Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
Last year at this time, we had a pope who had resigned, and we were debating and waiting, wondering who the new pope would be. It would be an understatement to say that Pope Benedict XVI's retirement was a surprise; it would be still more an understatement to say that Pope Francis's papacy has been a series of surprises - from paying his own bill at his hotel to his off-the-cuff remarks in interviews. Yet, commenters on both popes have noted that their actions are things that make sense. It makes sense that someone in his mid-80s might retire from an exhausting head-of-state jet-setting life, and that a cardinal who has always refrained from living in fancy houses would continue to refrain from doing so.
Today's scriptures are interesting because they seem to speak so much common sense, and yet they are also surprising. Today's gospel (Mark 8:34-9:1) has Jesus telling us that if we want to save our lives, we've got to lose them. In one way, that seems utterly nonsensical - how can we save a life by losing it? But when you think about the popes' actions last year - or about any saints or holy people you know - it becomes clear that of course this is the case. The popes let go of any sense that "having a life" (especially as pope) meant clinging to the power of the office. How often I have heard people saying to themselves, in the past year, "This is exactly right. This makes sense." Yet, I can't help but think to myself if I was faced with a similar situation, how difficult it would be to be willing to let go of power and its trappings and do the "common sense" but surprising thing. I think too about how often friends of mine have turned down or left high-paying jobs for jobs in lower-cost-of-living areas and how much happier they are - and yet how surprising this good step seems to their friends sometimes. It can seem odd to leave behind money or power, even when the results are great.
One of my favorite people who is not yet a saint - Oscar Romero - was seen as a political puppet, a member of the church hierarchy who would simply follow along with whatever the country's leaders decreed. When he became archbishop, however, that was not at all what he did. He took a decisive stance for the poor, and eventually became martyred for it. In one sense it is common sense to take the side of the poor, especially for Christians who see that the Church should be on the side of the poor. And yet, how difficult it is to do this, and therefore how surprising it is to us when we see someone doing just this!
Today's first reading (James 2:14-24, 26) highlights the difficulty of living this kind of surprising common sense. It is relatively easy to say what we believe and to make a statement of faith. But James knows it is much more difficult to act on it and to live out that belief. Thanks be to God that we have numerous witnesses in our lives who show us ways to live out this surprising common sense.
Today, let us reflect on ways God may be calling us to lives of surprising common sense and let us pray for the grace to live that out.
Jana M. Bennett