Homily

When I am in Chicago the bishop invites me to eat with him, and now that he is not living in the chancery office building anymore, we eat in his apartment instead of the chancery office, where there are always five or six other people nearby and phones ringing and people going back and forth. And I notice that he seems much more relaxed dining in his own apartment than in the workplace. I understand that. And I think we have had better conversations because of that. (Bishop Benedict asked me to give to you his warm greetings in the Lord.)

One breakfast this past week we were talking perceptions, how people see things. He said, “This is why I sent you to Ukraine. Before that you knew some things about Ukraine but after you went there actually living in Ukraine, being in Ukraine, seeing with your own eyes and hearing with your own ears what Ukraine is, now you know Ukraine much, much better. Being there gave you a different perspective.” And, of course, that is very true. I know Ukraine much better now, having been there. I have a much better idea of what Ukraine is all about.

This is true also about traveling to other countries. We may go there to visit churches, shrines, to see places of interest and beauty. But hopefully we also go there because seeing another country and another culture helps us to see our own country and culture more clearly, because we can see and compare how we live and think about our world with the way that other people live and think about their world. I remember when I was in Istanbul, a very big city, of course, and we were walking through the oldest sections of town, where many tourists can be found. And as we walked down the street in this urban area of apartments where there is no front yard (or back yard for that matter) the children play on the sidewalks and in the street. All kinds of people are passing right by them, but their parents are not worried about the safety of their children. It was an atmosphere of freedom for children. It reminded me of how in the same way the streets were filled with kids when I was a child, and how, so differently we now have to be, so much more careful with our children today in 21st century America. That contrast was very thought-provoking. Why can their kids play freely so close to so many strangers walking by, but our own kids cannot? So, visiting other places can help us see our own lives, our own reality, a little better.

It’s not only other places that can give us insight, but our interactions with other people can also help us see ourselves better. We can learn from other people how to live as better Christians, or we can learn how we should not be thinking or doing as Christians. We may think we know ourselves very well, but in our encounters with other people, if we are humble and open to it, we may find we do not know ourselves as well as we think we do. I like to think that I am a generous and thoughtful person. But there are many times when I see other people acting in ways that are very generous and very thoughtful, much more than I am. And when I see that I realize I am not nearly as generous as I would like to think that I am. Other people can help me see who I am and how I am, more clearly, if I am open to seeing it. Not because they are intentionally trying to do so, but in my interaction with other people their behavior can serve as a light for me so I can better see my own behavior. Then, when I see my weaknesses, it is my part to try and do better, with the Lord’s help.

St. Paul tells Timothy in today’s epistle: “… remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it …” Timothy has learned a great deal from Paul, not just in words, but also in deeds. While it’s true we could also learn some very bad behavior from the time we spend with others, I think it is so important that we are always open to the idea that the words and actions of other people can help us understand ourselves better, and see ourselves more clearly. This stands in stark contrast with how so many people live today, believing that they are the best and only source of wisdom for their lives. They shut out any information that runs against what they want to think or believe or how they want to behave. They live in their own reality which cannot be criticized or improved, because they reject any idea that stands against what they want. For example, I think of those eternal rioters up in Portland. I cannot think of any single good thing that is coming from their actions, and that destruction and hatred are the tools they are working with, not to create anything better, but only to satisfy their own self-centered desires. How sad, and how dangerous both for us and for them.

So many people today reject the idea that greater wisdom and insight can be found outside of themselves and what used to be considered the passing arrogance of youth is now often the standard for behavior in adults. Is it any surprise then that even the truth of Christ is dismissed as irrelevant to living the good life? Even God Himself has no business telling me how to think or what to do. What can be more arrogant than that attitude?

The Pharisee tells God all the sins he did not commit, the good deeds that he can praise himself for. But clearly he does not stand in a good relationship with God because all the praise he offers goes to himself, and all the scorn he mentions goes to everyone else. The Gospel says he prayed to himself, “I thank you God…” But it doesn’t seem that he believes that God actually had anything to do with his self-proclaimed goodness. And when he looks at the Publican how can he think anything else except to use him in contrast, as evidence of his own moral superiority? But the Publican is not there for self-praise. He’s there for God, to offer himself in humility before the Lord and to beg pardon for his sins. Simple. Heartfelt. Wise. And the Lord sends him home a better man than he was before he came to the temple.

Let us also strive to be simple in our hearts and wise in our desire to see ourselves as we truly are in this world using the mirrors of people, places, and God’s grace as we stand before the Lord, so that we too may always go home better than we came for the Lord’s mercy will support us.