FEAR  OR  LOVE

 INTRODUCTION

Today’s readings - for this 30^th Wednesday in Ordinary Time -  triggered for me thoughts about the 2 great life  motives: Fear and Love.

Which is more me?  Fear or Love?

I  read somewhere that fear and love are the basic 2 emotions. All the other emotions - are lesser emotions and fall under either love or fear.

I don’t know if I agree or disagree with that - but I’ll continue to wonder about that comment.

Moreover when it comes to emotions, we can have an, “It all depends.”

Take anger. It can be a powerful emotion. We can get angry out of fear - but also out of love.  Don’t forget Jesus getting really angry as he threw the money changers out of the temple.

TODAY’S GOSPEL

In today’s  gospel notice that Jesus uses  fear - I sense to scare the hell out of people.  Notice Jesus’ words about  people not being saved. Notice he says people choose evil. Notice Jesus saying the words, “Depart from me, all you evil doers.” 

As you know there are two kinds of people: those who take the narrow gate and those who go by way of  Broadway.

Notice Jesus announcing that people who don’t chose the narrow gate - are going to find the door to  God’s house locked. And there will be wailing and grinding of teeth - because they have cast themselves into the wrong group.

Jesus is scary here. He’s using the motive of fear. And there are people who are scared of not being saved. 

And fear works for getting people to be good.

Question: which motive is better?

Question: does today’s gospel from  Luke 13: 22-30 have more power than Luke 15 when we meet a God of love and mercy.

Which works better: fear or love?

There are some people whose whole religious outlook is fear and God is a God of fear to them.

St. Alphonsus reflected on this question in his writings and he ends up saying the motive of love is better - because it lasts.

Yet Alphonsus used fear to motivate - in some of his most powerful sermons and writings.

TODAY’S FIRST READING ROMANS 8: 26-30

In today’s first reading from Romans, we have an example of Paul stressing love over fear.  He says, “Yes, we are weak, but God comes to our aid in our weakness.”   Paul says, “all things work for good for those who  love God.”

LOVE OR FEAR

So last night working on this homily, this reflection, I asked myself whether I was a person of fear or a person of love?

My first conclusion was this: I’d assume we’re both people of fear as well as a person of love.

Life is neither black nor white. It’s has shades - degrees -  but I think we can still ask which one am I more of: love or fear?

My second conclusion was this: how do I see God?  If I am scared of God - is that something God would want?

In other words, is God the God I picture or feel God is?  

We can get scripture texts for both understandings of God.

What is God like?  Is God a wonderful forgiving,  understanding and loving God or is God a God who is going to zap us like a cook in the kitchen zaps a fly with a fly swatter.

We heard God not answering his door in today’s gospel - or we can read the  1^st Letter of John which says over and over again that God is Love.

Listen to 1 John 4:18, “In love there can be no fear, but fear is driven out by perfect love: because to fear is to expect punishment, and anyone who is afraid is still imperfect in love.”

A third point would be how we picture and understand others - as well as ourselves.

How many times have we heard some one talk about how they picture their father?  They say: “I was scared of him.”

I have heard people say of priests: “I was scared of him”

I was once stationed with a priest who told me he walked around with a book in his hand so nobody will bother him. He wanted them to say, “I’m scared of bothering him.”  And he said, “Wow can I be selfish.”

CONCLUSION

Enough ….

That’s a few thoughts about love and fear .

the first reading tells us to groan about all this to the Spirit who searches hearts and knows what’s going on inside our hearts.

So groan, groan, groan ….