The Happy Priest - To Know the Lord Jesus Christ

Who is this man that has divided history into two parts?  Who is this man that has divided nations?  Who is this man for whom many of his followers have given their lives rather than deny him? 

CORPUS CHRISTI, TX (Catholic Online) - The simplicity and peacefulness of the hidden life of Jesus will soon end.  Intense apostolic activity carried out as he travels through Samaria and Galilee will soon replace the tranquility and solitude of Nazareth.  The quiet of the carpenter shop, the conversations with Mary and Joseph, and the comfort of long intervals of prayer will soon be only cherished memories.  Once Our Lord begins teaching, every word he utters will bring a response.

The purpose of this Sunday's liturgy is to get us to contemplate the person of Jesus Christ so that we can know him more deeply.  Knowledge leads to love, and love to imitation.  Jesus, who is the way, the truth, and the life, must be the center, the criteria, and the model for our daily lives.  This is what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.

Had Jesus of Nazareth been a Roman or a Greek, certainly his contemporaries would have left behind statues in his honor.  However, because the Jews had a strict understanding of idolatry, their interpretation of the Mosaic Law did not allow them to make any images whatsoever of any human person.  It would have been interesting if we had been left something that would illustrate the physical attributes of the Lord.  Throughout the centuries, there has been much discussion on the subject.  The Shroud of Turin and Veronica's veil tell us a lot about his Middle Eastern features; however, our faith is best served by depending on the one authenticated source, the Gospels.
 
The accounts written by the Evangelists depict Our Lord's great capacity for physical activity.  The long hours spent at hard work in the carpenter shop had prepared him well for the grueling task of his public ministry.

He walked many miles under the blazing Middle Eastern sun in order to preach the Kingdom of God.  He slept many nights under the stars, and he spent much of that time in the bliss of silent prayer.  He found little time to eat because of the multitudes seeking his healing touch, and yet when he did find time to rest, he slept so profoundly that not even a terrible storm could awaken him. 

His body was strong and so was his soul.  During the hours of tribulation in Gethsemane, he persevered in profound prayer while the apostles slept.  When Joseph of Arimathea requested his body for burial, Pilate was surprised to discover that Jesus had died so quickly.  Pilate knew that he had encountered a strong Galilean.

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Jesus did not display his divinity in the manner of the mythical figures of Greek and Roman literature.  He did not fly from place to place as though he were some sort of superman. Amazingly, in him the supernatural and the natural were interwoven.  His divinity seemed so simple and normal. 

No mysterious beams of light, flashes of lightning, or peals of thunder occurred as he performed his miracles.  Instead, it was enough for him to touch, or be touched. 

Only once did he show the magnificence of his divinity before a select group of apostles.  Even then, during the transfiguration, the experience was brief, simple, and discreet. 

Aside from his physical attributes, Jesus knew exactly what he wanted.  He was one with his mission.  Everything that he did proceeded from his passionate desire to fulfill the will of the Father. 

Unlike the complicated discourse of many philosophers and religious leaders, Our Lord's teaching is simple and easy enough for everyone to understand.  However, the message is so clear and precise that his words are irresistible to all those who listen.  Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.  If anyone hits you on the right cheek, off him the other as well.  Do not judge and you will not be judged. Why do observe the splinter in your brother's eye and never notice the plank in your own? 

Who is this man that has divided history into two parts?  Who is this man that has divided nations?  Who is this man for whom many of his followers have given their lives rather than deny him? 

John the Baptist knew him immediately, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.  Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God" (John 1: 29; 34).

What do we need to do in order to truly know Christ Jesus?  Above all, we must be open. Far too many people attempt to live Christianity based upon their own terms.  They do not come to the Lord with open minds and hearts.  Far too many remove pages from the Scriptures and reduce Christianity to their own comfort level.  When we are completely open, the Holy Spirit floods our souls with his loving and peaceful presence.  He cannot enter locked doors and windows that he cannot open.  God respects our freedom.   

Only the open can believe and see.  Knowledge automatically brings us to love.  We only love that which we know.  Our love for the Lord must be authentic and real.  Hypocrisy repulsed the Lord.  "In the written scroll it is prescribed for me, to do your will, O I my God, is my delight, and your law is within my heart" (Psalm 40: 8).

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Love brings about transformation.  The goal of discipleship is to die to self so that the Lord may live within us.  Whether that disciple is Paul, Sosthenes, John the Baptist, or everyone who has called upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, (1Corinthians 1: 2) every true disciple is sanctified and made holy by the Lord who is the light to the nations (Isaiah 49: 6). 

At our own Baptism, the priest touched our ears and said Ephphetha, be open.  There is something about the modern world that is preventing us from listening to God.  Some even listen, only to reject what they hear. 

The narrow road of the Gospel is difficult to live.  Nevertheless, it is the only road that leads to eternal life in heaven.

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Father James Farfaglia, the Happy Priest, is the pastor of Saint Helena of the True Cross of Jesus Catholic Church in Corpus Christi, Texas.  Father has a hard hitting blog called Illegitimi non carborundum.  He has also published a book called Man to Man: A Real Priest Speaks to Real Men about Marriage, Sexuality and Family Life.  You can contact Father at fjficthus@gmail.com.  You can click here for the audio podcast of this Sunday homily.

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