Father Thomas Welbers' Homily	Jump back to Homily Index
Homily for the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time June 27, 2004 1 Kings 19:16b, 19-21 Galatians 5:13-18 Luke 9:51-62	Listen to Audio

U.S. News and World Report magazine this week has a major multi-part feature on “Defining America: Why the U.S. is unique.” As I was reading this series of short articles, two charts on page 40 leaped out at me and grabbed by attention. The first indicated nearly 60% of Americans say religion plays a very important role in their lives. That’s more than any other country in the world, and about double the percentage of people in Britain and Canada. Even in Italy, only about 26% of people say religion is important in their lives, and in France about 10%. Right next to this was a table which put the United States as having the highest divorce rate in the world, more than double that of Canada and Japan, and six times that of Spain and Italy.

Several of the articles in this issue raise the question whether the individualism that we value so much in our heritage as Americans is ultimately a good thing or a bad thing. Individualism has always been a characteristic of the spirit of our nation. It was even noticed by the French writer Alexis de Tocqueville in 1831, who warned that placing the good of the individual above the common good of society could very well destroy the ideals of democracy on which this nation was founded. That warning came almost 175 years ago!

The statistics in many areas of life, not just marriage and divorce, seem to indicate that total, lifelong commitment to anyone or anything is becoming more and more difficult. Genuine commitment requires that we control our individualism, and the seeking after our own good, in favor of the good of the other, ultimately the common good, which means placing above our own good, the good even of people whom we do not know or who are not “our own.” True democracy can succeed only if citizens look more at what benefits all people than at what they themselves can get out of it. Yet, isn’t our public life so much dominated by one person’s self-interest doing battle with someone else’s self interest. Perhaps that’s why the same page in the magazine tells us we have almost twice as many lawyers per capita as our nearest competitor, Great Britain, and ten times as many as Sweden.

As I said to introduce our readings, commitment – total, wholehearted, unreserved, no-looking-back commitment – is what Jesus and the Church puts before us today. In the first reading, we saw that Elisha made a complete and total break with his former life, even destroying and offering in sacrifice the implements on which his livelihood depended. St. Paul, reminded the Galatians and us that true freedom is not found in slavery to worldly things, but in selfless service done in love. If we value freedom, we will destroy it by using freedom to pursue selfish ends. And Jesus’ words appear harsh, but they are realistic, loving, and life-giving: “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.” That’s what commitment costs.

In our Christian tradition, commitment is seen to depend more on vision than on willpower. We cannot truly make or fulfill a commitment unless we have a clear vision of the reason for the commitment and the value of the goal which we commit ourselves to achieve. Without a strong and clear vision, no amount of willpower will succeed in making us faithful. In fact, no amount of teaching or preaching about commitment will have any value unless we know it in practice by example. The people who remain doggedly faithful to their commitments are the ones who, like Elijah, inspire others to follow in their path.

That’s why a few weeks ago we celebrated Msgr. Barry not only on his 85th birthday but on his 60th anniversary of living faithfully as a priest. And that’s why yesterday we celebrated Sister Claire, having been with us for 14 years as our parish director of religious education, and before that, many years as teacher, counselor, and friend. Not only that, but this year she is celebrating her 50th anniversary in religious profession. Tomorrow she is leaving OLA to take up a new assignment at the Felician Sisters’ motherhouse near Albuquerque, New Mexico. As we tearfully say goodbye to her, and we gratefully acknowledge the great gift that she has been for us here at OLA these many years, we confidently pray that the greatest gift and greatest legacy that both she and Msgr. Barry can leave us is a shining example of the joyful and generous dedication that will continue to inspire others to resolutely set their hand to the plow in the fertile field of the Lord’s kingdom . . . and not look back.

© Thomas Welbers 2004