Homily for February
5, 2017
Fifth Sunday in
Ordinary Time
Live the Light
Jesus
tells us to be salt and light, but He does so in a way that should seem absurd
to us – like it seemed absurd to first-century Jews. Everyone knows that salt can’t lose its saltiness. That just
doesn’t happen. Have you ever put
salt on your food and, after tasting it, said, “Man, that salt just isn’t
packing a punch…it must have lost its saltiness!” Of course not – that doesn’t
happen! Salt never loses its flavor.
Jesus’ listeners – and us – should laugh at its absurdity!
He goes
on to talk about lighting a lamp and then putting it under a basket – crazy,
right? It would be completely absurd, and no one would do that! What a waste of
time and energy, to light a lamp and then make sure it’s not seen. Crazy,
right?
Both
tasteless salt and darkened light don’t make any sense – just like it wouldn’t
make any sense for someone to be called a disciple of Jesus without living like
a disciple of Jesus. Such a Christian would be good for nothing but to be
trampled underfoot, the Lord says.
St.
Catherine of Siena said, “If you are what you should be, you will set the whole
world ablaze!” In other words, if you really are a disciple and don’t just claim
to be one, then your life will change the world.
I was
reminded of this as I was reading the life of Rachel Scott, a young teen whose
life was tragically ended on April 20, 1999. She was the first one to be killed
in the Columbine high school shooting – according to eyewitnesses, the gunmen
asked if she believed in God. She replied, “You know I do,” to which the gunman
responded, “Then go be with Him.” She was then shot to death, testifying to her
faith in Christ.
But
after her death, reports started to surface of all of the lives she touched.
Some of her fellow students who had been bullied spoke about how Rachel had
spoken up for them and befriended them. One student who was considered an
outcast said, “All my life I just wanted someone to love me…and then God sent
me [Rachel]”. Rachel wrote in her private journal that her mission was to “reach
the unreachable” by showing them love. She even wrote a prayer for those two
boys who would end up killing her. Her legacy continues to live on, as her
father started an organization called Rachel’s Challenge which seeks to end
bullying in school, and a movie just came out about her life and martyrdom
(called “I’m Not Ashamed”).
From one
girl who was willing to take her Christian faith seriously and actually live it
out, hundreds upon thousands of lives were touched and impacted. Yes, she
suffered for her faith – she wrote in her journal that her five best friends
started distancing themselves from her and mocking her because she was starting
to live more for Christ – but ultimately the love of Christ won out. Her
funeral, televised on CNN, was watched by more people than the funeral of
Princess Diana – because this young girl showed the world the face of Christ by
her life and her love.
My
friends, the world is tired of self-professed Christians who are really only
self-centered Christians. Gandhi was once asked by a reporter, “You quote the
words of Christ so often – why do you reject Christianity?” And Gandhi replied,
“I love your Christ. It’s just that so many of your Christians are so unlike
your Christ.” In other words, he refused to become a Christian because
Christians didn’t act like Christ!
Imagine
a world where Christians forgave one another…where they stayed faithful to
their vows…where they sacrificed for each other…where they radiated joy and
peace…where they prayed faithfully…where they lived pure lives…where they went
out of their way to say hello to their neighbors. Imagine a world where you and
I did these things – with God’s grace, we can!
Flavorless
salt and darkened light is an absurdity. So is a believer in Christ who is not
living like Him.
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