Trust. (2024-06-23, Sunday 12th)

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Homily, 2024-06-23 (12^th Sunday, year B)  ●●  Job 38:1, 8-11 ●● Psalm 107  ●● 2 Corinthians 5:14-17 ●● + Mark 4:35-41 ●●

[__01__]  Have you ever been on someone's boat, on a lake or the ocean? If you have, you've probably encountered some rules for safety and caution regarding wearing  lifejackets, not falling overboard and the parts of the boat. Bow = front. Stern = back. Etc.!  

          Boating “commandments” and information are essential to avoid trouble and to promote communication and trust on board and on the water. Trust – and confidence in another person - is crucial in many aspects of life, however, not just on a boat.

When my friend was [living in California], he took classes in order to learn how to sail and navigate on the water and in the wind. After completing this course, be began not only sailing on his own on the bay in San Francisco where he lived, but he also bought a sailboat and moved into the sailboat living there, as a single person, full time.

          He does not live on his boat anymore, partly because he is now married. His wife would rather live in an apartment on dry land rather than on a sailboat. While their apartment is a modest 1-bedroom, the boat is even smaller. She has chosen wisely.

          Nevertheless, my friend still enjoys sailing on his boat and has invited me to join him a couple of times.

          Before setting sail, my friend gives a safety presentation. He explains that while we're on the water, he might interrupt our “leisure” or our “lunch” or our “laughter” us and give direct instructions.

          “I'm not doing this to be a tyrant or a dictator, but because I really care about you, because I care about your life. And this is an example of trust.”

          I learned from a university professor’s presentation that trust has 3 elements: empathy, logic, and authenticity.  (https://hbr.org/2020/05/begin-with-trust )

          I would like to apply these to the Gospel and our call to follow Jesus. Trust = empathy + logic + authenticity.

[__02__]  Trust is essential in relationships, including our relationship with Jesus, who is the cornerstone of our lives.

In the Gospel, the disciples are afraid during a storm, and they turn to Jesus.

Trust, as mutual confidence, is the cornerstone of relationships. And, Jesus is the cornerstone of our lives.  But, in Jesus’ case – the “cornerstone” was rejected for a while. [ repeat / version / last: But the message of the Gospel is that even the storm – the evil of a storm or crisis – can be transformed by God’s grace and become the foundation of new-found trust and faith. Do we not grow in trust by enduring crises with each other? ]

 

[__03__]  Why is trust a good thing?

When we have TRUST in a relationship – e.g., at work –we voluntarily and readily admit when we are wrong rather than simply waiting to get caught or punished.

          When we have TRUST in a relationship, we voluntarily and readily affirm and praise others. We share the credit for a job well done rather than promoting ourselves with “bragging rights”

          Trust brings us together.

          And lack of trust drives us apart.

 

[__04__]   Empathy is the 1^st element of trust. To gain your trust, I am called to show that you care about you. If you sense my empathy, you are more likely to trust me.

Consider this example: a child or a younger earlier version of you is refused something by your mother/father. What's are 1^st words out of your mouth: “Mom you lack empathy” … no, actually, “Mom/Dad, you don’t care”

Empathy is, however, more than just giving people what they want; it's about understanding their needs and sometimes saying no.

Empathy alone, however, is not enough for trust.

[__05.01__]   Logic is the 2^nd element. Communicating the logic behind your actions is important. This doesn't mean giving long speeches, but rather being clear and courageous enough to explain your reasons.

In the Gospel, Jesus appears illogical by sleeping during the storm.

Why is this illogical? Because he is not being “productive”.

Why does Jesus seem illogical? Because during the storm, He's asleep and not responding as expected. Is it logical to go to church every Sunday, especially if it interrupts other activities like sports, music, recitals, special academics and other activities that , for example, seem so important to help our children prosper.

[__05.02__]   This is a common logic, but there's another perspective. Attending church every Sunday has its own logic: as a married person, it’s about renewing your wedding vows and values through going to Communion

All of us – as part of a family of faith – are reaffirming your commitment in faith and each other, not just through words but through actions, silence, and prayer. This different logic challenges the conventional one, emphasizing the spiritual and communal benefits of regular church attendance.

          Coming to Mass on Sunday helps us to renew and repent and receive grace and energy which is not available anywhere else.

Doesn’t the ability to pray and talk to God teach all of us that God is primary source of prosperity, to enable to know that God’s is the primary voice we are called to listen to and trust?

 [__05.03__]   St. Paul writes in 2^nd Corinthians:

“For we fix our attention, not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

Learning “how to sail in the wind” is also about navigating through the unseen.  You cannot “see the wind”, but you can see the direction the wind is pointing. Isn’t the same true of the good and the bad in our lives. We may not see the evil or the good clearly, but can we not see the direction they are taking us?

This is logic.

          [extra idea – future develop ? that evil often – always ? – lacks visibility because evil = privation of good. Examining our lives, we might ask not “how is there evil” but rather “how is the good absent ?” (Augustinian)]

What really lasts forever is God’s love for you and for me. This gives us the logic not only be empathetic but to to pray for and work for the eternal salvation of others.

Trust is based on empathy and logic.

 

[__06__]  Third. Side 3.   Authenticity. Being real in reality.

          In order to love God and neighbor, we are called not only be real but also see – envision – what is real.

          The Church teaches, e.g., to see the dignity of every person and this dignity is not based on productivity or profitability.

          Our belief in the inherent dignity of the unborn child or terminally ill older person is an act of TRUST in God and is also a REALITY-based trust.

          An unborn child is real.

          Our belief in the inherent dignity of a person is also an act of trust in God when we realize we are at fault or that someone has sinned against us.

[__07__]       We are called to pray for mercy for sinners – for ourselves and for others. 

          When encounter physical injury or illness, we have a choice – to ignore it and hide it…or to seek treatment and bring it out into the open. The same is true of sinfulness – in our selves or in others. If it is hidden, and ignored, it can become a feeling of undue guilt or shame or sadness.

          Our belief in the inherent dignity of the person reminds us that all of us are sinners in need of God’s mercy.

          Our belief in the value of mercy and “getting mercy” is not  based on getting everything 100% right all the time…but knowing – trusting – that we can be redeemed by our Lord and Savior who died for us, for our sins. This is His logic which he shares with us.

[__08__]  And, the Lord in His Mercy does care if we are perishing….

He is still reaching out to us – if we listen to him, we may be aware that he is able to speak to us in our hearts, to interrupt our conversations and thoughts, to turn us in a new direction for our good.

Jesus’s Good News is the basis for our empathy, logic, authenticity.

The message of the Gospel is that even the storm – the evil of a storm or crisis – can be transformed by God’s grace and become the foundation of new-found trust and faith.  Our Savior is our cornerstone of trust in God and in each other.

Being invited on board Jesus’ boat – the Church – we realize that we are still, each day, learning how to navigate and how to sail with the wind of the Holy Spirit.

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