Brian Lee, who has been
my golf instructor for many years always reminds me that the
"idea" of being a good golfer is very different from actually
being a good golfer. According to Brian, what differentiates the idea
from its execution requires visualizing what you want to do and, then,
through patience, persistence, and practice (what he calls the "3P’s"),
allowing it to become second nature. Or, so it looks to
"wanna be" golfers who don’t have the patience and
persistence and don’t take time to practice if they are to translate
the idea of being a good golfer into the reality where it counts most,
namely, on the links.
Reflecting on Brian’s
lesson in light of today’s gospel, what he has been telling me all of
these years doesn’t really differ all that much from any worthwhile
human endeavor. Experience teaches us, doesn’t it, that the
"idea" of being something is very different from the reality
of doing it?
- For kids:
The idea of doing well in school, of having good friends, of
enjoying one’s time growing up is very different from the reality
of doing what it takes to perform well in school, of associating
with people whose character is full of the virtues that make these
people good friends, and of doing those necessary things one must do
to grow up as a healthy and virtuous human being.
- For young
people looking forward to embarking upon a career:
The idea of the "perfect job" is very different from
the reality of having to deal every day with other people we’d
rather not deal with, of doing things that we’re required to but
would rather not do, and of feeling that---despite everything we’re
is doing---all of this just isn’t fulfilling.
- For couples
contemplating marriage, engaged, or newlyweds: The idea
of wedded bliss is very different from the reality of loving,
honoring, and obeying someone other than yourself---day in and day
out, week in and week out, and year in and year out.
- For couples
looking forward to being parents: The idea of being parents
is very different from the reality of changing diapers, of seeing
that the kids do their homework and complete their household chores,
of setting boundaries and of upholding them, and of worrying about
the choices that the kids are making and of challenging the kids to
make good, sound decisions throughout their lives.
- For any young
man considering the ordained priesthood: The idea
of being a priest is very different from the personal cost
associated with fulfilling the expectations not only that Christ has
but also that the Church and God’s people have of ordained
priests.
In order to grow up as a
healthy and virtuous human being, to enjoy a meaningful career, to have
a loving and lasting marriage with one’s beloved, to have a family
whose members cherish one another, or even, to be a good priest requires
more than just having an idea. Achieving these meaningful outcomes also
requires conviction and courage, that is, if we mere mortals are to do
what is necessary by making the choices that translate these nice ideas
into a virtuous way of life.
In today’s gospel,
Jesus reminds us that it is much the same way with being a disciple.
That is, the idea of following Jesus is very different from the reality
of suffering courageously for one’s convictions, of taking up the
Cross and bearing it, and of pouring out one's life upon it. Jesus
minced no words about the "cost of discipleship." Namely, his
followers must "hate" father and mother, wife and
children, brothers and sisters, and their very own lives to wit!
This teaching, of
course, should not comfort any of us who believe that Jesus is speaking
about how we may feel about our siblings and relatives because Jesus is
not talking about hate as an emotional reaction. No, Jesus is describing
the cost his followers must pay, namely, not allowing anyone or anything
to interfere with living and acting according to the Gospel.
What it means to be a disciple, then, is to possess the conviction and
courage that makes it possible to translate the idea of being a disciple
into a way of life, especially as others challenge a disciple to allow
other competing interests---as good and important as these may be---to
take precedence to the Gospel. The cost of
discipleship, then, is to suffer courageously for one’s convictions,
to take up the Cross and bear it, and to pour out one’s life for
others upon it...just as Jesus did.
Jesus taught this very
hard lesson to the people following him on his way to Jerusalem and the
Cross. For those "wanna be" disciples, the idea of walking in
Jesus’ steps looked pretty good. But, they were only admiring Jesus,
that is, appreciating the power of his convictions and courage, eagerly
anticipating his triumph in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. What these
admirers didn’t know---and where their idea would be put to the
test---would come when they would witness the price that Jesus paid on
Good Friday. The realization that they, too, would have to suffer and shed
their own blood, interfered with the idea of being one of Jesus'
disciples and so, many turned their backs on Jesus.
Because discipleship is
more than an idea, Jesus tells his admirers to think their idea through
very carefully---"to calculate the costs," he says---before
professing something that they have neither the conviction nor the
courage to be. And
so, Jesus asks us today to calculate these costs:
- It is much easier,
isn’t it, to think about having good friends than it is to pay the
cost of being a good friend by upholding the standards of morality
and virtue in our interactions with others and suffering patiently
ridicule when we do?
- It is much easier,
isn’t it, to think about the perfect job than it is to confront
our co-workers and bosses about unethical and immoral behavior we
notice transpiring in our workplace or to quit a job because it
violates our duty as disciples?
- It is much easier,
isn’t it, to think about wedded bliss than it is to suffer with a
spouse’s imperfections and to commit and recommit oneself to love
one’s spouse when that person really does care for herself (or
himself) more than she (or he) does for me?
- It is much easier,
isn’t it, to picture oneself as a parent than it is to suffer the
pain that kids inflict upon their parents when parents demand what
decency, morality, and faith require and their kids respond by
treating their parents as if they’re aliens from some foreign
planet or, even, by hurling hateful insults at them?
- And, it is much
easier to image what being a good priest is than it is to embody the
person of Jesus by serving Christ, the Church, and God’s people
faithfully when other things might seem more alluring.
As we calculate these
costs, Jesus asks each of us: Are you an "admirer" and
"wanna be" or do you possess the conviction and courage to be
a disciple? The
cost of discipleship is total dedication on our part as well as an
unflinching willingness to accept the suffering that is sure to come our
way, even to the point pouring out our own blood on the Cross. No other
relation, no other concern for personal preferences, or even one’s own
life can take precedence. Jesus tells
"admirers" and "wanna bes" to calculate the personal costs that discipleship
will extract before committing to the idea because there is no
"wiggle room," no "fudge factor," and there are
absolutely no "loopholes."
Many admire the idea and
want to be disciples, but possess neither the conviction nor the
courage to translate their idea into a way of life. Instead, they remain
"admirers," "wanna bes," or even, fall by the wayside. For
these people, the Kingdom of God remains a very nice idea. But, for
those who muster up the courage to stand by their Christian
convictions, who accept the cost---whether as kids growing up, as young
adults contemplating a career, as spouses and parents, or as ordained
priests---the "Kingdom of God is very near, indeed it is in your
very midst," Jesus promises. |