THERE’S A METHOD 

TO HIS MADNESS

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 11th Monday in Ordinary Time is, “There’s a method to his madness.”

If someone would tell you to turn the other cheek when someone slaps you on the face – you would think them mad – crazy – stupid.

You’d say, “Others would just take advantage of you and beat you either further.”

Yep, that’s what Jesus said and did. He know all about the crazy human heart. God did not stay, “Far From the Maddening Crowd.” Nope, God became one of us – and experience what the book of Genesis pointed out by Chapter 4 – brother can kill brother.

And as we look at the big cross up here as the backdrop in our sanctuary, we see that he practiced what he preached – he walked the talk right to Calvary. He turned the other cheek and forgave those who slapped and spit and beat and nailed him to a cross. He didn’t get mad. He was mad. He said from the cross: “Father forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.”

But Jesus knew what he was doing. There’s a method to his madness.

But for some reason, some Christians don’t accept the principle that a non-violent approach to life is the Christian way to do life. I would add that the down deep reason might be that they think it’s mad.

ST. PAUL

St. Paul in today’s first reading from 2nd Corinthians continued the madness and says we Christians put up with “afflictions, hardships, constraints, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, vigils, fasts;…” as our way of life. He continues, “We are treated as deceivers and yet are truthful; as unrecognized and yet acknowledged; as dying and behold we live; as chastised and yet not put to death; as sorrowful yet always rejoicing; as poor yet enriching many; as having nothing and yet possessing all things.”

Non-violence must have been a tough, tough, decision and discovery for St. Paul – because he was a violent man. He was an extreme kind of personality. You knew when he walked into a room – or a town.

When did he discover this was Christ’s way of doing life? When or what caused him to realize this was the message of Christ from the Cross? Did he say in deep prayer with deep feeling to Jesus, “You’re mad!”

JESUS’ METHOD OF MADNESS

If we don’t retaliate, if we turn the other cheek, if we gain the patience Christ had, then the other has no reason to retaliate back at us. Okay, we might frustrate them.  If we forgive because we don’t know the other’s heart and soul and story, then maybe the other will discover peace and forgiveness – and change.

Jesus pushed this – and today we are over 1 billion strong. Paul discovered this and pushed this, and the churches he founded, flourished.

IN OUR LIFETIME

In our lifetime we have been blessed if we saw that Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Caesar Chavez, Nelson Mandela, and many others have gone this way – and made significant breakthroughs.

They were on the big stage, the big screen, we are on the local scene: family, parish, neighbors.

How do we deal with yelling, anger, sniping, attacking?

I fail at times. I’ve never been slapped in the face nor have I been spit on. In conflict, I try silence and humor – and walk away – most of the time. It seems that others just scratch their heads or then ignore me because I didn’t fight back. I hope I stopped the sniping or the griping - and I hope they walk away with second thoughts.

CONCLUSION

Let me close with 3 quotes which might add a nuance or two to the topic of non-violence – the idea about turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, and stopping retaliation.

Cesar Chavez: “Non-violence is not inaction. It is not discussion. It is not for the timid or weak …. Non-violence is hard work. It is the willingness to sacrifice. It is the patience to win.”

Bernard Haring, a Redemptorist priest and Moral Theologian, who took a lot of verbal attacks and comments behind his back, said, “It belongs to the very substance of nonviolence never to destroy or damage another person’s feeling of self worth, even an opponent’s. We all need, constantly, an advance of trust and affirmation.”

And lastly, a comment from Michael Fink. I don’t know who he was: “You’re lucky I took me a vow of non-violence, or you’d be suffering some pain right now.”