all to the Lord.
“Whoever hates their life in this world will preserve
it for eternal life.”
In rethinking our priorities
and following our Sacred GPS, we’ll be doing a lot more than leading a fuller
happier life.
In Jesus’ words, “we’ll be preserving it for eternal life.” (Time — 4:50)
