12th Sunday of Ordinary Time - Fr. Leo
“Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father.
But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.” (MT 10:32-33)
What does it mean to acknowledge Christ before others? Or to deny him?
Saying, I believe in Jesus Christ, is an acknowledgment of Christ as our Lord and Savior. However, what Matthew refers to above is far deeper than a profession on the lips that could, or could not be, backed up by a life lived in the Spirit of Christ. To acknowledge Christ is to live his truth and love from the heart, indeed, with all one’s being. It is the life behind our words that makes the Spirit of Christ present in the eternal-now of human experience.
Here is how I see this Word of God being expressed in our current civil unrest brought to life by the merciless killing of George Floyd. We hear and see the phrase, “Black Lives Matter,” This is a God given truth. The statement points to systemic injustice that is prejudice lived out over hundreds of years. A prejudice that insists on the dehumanizing of people created in the image of God.
As Christians, we are called to embrace this injustice as we work and pray for a unity celebrated in our Eucharist where we are all made one in the one loaf and the one cup. At the same time, we must not lose sight of the Church universal. All humanity has a place at the Lord’s table as we are all created in the image of God.
It is also Truth that working for justice cannot be accomplished with violence and revenge. This is denying Christ and only creates more injustice and encourages continued prejudice. Looting and burning places down is not the work of the Holy Spirit. So as we work on all the complexities of creating community in our divided lives, we need to pray for all who are so pained that they act out in harmful ways. We must listen to their voice to know what their injustice is, and if it can be acknowledged by the larger community.
Lastly, and this is not a popular thought, but we are also called in Christ too, not only pray for the repose of the soul of George Floyd, we are also called to pray for Derek Chauvin his killer. He too is created in God’s image and needs the healing of God. Our prayer does not justify his behavior, but strives to bring healing to the division caused by everyone’s fear and misjudgments of others.
Hatred will only be replaced by understanding and love when all voices are honestly heard and when personal responsibility for our actions sheds light on everyone’s pain.
Living God’s truth, acknowledging Christ, is to express our faith and hope in a God who is over us all to make us one though many, and to bring the Creator’s unity to our diversity. Christ rises above culture and brings unity where there is division.
Let us all pray for peace, work for justice, and strive to love all from our hearts. Then Christ will be made known, and we will have acknowledged him before others.