Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent
Our readings today all elevate God’s Word for us and present a clear call to follow it and to follow Christ, the Living Word. All the moral law and prophetic teachings are fulfilled in Christ who established the Law of Love, the New Covenant, by his blood. The readings call us to teach God’s Word. Sometimes instruction takes the form of catechesis, but more often we “teach” others by the way in which we live our lives and by what we model in our behavior. Today, let us examine our lives and root ourselves firmly in Christ’s New Covenant of Love so that we may authentically proclaim the Gospel by our lives.
Moses says to us, “I teach you the statues and decrees as the LORD, my God, has commanded me . . . Observe them carefully, for thus will you give evidence of your wisdom and intelligence to the nations . . .” Moses is not inviting us to a prideful place of superior wisdom and intellect, but rather is revealing to us the power of modeling. As we live God’s Word, others around us pay attention and are drawn to our great God. The more faithfully we observe God’s commandments in love, the more irresistible God becomes to others through our witness. Moses continues, “However, take care and be earnestly on your guard not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen, nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live, but teach them to your children and to your children’s children.” Let us consider how and what we are teaching and modeling.
“Do as I say, not as I do.” That was a phrase I heard from time to time as a child whenever I called my parents to account for their behavior when they corrected mine. With any lack of congruence in words and actions, they called my attention back to their words. Based on my life experience, however, I would submit that core values, virtues, and even simply cultural norms are more often “caught” than taught. Words, instruction, and catechesis are critically important. It’s the behavior that’s modeled, however, that becomes imitated and ingrained in others, especially our children. And it’s not only the positive qualities that get modeled and passed on! Vices and other dysfunctional behaviors and patterns are also taught as they are “caught.” Pause, and think for a moment about behaviors and habits that were modeled to you by your parents or other significant adults. What are some of those inherited tendencies that you recognize in yourself? Consider the behaviors, core values, beliefs, and patterns that you’ve passed on to your children or others. What do you see in them that you may have modeled?
Jesus says to us, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill . . . Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.” All the commandments are summed up in Christ’s command to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbor as oneself (Matt. 22:37; Luke 10:27; Mark 12:30). What do we teach others by our love? What do we teach others by our failure to love?
If we have the courage, I think a useful exercise would be to ask a few trusted friends, family members, or confidantes what they see in our lives. We might ask them, in your experience of me, what does my life teach? Or, what core values, virtues, loving actions do you recognize in me? Conversely, what unloving or unhealthy tendencies do I display? Do others see the fruit and gifts of the Holy Spirit in us? Do they see Trinitarian love flowing through us? Or do others see in us tendencies toward anger, impatience, criticism, combativeness, manipulation, passive-aggression, unforgiveness, rudeness, self-centeredness, exclusion? If we take Moses’ and Jesus’ words to heart, we must have the courage to examine our lives and find out what we’re teaching, what we’re modeling to others by our lives and actions.
At the end of the Mass, we hear these words, “go forth glorifying the Lord by your life.” We glorify God by our very existence as God’s good creation. We also glorify God when we obey and live God’s Word. Today, let us examine our lives and pray for the grace to align ourselves with God’s Word and the teaching of the Church, and let us be bold and influential witnesses to the love of God. Thanks be to God!
-Elizabeth Wells