Dear Friends,
In the midst of this pandemic that won’t let go and in the ensuing
civic climate that is so lacking in mutual cooperation, let’s turn to today’s
readings for solace, wisdom and courage to go on.
The Israelites that Joshua leads in the first reading are
second generation travelers, born after the exodus began. They were on the
journey but without conviction and without commitment. Joshua says to them, “Decide
today whom you will serve and be faithful” (Joshua 24.15).
In the Gospel, we have a graphic picture of how the claims
and promises of Jesus aroused cynicism, ridicule and contempt. How could this
man give us his flesh to eat and his blood to drink? “This sort of talk is hard
to endure,” (John 6.60) the people said. They rejected the very thing that could
get them through life with its harrowing aspects. Many of them left Jesus’ company.
Perhaps some who left after his sermon on the Eucharist went
away sad. They may have wished that Jesus had not said what he said. Now they
had to make a choice as the Israelites did in the book of Joshua.
Jesus turned to his close followers: “Do you want to leave
me, too?” (John 6.67).
A wonderful thing about Jesus is that He is not insecure. He
permits his disciples to make a choice. But even though He left people free to
choose, Jesus himself did not back down from what his critics called his “hard
sayings.” He didn’t say: “Look. You misunderstand me. I was only speaking in
symbols. Let me say it another way.” Jesus meant what he said and said what he
meant. And then he waited for his disciples to respond. He waits for us, too.
Some of us may have indeed gone away – gone away from Christ
or at least from the Church. Perhaps the fragile bud of or faith, the
enthusiasm of our service, our sense of belonging, was crushed. Maybe we found
the church forbidding, unyielding, unloving and have walked out the door. Maybe
some of us got up one Sunday and didn’t go to church, and after that it was
easy not to. Others of us may be like the Israelites, drifting within our
church and never really making a choice. Maybe our minds and hearts have gone
away, but our feet still take us to church. If we’ve stayed and been alert, we
are still not exempt from Jesus’ question, called as we are to deepen in faith with
Jesus.
We do not know how it will be for us when we are tempted to
go away because God seems to demand so much.
When we can’t seem to find words to respond to the God who
asks us, “Will you stay or will you go away?” we can at least borrow the words
of Peter to make our own – to say them over and over again until they come to
us as naturally as breathing:
“Lord,
to whom shall we go?
Your
words are the word of eternal life.
We
have come to believe and are convinced that
You
are the Holy One of God” (John 6.68-69).
~Sister Joan Sobala
