I AM
September 6, 2023
Fr. John Riccardo
Brothers and sisters: Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another;
for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.
The commandments, "You shall not commit adultery; you shall not kill; you shall not steal; you shall not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this saying, namely,
"You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.
Romans 13:8-10
It’s often noted that the simple key to problem solving is to define the problem. If we were to apply that simple logic to the mess that is the world, the country, the Church, what would be the answer? A newspaper supposedly posed that very question to its readers more than 100 years ago. The famous writer and Catholic G.K. Chesterton supposedly sent in his response. It read: “Dear Sirs: I am. Sincerely yours, G.K. Chesterton.”
That oft repeated story, though if it ever actually happened is disputed, comes to mind as we linger with Paul’s words to the Church in Rome. At first glance his words sound simple, too simple perhaps. How hard is it to love, after all? Well, in my experience, very. In a hyper sexualized culture like ours, how many times a day are we assaulted with unwelcome images on our devices that encourage us to objectify another for our own enjoyment? (Thou shalt not commit adultery; Thou shalt not covet.) In a politically hostile climate, how many times are we encouraged and tempted to demonize some person or other? (Thou shalt not kill.) How many clothes hang in our closets that we do not need (and don’t even fit!), while Jesus in His distressing disguise is out on the streets going without? (Thou shalt not steal.) Why is it so hard to love?
Which brings me back to problem solving. The problem with the human race is our hearts. The problem with me is my heart. In Scripture the heart isn’t the seat of feelings and emotions; it’s the seat of the will. The heart is the center of the human person. And our centers are seriously messed up. Chesterton admitted this readily. So do all of the saints. St. Philip Neri used to pray, “Lord, keep Your hand on Philip today or I will surely betray You!” King David in his famous Psalm 51 begs the Lord, “Create in me a clean heart!” The word for “create” in Hebrew is bara, something that only God can do. Only God can create something out of nothing. It’s as though David, after having committed adultery and murder, acknowledges to God, “Lord, You see my heart! It’s murderous and adulterous and it will always be that way unless You do something! So create in me, O God, a new heart.”
This is in fact exactly what God promised would happen to us through the prophet Ezekiel. “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules” (Ezekiel 36:25-27).
This has really happened to us. We have been sprinkled with clean water in baptism and repeatedly washed clean in reconciliation. A new spirit, God’s Holy Spirit, has been “put within” us; He really inhabits us.
And yet…it’s still such a struggle.
Maybe that’s OK. Not OK in the sense that it doesn’t matter, but OK in the sense that our ongoing struggles keep us humble (hopefully) and remind us of the all-important truth that we desperately need God.
In this time dedicated to prayer for a Eucharistic revival, maybe it’s worth focusing more intently on what is actually going on when we step forward and receive Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. With our disordered hearts, wills and minds we draw near the altar. Jesus, in turn, gives us His Precious Blood, the Blood that pulses through His Sacred Heart, the Heart that so loves men and women. And as we consume Him, we receive a blood transfusion. Our lustful, covetous, murderous, thieving blood is driven out, and His pure, merciful, most generous Blood comes rushing in. In the words of Catherine de Hueck Doherty, the Eucharist is “an invasion by God.” An invasion that is supposed to lead us in turn to go and invade the world we re-enter after Mass with God’s love. “As the Father sent Me, so I send you” (John 20:21).
Come, Holy Spirit! Help us to understand more profoundly what is really happening in communion! Come, Holy Spirit! Change our hearts so that they resemble more and more the Sacred Heart of Jesus! Come, Holy Spirit! Send us out into our families, our workplaces, our schools, our communities, eager to bring the love of God that alone can fix every problem.