Christianity is not lived in our church buildings. Our faith is celebrated, strengthened, taught and nourished inside of church buildings. Our Christian faith is lived out in the world: in our families, our places of work, our civic community and among the poor who live right around us.
Ours is a very worldly faith.
When Christian people turn too much inward, you know you are in decline. There is a strong danger today when so many serious issues confront our Christian faith to retreat into the security of our church buildings. We feel safe inside the structures of our religion and threatened when we are sent into the world. And the world can be downright hostile towards people with a religious faith.
At its best, our Christian faith empowers us to embrace the sinful world and bring it hope and a new vision for life on this planet. Maybe the majority of the people who identify as Chriistiain are not even aware of the power that our Christian faith gives us. Too many of them think that religion is all about “dos and don’ts”; how narrow!
In a society that struggles with valuing human life, we are challenged to value and celebrate the life of every single individual on this planet. Every human life is of great value of itself. We must value any human life in terms of its productivity. Human life is sacred by the very fact that this particular human life exits.
As humanity tries to come to terms with global warming and the threat to survival of all life forms on this planet, we are being challenged to recapture (which we have lost over the past five centuries) the value of everything and every life form on this planet. Caring for the earth and human society is an essential part of our Christian faith. We are trying to recover the sacredness of the earth that we lost. The average Christian has only a vague sense of what our Catholic social teaching actually offers us.
And then there is the respect that we must reclaim as women reclaim their power ‘that you will no longer hurt or exploit us.’ This is such a profound issue of justice that must be implemented in all societies. This is not a North American phenomenon. Practicing justice and respect is such a strong part of our Christian faith.
As oppressed minorities, First Nations peoples throughout the world and nations that were founded on slavery, claim their history, we Christian people are challenged to walk with them in solidarity and to allow the power of repentance sink into our national and personal history. We want to enter into the healing season of reconciliation with all who have been oppressed.
Our prayer does not direct us to run and hide from the troubles of this world in a secure church building. Rather, the teachings of Jesus empower and enable us to embrace the brokenness of the world. Our faith and the teachings of the Church open our vision to the struggles of peoples and the world. This is an empowering religion.
The ritual at the end of each Sunday Eucharist sums it all up well. Go forth, into the world, and bring the love and mercy of God to all you meet. May this worship be like planting a tree: it may start small but it will grow into a mighty tree.
Jesus trusts in us. Jesus sends us forth into the world.
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