From Father Nick: Is God a Father whom we can trust and therefore find our fulfillment with him?...Or his he a tyrant, whom we cannot trust and therefore we must separate from in order to find our fulfillment? (credit to fathermike schmitz) Adam and Eve give the wrong answer whereas Jesus shows us the right answer to the question. We find our fulfillment in communion with God not independently of him! And we also see from our readings that distrust, disobedience leads to death, while trust and obedience leads to life! Full Homily: Today’s readings get to the heart of the human situation. Is God a Father who we can trust and therefore we can seek our fulfillment in Him? Or is God a tyrant who I cannot trust and therefore must seek our fulfillment independently of Him? This is the question that our existence in the world poses to us, and this is the question that the people in our readings answer in totally opposite ways. First, Adam and Eve. Their answer to the question is… God is a tyrant, we cannot trust him, and therefore we must seek our fulfillment independent of him. Let’s take another look at our first reading. “The serpent asked the woman, ‘Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?’ The woman answered the serpent: ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; it is only about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘You shall not eat it or even touch it, lest you die.’’ But the serpent said to the woman: ‘You certainly will not die! No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is good and what is evil.’ The serpent is saying God is a liar. That you can’t trust him. He is a tyrant. The serpent is saying to Eve, “Hey, you need to remove yourself from this oppressive relationship. You need to eat from this tree otherwise, you won’t be like gods. God is just keeping you down.” You don’t need him…And what do Adam and Eve do? They give into the lie that says they can’t trust God. They don’t think they will reach fulfillment in this relationship with God and so they, separate themselves from God by eating from the forbidden tree. As a side note. God created Eve as a helpmate for Adam. Eve was supposed to be good for Adam. In this case she leads him away from God. This is a distortion of what the marital relationship should be. Spouses are meant to bring each other towards God. They should help each other become saints! Adam and Eve saw God as a tyrant and someone they couldn’t trust and therefore sought fulfillment independently of him. And as a result of their sin of not trusting God, death entered the world. Because of Adam and Eve’s disobedience, we all now experience death. The result of our first parents’ sin, is that death enters the world. One of the gifts that Adam and Eve enjoyed before their sin was immortality. God had given them the grace to live forever. But as we read in our second reading, their disobedience would mean eventual death to them and to the rest of the human race. Listen to St. Paul, “Brothers and sisters: Through one man sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all men.” Because of their disobedience, their distrust of God, death entered the world. Distrust of God, Disobedience to God brings death. Jesus on the other hand, knew God to be his Father. He was therefore able to trust God, and stay united to him in his will and ultimately reach his fulfillment in communion with God the Father. In our gospel today, we see that to every temptation that the Devil brings Jesus, Jesus responds by referring to God. Jesus’s point of reference was always God. Listen again, the devil says, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.” Jesus responds, “One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.” He refers to the mouth of God. Next one. The devil says, “If you are the son of God, throw yourself down.” Jesus responds, “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.” And finally, the devil tempts Jesus by promising him, “All these kingdoms I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.” And again Jesus responds, “Get away, Satan! It is written: ‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.’” In each of these responses Jesus goes back to God the Father. He doesn’t separate himself from God like Adam and Eve do, rather he clings to God. He knows that he can trust God, He knows that his fulfillment is found in communion with God, and therefore he doesn’t seek independence from God. Jesus knows that God is his Father and trusts him, and therefore seeks his fulfillment in God. As a result of Jesus’s obedience and trust in the Father, we are given the possibility of eternal life. It is through Christ’s trusting of the Father that heaven is open to us. It is only through the obedience of Christ that we can reach heaven. Listen again to St. Paul, “Just as through one transgression condemnation came upon all, so, through one righteous act, acquittal and life came to all.” “Life came to all,” St. Paul says. Because Jesus trusted and was obedient to God, heaven is open to us. Trust of God brings us life, obedience gives us life. And so, my friends the questioned is posed to us today, Do we see God as a tyrant? Or do we see him as Father? Do we fully trust that staying united to him and doing his will bring us fulfillment? Or do we not fully trust Him, and think we still need to cling to certain sins or attachments, thinking that if we give up these, I won’t be happy? Look to Christ, our Mother Mary, and all the saints. They gave themselves fully to God and were not disappointed. They were the ones that reached fulfillment in this life and enjoy the Glory of God in heaven. They trusted God, they were obedient to his will in their lives and therefore, they received life to the full. This Lent, take the next step and trust that your creator, God, is your Father who wants what is best for you. And therefore, to live according to his will, to seek him in prayer constantly, to serve him, yes to serve him, actually leads to your fulfillment. In particular, go to confession, hand over to him those sins, and attachments that you have trouble letting go of. I’ll be in the confessional after mass today. Make this Lent a fruitful one by realizing God is not a tyrant. He is not a liar, someone you need to separate from in order to find fulfillment. Like Adam and Eve showed us. Distrust, disobedience leads to death. Rather know that he is your Father, you can trust him, and find your fulfillment in a life lived in him. As Christ showed us, trust and obedience lead to life. God is your Father, you can trust him, you will find your fulfillment in a life lived in him! Trust leads to life, Distrust leads to death!
Posted on: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 14:44:25 +0000