Readings (Year C):
Acts 15:1 – 2, 22 – 29
Psalm 67:2 – 3, 5, 6, 8
Revelation 21:10 – 14, 22 – 23
John 14:23 – 29
Reflection: Listening to action
How do you communicate with someone who holds totally different views from you? How do you bring peace to a heated disagreement when everyone has valid arguments? And no, shouting louder than they do isn’t an effective strategy. If it were, the government of the United States would have brought world peace by now.
The world is a noisy place. The internet feels even noisier. However, our readings today offer us a way to navigate through all that interferes with our journey to union with God. This solution is older than time itself, but it seems like we often forget about it.
Of course, I can only be referring to listening. The Council of Jerusalem, the praises of Psalm 67, John writing Revelation, the disciples at the Last Supper—all these situations required deep listening. Today, too, we must listen deeply if we hope for the Word of God to grow roots in our lives.
You don’t have to spend more than ten minutes listening in the Catholic Church to understand that the Eucharist is the “source and summit” of our faith. Caribbean theologian Archbishop Gabriel Malzaire says that Christians today are “challenged to hold in tension the significance of what is celebrated at the altar and how that reality is lived in everyday life.” Let’s recall that in today’s gospel reading Jesus had already washed the disciples’ feet.
So, we can know the Bible and go to church every day, but what does it mean unless we are moved by compassion to action? What good are scripture and tradition if we refuse to listen to God’s voice crying out to us in the voice of the poor, the marginalized, and the discarded?
We listen when we’re told that Christ’s ultimate show of love was his crucifixion. We can also listen to three other ultimate displays of God’s love: the incarnation, the resurrection, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. These acts in salvation history remind us of God’s affirming love for the goodness of all of creation. They remind us of the redemption we’ve come to experience. In listening to God’s story, we’re reminded that we have to be God’s story for others in this noisy world—not just by speaking, but by listening.
Pope Francis was big on listening. He taught the church how to listen once again. Pope Leo seems big on listening too. The fact that some in extremist movements are already shouting at him for being a good human being might be a sign that God is truly with us. But God isn’t just with the pope, or the clergy, or a select few individuals. God is with all of us. The Holy Spirit is here, and like our new pope reminds us, peace is what our presence is about.
Shouting over others isn’t a good strategy. Oppression isn’t a good strategy. Sending soldiers to fight wars they never started could never be the voice of God. That sounds like the voice of wealthy capitalists. This Memorial Day, I hope we take a step back from the noise. I hope we listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying. And when we hear the voice as gentle as the wind, I hope we’re moved with compassion to action.
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