Lost? Need Directions? (2012-10-14)

This is my homily for 14 October  2012 (Sunday). I am a Catholic chaplain in Teaneck at Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU) campus and for the FDU Newman Catholic Association and at New Jersey City University (NJCU) in Jersey City.  We celebrate Catholic Mass - during Fall and Spring semester - every Sunday Evening (7:00 p.m.) at the FDU University Interfaith Chapel, 842 River Road, Teaneck, NJ.

14 October 2012  -  28^th Sunday (B) -  [ Wisdom 7:7-11  | Psalm 90 | Hebrews 4:12-13 | + Mark 10:17-30]

[__01]   Jesus encounters a future – potential – disciple; and, they are both travelling.

They are both out on a journey. The man -- whom Jesus encounters  -- is trying to find the way, his way.

In the sample days before satellites and towers (GPS and cell phones)  we used to stop and ask someone, “where am I?” / “where are we?”

And, the goal would be to find a local person who knows the roads, comprehends the landmarks.  Therefore, we RECALCULATE the route by finding someone personally who knows the routes.

[__02]      In this Gospel, a man approaches our Lord and Savior who is willing and patient with him, in the way a local person might be.

We read that Jesus looked at him, loved him, looked at him lovingly for the effort/struggle he was going through to find his way.

The young man asked Jesus the way to heaven.  And, he phrases his question this way --

“What good must I do?”, In other words –

• What task can I perform?
• What project can I complete?
• What program can I finish?
• What book can I read?

 In order to

• Win
• Be a 1^st round draft pick
• All-Star
• To be Saved

[__03]   And, this young man has a plan – probably a DATA with satellite connectivity, wireless. In contemporary, current-day terms, he would have these things, as a few of his MANY possessions.

His question is similar to the questions we also ask about happiness, salvation, contentment, whether we are walking through Barnes and Noble looking the books or surfing the internet.

“What must I do?”

But Jesus is also asking encouraging us task – Where am I? Where are you? And, where is the Lord in our lives?

Would Jesus be a recently found destination for you and me?

[__04]   The question of the young man in the Gospel is similar to a question asked by any student on our campus – or any of us.

When we are in school, we ask,

What must I do?  Is this going to be on the exam? Such a student – and we have all been such a student – is concerned about immediate impact, consequence, and transcript-GPA recalculation.

In this regard, when we ask “where am I?”, we are asking this in relation to others.

That is where I do rank, my ranking , my position… relative to others. Where am I in the bell curve? How many standard deviations away from the mean/average?

How did others do on the test?

Then, we might go to our professors, to our advisers, or to someone in charge and ask, “What do I have to do, in order to achieve, to move forward, pass ..or ace this class?”

In these cases, we might resemble the traveler on the road who does not want to turn around.

As travelers, we often ask for directions – for the fastest possible route – so that I continue doing what I am already doing, to continue with my route (my data plan), my projects.

The man in the Gospel also does not want to go backwards, in reverse. The man in the Gospel wants directions, but also wants to keep going in the same direction.

[__05]   Going in reverse – or back the way whence we came – can make us uncomfortable.

But, Jesus the Teacher invites us to consider this to live in simplicity (without too many possessions) and in charity (but with concern for the other).

This reverse course could mean, for example --

• Pray, those who cause us difficulty for those from whom we feel persecution. Pray for your enemies.

• Forgive those who knowingly or unknowingly may have done us wrong. This does not mean that we invite or permit them to continue their wickedness, injustice, or their sinfulness. But, forgive them.

• Put first – in our lives – the value of another person rather than any possession or object.  This is a special struggle for us as we might try to “climb the ladder” of success or take on a leadership role of any kind.  Popularity is a possession. We don’t want to misplace that or let anyone take our rightful share, do we? But do I put my possession – or popularity – ahead of the good of others?

• In a friendship – or a relationship – the same can be true. I may seek the “favor” rather than the true friendship in a relationship. This is also could be a possession that Jesus is asking me to sacrifice – to sell…and thus liberate me to serve those in need.

When we examine our lives, we may be sloing down, decelerating, or going back whenc we came.

Where am I? Where are you? We answer this question honestly – in an academic/intellectual sense – when we can recite the basics of any course or discipline. To go back to Chapter 1 for the Final Exam.

Sometimes, in order to find our way, we may need to turn around or, at least, detach ourselves from some of our luggage, baggage.

Need directions?

We are called to look for the person who knows the local roads. Jesus is this person.

Jesus is the local person in the areas who knows the ways of sacrifice , the way of the Cross too, the way of surrender, the way of finding the destination to which God is calling all of us to love and to serve.