|
Because we do not know what the future will bring and our
imaginations oftentimes overpower our minds with the outcome
associated with the worst case scenario, we find ourselves becoming
agitated, which leads us to feel anxious and tense, all of which
culminates in fear and panic.
We’ve all seen it, if we haven’t experienced it ourselves.
Ever seen a young child who gets stung by a wasp? The intensity of
the pain causes the young child to bypass agitation, anxiety, and
tension, and to plunge right into outright fear and panic. Crying
ensues until “Dr. Mom” assures the young child that “it’s only a bee
sting” and “there’s nothing to fear.”
“It is I; do not be afraid. Why do you doubt?”
In
the same way, fear of the unknown causes many adults to become
agitated, which leads them to feel anxious and tense, all of which
culminates in fear and panic. However, instead of turning to “Dr.
Mom,” however, these people turn to God.
Remember the farmers in the upper Midwest who feared the spring
flooding this year would destroy their livelihood during the
upcoming planting season? Many of them prayed to God to keep all of
those man-made sandbag levees from collapsing as the rivers’ waters
grew higher and higher.
Ever seen parents who are fearful and in a panic about their teenage
children? Many of them will make novenas in the hope of
arm-twisting God into turning their children around.
It’s also very typical behavior for people diagnosed with a terminal
disease. Full of fear and panic, many of them attempt to strike a
bargain with God for additional time on earth.
“It is I; do not be afraid. Why do you doubt?”
It
is quite true—perhaps it’s part-and-parcel of the human condition we
all share—that when fear of the unknown confronts us, we cry out for
God’s help and, when we do, God seems to be silent. Of course, the
explanation is that because we are not God, we cannot possibly know
what the future will bring. But, try selling that to someone who is
having a panic attack.
And so it is. When we become agitated, we feel anxious and tense
and, left unchecked, all of this culminates in fear and panic.
“It is I; do not be afraid. Why do you doubt?”
It
is this kind of experience that today’s scripture readings calls to
mind.
In
today’s first reading, the prophet Elijah is anxious and tense. As
Elijah believes that God is absent, his anxiety and tension grow
into fear. Now, Elijah finds himself in a panic and spending
the night in a dark cave, wrestling with depression and burnout,
emanating from many sources and most especially from his deep-seated
fear that was a failure in fulfilling God’s
will.
Physically exhausted, emotionally drained, and paranoid, Elijah
believes that there’s no way out and he allows the noise of all of
this to drown everything else out.
“It is I; do not be afraid. Why do you doubt?”
The simple fact is that the noise created by all of that anxiety,
tension, fear, and panic drowns out any possibility of Elijah
hearing God. Why? Elijah is completely focused upon himself and
what Elijah expects of God.
The lesson Elijah must learn is that God is not present in all of
that noise. Nor is God found in what Elijah expects of God,
namely, all of those mighty, powerful, and dramatic exhibitions.
No, God reveals His presence when Elijah doesn’t allow the noise of
his anxiety, tension, fear, and panic to crowd God out, but instead,
when Elijah allows himself to listen to the gentle, quiet, and
serene sound of the passing breeze.
It
was the same for St. Peter in today’s gospel. As the waves, driven
by the gale force of the winds, buffet against St. Peter while he is
walking across the water toward Jesus—miraculous
as that is—St.
Peter allows all of those things to distract him from meeting the
Lord. Focusing upon those externals, St. Peter grows increasingly
anxious and tense. He then begins to fear and panic, his
imagination contemplating the outcome associated with the worst case
scenario: he is going to drown. True to form, because St. Peter was
a human being who did not know what the future would bring and
allowing his imagination to dictate the worst possible outcome, St.
Peter turned to prayer, crying out, “Lord, save me.”
Just yesterday morning, I turned on the news at 6:00 a.m. only to
hear that Standard and Poor’s had downgraded the United States’ bond
rating. I found myself beginning to think about what that would
mean for my IRA and my Mom’s financial well-being. As the newscast
continued to detail the possibility of financial Armageddon visiting
the nation on Monday morning, I found myself moving toward fear, but
I didn’t panic. Why? I had morning prayers to say, mass to offer,
and the cat to feed. By the time I had done all of that, I was
laughing at myself because, I thought, in the end, what can I do
about any of it?
The challenge today’s scripture places before us is to recognize
that fear and panic are the result of anxiety and tension. If we
allow ourselves to drum all of that noise up into one big crescendo,
then we need to realize that we’re attempting to know and to control
what will unfold in the future. Cry out to God all we may want,
like Elijah and St. Peter, God is not to be found in all of that
noise. No, God is heard in the gentle breeze that we happen to
be drowning out with all of that noise about our concerns.
Rather than allow the noise anxiety, tension, fear, and panic to
blare away and distract us this week, we can choose to listen to the
gentle breeze that brings with it the reassurance that God is with
us.
“It is I; do not be afraid. Why do you doubt?”
|
HOMILY
