How hard is it?

 We continue the discussion around faith and works with a question that arises following on from last week. The question that comes to mind is the one in the title: How hard is it? How hard is it to bring faith and works together as one rather than to go one way or the other? By all accounts the answer to that is an easy one: extremely hard. We know that this, of course, is not impossible but, yes, for us living in a society that is based solely and almost irrevocably on the selfishness inherent in the human condition, the answer is extremely difficult. We have been conditioned over years to take the most selfish view of our world by advertising, big corporates and governments throughout the world. Of course, that seems a very cynical but perhaps accurate description of the reality in which we live. Being present in the world as followers of Christ there is a constant need to remind ourselves that there is a different way, the way that the first disciples and Christ himself proposes, the way of self sacrifice or sacrifice for the other. 

In Mark's gospel Christ clearly states that as followers we need to sacrifice ourselves and pick up the cross before we begin to follow Christ (8:34). This is more and more a thing of the past. Self sacrifice seems to have left the psyche of the Australian people as a whole during our struggles with COVID and our new environment. One would think that the memories of the ANZAC are things of the past that are only celebrated as part of a national day and that is all it means. Yet, as Christians we are specifically called into all situations in terms of sacrifice. We are asked to make things holy and sacred through our actions and our total belief in Christ. Few today would even consider that this is a viable option moving forward in a world that is shattered by viral overload and violence. Most would persevere in the preserving of oneself rather than offering a true sacrifice to assist the other. In doing so, we do not lay down that which Christ calls us to leave behind but rather we embrace our selfishness as a life belt rather than the anchor that it truly is. In writing this I am reminded of being told of a person who after strict orders to remain in his car while his medication was put in to the boot, on arrival entered the pharmacy and harangued the staff. He basically said that if he was infected with COVID Albury was anyway as he had already entered two other stores.

Only by using both do we go straight

The reading from Proverbs encapsulates this in such a brilliant fashion when the writer speaking for Wisdom declares that "Evil men (sic)" reject wisdom as they hate this and are told that they will only come to a poor end (Prov. 1:31-33). The wisdom that comes from God, in this case, is not that of humanity at the present time. It is a wisdom that is timeless and is honoured by more than just Christian believers. We just need to look at some of the writings of indigenous peoples from across the world who proclaim the same sense of understanding and compassion for the other as being the true path that a wise person travels. It is only when we begin to chase after faith or works on its own that we are tempted by the selfishness that is at the heart of our species make-up and fail to recognise their two sided nature. The author of James is succinct and correct when they state that "faith without works is dead" (James 2: 26), just as you cannot have a single sided coin of any worth. We treat the two as being individual rather than a singularity which is why we do not pick up the cross and follow Christ.

Christ did not just stay on the mountain top but he went down to Jerusalem. Christ did not just walk among the community but also went to the desolate places. Both needs to be done and if we neglect the one we do not feed the other. In this time of lockdowns and other issues, when it comes to how we interact with each other, there is a sense of loss and grief. Only when we put that to the side and pick up those things that are given to us to undertake will we have a real sense of Christ's presence in ourselves. Only when we put aside our own wants and griefs and stand in the shoes of those in greater need then ourselves will we be able to truly experience the love of God flowing into the community through our actions and our contemplations. We abide in Christ in the eucharistic presence so that we can show Christ in the works that we undertake sheltering the community and opening their eyes to God's redeeming love.