In today’s Gospel Story for the Feast of the Ascension (Luke 24:46-53) Jesus again talks about “repentance for the forgiveness of sins” that would be preached to all nations in his name. As always, this Story can be as personal as I want it to be, or not. It’s starting to feel very personal. In the majority report the Story is about Jesus preparing his disciples to live with him not being with them as they have become used to, but in a whole new way.
The minority report says a lot to me if I let it. It reminds me to be alert to what is going on in and around me at any given time, not be comfortable with where I am but always ready to to led to where I need to be, in prayer, in thinking, in action. Repentance is an ongoing journey of letting the Spirit lead me to change where I look for my happiness. In the verse from Matthew Jesus says, “Go and teach all nations”. This does not mean simply passing on ideas, or that “this is the truth and you have to believe it”. It is not just accepting data into my brain. It is having my own personal encounter with the risen Christ today, here and now, and going where this takes me.
When I limit my focus to my personal sin I can easily forget, or ignore, systemic or social sins, which are real. Jesus was very attentive to people who were suffering because of temple and empire systems that caused hurt. If my focus is only on what I do that is wrong, I don’t have to look at how systems, whether church or state, are causing people to suffer. I don’t have to worry about taking care of our planet, climate crises or economic disparity, how countries, including my own, treat migrants, or deal with homeless people. Of course, speaking of these things is not popular with folks who think the Gospel is okay for church but not for real life outside church, which I have been told a lot.
Perhaps the most important thing Jesus is saying to me in this is when he is reminding me that “I am with you always until the end of the world”. He said that “I am the way, the truth, and the life”. Not dogmas, ideas, practices, as important as they are, but our personal encounter with Christ in our own life, to which everything in our tradition points, and when we let them, to whom they lead us. It is easy, especially these days, to get so caught up in the gobbledygook of everyday living that I forget he is with me. This is not just an intellectual exercise, but a real experience that really happens. In no way am I ever alone. This realization is wonderful.
Jesus is offering us salvation. Not just me, but all of us. When Jesus’ disciples asked him how to pray, he did not tell them “My Father”, but “Our Father”, “lead us not into temptation”, “deliver us from evil”. Salvation doesn’t just mean I’m going to heaven after I die. It means we all together are growing into the fulness and wholeness for which we are being created, and my salvation involves me doing everything I can to help all the others in my life in their own growing into salvation. We are all in this together. Jesus reminds me that how I am treating others is how I am treating him. My personal salvation is intimately connected with the salvation of everybody in my life. These days it is extremely difficult with the angry polarization that is all around us, and it is where Jesus is telling me, “I am with you always until the end of the world”. It’s worth noting that Pope Leo’s first words were “Peace be with all of you”.
This past week I have had several experiences that remind me every one of us is fighting a battle or carrying a load that the rest of us don’t know or understand. How do I share my experience of a loving Abba with them when I don’t understand it myself? Folks’ depth of personal hurt and pain is hurtful itself. Some do a pretty good job of hiding their battles, and I really don’t know how they do it. I’m constantly being reminded of all this as I stumble around with my self-centered ineptitude. The Ignation Examen at the end of each day is helping me be aware of this – both of others’ suffering and my mistakes in dealing with them. So in this sense “repentance for the forgiveness of sin” is forever taking on new and practical meanings, and often with very specific choices.
There is terrible suffering of all kinds happening around the world. The blaming and scapegoating generate their own suffering, often dividing families and relationships against each other. Because of the decisions of a few who happen to be in power around the world, untold numbers of people are suffering painfully. The common reaction is to divert blame away from ourselves. If I’m serious about following Jesus I have to keep asking what am I called to do. What is going on in Gaza, Haiti, Ukraine, many other places, international borders, in our own country, tragically defies description. LGBTQ+ month, which begins this weekend, reminds me of how my brothers and sisters are being treated, allegedly in Jesus’ name, simply because of how they see themselves or who they love.
Perhaps it’s time to look at myself and my role in all this, although I have no idea of what it might be. It’s easy to hide behind the majority report, but if I’m serious about trying to follow Jesus I have to let the minority report speak to me without telling it what I want to hear. “Repentance” is an ongoing journey, even a process. It is often uncomfortable and humbling, showing me things about myself that I don’t want to see. What attitudes am I asked to change?. When I read this Gospel Story I feel upset and edgy. I feel it’s leading me someplace, but I don’t know where.
Strange as it might seem, the Army Values have something to say here: “Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage”. Some 56 years ago I took an oath to live them with God’s help. And, as today I finish my 85th journey around the sun, they might be worth looking at again, and make sure they are not just a stated value, but an operational value. Just sayin . . .