Deacon Tom Writes,
“We’ve Got to Change Our Evil Ways!”
The title of Carlos Santana’s hit song “You’ve Got to Change our Evil Ways” is a message we can take to heart from today’s readings. The song lyrics aren’t talking about the same things St. Paul told the Corinthians, but the mantra remains the same.
In today’s reading Paul reminded the Israelites of their ancestors’ forty-year experience wandering in the desert. He said they, “all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink” nonetheless, they were “struck down in the desert” because their spiritual food “did not change their evil desires.”
This part is important. Paul emphasized this, “(these words) have been written down as a warning to us, upon whom the end of the ages has come.”
Manna was the Israelites’ physical and spiritual food. Ours is the Eucharist.
What’s on your spiritual plate?
Listening to the readings today, do you get a better awareness of the Eucharist as our “spiritual food and drink”? Do you feel the message that Jesus is present in the Eucharist to help us on our own desert journey?
Do Paul’s words give you a deeper sense of the Eucharist as a real transformation in which we experience Christ—and more importantly—that like the bread and wine, we too are permanently changed and transformed into the “Mystical Body of Christ”?
“But Deacon Tom…I’m not evil…”
True. If you were, you probably wouldn’t be reading this right now reflecting on your Lenten journey.
“So, if I’m not evil, how does this apply to me?”
I’m glad you asked.
Paul’s words apply to everyone because we can do better. In traditional Catholic education there are two types of sin—sins of action and sins of omission. We often consider “evil” as we see it on the news—crime, war, tragedy. We hang the label of “evil” on the other guy, not ourselves.
But the sins of omission—those missed opportunities to participate in the Kingdom of God around us every day—those add up too. Please take a moment to click the link for the photo credit today and read the story of the photo “The Vulture and the Little Girl” and the journalist, Kevin Carter, who took this Pulitzer Winning photo. It deeply underscores the message in the readings today.
If we want to live in the Kingdom of God—the one Jesus revealed to us throughout his ministry and the one Paul discussed today—we need to make some significant changes to the way we think, in how we live our lives, and how we relate to and interact with one another. Can we be kinder? Can we step out of our path to give someone help? Can we be the heroes the world needs us to be?
I challenge you to first notice your day-to-day flow—the times when you can do a little bit better. Then, make those changes.
Whether you call it “repentance,” “a change of heart,” or “metanoia” the process of making these changes is the same thing. You’re taking action.
Lent gives us the opportunity to reboot—to examine our lives and “change our evil ways.” This is challenging. It requires commitment, discipline, and perseverance. As followers of Christ, this is a challenge we face not only during our Lenten journey but throughout our entire lives. It is hard but necessary work if we are to become productive members of the Kingdom of God that Jesus invites us to seek.
Paul warned us. “Don’t be like them.” We can learn from the Israelites. They had all the spiritual food they needed but didn’t “change their evil ways.”
We have the food of everlasting life in the Eucharist…if, and only if… it gives us the heartfelt desire to “change our evil ways” and live as the Children of God, in whose image we have been made.
In God’s divine plan, new life and transformation go hand in hand.
If there is no transformation, there is no new life! And, if there is no new life, then our evil ways will have dire spiritual consequences. If the Eucharist produces no new life in us—if we’re just going through the motions—we’re no better off than our spiritual ancestors who were struck down in the desert and never entered the Promised Land.
We’re the fig tree in today’s Gospel. If there are no figs, the fig tree gets cut down. Lent is the chance to say “Wait!” so we can fertilize the soil around our roots and bear fruit.
I hope we all take advantage of this season fully.
On to the rest of the day, with Santana’s song playing in my head.
Enjoy the day!
Deacon Tom
Recommended Reading: “Into the Silent Land: A Guide to the Christian Practice of Contemplation” by Fr. Martin Laird, O.S.A
“We are built for contemplation.” We often associate meditation and contemplation with Eastern religions. Fr. Laird’s book shows the rich history of Catholic contemplation in both the Eastern and Western rites, and how it’s enriches our spiritual journey.
This is a very readable book that includes history and modern-day examples.
Podcast: Fr. Dan Horan and David Dault: “The Francis Effect”
The tagline for this podcast is “Two theologians walk into a bar… No, seriously.” “The Francis Effect” is about “the world of politics and current effects as seen through the world of Catholic teaching and spirituality.” No political or global event is off limits. Fr. Dan Horan is a Franciscan friar and David Dault is a producer and convert to Catholicism. This is and engaging and thoughtful look at polarizing issues—the type that give us the opportunity to reflect and put St. Paul’s words into practice.
No comments:
Post a Comment