Faith Seeks Us

Scripture Reflection for the Sixth Sunday of Easter (May 13, 2012)

Scripture Readings:
Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48
Ps 98
1 John 4:7-10
John 15:9-17

We all have heard that secularism is growing in the U.S. and in many other developed countries. The attendance of Sunday Mass has fallen in the last 10 years and religious freedom is under attack from many sides. More and more people seem to think they can live better without religion. A few decades ago Americans without religious belief formed a minority in this country and had to defend their position by answering to the question “Why don’t you believe?” But today a growing number of atheist groups put Christian students on college campuses in the defense and many young people are struggling with answering challenging questions about their faith and why they are part of any religious group. More and more people can’t understand why someone would need “religion” and what religious beliefs and practices are all about.

So what is it about? The point is that faith is not about me. Unlike many other aspects of our lives, we don’t choose to believe. We can say that to believe in God is not really our fault. All three readings for this Sunday make that very clear. Jesus affirms in our Gospel reading that “it was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain.” And also St. John clarifies in his first letter what it means to love God: Namely, “not that we have loved God, but that God loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.” And our first reading from the Acts of the Apostles tells the astonishing story of the Roman centurion Cornelius who received the Holy Spirit even before being baptized by Simon Peter. “Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit even as we have?” Peter asks the other apostles.

No – it is not us who seek faith… Faith seeks us. Being part of the Church is not like being part of a club or a political party, even if some people would like to see it that way… Faith is about entering into a loving relationship with God – to get to know God. And the initiator of this relationship is not us – but God! Try to imagine that God was one of your colleagues in college. There is this person who you don’t really care much about and in fact, you just treated him or her really badly. But instead of returning the favor, this person keeps reaching out to you; keeps loving you; keeps trusting you; even dies for you. What would you think? What would be your reaction? Wouldn’t the most logical answer be to want to get to know this person? Why does he or she act like that? Who is this? And that’s exactly what the first Christians tried to figure out. And the experience of Jesus’ incarnation, death and resurrection could lead to only one answer: This God who doesn’t stop reaching out to us and even sends his own son to die for us – this God can’t be but love.

And this answer makes all the difference! How many people think that our faith is about rules and regulations and hierarchy and morals? But all of our tradition and rituals and teachings have their roots in this profound experience of God’s love for us. “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love,” Jesus says in the Gospel of John. “Remain in my love…” And here is how: “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.” Jesus invites us to a response. Jesus invites us into a relationship. And here is the next surprise. Jesus doesn’t say “I have loved you, so my commandment is that you should also love me.” Instead Jesus says: “This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” Isn’t that amazing? Jesus wants us to be like him and have the same love for one another that Jesus has for us. So what is our faith all about? The readings lead us to a simple answer: To remain in God’s love for us by loving one another!

People may think they don’t need “religion”, but who can live without the love of God? Maybe we need to do a better job in showing people that the new commandment truly is the central message of the Gospel and the foundations of all our beliefs. Maybe we need to do a better job in respecting opposing positions and experiences within the Church; in listening to one another and helping one another. And we also need to do a better job in bringing Christ’s love to the world around us and be courageous in proclaiming the Good News like Peter was, without making differences.

As we gather to receive Christ present in the Eucharist this Sunday, let us ask for the grace to grow in our love for one another so be a witness of God’s love for the world.