INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 6th Sunday
after Easter [C] is, “Where Are You?
A LIFETIME
QUESTION
That’s a lifetime question we often ask each other.
When we’re lost, we say, “Where are we?” or “Where am I”
When we’re talking with someone at a coffee break or a
get together, someone asks us, “Where are you with so and so?” or “Do you think
he’ll get the nomination?” “Do you think she’ll be elected?”
I was a wedding reception yesterday afternoon and the St.
Mary’s Alumni ceremony last night and a 50th Anniversary today and I
was asked those questions at least 5 times - just standing there.
The “Where are you?” question is heard about place and
space and state of mind and opinion.
Where are you right now: financially, spiritually,
moodily, health, age, what have you?
THE BEAUTY AND
THE WONDER OF BEING A HUMAN BEING
The beauty and wonder of being a human being is that we
can have our butt in one place and our mind in another place.
When preaching I know people are in yesterday, last week,
next week, next summer, 20 years ago.
When bored we get on board and fly to other planets.
When having a conversation, the story we’re telling is
triggering the stories in the library of the other’s mind - and when we take a
breath, the other jumps in.
Human beings sort of drift on the waters with the waves
of thought in the room - just floating words and conversations - often without
much depth.
Then there is the below the waters.
If anyone knew this, it was Jesus - the great observer of
the human condition.
I often wonder why he left his inner room - why he left
the carpenter shop in Nazareth and hit the open road. What triggered that exit,
that exodus? Had he seen enough - for him to say, “I have to say something about
what I’ve been seeing and hearing up till now.”
TODAY’S
READINGS
In today’s first reading we hear about this fight in the
early Christian communities about Jewish laws - about circumcision, meat
sacrificed to idols or strangled, unlawful marriage and what have you. [Cf.
Acts 15:1-2, 22-29.]
In the gospels we know it was Jesus speaking out about
laws crushing people - that the Sabbath Law was made for us and not vice versa.
He told the story of the Good Samaritan - how two people, a priest and a Levite, didn’t stop to help a
person who was beaten up and robbed and left half dead, because that would mean
breaking a law.
Where are you? Where are you on the purpose of Law? We know the recent big meeting in Rome on the
family - marriage - and human life
together - differences in people - and people who are different from us - how
we see - how we be - how we treat one another. Where are you on all this? Read
the Pope’s recent Letter, Amoris Laetita,
On Love in the Family, and ask as you read, where am I with all this?
Ask where have I been, where am I now, and am I being called to reconsider
where I am?
Today’s second reading puts us in a future place. Am I a
dreamer? Do I often find myself in the future - in the next life - in eternity
- or are they only thoughts for the old or for folks at a funeral? Do I have faith in another life - a new life
after this life in the New Jerusalem, as the Book of Revelation puts it in
today’s second reading. [Cf. Revelation 21: 10-14, 22-23] Or if we use Dante,
am I picturing being in heaven; Paradiso - and hopefully I’m not in the Inferno
- Hell - but first I have to get through Purgatorio.
Today’s gospel has Jesus telling us, “Whoever loves me
will keep my word, and my Father will love him or her, and we will come … and make
our dwelling with him or her.” [Cf. John 14:23-29]
Today’s gospel promises Peace - God’s kind of peace.
Where are you?
Do we realize we can go within - into our inner room as
Matthew puts it or dwelling place as John puts it here in today’s gospel?
MARRIAGE AND
FAMILY AND FRIENDSHIPS
The Book of Genesis tells us that it’s not good to go it
alone.
Life tells us that it’s important that we do life with
others.
Where am I?
Where are you?
It’s good to talk to each other about what we have
learned and are learning and are wondering about in our life.
I had a job once as a Redemptorist priest to try to get
us priests to talk and listen to each other.
Difficult.
For the most part, it didn’t work.
We also tried to get people in parishes to talk to each other
- and listen to each other.
Difficult.
For the most part, it didn’t work.
We also tried to get priests of other orders and
congregations to talk and listen to each other.
Difficult.
For the most part, it didn’t work
We have all heard about Marriage Encounter - it’s still
around - but nothing like its big days. It was an effort to get couples to talk
to each other - to listen - to write to each other - to get into the other -
and basically to ask the question that
is the title of this homily, “Where Are You?”
We joke about the question, “How was your day?”
Yet it’s a good question - if we mean it more than small
talk - if we really want to connect with each other.
We smile when another, waves their hand in front of our
eyes, “Where are you?”
It’s not good to go it alone.
It’s great if they really want to know where we are.
CONCLUSION
Get a piece of paper. Get a magic marker. Have a magnet.
Write on that paper 3 words, “Where are you?”
Then answer that question: Where are we as a couple? Where
are we as a family? Where are we when it
comes to acknowledging each other - listening to each other - being with each
other. Amen.