Easter 3rd Sunday & 1st Communion Title: Fight. Fear. Forgive
[_00_] Are you worth fighting for ? Yes, you are worth fighting for.
I’d like to give an example of
something that was “worth fighting for”
and then also speak about how the Gospel Good News of Jesus’ death and
resurrection shows that you and I are worth fighting for.
Jesus, our Lord and Savior fights for
you, me.
[_01_] THE EXAMPLE --- It was a Friday evening in August of 1998 and I was getting ready to go on a trip the next day, to go to the state of Michigan (near Detroit) because my friend John was getting married.
As I was packing my stuff to go, I
realized that I did not have 1 very important item for the trip.
That is, I had no ticket for the
airplane. I had forgotten to buy a ticket for the trip. At the time, there was
no EXPEDIA, or JETBLUE.COM. I had forgotten to call the airline. At the time, I
recall being rather busy, and I was travelling frequently for my work … This as my “excuse”. But I was pretty worried because I really did
not want to miss - my friend’s wedding.
I was also supposed to do a reading –
the first biblical reading in church at the wedding-mass. If I did not show up,
I suppose they could have found someone else to read from the Book of Genesis,
but nevertheless, my absence would have been even more noticeable. So my fear
and anxiety were increasing.
I actually feared – for some time –
that if I did not go to this wedding, our friendship would be in jeopardy. “Jeopardy” means to be in trouble or danger.
I just cite this as an example of the
trouble/danger/jeopoardy.. Spoiler alert ..yes, I was fortunately able to buy a
ticket at the last minute and made it, so to say, “to the church on time”. I also recall that – fortunately for me – it
was not too expensive even to buy a ticket only 1 day before my departure.
But, I also had to overcome my own
anxiety – distress – to do the right thing and get myself on the plane next
day. It was worth fighting for.
[_02_] I just cite this an example of the trouble/danger/jeopardy of Peter the Apostle is going through, after Peter has observed Jesus’ arrest, being thrown in jail and his rising from the dead.
Peter fears his friendship with Jesus
is either in jeopardy or completely finished.
How was Peter connected to the events
of Jesus’s Passion, Death and Resurrection?
Peter is Jesus’ friend, companion and
leader of the apostles. Jesus could trust him, right?
And, in the events prior to Jesus’s
Last Supper and being arrested, Peter (and other apostles) promised boldly that
they would die with Jesus, go with him until the end.
However,
Peter and all the others except one had scattered and run away.
Even worse, after Peter had witnessed
his friend - Jesus – being arrested, Peter was asked 3 times, “do you know
him”. Peter denied 3 times.
Is Peter worth fighting for?
Jesus
has come to visit Peter – to show him love, compassion …and to tell Peter that
their friendship is not over. That Peter is worth fighting for.
[PAUSE]
[_03_] We are here this Sunday for First Holy
Communion – the First Holy Communion of …
And not only for each of you but each of the children at .... We are friends – through Jesus Christ.
[_04_] Jesus says in the Gospel, “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:15-16)
In other words, Jesus is it is worth
it for him to work and to sacrifice to give us a better life.
I’d like to ∑ summarize by reflecting
that in every friendship – I suggest there is an experience of
[FEAR
– is it worth it? ]
[FIGHTING
– is it worth it?]
[FORGIVENESS
– is it worth it?]
[_05_] [FEAR]
Fear. Is “fear” or “being afraid” worth it… We pray in the 27th
psalm, “The Lord is my light and my salvation, of whom should I be
afraid?“ In other words, God is teaching
us that with Him on our side, we do not have to afraid – for example – of
failing in school, or getting a bad grade, or being lonely.
Even it seems that everyone else has given up on us, God
will not give up on you. Nevertheless,
we can live our lives in a little bit of fear.
What is it that we fear? What is it
that I fear? I do fear that I could do something or fail to do something that
would disrupt a friendship or loving relationship.
It is not uncommon for a husband and
wife who have been together for many years and trust each other very much to
say that that they “fear” losing each other. This does not simply mean that
they fear the death or dying of the other person. It means that they have come
to believe so strongly in their love for each other, that they fear doing
something that would harm their relationship.
I can honestly that I have no idea how
much my last-minute plane ticket cost from Newark Airport to Detroit. The only
thing that mattered then- and matters now – is that I completed the journey,
not how much it cost to do so.
The “fear” I felt was worth it because
it motivated me to do something
If Peter is afraid, the only thing
that matters for Peter is that he complete the journey …his way back to Jesus,
which the Lord offers him in his 3 questions “do you love me?” which are meant
to be the counterbalance, the other side of the scale, to Peter’s 3 denials. Peter makes the trip. It may scare him a little bit…because he is
so reluctant, but the fear also motivates
him.
[_06_] [FIGHTING]
In
every friendship there will be some form of “fighting”, “arguing”… “disagreeing”. A friend, however, not only worth fighting
for… a friend is someone we find it worthwhile to fight with.
By fighting, I do not mean that we
should endure or encourage abuse or physical contact from those we love or
those who might want to be close to us.
In every friendship – in every
marriage – in every relationship between parent and child – there will be
things worth fighting for.
And, is it not also true that friends
stand up for each other?
[_07_] [FORGIVENESS] There is forgiveness in
friendship.
Is forgiveness worth it?
In the sacraments of the
Church, we speak of forgiveness in terms of CONFESSION + PENANCE +
RECONCILIATION.
That is, I can confess wholeheartedly
my faults before God who will – through the priest – ask me for penance,
usually for prayer and reflection – and then reconcile me to the Church, to God
and others.
That’s what total forgiveness means.
What is the reason that you and I
forgive?
Sometimes, we forgive simply because
we recognize the same fault in ourselves. So, for example, how can I not
forgive you for showing up late to see me at a particular time, when I myself
have been late many times. That is one reason to forgive. And, it’s an
acceptable reason to forgive. But, it’s not why God forgives or why Jesus
forgives Peter or you or me.
Jesus does not forgive Peter because
Jesus did the same as Peter.
And, so Jesus gives us an example of
forgiveness that is hard to equal but worthy of emulation.
That is, Jesus offers forgiveness even
when there is nothing in it for him, but everything in it for Peter.
Forgiving someone else does not mean
we are approving or even forgetting what the other person has done.
Forgiveness means we are relegating to
the past the action and the harm done, so that we can make a new journey,
forward to the present.
Jesus, giving up his life for us, also pays the full price, the full cost of the trip. You are worth fighting for. [_fin] [ [][][][] ]
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