TRAP

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Trap!”   T  R  A  P

It’s a word and a warning in today’s gospel - for this First Sunday in Advent.

“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.” (Luke 21: 34)

“Trap!”

The ideas and images in today’s readings are big time, world ending, catastrophic, scary, written in Apocalypse Now language.  They are readings we hear every year - at the end of every Church year - and at the beginning of a new Church year - every Advent - which starts today.

Back in the Early Church - when these New Testament texts were written - between 50 and 115 A.D. - times were quite dangerous - especially for Christians - this new movement - and new way of doing life. But times were also difficult and dangerous for everyone - especially the little people - the poor and the powerless.

Are there any periods in the history of the world - when crazy, horrible things - were not happening? Are we any different today - than any other period in history - except today we have more people and TV news - 24-7 - and we have to fill in those TV hours with shootings and killings - and comments by one person who wants to trump another person - and gain political power and prestige or what have you?

GO SMALL THIS ADVENT

I rather go small - go personal - when it comes to traps.

This Advent - this Sunday - this moment - to ask and to look at: what are the traps we get ourselves into? What are the traps in our lives that kill us  - drain us - destroy us - drag us down toward the ground?

Food - overeating - poor eating? Drinking too much? Rushing too much?

Relationships?  Other people?  Family?  Saying too much? Saying the wrong thing? Breaking confidences? Lies. Bragging? Embellishments? And our words come back to haunt us and we say, “I should have kept my trap shut.”

“Traps!”

In my first assignment as a priest in 1967 - I was asked to say something about marriage - and it hit me loud and clear - that I knew nothing - nothing - absolutely nothing about marriage.

Lucky for me, in The New York Daily News that morning - in the Inquiring Photographer Section - the question was asked, “What are the main problems or traps in marriage?”

4 or 5 people were interviewed. Next to their picture - their answers to the Inquiring Photographer’s question - were given.

One person said, “The 3 biggest problems in marriage are money, sex and in-laws.”

I’ve been repeating that answer for the past 50 years. Are they the 3 biggest traps in marriage? Answer: they are for some and I assume they have been the daily news for many people since Cave Man and Cave Woman times.

Next time you’re in the doctor or dentist’s office,  check the popular magazines sitting there. In Reader’s Digest and O and various women’s magazines [it seems to me that they read more than us men] you’ll find at least one good article about traps.

FEELINGS

Pause for a moment and remember a moment when you felt trapped.

What did it feel like?

It was a moment when we were nervous, sweating, felt some panic.

It was a moment when we felt dumb - when we said to ourselves, “Dumb, dumb, dumb!” “Stupid, stupid, stupid.” “Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh!”

Then we add, “I do this every time.”  Then we add, “When will I ever learn?”

“Stupid, stupid, stupid.”  “Dumb, dumb, dumb!”

ADVENT - GOD - PRAYER - HELP!

When trapped, then come the prayers and the curses.

“God help me. God help me!” Or simply, “Help, help, help!”

I think the curse, “God damn it!” at times - is not big time blasphemy - but sometimes a prayer. It’s a prayer when we want God to take away the bad - dam it - block it - and give us the good.

However, it’s not a prayer, but a curse when we are blaming another for the mess we got ourselves into - and we start playing the blame game - instead of working on recovery and redemption for ourselves.

I believe it can become a deep dream for God to come and help us - and it can get us into the center of Christianity.

Did you notice - did you hear - that sentence in today’s gospel, “But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.”

Problem - solution!

Advent gets us into this issue of help.

We sing, “O come, Oh come Immanuel!”

Advent leads us to Christmas - when Christ comes to us as a baby!

In some traps - we have to take baby steps for recovery.

I see that loud in clear in 12 Step Programs.

Easy does it. One step at a time. One day at a time.

We have to become humble and like a little baby.  We need a sponsor, a parent figure, counseling  to get us back on our feet again. We need to meet and learn to talk our first sensible words - for years or for life again.

Christ comes as a baby each Christmas.

I’ve seen males - mostly males - change - when they have a child to care for - to raise - and the baby changes them - the sacrifices one has to make to care for a helpless needing to have diapers changed baby.

Matthew and Luke - in their beginning pages - have Jesus appearing as a baby.

Mark has Jesus showing up at the edge of our lake - at the edge of our job - and challenges us. Jobs, work, also change people - especially when they see the values of Christ being or not being at issue in the workplace.

John has Jesus showing up in our words - “And the word became flesh and dwelt amongst us.”

Sorry to say I see a post-Christianity happening - when Christ and Church and Christ’s vision on how to live life - is disappearing.

I notice that my nieces all got married in Church - and I did their marriages - and now I see the next generation after them - getting married in beautiful places of nature - in non-Church settings - and I’m wondering what’s happening.

One niece told me - she’s not here I hope - otherwise I opened my trap again - that her Sunday morning nourishment and life giver is tennis with friends and then a great conversation with coffee afterwards. I don’t want some guy in a pulpit telling me what to do. I said nothing when she said this - but I listened and I think about all these things.

I’m wondering if the numbers are down at Masses here at St. Mary’s and St. John Neumann’s.

I will be watching for research and numbers on all this. In the United States, we’ve certainly seen the Sunday numbers go down on all this. I've read that it's between 38% to 28% of Catholics who attend Sunday Mass. 

I've been noticing that some folks are going 2 or 3 Sundays per month. 

I have been in favor of changing the words, as someone put it, from “Holy Day of Obligation” to “Holy Day of Opportunity or Grace” - and to change “Sunday Obligation” to “Sunday Opportunity”. Of course, various church folks would object to that way of thinking and theologizing. 

I rather see people at Mass because they want to be here as opposed to feel they have to be here. I hear people state the reason they go to Mass - as “under pain of mortal sin” or “I can’t receive communion till I have gone to confession.” 

I'm still thinking about all this - because obligation gets some people to Mass - till they change their attitude and go out of love of God and the Church community.

I rather stress Sunday Mass as a chance to pause - as well as taking walks and taking in great places of nature - to ponder life - and to see how my life is going - and by doing these religious and spiritual practices - I find myself walking with God more - and watching and avoiding the traps of life more - and I’m becoming  a better family person - and a better workplace person.

CONCLUSION

Advent is here.

Advent means the coming of Christ.

Advent means preparing for the coming of the Lord again, again and again.

Emmanuel means God with us - so each Advent we sing loud and clear, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”

And with God with us - Christ - we are getting help avoiding the traps of life.