Holy Spirit Catholic Church
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Sixth
Sunday of Easter
May 17, 2009
After the death of my mother and as I get older I think about dying more and more. Not in a morbid sense, but more out of curiosity. And as I think about my death, I often wish that I could choose the way I am going to die. If I could, there’s a big part of me that wishes I could die heroically, trying to save another. Maybe I've seen to many movies or watch too much television, but that seems like the way to go. What could be more fulfilling, more important, more memorable? I really don't think I want to hang around until a very old age and my body completely falls apart. No, I want to go out in a blaze of glory!
If you could choose the way you would die, what would you choose? Who am I kidding?
First of all, thank goodness those heroic types of situations don't come my way because, if I'm being honest, I'd have to say that I'm not sure I could be that courageous. I'd probably be the first one jumping off the sinking ship into the lifeboat, or diving away from the grenade, or standing on the shore while someone drowned in the surf. I'd like to think that could be so selfless, but I'm really not that sure. And I'm not sure I want to find out. Secondly, why think about it when I know that we don't get a say in the matter, in deciding how we will die? Or do we?
"This I command you: love one another." That's how today's Gospel passage ends, with Jesus stressing the primacy of love...a love which is at the very heart of who God is. All of our readings today stress love. And in order for each of us to be a faithful disciple of Jesus and an authentic human being, we must strive to love all people and in all situations. And at some level, I believe we are all on board with that, or we wouldn't be here. I know that we all love imperfectly, but it's certainly not because we aren't trying.
One of the difficulties is that we often have a diminished idea of what love really means. I know I do. If love means being "nice," then I think I’m doing a pretty good job at it. I'm not out to hurt anybody or hurt their feelings. I try not to be judgmental or overly critical. And I try to find the good in people. But is that enough?
"No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." Now that sounds like something different altogether. You see, Jesus is articulating a very important analogy for his followers. And it is this: loving and dying go together. Boy, that does not have a nice ring to it. Loving and dying are related? Does it have to be that way?
Think for a minute...A nurse bathes an elderly person in a hospital or nursing home, and does so very kindly and respectfully. A single parent foregoes a social life, in order to work a second job to provide a better life for her children. A newlywed turns down the higher paying job that requires a lot of travel, instead choosing to give his marriage the attention it needs. A teenage girl reaches out and befriends a classmate that no one likes or is bullied at school. An innocent man, speaking only the truth, is nailed to a cross.
If we really think about it, people are dying all around us all the time. Men and women of all ages, races, and economic classes...you name it...are laying down their lives on behalf of others. And according to Jesus, there is no greater love than that. And make no mistake about it. Something has to die in us before that type of love is possible. There are no two ways about it. This is the Paschal Mystery, the pattern for each of us. This sort of "dying" is precisely what leads to new life, for ourselves and those whose lives we touch. This sort of dying is precisely what transforms the world.
It may not seem to be heroic, but in many ways it is more so. And for me it's just as scary. And the reason is because, unlike jumping into the water to save a drowning person, these opportunities to lay down my life are all around me. They don't have to come my way. They're right in front of me...every day, and in nearly every circumstance. So, what am I going to do? Will I stand on the shore and watch? Will I stare at the burning building and listen to the cries inside? Will I jump into the life boat first? Will I continue to look out for #1?
My friends, the death of our bodies is largely out of our hands. We take care of ourselves the best we can and leave the rest to God. That's all God asks. But the other kind of dying? Well, we do get a say in that. And God does invite us to more. So, I think I'll choose the way I am going to die today, and tomorrow, and the next day too! And by doing so, share in the greatest kind of love!
"No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." We have the opportunity to do this every day in every situation if we so choose!