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At first glance, our Scriptures this weekend seem to be all over the place. The first reading speaks of a meek and mild king, a king who is also Almighty God. St. Paul encourages us to live according to the Spirit and not according to the desires of the flesh which steal our life. And Jesus praises God for revealing his truth to those who are humble and nothing according to the world. He promises rest to the weary who come to him and encourages his followers to take his yoke upon them to find rest and relief from their burdens.
Reflecting on this message of freedom, gentleness, and relief, I couldn’t help but think of the amount of unrest and upheaval that seems to define our time. You can point to any part of the globe and find significant conflict and suffering. In particular, I’ve been following the rioting and nightly clashes in France. Two weeks ago, a teenager was shot dead by police during a traffic stop. Many of the details are still unknown but the general sentiment among the protestors is that the police are not accountable to anyone and the well-being of the people they serve is not being considered. Many are demanding reform, prosecution, and re-shaping how law and order are maintained. Several years ago, we had something similar in our own country with the “defund the police movement”. In some places, the result was a drastic reduction in traditional law enforcement resources and a movement towards letting communities police themselves. Within a couple years, in nearly every instance, those same communities had to abandon the self-policing model because it devolved into chaos, crime, and tragedy for the innocent who were unable to defend themselves.
The desire to lash out against authority, against rulers, is nothing new. Sometimes it is necessary when those wielding power become corrupt and immoral. But the Christian notion of freedom, the freedom God wants for us, does not mean doing whatever we want nor does it mean we are above the rule of law and order. Freedom for the follower of Christ means what St. Paul highlights in the second reading; we are able to live according to the law of the Holy Spirit rather than being captive to our impulses and desires. Being a prisoner to every compulsive thought or yearning is the essence of addiction and the opposite of freedom. Such an existence attacks our human dignity and that is why Paul pleads with us to choose the path of life, governed by the ways of God and his Holy Spirit.
In every age of human history, and at some point in every human life, we have the idea that we can rule ourselves, that we don’t need any authority or law to govern us. We see this in various social and political movements, in the rebellious teen spirit, and the interior part of ourselves that bristles whenever someone tries to correct us or give us advice. The desire to be free is good but it is impossible to go through life without something, without someone ruling over us. True freedom is reached when we allow God to rule over us in all things: our desires, our minds, our bodies, our relationships, and so on. If we do not allow God and his Spirit to rule us, sooner or later something or someone else will. Whatever that ends up being cannot love us as purely as God does and eventually ends up enslaving us.
In today’s gospel, Jesus promises us freedom when he says, “Come unto me - all you who are tired - all you who are feeling drained -all you who are feeling empty - all you who are burdened by a sense of disappointment - all you who are exhausted by the struggles of life and weighed down by your sense of duty, of what is right and wrong- and I will give you rest. I will cleanse you - I will fill you with new joy - and establish you in a relationship with God that will give you new life and true freedom- now and in the world to come.
That is the first part of what Jesus had to say. The second part is this: "take my yoke upon you and learn from me." This seems like a contradiction! We might be thinking, “How can I rest with a yoke on my shoulders?” After all a burden is still a burden - a yoke is still a yoke. However, Jesus is telling us that there is no such thing as a burden-free life; we will always serve some master; the question is what KIND of burden will we choose to carry, whom will we serve?
Jesus offers to lift the burdens off our backs that suck the life out of us, so he can replace them with something better fitting. He is interested in removing the harness we forge for ourselves and the world forges for us, so he can place around our necks his own yoke which ironically brings new life, new energy, and new joy.
His yoke fits perfectly; it enables us to carry loads that we thought were impossible to move and gives us superhuman strength. Christ promises rest from the constant worrying and struggle this world imposes. If we seek his forgiveness in the sacrament of reconciliation, if we are wiling to come and place our trust in him, our burdens of mind and spirit are healed and we are given rest from our anger, guilt, and shame.
So what are we waiting for??? If you feel weary and burdened with the concerns of this world, with the strain of civil unrest, partisan bickering, clashes over racial issues, or economic uncertainty (to name a few). If you feel heavy in mind and in spirit, if the challenges of life seem more than you can bear, then run to Christ who promises to make them lighter. Don’t run to Hollywood celebrities, political platforms, cultural movements, or talking heads in the media for answers and hope! Don’t take on their yoke which so often breaks our spirit and weighs us down with anger, despair, and division! Instead, give Jesus permission to remove those worldly yokes and let him replace it with his own. He assures us that it is light, easy, and we know that it is fashioned out of love and compassion.
