“Who do you say that I am?” If we finally figure out who Jesus is, He strictly orders us in the next breath, “Tell no one I am the Christ.” But if we can’t tell anyone, what’re we supposed to do with that long sought-after revelation?
May I suggest: Rest comfortably in Jesus’ presence and turn his question back on him: Who do YOU say that I am? Why do you love me so much? On an occasion when I did this, an answer came slowly: “Because you’re always there.” Now my challenge is to figure out how to “always be there.” Be where? How do I remain comfortable and at the same time alert to Jesus’ presence in others? I’ve concluded that the operative part in Jesus’ command is “not tell.” We’re not meant to tell others what or who to believe in so much as to be a model that reveals more than words can say. We must let our lives be a “show and tell” of mutual love and respect, of deference to each other. We must “keep our doors figuratively and literally open to others i.e. to be a “flesh and blood” model of as we build community and maintain a balance in our communal and personal lives of prayer and work, art and music and poetry.
A living example of how “give and take” is part of life-long learning and nurtures our love for each other in spite of – no, because it causes us to see our own shadow side. Our sunlit side shows itself in modulated and friendly laughter, in our expressions of gratitude with a simple phrase like “thank you”, and in our hospitality and sharing. It shows in our gentle determination to be Christ-like AND to BE Christ to others. The tenor of our voice in our exchanges, our harmony in prayer and song, our attentive awareness to join the pace of our liturgy, our acknowledgement of Christ in the other when we pass in the hallways – all this “tells” who our Beloved model is.
And, you know what it takes to DO and BE this. That’s the answer to the question Jesus asks: “Who do YOU say that I am?” It takes close familiarity with WHO Jesus is. You’ve probably heard the expression “familiarity breeds contempt.” But the opposite is true for those who seek to know Jesus – really to know anyone. Time spent in Jesus’ company – in the company of our companions – fosters intimacy, closeness and an ease in each other’s company. It’s true, too, for all who seek to build a relationship with another person or persons in community. It’s a powerful realization when we stop to think that each one of us is responsible for the community we create.
I’d like to relate one of the many stories Monsignor Cummings (1918-2020) shared with me in his later years. I’d first met “Father George” in 1949 as a youngster at Good Counsel Camp. This story was also quoted at his funeral. It serves to remind all of us of what it takes to be a loyal follower, an imitator of Christ – a true servant.
When Msgr was around 50 years a priest, (this true story goes) a young intern at Good Counsel Camp asked Fr. George: “When did you decide to become a priest?” Without skipping a beat, Cummings answered: “This morning.” He added as aside, “Every day I wake up and I recommit myself, to serving as a priest.”
That’s a true vocation story! Each and every day, we hear Jesus ask: “Who do you say that I am?” Whatever our response, He cautions: “Tell no one I am the Christ.” “Rather, my friend, recommit yourself to be my instrument of peace in your community, your family, your social group who, in turn, together will be a living example of a “peaceable kingdom” to all who witness your way of life, and your living. “For where God has placed you, that is your pulpit.”
~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB
AN AFTERTHOUGHT … On Friday we had a reading that (I believe) is An answer given long before Jesus walked on earth. The reading is from Deuteronomy 6:4-9. Ponder it for yourself.
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“Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, and with our whole being, and with your whole strength. Take to heart these words which I command you today. Keep repeating them to your children. Recite them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie and when you get up. Bind them on your arm as a sign and let them be as a pendant on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.” We, Benedictine Sisters of Holy Name Monastery, have a ring that binds our finger and on many days the Sisters wear a “pendant” – a metal of our founder, St. Benedict. And in most of the Sisters’ rooms, somewhere you will find “writing on the walls” – family photos, favorites paintings, calligraphy hand-printed quotes that we can see “when we lie and when we get up.” |
