7 C’S:

MAKE ONE OF THEM 

COMPARISONS 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this 5 Sunday of Easter C is, “7 C’s: Make One of Them Comparisons.”

Have you ever noticed that words beginning with “C” often appear when talking about spirituality and religion?

For example: “Conversion, Change, Challenge, Care, Concerns, Community, Choice, Christ, Communion, Contrast, Comparisons.”

The title of my homily is, “7 C’s: Make One of Them Comparisons.”

TODAY’S READINGS

Today’s readings offer great contrast, great change and great comparisons.

In today’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles we have the closing message that the door of faith is now opened to the Gentiles. Tremendous new life lay on the other side of that door.

When the Apostles and followers of Christ were communicating with the Jews - there was conflict and controversy. When the door opened to the outside world - to the Gentiles - things changed. We’re hearing now in the Acts of the Apostles - this post gospel writing - about what happened next - we see the door open to the whole world. The Gospel moves out of Jerusalem, out of  Israel and into the whole Mediterranean world and beyond - and eventually to us.

The door has opened.

Today’s second reading from the Book of Revelation offers with great imagination and energy - a contrast between the old and the new.

Being a product of the 1960’s I hear Bob Dylan’s song, “The Times They Are A Changin” in this second reading.

The last sentence in this reading we heard today has, “The One who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.” The first sentence has, “Then I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth.”

Sandwiched in between those two sentences we have the great image of a wedding, a new marriage, between heaven and earth - God with us. We have the great contrast between the old city, the old Jerusalem, and the New Jerusalem - and the heavens opening up.

Here comes new life…. Here comes the Bride …. Sin and death are gone…. divorced from us….  The Great Divorce that Adam and Eve caused - their Original Sin that got us thrown out of paradise - is ended. The New is here. That’s the Good News that Christ proclaimed.

Powerful language - powerful images - powerful possibilities - powerful contrasts and comparisons.

And today’s gospel begins with a scene from the Last Supper. Judas leaves the room and then everything changes in comparison.  Now the Son of Man can be glorified. There is a world of difference between a room filled with Judas and a room without Judas.

COMPARISONS

The title of my homily is, “7 C’s: Make One of Them Comparisons.”

Think about the power of comparisons!

Think about the power comparisons play in our thinking processes.  

Think about the power of comparisons - how they can overwhelm us - wham us - push us - manipulate us - mess our minds up -  to do things we might not want to do.

We have all heard the saying, “Comparisons are odious.”

We’ve all heard the saying, “Comparisons can crush!”

We have all heard the saying that comparisons can lead to happiness as well as to feeling miserable.

Sometimes we secretly rejoice when the rich and the famous - the other - fails and falls - we feel better about ourselves in comparison. It’s the stuff that sells and populates  and peoples People Magazine.

Comparisons can also get us to rush to do something new - to try to be different - sometimes to be stupid or overspend - because we want  to shut up inner comparisons and complaints we’ve been talking to ourselves about ever since we were kids.

Think about our life.  Are we comparing ourselves to someone else?

Are we comparing our bodies, our flab, out love handles, our house, our cars, our jobs, our vacations, our salary, our wrinkles, our age, with others?

I’m saying here to listen to our inner voices: comparisons have tremendous power. Do we want to give it that much power in area A, B, and C?

Parents want their kids to be different than they are.

Kids want their parents to be like so and so’s parents.

Parents compare themselves to other parents.

Adults compare the care and energy and effort and cost they have to put out for aging parents or siblings or children - sometimes comparing all they are doing compared to what their brothers and sisters are doing - or compare themselves to other people - often without crossing their threshold and knowing what they are going through.

I like that image of the door in today’s second reading.

Write the word “comparison” in ball point pen on your hand - and think about all this, this week,

Use contrast - use comparison - and construct the rooms - the mindsets we’re living in - and then construct - imagine - a changed room - a rearranged life - and then make choices to change. Ask Christ to come into our rooms, into our homes, into our mind set and here him say to us, “Peace.” Then work with him towards change and conversion - one step at a time - not wanting another to change - but to change ourselves and then see how the rest of the room - the rest of our lives change - step by step - a day at a time - because we have changed.

I like that image at the beginning of today’s gospel. Things change when Judas leaves the room.

I like to ask from the pulpit: “What happens when I walk into a room? What happens when I walk out the door? Do people say, ‘Phew. Finally. Now we can relax.’”

I remember hearing how hurt a priest felt when he walked down the aisle and heard, “Oh no not him again!” We’re lucky is this parish - you can avoid us - if you want.

Comparisons are powerful….

Let’s use that image to go deeper.

Think of the Judas we are to ourselves - in our upper room - this complaining self - this stealing self - screaming inwardly all the time how things are going - wanting my picture to be the picture of how life works. See ourselves selling ourselves out for 30 pieces of silver or whatever. See ourselves crucifying the Christ within us.

Give that Judas his or her walking papers and start living the Gospel life.

Contrast, compare, ourselves in those two modes.

Chose life.  Choose Christ.

Comparisons can crush - but see that comparisons can also get us to rush - slowly - to new life - to have new order in our life.

CONCLUSION

It’s Spring …. It’s Earth Month …. Last Monday was Earth Day …. the call is to clean up our environment.

We’ve been told to talk about the environment from the pulpit. I gave a whole sermon on that last week….

Let me throw in a few comments in my ending…..

It’s easy to complain about the other person’s garden - yard - house. It’s easy to complain about the other person’s habits.

I’m pushing for looking and working on self….

I hate it when I see people dump on Annapolis - but I found out I can’t do much about it. But I can pick up stuff people dump on St. Mary’s Parking lot or Newman Street across from the front of our church - leading down to Compromise Street. I can make that compromise in my mind and do what I can do.

I can challenge those who make fun of those concerned about our earth - by saying, “I’m a tree hugger. I like trees - spring, summer, fall and winter.  I like clean water. I am glad that smokers are not blowing smoke in my face - and people who don’t smoke I think get 10 more years of life than those who don’t.

The title of my homily is, “7 C’s: Make One of Them Comparisons.”

Compare yourself to the self you are called to be. Then open that door and work with Jesus and say, “Behold I make all things new!”