Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

I just read this amazing article in the Economist entitled, Glad to be godless. The article tells the story about Don Sutterfield, a fervent Christian turned militant atheist. Gone are the days he would organize Vacation Bible Camps for children. He now organizes summer camp for secular atheists at universities. Sutterfield is brilliant in his approach. Campers are not told that there is no God; only that they should weigh the evidence. In this camp there is no indoctrination about atheism but since the “scientific research” does not lead to hard evidence, campers are reassured that it is alright to be irreligious. They are led to believe that it is possible to be moral without believing in the supernatural - it is possible to be good without God. It is true, if we could give evidence of divine existence beyond human reasoning everyone would believe in God. In fact, that is exactly the central question in today’s gospel reading. We would imagine that after a miracle as stupendous as the multiplications of the loaves, the people would settle the controversy about Jesus’ identity as God. On the contrary, they ask for a sign, some evidence, some tangible proof. “What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do?” (Jn 6:30). Jesus had just said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one sent he sent.” (Jn 6:29) But the people want to see a sign. They want to see what Jesus can do. “What can you do,” they ask.

In my opinion, this question is not merely a commentary on the people of the time, but rather, it is a commentary on the perpetual problem of faith in God. Human beings want to believe in God. Human beings are created such that they naturally and instinctively seek God and believe in God. Today, not only is the faith in God’s existence a problem, but it is also the kind of God that people expect to find that is problematic – they seek a God who can do something big. “Moses gave them bread from heaven; what can you do?” (Jn 6 31). “If you are the Son of Man, come down from the cross.” (Mt 27:40). Let us admit, it would be easier to believe in God if the people on wheel chair would just start walking. It would easier to believe in God in all the people that have cancer would be instantaneously healed. It would be easier to believe in God if someone we loved would rise from the dead. It would be easier to believe in God if God would come riding upon a cloud with trumpet blast and appear to us right now.

Obviously, those of us who are gathered here are believers. I am not going to spend time in philosophical arguments against atheism. I merely would like to let the scriptures strengthen our own faith. Let me offer three practical implications from our readings:

1. The first practical implication comes from today’s second reading. Hear what Paul has to say. “I declare and testify in the Lord that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds…” (Eph 4:17). For Paul, godlessness is the result of a futile mind. For us, futility of our minds could mean that we restrict God to great deeds. To say to God, “What can you do?” is to let the human mind become greater than God. Rather, simple, humble, radical faith means simply this: “that we believe in the One God sent.” (Jn 6:29) It means we believe in God for who God is than for what God can do for us.. How terrible it would be if children evaluated their parents for their mighty deeds; or, if parents evaluated their children by how much they make; or, if husband and wives evaluated their spouse by the size of their house. This is futility of the mind. Today, we abandon the futility of our minds and allow God to be God and believe in God as God.

2. A question still arises – but why should we believe in God as God? I was in conversation with a very nice gentleman last week. As is generally the case, the topic turned to faith. He said he believed in God but did not have faith in God. He thinks he evolved from the first fish that came to land and then developed into an ape and then a human person. He thinks life ends with our existence on earth. Was this exactly not what the Hebrews were doing in the desert? On their way to the Promised Land, their vision begins to blur. The grumbled “Would that we had died at the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt, as we sat by our fleshpots and ate our fill of bread! (Ex 16:3). It is difficult to grasp this but the Israelites were willing to trade their glorious future and their freedom for bread and meat. How pathetic for those who lack the eternal, sacred, and divine vision of life. And today’s scriptures are telling us that it is faith in God provides us the eternal vision. For those who have faith in God, we know where we come from, we know where are today, and we know where we are going. We are not created for oblivion. Our lives have meaning for eternity – and God is our origin, our destiny, our eternity.

3. For a moment let us imagine that we able to believe in God as God – no conditions and no demand for miracles. I believe that it would lead us to value other people for who they are. Think of the unborn, think about the aged, think about handicapped and the mentally challenged – how great it would be to love them for who they are. Think about the earth and caring for it - for what it is and not merely for what we can get out of it. Our profit oriented culture tends to value people and the earth for its productivity. How about we love each other and the earth for what it is. I believe that our faith in God and our acceptance of God as God can lead us to respect the dignity of every human person and creation.

We are in this church today. There are no great signs and no mighty deeds. But for those of us who believe, there is a quiet, humble miracle. This bread and wine will become for us the very presence of God. It may not mean much to those who are godless or those who seeks great deeds – but for us, it is the only hope of my salvation. Let us love God as God. Let us love each other as each one is. Let us take care of the earth and everything in it. Amen.

- Fr. Satish Joseph Ph.D