For many of us, it is difficult to walk into a Church, even our own
parish Church. We enter, perhaps the thought comes into our minds: God is
looking at me. How does he see me
this week. Was I better? Was I worse? Some of us may have been away from
Church for a few weeks, or months, or years. Maybe we need to talk to Him about
our absence. For some of us that
might mean our absence from practicing the faith on Sundays, and receiving
communion. For others, perhaps for most of us, that might mean our absence from
practicing the faith in our daily lives.
Sometimes it is scary to look at the cross. Sometimes we want to join
the Tax Collector and sit in the back and say, “Lord, have mercy on me a
sinner.” For some of us it is difficult to walk into the Church. We are concerned: Are other people
looking at me? Maybe there are people here who have seen me at my worse. Maybe some have heard stories that I
cannot deny. There are some people
here who are so serious about the faith, far more than I have been. Do I belong
here with them? Am I treading on their turf? The priest often talks about each of us being a different
member of the Body of Christ, but, honestly, sometimes I think I might be a
toenail. For some of us it can be difficult to walk into a Church because we
may fear that we are joining those who are “holier than thou.” Thoughts fly through our heads
that so many others are ignoring God this Sunday, but we are here. We think, “How many members of my extended
family will not worship this weekend?”
And the thought flashes quickly into our minds: That must make me better
than them. Then we realize that we
are judging others, and acting like that Pharisee who went to the Temple to
remind God of how much better he was than others. For some of us it was
difficult to walk into Church today.
But we need to be here. The relationship with God that each of us has
been gifted with flows through the Church, the Saved Community. It is through the Saved Community that
we offer Christ on the Cross to our Heavenly Father. It is through the Saved Community that we receive Jesus’
Body and Blood. We need to nurture
our role in this Community. At the same time, our relationship with God is
unique. We are individuals. In the eyes of God no one is
fundamentally better or worse than another person. He created us to be ourselves, our best selves. That’s how
He sees us. Our God
really is a Good, Good Father.
Good parents do not view their children as better or worse than each
other. They see them as different
from each other. “This child
struggles in math but is a great reader.
His brother is the exact opposite.” Good parents see both children as unique and care for them
for whom each is, not in comparison to their brother or sister. We are God’s
children. God sees us as
individuals. He loves each of us
as unique individuals. Yes, He
sees our sinfulness, but He forgives each of us for the times we have not
returned his love. None of us are fundamentally better than any other
person. We all live under the
Mercy of God. Sadly our Catholic faith is often accused of putting people on guilt
trips. This is not true. Catholicism
puts people on reality trips. Catholicism dares to speak about unpopular topics like sin. Catholicism dares to invite people to
consider their own participation in sin and seek forgiveness. It asserts that
our salvation is a process we are engaged in. We are being saved. Catholicism recognizes that as human
beings we are continually tempted to sin. Sometimes we give in to
temptation. Our Church reminds us
that the Lord was one of us. He
experienced temptation, and, though He did not give in to temptation, He understands
our need for mercy. He gives us
the Sacrament of Mercy, Penance, because He wants His Mercy not our guilt to
direct our lives. Catholicism is not concerned with guilt. It is concerned with
mercy. People are continually
telling their priests how much they need the Mercy of God. They are
realists. We all need the mercy of
God. As we come to a deeper understanding of all that God has done for us, we
also come to a deeper understanding of how much we need His mercy and
forgiveness. Sometimes we read
about great saints like St. Francis of Assisi or Mother Teresa of Calcutta, and
we are shocked that they and all the saints saw themselves as great
sinners. The saints had a profound
realization of the extent of God’s love for them and the many times they have
not returned His love. We are all called to be saints. We are called to holiness. If we strive to respond to the call to
holiness, to sanctity, then we also must realize how much we need God’s mercy! Today
this parable leads us to the Pilgrim’s Prayer. The pilgrim’s prayer is both simple and profound. It is the
prayer of the man in the back of the Temple who realized that he is totally
dependent on God’s love, a love that he had often rejected. The pilgrim’s prayer is the prayer that
we all need to say with our hearts throughout our day. The Pilgrim’s Prayer is: Lord Jesus,
have mercy on me a sinner. A Pharisee and a tax collector go into the Temple.
Only one prays. Only one is a
humble enough to recognize his need for the Healing Hand of God. And that one leaves in the embrace of
the Lord’s love. For some of us, it is difficult to walk into a Church. But God is here. We need Him. We need His Mercy. We need the strength of His sacraments. We need to walk into the Church
because we need the strength and the courage He provides. We need His grace so we can walk out of
the Church with Him • AE
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