Today, I have the name of a famous person for you to consider. How many of you are familiar with the name “Alfred E. Neuman?” It appears there are a lot of adults (like me) who have misspent their youth reading Mad Magazine. Anyway, the focus of today’s reflection is not going to be on the “what me worry kid” who appears on the cover of Mad. Instead, our focus should be on what Jesus has to say about worrying. Alfred E. Neuman may assure us it’s OK to sit back and wear a silly grin, but that attitude is not what Jesus required of his disciples. After all, we are called to be disciples of Jesus, and not disciples of this secular world, not followers of Alfred E. Neuman.
Today begins the first Sunday of our fourth period of Renew.1 The general theme for the next six weeks is discipleship. The specific theme for this first week is: “our call to discipleship.” It would be worthwhile for us to take a closer look at our discipleship in light of today’s Gospel reading. The focus for our reflection today will be: just what did Jesus mean when he told his disciples (and us) to stop worrying.
To begin our reflection and to try to understand what his followers heard him saying, we need to look at today’s particular passage in both its structural context within the Gospel of Matthew, as well as in its historical setting. As for its place in Matthew’s gospel, for the last four Sundays we’ve been listening to parts of the “Sermon on the Mount.” In order to understand Jesus’ encouragement, “do not worry, trust in God,” we need to remember what went before this statement. Otherwise, it’s like tuning into only the last episode of a TV mini-series.
The “Sermon on the Mount” is a collection of sayings of Jesus which Matthew did not dump together in some random way but, instead, arranged in a very special pattern. Our problem is we’ve been listening to them over the past month and may have forgotten what has gone before. So, I’d like to take a few moments to have us recall what we’ve been hearing from each homilist, starting with our visitor, Father Gallen.
Father Gallen’s homily came at the beginning of the “Sermon on the Mount,” the Beatitudes. Remember how he spoke about: “blessed are the poor.” The Beatitudes, taken together, describe all those who are blessed, all who are called to be disciples and what waits in store for them. The next week, after the Beatitudes, Father Joe continued the “Sermon on the Mount” by talking about the role of the disciples: “remember, you are the salt of the earth, you are the light of the world.” The third week, Deacon Al talked about the difference between the Pharisees who knew the Law but did not have any change in their hearts, in contrast to the disciples, who knew not only the law, but also, had an interior change so they followed the spirit of the law and not just the letter of the law. Last week, Father Ed spoke about the result of the instructions of the “Sermon on the Mount,” how, through following Jesus’ commandment, as demonstrated by Mother Theresa, we show our love for our neighbor by being committed to helping our neighbor.
It is only after hearing the words of Jesus about those who are blessed, and our need to be “salt” and “light,” and how we must not be like the Pharisees and how we must not only not harm our enemies but, indeed, how we must love and help everyone – it is only with all of this in mind we can begin to understand how Jesus could say: “do not worry, God will provide.”
As for the historical setting for “the Sermon on the Mount,” the early Christians put into practice the first part of Jesus’ instructions. We read in the Acts of the Apostles how those early communities shared all of their possessions with one another. Those who “had,” provided for those who “had not.” No one was forced by any government program to contribute to this support. It was done voluntarily by those who chose to follow the Christ. It was this practice by a Christian community which made others say: “and you shall know that they are Christian, by their love.”
Today, our community is a so-called “worldwide village.” We point out how we are affected by what happens beyond two or three miles from our home. Our oil prices and jobs tumble, not because of our own personal failings, but because of what happens in the Middle East. Our steel workers are influenced by the economics of Japan and South Korea. Our banks are dependent upon events in South America. We are told our illegal drugs are part of the economy of foreign countries. AIDS, a disease Time magazine tells us will be a major health threat for everyone, seems to have originated in Central Africa. What we as a nation can spend for social welfare programs is determined, not by the need for them, not by the poor, the homeless, the unemployed, the hungry of the United States, but rather, by what is leftover after we provide for a defense program directed at a country 6,000 miles away.
These global worries seem to be beyond our control. It’s all well and good for Jesus to tell his disciples, “don’t worry; God will provide,” but does that really make any sense today? Although we can speak of a world economy and how it effects us, it really boils down to, not our global village, not our worldwide village, but rather our village right here at Christ the Good Shepherd. Those who heard Jesus in Galilee, were not aware of what was happening in Rome or Damascus. They probably weren’t aware of what was going on in Jerusalem, which is about the same distance as from FM1960 to Galveston.2 But they were aware of those who were hungry and without clothing among their own neighbors, the ones sitting there, listening to Jesus.
They had gathered from all over the region, perhaps only a distance of a few miles away. They left before sunup that morning. They came on foot. Only the wealthy could afford a donkey. It took more effort to journey a few miles on the dusty roads of Galilee than it does to drive from Houston to San Antonio.
And now, they’ve heard him speak. He has called them “blessed, favored children of God.” He says you are the salt of the earth, you are the light of the world. The laws, the rules you follow, the reasons you do what you do, and how you behave with one another, are not because you’ve been threatened to do them, but rather because your heart tells you what you need to do.
These people sat there and listened. They wore tattered clothes, rags. They had empty stomachs that rumbled. They had twisted limbs and sightless eyes. They were homeless and jobless. It may have appeared to them God had forgotten them and they should cry out with Isaiah, “the Lord has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” But they remembered Yahweh’s promise: “Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you. I have carved you on the palm of my hand.” Those who came without possessions to hear Jesus, had one priceless gift, the gift of hope.
They came too, with their worries. And what are worries? Our word, itself, comes from an Old English word meaning “to choke” or “to strangle.” A worry is, indeed, something which seems to suffocate me, to strangle me, to cut off my breath and my spirit. And here is Jesus saying, “do not worry.” Do not allow yourself to be choked off. Rather trust in God. Be filled with the spirit of God. God will provide. However, Jesus did not say to relax and take it easy. Instead, he said, “seek first the kingship of the father.” He did not urge his disciples to be passive, but, rather, to be active, to seek, to knock, to find. And in all of his teachings, he reminded them they were to love one another, to help one another.
Here at Christ the Good Shepherd we have many ministries, many ways of helping one another. One important ministry has been our ministry of employment assistance. Many who have become part of this ministry have come to understand the power which can come from the Lord when we turn over control to him, when we stop worrying, and start helping ourselves and others.
The food ministry is another way to be an active disciple of our Lord. This weekend begins our first, formal visitation to our sister parish, Holy Name. At the same time, the Northwest Assistance Ministry, NAM3 , will continue to share in what is brought to this altar by those who make it possible, in their own way, for others “not to worry.” For some of us, our concern for others is shown by both our financial contributions to the DSF drive or by working actively in the agencies supported by the DSF.
This Wednesday, Lent begins. For some, we are now in the pre-Lenten week of Mardi-Gras, Fat Tuesday, when we celebrate Carnival, when our ancestors said “good-by to meat,” in preparation for the forty days of fasting. Many no longer say good-byes to meat, although some use Lent as an excuse to give up cholesterol in order to live longer. There are, of course, many things each of us could give up for Lent. But rather than merely looking for ways to give up the extras, the desserts of our lives, perhaps it is time for each of us to ask how I can help others, so they do not need to worry.
I began this reflection with a character known as Alfred E. Newman, the “what me worry” hero of Mad Magazine. He is, however, not the hero for us. Instead, we are each called to be disciples of the one who said not only, “do not worry,” but also “love one another as I have loved you.” It is in this way that each of us cannot only seek the kingship of the father, but more important, help others as we all seek his kingship, together.4
Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time; March 1, 1987
Is 49:14-15; 1 Cor 4:1-5; Mt 6:24-34
- “Renew” was a popular parish program of the late 80’s and early 90’s for the revitalization of parish spiritual life. It consisted of small, neighborhood prayer groups. Many groups formed in this period, however, met your years afterwards as fellowship, sharing groups.
- FM 1960 is the area, north of Houston, where Christ the Good Shepherd is located. The name refers to “Farm to Market road number 1960.” The distance to Galveston is about seventy miles.
- Northwest Assistance Ministries is a non-profit organization consisting of Protestant and Catholic churches as well as the local Jewish community in the FM 1960 area dedicated to serve the needs of the poor and homeless. The Diocesan Services Fund, DSF, supports similar efforts through contributions from the Catholic parishes of the Diocese of Galveston-Houston.
- This homily was already longer than I would prefer to give, and certainly longer than most people want to hear. Consequently, the story with which I had intended to conclude this homily was never given. However, it’s a story worth recording as a footnote here. “There is a little story I’d like to end with. About a man who was puzzled about what he should do to get ahead in life. He thought he would see if God had some message for him in nature. Perhaps God would give him some sign of what he should do with his life. So one day he went out into the forest. There he saw a fox that had been crippled by a trap and could not move. As the man watched, he saw a lion come by. Instead of eating the fox, the lion gave the fox some of his own food. Each day, the man went back to the forest and saw the same thing … the lion would bring food to the crippled fox … until one day, when the fox was well enough to fend for himself. The man finally went home and decided that God was telling him that he should do nothing… that others would take care of him just as the lion cared for the fox. So the man quit his job, gave away all of his possessions, and began to beg from house to house. But without any luck. He became very ill. He moaned and groaned against God. He cursed God for not providing him with what he needed. He especially cursed God for sending him the sign that had led him to the condition in which he now found himself. That very night, God appeared to him in a vision. And this is what God said to him. ‘I did send you a true sign. But you saw it wrongly. You were not the fox. You were to be the lion.’ As we begin Lent, my prayer for each of us is: may we all be lions.”