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Philippians 2:1-11
Brothers and sisters: If there is any encouragement in Christ,any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit,
any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing. Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests,
but also for those of others.
Baptism Day This morning my 6 month old niece was baptized in the United Methodist Church. I had not been in a protestant church for a very long time. It felt weird to stand in a sanctuary without a crucifix, a tabernacle or kneelers. (The sanctuary did have two candles placed on top of a white altar with a standard cross without a corpus.) Two women preachers performed the church service; something you'd never see in a Catholic church. I have to say I was quite impressed with the sermon's message. (Great ideas for future blog posts!) The way she presented the readings from Proverbs 3 was interesting and engaging. The woman pastor is a professor at a local Methodist seminary and gives lectures on preaching, so no wonder she was an excellent speaker.
At one point during the service, the family and my niece were asked to go up to the baptismal bowl at the front of the sanctuary. The associate woman pastor briefly looked at the shiny Miraculous medal I was wearing. Even though I was in a Methodist church, I have no problem wearing a catholic piece of jewelry. In fact, a couple of times I almost crossed myself when the pastor said "In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit," strictly out of habit. I refrained myself so not to stick out more than I already did...
One of my brother-in-law's sisters sat behind me in the pew. She noticed the pendant, too, commenting, "Is that Our Lady you are wearing?" I answered, "Yes it is!" She replied, "How beautiful!" Later I found out she and her husband are devout Catholics. I'm sure they felt just as odd inside of a protestant church without the sacramentals we normally see every Sunday.
My niece has now begun her journey into the kingdom of heaven as member of the communion of Christ. I welcome her with loving and open arms. Even though she wasn't baptized Catholic, I'm still happy she was baptized in some form of Christianity. It was a beautiful ceremony any case. We had a beautiful family brunch after the service.
Change and conversion I must say this morning's baptism, the woman pastor's sermon on fear of the lord, and today's readings from the Catholic liturgy made me think of change and conversion. Change is something some people don't mind doing whereas others find it nauseating and overwhelming. Often we are comfortable in our own skins, living in sin and destructive habits. We act in selfish ways that defeat the purpose of Christianity which calls us to remain humble, loving and united with others as one beating heart.
In the first reading, the Lord asks Ezekiel a pertinent question: "Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair?" We automatically want to blame God when things aren't going so well in our lives. We see those around us with all kinds of material possessions, academic degrees, and popularity. We may even think God doesn't play fair giving some people more than others. We become disillusioned and frustrated, sometimes even taking out our frustrations in sinful ways (Think of envy, jealousy and resentment).
When we feed our minds with Holy scripture and feed our hearts with love, suddenly we begin to see that God really is fair. He is constantly blessing us with unique gifts, given to us based on our abilities and what God has planned for us. If we stole everybody else's gifts, and never realized our own natural talents, what a sad life we'd lead! Many people prowl about the world seeking to ruin the reputations of others who have things they "think" they need, too. They fail to acknowledge that maybe God has talents in store for these spiritual thieves which are even more amazing!
The grass may appear greener on the other side but it may not be necessarily healthy for us to eat.
Follow God's Will by remaining united and strong in the Christian faith, no matter if you're Catholic, protestant, or non-denominational. We are much stronger as a Christian whole than as separate factions who's theology and customs are so varied.
Be united in one heart devoted to Jesus Christ! Amen.
-J.
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