WHAT’S WITH THE LAMB?
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 4th Sunday after Easter is, “What’s With the Lamb?”
Ever since I was a little kid - when I was in church and saw
the lamb on vestments, carved into altars - as well as in stained glass windows
- I wondered, “What’s with the lamb?”
Ooops. I don’t mean the sheep on Jesus’ shoulders - or
Jesus with a flock of sheep - walking along as the Good Shepherd - but just a
lamb or a sheep with a small banner with a cross on it - often in a circle like
and emblem or a sculpture or a carving.
What’s with that image? What’s with the Lamb?
Then at times I would hear at Mass in the readings - like
today - mention of the Lamb.
There are also the prayers, “Lamb of God who takes away
the sins of the world, have mercy on us….”
So at times when I’m awake or aware of what I’m seeing
and hearing, I ask, “What’s with the lamb?
THEN THE OTHER
DAY
Then the other day I was driving to New Jersey to attend
the funeral of a classmate. I was
listening to a CD talk by Father Robert Barron - who is now a bishop. He made a
comment that went something like this: Israel was constantly the little guy -
all through the Old Testament - and they were always being beaten up. So the prophets promised that a Lion who
appear - the Lion of the Judah - who would protect and destroy all enemies and
all will be okay. In other words, there would be Savior, a Messiah, a redeemer
- who would be a powerful leader - who would crush Israel’s enemies.
Well who shows up but Jesus - the Lamb - and the lamb is
slaughtered?
God has a sense of humor - and a sense of humility - on
how life works.
So there we have them: the Lion and the Lamb?
Which would you rather be? Which would you rather have?
The lion has the reputation of being the king of beasts. Grrrrrrr! Grrrrr! Grrrry! as we see at the beginning of MGM
movies.
But Jesus is the Lamb - the sheep who is slaughtered -
and yet saves the world.
As in the Exodus - the Passover Lamb - was slaughtered
and his blood was to be smeared on the doorposts of the Jewish homes - so that
when the angel of death - came - the death of all first born’s - of Egypt - the Jews would be saved.
On the Passover Night they fled Egypt - went through the
waters of their baptism - and they headed for the Promised Land.
This is big picture, mythic type thinking, symbolic
thinking.
LIFE IS THE
SURPRISES
Life is the surprises. Life is the reversal of the
expected. Life is the unexpected.
Life is the ability to laugh.
Instead of a lion showing up, surprise a lamb shows up. A
lamb - the meekest and dumbest of the animals - shows up and conquers all.
I remember seeing a National Geographic or Animal Kingdom
documentary and the lion is sitting there under a tree relaxing.
You then see his wife the lioness tracking down a gazelle
- killing it - and dragging it to her husband: the lion. He then has a feast - eating
all he wants to eat. Then his wife and cubs have the remains.
Meanwhile the lion climbs a tree and sleeps for 48 hours
- with drooping pot belly.
When I sat that, I smiled. The king of the beasts - the
lion - didn’t come across too well in that documentary - that story.
Life is the surprises.
Life is the unexpected.
Life doesn’t work the way we think it should work.
Is the message that the secret of life is not being the
lion - but being the lamb.
The first become last - and the last become first.
As Jesus taught us - there are those who serve and those
who are served and those who are served are number 1 - the more important. Then
he chooses to not be the most important. He washes feet - and serves the rest.
Life is giving one’s life for the good of all.
Life is the sacrifices.
Mother Teresa used to say to her sisters, “Let the people
eat you up.”
Give them your time. Give them you presence. Give them
your service.
SOME EXAMPLES
OF SERVICE
I think of some examples of service - besides the lioness
feeding her man.
A bunch of times I’ve spent time with my brother’s
daughters for Thanksgiving week. Somewhere along the line they made a pact to try
to get together as a family for Thanksgiving week.
Our generation did it for 3 days. My brother’s daughters
are continuing the tradition doing it for 5 or 6 days. It means sacrifice. It
costs money. It takes planning. It takes
an effort - but the reward called family is worth it.
During that Thanksgiving week, I began to notice that my
niece Jeanie’s husband, David, would come downstairs with their 3 kids and go
out for a drive very early every morning.
Where were they going? The stores weren’t open yet. Well, he was taking
them out for a drive so their mother could get a great sleep.
When I saw that, I
looked back and remember my dad taking us to the park every Sunday as kids -
after Mass - after breakfast - so as to give my mom a break - and a good sleep.
I think of my dad working for Nabisco and they moved from
the lower west side of Manhattan - to Fair Lawn, New Jersey. To continue with
the idea of keeping his job and getting a pension - this meant he had to take
the subway from Brooklyn to 42 Street - in Manhattan where the Port Authority bus
station was located - and then then he would take a bus to Fair Lawn New Jersey
- for work. He did this for a couple of years before he retired.
Why? Family. Marriage? Food on the table.
I think of all those couples with 2 jobs and all kinds of
extra work and travel - so as to make money so their kids can get the best
education - the best this and the best that.
Sacrifice. Sacrifice. Sacrifice.
SCAPEGOAT
The title of my homily is, “What’s With the Lamb?”
Besides being of service to others, there is a second
meaning - a second message - about lambs - and it too is a key to our
understanding of the meaning of the Lamb of God.
I think of the work of the Stanford University professor,
Rene Girard, who died last year.
Years ago I heard some talks about his teachings and
writings. I bought the books and tried to get my hands and my mind on just what
he was saying.
I got some of what he was saying - but I’m still not
clear on his messages.
He was off on scapegoats and lambs that were slaughtered
for the good of the community.
He looked around - he looked at history - and Rene Girard
said there was a lot of violence - not just today - but always.
People blame people. People pick on other people. People
are envious of other people. People want what other people have. Why do I
always have to have a crummy car - when so and so has a zoom zoom very
expensive car? And house…. and vacations …. and clothes.
Kill them. Steal from them. Take from them. The history of the world…..
Rene Girard thought about all this and came up with one
of his key ideas: we are mimics. Human
beings imitate each other. See violence - mimic violence - and then violence
continues.
Imitation - mimicking - doing what others do - wearing
what others wear - saying what others are saying - is very much what we do.
What is said on the talk shows at night - becomes the
conversations at the coffee break and the cocktail hour the next day.
Who stops to think? Who thinks outside the box?
Jesus came along and did so - and the crowd that screamed
for him on Palm Sunday - waving palms and wows - screamed “Crucify him” the
following Friday.
Prophets are killed. People who challenge people are assassinated.
So we have a choice: to think or not to think? To grow or
not to grow? To be violent or to be people of peace.
We can mimic the good or the evil.
Jesus chose the good. Jesus chose stopping the violence -
by entering into the violence of the world - with the hope of us getting the
message to stop the violence.
Jesus turned the other cheek.
Jesus took on all the anger of all the people’s.
Jesus did not roar back - he gave his back to his persecutors.
We can be lion or a lamb.
We can be like Jesus.
CONCLUSION
The title of my homily is, “What’s With the Lamb?”
Answer: sacrifice and service - giving of oneself - as
well as dying to violence and selfishness of others - being a lamb ourselves -
being a scapegoat and changing the world by non-violence. Amen.
Answer: Jesus is a good shepherd who lays down his life
for us.
