One of the things that fascinated me as a child was watching utility workers climb up the power poles to do their job. Our neighborhood in Hazelwood had lots of large trees in the yards and the utilities ran through the backyards which made them inaccessible to bucket trucks and boom lifts. So when there was a problem with the power or a new service needed to be hooked up, the guy would fasten these special cleats to his boots and up he would go. Watching these guys work in our backyard made me add this experience to the Schroeder bucket list of things I wanted to learn how to do.
Fast forward to my assignment at St. Joe’s-Cottleville about 20 years later. One of the parishioners was a supervisor for Ameren and a former lineman. He knew how to climb up power poles! I was afraid he might think I was crazy but I figured it can’t hurt to ask. Amazingly, he was happy to make it happen and on July 27, 2012 (I only know this exact date because smartphones tell you exactly when the picture was taken), I got to climb up and down a power pole like a boss, which like so many things turned out to be a lot harder than it looks.
But here is the actual point of this story. When I was climbing, I realized very quickly that the power poles move quite a bit. I thought they were solid, immovable, stuck in concrete or something like that. Not at all, my parishioner told me, in fact a standard 40 foot pole is only in the ground 4-6 feet. What really holds them in place, upright and steady, is not how deep they are buried but rather the tension of the wires which hang on them. In fact there is a pretty exact formula for how they hang the wires and how much drop or sag they leave. The proper tension allows the pole to stand tall for many years and also can handle the expansion and contraction of the wires as they heat and cool during use. And once you connect a whole bunch of power poles to each other with power lines, phone lines, and cable wires, they become incredibly stable and strong.
Now how does this relate to the feast we celebrate in the Church this weekend, the feast of Christ the King? This celebration reminds us that Jesus is Lord of the world we experience here on earth. He is also Lord of the life to come when all wrongs will be made right, all wounds of injustice healed, and all suffering and tears will be banished. As Christians, we are dual citizens; we belong to both realms. And we are called to be upright, grounded members of both worlds. We cannot simply live with our eyes on heaven and ignore the problems, challenges, and sufferings of our society. If our faith is authentic and alive, the followers of Jesus will be on the front lines of the struggles that afflict the people of our times. We cannot be a good Catholic and be indifferent to the sufferings of others, especially the poor, the disabled, the inconvenient, the marginalized, and the unborn. We must be engaged and invested in bringing the goodness of God into our society and not just trying to white-knuckle it until Jesus comes back.
At the same time, we are also members of a world, of a kingdom that hasn’t yet been fully revealed or realized. We are citizens of heaven and that means that this life can never fully satisfy or fulfill us. As good as the things and people of this world truly are, we have to constantly be on guard against making this life the end-all and be-all. We must be careful not to become rich in the things of earthly life and poor in the things that matter in heaven. This world is not all there is; God has something even better planned for the ones who know, love, and serve him in this life.
Understandably, this living for two worlds, this dual-citizenship produces a very real tension. It’s not always easy to get it right and sometimes we lean too heavily on one side or the other. But the tension itself is a good thing. When we get it right, with the help of the sacraments, daily prayer, and works of charity, it is the very thing that helps us to stay upright, strong, and steady. And when you connect the examples and prayers and good works of Christians to each other, they become incredibly strong, stable, and transformative. This living spiritual network is capable of transmitting serious spiritual power all over the world. It becomes a power grid of mercy through which Jesus’ gospel of love, hope, and salvation can be communicated to anyone and everyone.
Today’s feast is a gentle reminder to check the tension between our spiritual and worldly lives. Are we properly living out our dual citizenship each and every day? Are we engaged in our society and working to address the suffering in our world? Do we keep our eyes fixed on heaven, always remembering that it is our final goal and ultimate good? It’s worth the struggle to balance our affections for the here and now and also our desire for what will one day be. In the process we become holy and we support each other on our journey to heaven. May we be upright, virtuous, steady people who are ready to welcome Christ the King when he returns!
