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Scandals. Confusion. Decline.
This is the noise that under girds the Catholic Church in our culture right now. We certainly have problems. But the problems are merely symptoms of a much deeper issue. Too many Catholics have accepted false gods in place of Jesus. They take on many different faces. Comfort. Pleasure. Wealth. Power. Ease. Etc.
In large part, this is due to a Catholic culture which soft sells Catholicism and discipleship. Too often our doctrines, practices, disciplines, and radical worldview has been given a soft sell. This means an easier form of discipleship that is more palatable and acceptable to others. Since Catholicism is so radical, some have wanted to make it more user-friendly, by undercutting many of the tougher parts of our faith. In other words, letting Jesus be Lord of only those parts of our lives we are comfortable with him being in charge of.
The problem is, it doesn't work. Christianity is meant to be radical and hard and Jesus wants to be Lord of every part of our lives.
It needs to be stated plainly - Jesus didn't become human, suffer, die, and rise again so that:- We can be comfortable.
- We can have stuff.
- We can avoid suffering and pain.
- We can find happiness and fulfillment.
Now, some of these may be result as consequences of discipleship (though not necessarily all of them). But, none are at the heart of why he came to earth.
Rather, Jesus came to earth in order to:- Reconcile humans to God.
- Forgive sins.
- Give us Good News.
- Heal our brokenness.
- Give us life everlasting with him in Heaven.
Jesus isn't merely a life coach, a motivational speaker, a healer, a miracle-worker, or just a buddy. Nor is he just a social worker, counselor, or physician.
Jesus is Savior, Lord, God, Messiah, and the one path to salvation.
We Catholics need to stop recreating Jesus into what we want him to be and actually allow him to be who he truly is. This is one step to the Church regaining her ability to truly be the instrument of salvation to all nations. As CS Lewis once said:“(To have Faith in Christ) means, of course, trying to do all that He says. There would be no sense in saying you trusted a person if you would not take his advice. Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him."
In other words, we need to stop soft-selling Christianity to others and ourselves.
Let God be God. Let Jesus be Lord of our lives.
Let us be his true disciples. His followers and servants.
WHAT TRUE DISCIPLESHIP LOOKS LIKE
If we are to truly be disciples of Jesus, then we need to recapture what it is like to follow him closely and faithfully. Which means now is not the time to avoid the tough subjects, but to double-down on them.
Easy Christianity doesn’t work. We have tried it for too long and it has failed us (and the world).
You and I are called to be the salt and light to the world. But, are we? Because if we aren’t doing it, then the world has no chance of salvation, because Jesus doesn’t have a plan B to make up for the failures of his Church (AKA - you and me). We are meant to be the instrument of salvation to the world. If we don’t do it, then the world goes to hell (literally).
We don’t need more people who are somber saints, half-hearted disciples, cultural Catholics, or comfortable Christians. We don’t need more Catholic gadgets, buzzwords, meetings, or documents that nobody reads.
Rather, what we really need is radical witnesses who have died to themselves, so that Christ might live in them.We need people who are great evangelists and disciple-makers. We need saints and prayer warriors. We need people who are willing to die (whether figuratively or literally) so that others might live forever.
What about you and me? Have you died to sin? Are you living for God? Are you pursuing sainthood? Are you praying intimately every single day? Are you proclaiming the Gospel? Are you making disciples? If not, then why not? Is your treasure really in heaven or is it on earth - in pleasure, comfort, stuff, power, money, etc?
TIME TO DIE
The problems in this world aren’t about politics, pop culture, drugs, sex, etc. The problems in this world lie within the sinful hearts of humans who haven’t turned their lives over to God. Therefore, the answer is found in the opposite of a sinful heart - a heart filled with God’s grace and mercy. A converted missionary disciples who is sold out for Jesus. The Gospel message, our evangelization, and discipleship are the answers God gives us, in Jesus. He doesn’t want to just fix us, but he wants us to die and then live a new life in him.
To really die to ourselves, we have to get uncomfortable. We (you and I) have to go to the fringes of society with something that can change the world. It isn’t another program, it is the Gospel. It isn’t an event, it is the Gospel. It isn’t another class, it is the Gospel. But, not an easy Gospel, but a tough one. One that Jesus has died for and you and I are called to die for it too.
Jesus risked life, reputation, health, family, relationships, etc for the sake of the Gospel. Many who heard his message hated him.
But, Jesus also respected the free will of others enough to let people walk away. He knew that not all would follow him. They left because they couldn’t accept the message. It was either too radical, too tough, or too counter-cultural for them. What about us? Is Jesus message too tough for us? What about our message to others about Jesus? Do we even have the guts to say tough things to others?
You might say - of course! We are pro-life, pro-marriage, pro-NFP, pro-whatever. But, is that enough? Listen to the words of the Master:“Now large crowds were travelling with him; and he turned and said to them, ‘Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, “This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.” Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.” -Luke 14:25-33
Notice the large crowds. Maybe this is the crowds that show up for Mass this next Sunday. I bet the disciples were starting to think, "now we have a movement going. Finally, some real numbers that are showing up to our events!" But can you imagine these words being preached in your parish this weekend? How would they be received? Some wanted to kill Jesus for his message and yet you and I worry about what others might think about us if we even name-drop Jesus to them.
Why is the Catholic Church seeing rapid decline in the West? Why can’t we reach the masses of people? We might answer these questions with another question. Do we sound, act, look, and live like Jesus?
Jesus had a tough message and that message isn’t meant to be watered down. A message that is meant to transform us and then meant to be lived radically by all who take the name of “Christian”. You and I need to be more radical, more bold, more courageous, more Christian. We need to look and sound more like Jesus did. The world has rejected the soft and easy idea of following Jesus. So, let’s offer something different.
The Cross - where the bad news is defeated and Good News ultimately wins.“An imbecile habit has arisen in modern controversy of saying that such and such a creed can be held in one age but cannot be held in another. Some dogma, we are told, was credible in the twelfth century, but is not credible in the twentieth. You might as well say that a certain philosophy can be believed on Mondays, but cannot be believed on Tuesdays. You might as well say of a view of the cosmos that it was suitable to half-past three, but not suitable to half-past four. What a man can believe depends upon his philosophy, not upon the clock or the century” -GK Chesterton
If what Jesus said was true when he lived, it is true today.
If what Jesus said is true today, then his followers should live their lives according to those truths.
If we should live according to Jesus words, then why does the Church of today operate, look, and sound so very differently?
Let us return to the Gospel message, the core of our faith, and use the words of God himself to change hearts, starting with our own.