Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

This Thursday, the Fourth of July, we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. That document proclaims clearly these truths: “…that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Let’s rededicate ourselves to these founding principles – equality, life, liberty, happiness -- for all people.

The word of God today speaks to those principles. For example, in the 9th century before Jesus (the 800s), God called Elisha to succeed Elijah as a prophetic voice. In a symbolic gesture, Elijah placed his mantle, a symbol of authority, over Elisha.

Elisha answered God’s call with a “yes.” He didn’t know how life would unfold; he simply trusted in God’s design for him, in God's unconditional love for him.

God also calls us to live a life of discipleship. Not yesterday or sometime in the future, but today! What is our response? Jesus makes it clear in the Gospel of Luke: don’t look at what we’re leaving behind. Move forward in faith.

The Jesuit Fr. John Powell, in his book Through Seasons of the Heart, noted a Christian tradition indicating that God sends each person into this world with a special message to deliver, a special song to sing for others, a special act of love to bestow. None of us is too young, too weak, or too old to deliver a message, to sing a song, to love. Each of us has a mission to fulfill in this world, given to us by God himself. God may be asking us, are we fulfilling God’s call in our life? As our life unfolds with its challenges and opportunities, do we trust in God's unconditional love for us?

We may sometimes judge others, like James and John in today’s Gospel, who were angry at the Samaritans. Jews generally considered Samaritans foreigners despite their common Hebrew heritage. The two disciples wanted to obliterate these Samaritans with so-called pyrotechnics for their lack of hospitality. But Jesus rebukes the disciples and continues to Jerusalem. On his way, someone asks to follow Jesus. Jesus’s reply indicates discipleship is making God our first priority in life.

Paul, in his letter to the Christian community in Galatia, proclaims that Jesus has freed us from our worse selves (the vices of our dark side) so that we can be our better or authentic selves (by living a life of virtue).

Yes, the Spirit of God lives and moves and breathes within us so that we can become our authentic selves, true sons and daughters of God our Father and heirs to the kingdom of God. Paul may ask, how are we using our freedom to become our authentic selves?

This insight of St. Paul’s particularly intrigued me. Jesus has freed us to become our authentic selves. That’s what joy and happiness are all about. Everybody wants happiness. But what’s the secret to happiness? One author wrote that to be happy is to:
forgive and apologize (we all make mistakes) and move on;
listen to advice;
keep your temper;
share the blame;
make the best of situations (most things in life seldom work out perfectly); and put the needs of others before your own desires.

That’s the secret to happiness.

Many think that if they get enough money, fame, or power, they’ll be happy. But if so, explain how Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, and other celebrities who “had it all” sedated themselves with drugs. Happiness has to factor into life: work with its stresses; relationships with their tensions; disappointments with their dreams; guilt about what one did or didn’t do; health or the lack thereof; and ultimately death.

Bishop Robert Barron, of “Word on Fire” fame, cites Michael Jordan as an example of someone who became his happiest not by playing basketball any way he wanted but by mastering the basics. So too with us. Mastering the basics of discipleship with Jesus. So, what are the basics?

First, at one point in his ministry, many followers left Jesus. Jesus then turned to his inner circle and asked, “Do you also want to leave?” Peter replied, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

Yes, we become our happiest by mastering the basics (e.g., the beatitudes). Then we will become our authentic selves. So what sort of people should we be? In the opening verses of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus answers the question. He describes the kind of character we should have. The first four steps focus on our relationship with God. The next four steps, our relationships with one another.

Disciples recognize that only God can fill their emptiness. That’s what it means to be poor in spirit. Disciples are fragile creatures whom an awesome Creator gifted with life. God didn’t have to create us. Disciples realize their fortune to be alive and are grateful to God for that life, and they owe this awesome God praise and glory and honor. Disciples beg for healing and salvation and know only God can heal and gift them with eternal life. They are gentle, considerate and unassuming. Disciples, above all, hunger for a right relationship with God.

The next four beatitudes or attitudes or steps have to do with our relationships with one another. Fortunate are they who forgive wrongs done to them and let go of their anger and resentment. God will be merciful to them because they realize how much they themselves need God’s mercy. Fortunate are they who are pure in heart, who have integrity, openness, and authenticity in their relationships with others; they will see God face to face.

The literary critic H. L. Mencken described conscience as the “inner voice which warns us that someone may be looking.” That is a good guide for transparency in our relationships. Fortunate are they who don’t stir up conflict but try to be at peace with themselves, with others, and with God.

And lastly, fortunate are they who are ready to suffer rather than betray their conscience, who try to do the right thing in all decisions, small and great, that affect work, career, family, relationships, life.

I pray that the beatitudes will inspire us, disciples of the Master, to become our authentic selves, to live in a right relationship with God and one another in grateful happiness forever.