You Have Been Seduced!

A Thought on Sunday

You Have Been Seduced!

from the desk of Fr. Ignatius Waters, CP

Sunday 9th March 2014

In the Gospel reading for Ash Wednesday, we’re told three times not to do things to be noticed – your almsgiving, your prayer or your fasting. Three times we’re told do all in secret and your heavenly Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you. Jesus is saying, “Don’t be a hypocrite playing the part, putting on a great show to impress others!” You’re wasting your time. You may be a brilliant actor but this is not about acting. This is about being real in your relationship with God and with others. So don’t be putting on a gloomy look. Look bright and cheerful. Wash your face. Put on the perfume or the make-up if you need it! Doesn’t this show you how real and good humoured Jesus was? And what do we do? We put on ashes!

And to think that this good sinless one experienced what it’s like to be sin, to feel separated, forsaken and abandoned by the God he loved with all his heart. I’ve met many good people who feel so depressed and despairing and full of guilt that they can’t believe they’re loved by God or forgiven by God. No matter what you say it doesn’t get through. They can’t receive it! Imagine Jesus having to experience that same kind of nightmarish black darkness and aloneness. And all to convince us of God’s closeness to us in our searching and our struggles!

I say these things to you because I know you understand these things. You who take time to read the bulletin or the ‘Thought on Sunday’ have a relationship with God and Jesus. Otherwise you wouldn’t be bothered! And you know what it’s like when there’s any kind of breakdown in that relationship. You mightn’t be able to explain why it means so much to you but it does. Maybe the words of Jeremiah the prophet will help. You remember at first Jeremiah didn’t want to be a prophet, “I’m too young, don’t ask me, I wouldn’t know how to be a prophet, I wouldn’t know what to say!” But he fell in love (no other word for it!) with the living God. Even though it cost him so much trouble and abuse, he couldn’t deny it! This is how he explained it: “You have seduced me O God, and I let myself be seduced. You have overpowered me; you were the stronger. I am a daily laughing stock, everybody’s but. The Word of God has meant for me insult, derision, all the day long. I used to say, ‘I will not speak his name any more!’ But there seemed to be a fire burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones. The effort to restrain it wearied me. I could not bear it!”

In other words, I couldn’t deny it. I couldn’t keep it in. I had to tell people about it! Our relationship with God is a love story, a love affair. We’ve been seduced and I hope we’re happy to be seduced! Even though like all real relationships it can be terrible as well as great, painful as well as joyful, heartbreaking as well as heartwarming!