Sunday Homily: We Are Not Materialists
Believing in Christ is the road to wisdom
As you know, I describe atheism as flat Earth thinking. We know many people today are atheist and there is nothing that says they are by default bad people but atheism is a materialistic philosophy as is flat Earth thinking. I only believe in what I can see. Which is the reasoning behind thinking the Earth is flat. We obviously see the world is round now but it does appear flat without a deeper view.
Catholicism is based on believing what we cannot see but through faith we know exists. Catholicism requires us to think beyond materialism and it is a bigger way of thinking. I believe in what I cannot see because I believe more exists in the world than what I can see alone. History and science bear this out.
So the next question is when we see Jesus talk about signs in the skies, how can those signs happen. Two weeks ago, I reminded you that the understanding of cosmology 2000 years ago was different today and we have scientific proof that what we believed then was wrong. So the question I asked two weeks ago, how could those signs appear two thousand years ago of the stars falling etc. We know today that this would not be possible. We have today what can appear to be stars falling and causing great destruction—missiles and realize that scenario is possible today.
However, in order to think like that we have to understand that Jesus was not talking just to them but also to us.
This would lead us to ask why these signs would appear. At the time of the apostles, we would believe the signs would appear because God willed them. However, we can see today, the signs can appear because humanity may go severely down the wrong track. We know that either scenario is possible.
The key is original sin
If we take the latter then the cause of the signs is the culmination of what we believe in which is original sin. Humans are not gods and cannot be gods but when we try to be gods we create disaster.
Children are not adults and so we cannot expect them to run companies because they are not capable. In the same way, we cannot be gods. If children try to run companies, they will fail. If we try to be gods, we will fail.
God exists and it is central to our understanding as human beings to understand this and act on this.
This means that we understand the wisdom of God and we humbly seek it and act on it. To do this, we must first understand that we are not gods but in need of listening to God for he has the wisdom we do not.
Jesus calls us to read the signs of the times and the signs begin with who is and who is not listening to the wisdom of God.
Going astray seeking peace
Humanity can get lost in the passions of seeking utopia. The reason is that humanity can get lost in sin and what sin is that? Lying, cheating, stealing, and everything else to attain the goals a human society wants to achieve. However, God calls us to be his children and in doing so seek to do his will by living in honesty and truth.
If we go back to Jesus’ words, we can ask the question how can this scenario happen? We can see it can if we understand it is a scenario of war and it can happen by humanity being so focused on what it wants, it casts all common sense, wisdom and truth aside to achieve its goals only to see the fruits of its action fail.
Community organizers use a book called Rules for Radicals which teaches to emulate the devil to get what you want. That is a fancy way of saying the ends justify the means. However, I have yet to meet anyone who can tell me how you can emulate the very embodiment of evil and create a just society.
When we look at the way wars happen with one side attacking and leading the other side to retaliate and then the process repeats and escalates, we can see that anyone who enters that process acts without wisdom or truth. In fact, it is an action that is stupid. People believe they can use that same process to create a peaceful society. That makes no sense.
Yet, nations do it every day throughout the world.
Acting in divine wisdom
Jesus shows us how to avoid that cycle and it is easy, do not participate in it. Find another way to address the situation. Another technique of community organizing is based not on the devil but on the teachings of Jesus and St. Paul it is from Walter Wink. He teaches to use creative means to a solution that solve the problem in the way that is best for both parties in the dispute. This is what Jesus calls us to do, as he teaches. This means that we break that escalating cycle.
However, there are people who listen to the fools who will teach the ends justify the means. The ones who people think are so smart they will think it makes sense to enter into this escalating cycle and the rest of us can just look and realize they don’t understand how stupid the process is.
So our role at this time, especially as we begin Advent is to ask what will we do to live the road of wisdom and truth. What steps will we take today to grow in our wisdom and truth and to live it.
We can begin by asking the Lord to work through us this year, to dedicate ourselves to be people of prayer and to act on that prayer. To stay close to the sacraments and to live the Gospel prophetically in a way that shows those around us that in Christ, there is a wisdom and truth the materialistic world will never understand.
Fr. Robert J Carr is pastor of St. Anthony Parish in Allston, MA
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