Sunday, July 22, 2012

Rest and Peace


Homily 16th Sunday Ordinary Time, Cycle B, 2012
Fr. Paul D. Williams, Jr., pastor, Saint Joseph's, Dalton, GA

After their first mission of evangelization, the Apostles returned to Jesus and he saw that they were tired, so he invited them to “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” What was Jesus looking for? Rest and peace – physical and spiritual. This rest and peace echoes the Seventh Day, when God rested from his labors – the creation of the universe and mankind in his own image and likeness. So this rest and peace signifies the eternal rest we all long for in heaven.

What was the crowd looking for? Also rest and peace. Why were they lacking in rest and peace? Not only because they were tired from the long run to beat Jesus and his Apostles where they were going, but also because they were tired and troubled from the burdens of the world, a spiritual fatigue. They ran those ten miles because they were looking for something that the world couldn't give them: an interior peace, tranquility, and serenity.

This longing is written on the human heart. All the desires of the human heart can only be satisfied in heaven, but we don't know how to get there. He had to teach them because the people could not find peace. Why couldn't the people reach this peace? Because they were looking to the world to satisfy this longing. As with the people of Jesus' time, so also today: we look for the world to satisfy this desire written in our heart. And concretely, this takes many forms today: Alcohol and drugs. Gluttony and shopping. Gambling and risk taking. Fantasy and violence. Sex and porn. These actions take a good and misuse them or use them inappropriately. All in a search for peace, which only comes temporarily.

The devil is right there to encourage us. After we engage in these things, we find that they do not satisfy, and usually we feel nauseous, miserable, or disgusted. The devil tells us what to do next time - increase the quantity and potency - which only leads to addictions, broken relationships, and self-destruction.

The devil promises paradise, but he delivers something else: emptiness, self-loathing, bitterness, alienation from others and from God. By offering substitutes for true peace, he promises us heaven, but ultimately separates us from God. That is the definition of hell, being apart from God.

So, “When Jesus disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.” In today's Gospel people come to Jesus hungry and tired. He doesn't offer a quick fix. Instead, he begins to teach.

What does he teach them?  We see it summarized in the Sermon on the Mount. He begins with the Beatitudes and then gives us a Catechesis on the Ten Commandments. These teachings shows us the attitudes and manner of living that lead to true fulfillment.

Satan uses things that are good in themselves - food, drink, sex in the context of a loving marriage, enjoyment, relaxation, even self-esteem - and he perverts them by misusing them or using them disproportionately. All these things are a foretaste of heaven when used as God intended. But the devil tells us that this is all we need, not what they signify. He takes our desire for heaven and twists it to separate us from God.

The philosopher Josef Pieper puts it this way (Schall, p. 146): “Man as he is constituted, endowed as he is for a thirst for happiness, cannot have his thirst quenched in the finite realm; and if he thinks or behaves as if that were possible, he is misunderstanding himself, he is acting contrary to his own nature. The whole world would not suffice this ‘nature’ of man. If the whole world were given to him, he would have to say, and would say: it is too little.”

Yes, our desires can only be fulfilled by the transcendent God. But St. Thomas Aquinas adds something interesting. In heaven, he says, “the blessed will be given more than they ever wanted or hoped for.” Basically, he is saying that even though we may see our human desires as vast and great, in fact, they are not great enough, and indeed they are nothing when compared to the infinite God. And St. Paul would anticipate this when he said, “eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and it has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him”.

Fr. James Schall puts it this way, “God exceeds all our other pleasures not by denying our other pleasures exist, but by maintaining that God is more delightful than even these.”

Now, Jesus doesn't only teach. He also equips us to live his teachings. Through the sacraments, he offers us forgiveness, renewal, and strength for the journey. He offers us an experience of heaven right now. And for all the longings of our heart, we find them in Jesus, who as Saint Paul says, “is our peace”.