Happy fathers day to all our dads with us today: gift of fathers is to provide safety and formation while leaving enough room for each child to become who they were meant to be.
Fear is featured prominently in our readings.
Fear is real- it is foolish to try and create a world where we don’t feel it or ignore it
Fear is given to us by God but for a very narrow purpose.
Good fear: we dread the things that will harm us physically, psychologically and spiritually.
This good fear keeps us safe;
About three years ago I was preparing to visit Glacier National park, which required lots of planning and thinking ahead. One of the things I read over and over again was to have a healthy fear of the large wildlife you might encounter. A moose, grizzly bear, or elk doesn’t care about your feelings regarding nature and conservation. If you get in their way or strike them as threatening, they will make short work of you. Most of the accidents and tragedies that happen in our beautiful National Parks take place because someone didn’t have a healthy fear of a wild animal, the power of water, or the universal authority of gravity.
Bad fear is an inordinate dread of things that may indeed be dangerous but we allow that fear to rule us.
Bad fear might keep us safe from one danger but it doesn’t allow us to grow into the person we are called to be. That limited safety comes at a terrible price.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve seen and experienced so much fear the last 4 or so months and I am challenged to know what’s good and what’s bad.
I know for a fact that the Coronavirus is dangerous, especially to certain portions of the population. But I’ve also talked to and ministered to many who have isolated themselves from the world and from the parish winning themselves safety from the pandemic, but they are so afraid that their mind and soul is being consumed. Is the health of the body more important than the health of the soul? If protecting our physical health is destroying our spiritual vibrancy, then maybe we’ve gone too far. Which one does Jesus tell us to guard against losing?
Before all of this happened, I wanted to believe I had a healthy faith in God. But recognizing the reaction within as lockdown took over, the economy fell, and chaos entered makes me think I have placed far too much trust in social structures and routines that I have built. No wonder I experience such fear!
How about the social unrest going on right now? I feel like I could handle a pandemic, economic meltdown, or social unrest but not all at once!
How fragile is the human society in which we live! It feels more and more like a tower of babel we have constructed pridefully, thinking we know better than God how to live and love. And we don’t even know it is collapsing until it falls on our heads.
What alarms me most is the shrinking personal freedom in our country. God, as perfect father, gives us a set of laws, the commandments to live by. But then he gives us tremendous personal freedom to live them and grow into the saints the world and church need to thrive. That’s why we have such a rich variety in the communion of saints. There aren’t just one or two for us to imitate but men and women from every age, demographic, and background. Holiness brings freedom, diversity and variety of expression.
What seems to be more and more true in our time is that personal freedom is not allowed. In terms of addressing the racial wounds facing our country, are we leaving any room, as God does, for people to use their gifts and experiences to address the problem and bring healing? Are we even consulting God for a solution? Since these problems involve sin, only God can provide the way to healing.
We are told silence is violence, you must say something but if it is the wrong thing you must be punished, fired, and destroyed with no mercy. On the other hand, if you come from a privileged place, you must be quiet, unless you utter perfect contrition and personal recriminations, and you have nothing to add to the dialogue. There is no doubt our country has a problem with racism but the approach that seems to be favored is a total destruction of the structure our laws and country. It’s like seeing a spider in your house and burning your house down to get rid of it.
Whether it is using fear to get people to stay home during a pandemic or address racism and inequality, we as a country need to step back and see how God addresses terror, sin, hurt, and tragedy. He knows us better than we know ourselves!
Jesus shows us the only response to heal the wounds of the world and address both the moral and physical evils which afflict us must be rooted in prayer, humility, openness, mercy, and love.
Worldly power can’t do it. Brute force won’t work. Shame will backfire. Legislation will fall short. There is no political messiah waiting in the wings to fix our world. Weaponizing fear will breed resentment, obscure truth, produce discouragement, foster hopelessness, and multiply sin.
It is easy to shake our fist at the world and be outraged. But perhaps we are here because good people have lived in fear of the wrong things? Instead of fearing sin and separation from God, haven’t we sometimes been more concerned about our social standing, of being different than mainstream culture, or rocking the boat? Isn’t it true that many times Christians have put more truth in the power of politics or economics rather than the power of God to show us the way.
I know I have. And now I see how limited the power of the world and my own ability to control things really are. These can be good for sure but only if it is obedient to God and his plan for us.
It seems like an odd prayer, but in this time of uncertainty and upheaval we can ask God increase the healthy fear in us, the fear of moving away from Him and losing his grace. The beautiful and ironic thing about that prayer is that it will also take away the unhealthy fear that seems to be taking over more and more of our lives. Jesus wants us to live in peace, joy, and charity. As a perfect father he wants us to grow and flourish and live in harmony despite our imperfections and differences. May God bless our lives and remove all fear that keeps us from loving him and each other!
