Twenty Seventh Sunday Of Ordinary Time (Year C)

Hab 1.2-3, 2.2-4;
Ps 94;
II Tim 1.6-8, 13-14;
Lk 17.5-10

How can we grow in faith?
We actually grow in faith as we listen, believe, obey and prove the word of God; when we rely and work upon ourselves with the word of God and then we see God’s faithfulness in display…

1. Were your faith the size of a mustard seed you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea,” and it would obey you. In many places in the gospels Our Lord speaks of the need for intense and deep faith among His disciples if the work of the kingdom is to be achieved. In the gospel we have heard today, He also invites us to review our attitude towards that work. When you have been done all you have been told to do, say, “We are merely servants: we have done no more than our duty.”
2. For a moment, let us examine our attitudes towards our vocation to work for God’s kingdom. In the way it works from day to day, we often look on the Church as a voluntary organisation, rather like a club. When we take on a responsibility, serve on a committee, drive a minibus, visit the sick, or undertake one of the many other worthy activities that many people at this mass fulfil, how do we think about the work we are doing?
3. Some people feel very pleased with themselves. They glow with inner pride at the virtuous deeds they have performed. It makes them feel good. And so they are motivated to do something else for the Church. That makes them feel even better. There is nothing wrong with feeling proud at a job well done, or happy to have been of service. The danger occurs when these virtuous feelings take over as the motivation, or when we become puffed up with a sense of how wonderful we are. It can easily happen. The Lord speaks to us: ‘say to yourselves, “We are merely servants.”’
4. Some people will find great pleasure in the fact that their virtuous behaviour has impressed others. From what Our Lord says to the scribes and Pharisees, we know well how He responds to this attitude. He sees quite clearly how destructive it is for our souls if we regard ourselves as being in a competition to outperform others in our level of activity for the Church.
5. Why are these attitudes so perilous for our souls and for the Church? Because they lead us to see the work of God in human terms. We all know that some parishes are pretty dormant – nothing much happens; people take little part. Others are full of activity – meetings, organisations, social events, good in themselves. Yet sometimes this activity feeds on itself and does not really go anywhere. Both these kinds of parishes have lost the vision of what Christ founded the Church to achieve.
6. In the first reading today, we heard from Habakkuk, one of the lesser-known prophets of the Old Testament. Saint Jerome called Habakkuk the “wrestler with God” because much of the book of his prophecies is written in the form of questions to God and God’s response. The question in today’s reading was this: “How long, Lord, am I to cry for help while you will not listen?” Habakkuk looked around him in the dark days before the defeat of Israel and exile to Babylon and all he could see was outrage and violence. The faith was going nowhere. God calls on Habakkuk to stir up and renew the people’s vision. The reason for the prophet’s loss of nerve and the people’s depression is that they have lost their sense of spiritual direction. “See how he flags, he whose soul is not at rights, but the upright man will live by his faithfulness.” Even a seemingly successful and busy parish will ultimately begin to flag and to run down if it is grounded on human activism rather than on spiritual faithfulness.
7. Writing to Timothy, one of his most active co-workers for the kingdom, Saint Paul says, “I am reminding you to fan into a flame the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you. God’s gift was not a spirit of timidity, but the Spirit of power, and love, and self-control.” Even in the early days, when the Church was full of energy and enthusiasm, Saint Paul saw the danger of communities becoming diverted from the authentic path of service of the Lord, either by loss of faith or by dependence on human ideas. His called on the Churches to remember his sound teaching. They should return to their spiritual and doctrinal roots; ask again the fundamental questions about their vocation; hear Our Lord’s answers in the gospels and in the teachings of the apostles.
8. All human activity requires some structures. It is impossible to live simply on feelings and ideas. Families, schools, companies and even the Church require human organisation to draw people together in moving towards their goal. Rules and regulations balance motivation and encouragement. Today, Our Lord asks us a simple question. Have we remembered that He is our Master and we are His servants? Is our personal life rooted and founded on God? Is our parish, and everything that happens here, focussed on Our Lord? Are we driven principally by the power of the Holy Spirit rather than human ambition?
9. As individuals, we should look back to our Confirmation and the Prayer that was said over us: Give them the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgement and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence. Fill them with the spirit of wonder and awe in your presence. During the week, spend some time reflecting on those gifts that have been placed in your hearts and let them become, once again, the wellspring of your Christian life.
10. As the Church, we should return time and time again to the key doctrines of the faith, the fundamentals. In this world the Church is here to be the vehicle of Christ’s presence, calling men and women to eternal life. It is here to serve the world by teaching the truth. It is here to be the sign of God’s Kingdom. We should test everything that happens in the Church against that wonderful, spiritual vocation. Sleeping parishes must wake up. And busy parishes will do God’s work even better if their people remember to say, we are merely servants of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Thus, today’s readings tell us that our faith in the face of suffering grows through our relationships in community: articulating and sharing the vision, living Spirit-filled lives with others, and surrendering and cooperating with God’s movement in our personal and community lives.

Fr Joseph Osho