TWENTY-THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
4 SEPTEMBER 2016
Saint
Paul presents his friend Philemon with a dilemma. Philemon’s slave had run away from his master
and had come to Saint Paul, who was in prison in Ephesus. Paul and Onesimus developed a strong
relationship, and Paul appreciated the support he received from a slave whose
name means “helpful.” In prison, Paul
baptized Onesimus and welcomed him into the Body of Christ. Paul readily admits his affection for the
slave whom he now calls “my child.” Paul
would prefer to keep him as his helpful companion.
But Paul
also knows the law of the Roman Empire.
According to the law, Philemon owns Onesimus as his property. If you have seen the movie, Twelve Years a Slave, you can more
readily understand what it means for an owner to regard another human being as
property. Slavery was part of a vast
economic system in the ancient world.
Onesimus became a slave either because his town or village was
conquered, or because he was sold into slavery to satisfy a debt. As a disciple of Jesus Christ, Philemon has
to decide how to handle Paul’s request.
Will he take Onesimus back as his slave but treat him kindly because of
their common bond in baptism? Will he
free him to reflect the freedom of the children of God? Will he punish him severely to make sure that
his other slaves do not try to run away and rob him of his property?
We have no
idea what Philemon did. But we do know
that the dilemma placed on Philemon is placed on all Christian disciples. Jesus is very clear about that in the
Gospel. He speaks to the great crowds
who are travelling with them. He is a
rock star. They love his words and
admire his healing. But he wants them to
understand that there will be no great crowds surrounding him when he is nailed
to a cross. Most will run away when he
gives himself totally out of love. He
wants them to know that he expects them to show this same self-sacrificing love
and carry their crosses. That means
putting Jesus Christ ahead of everyone and everything else.
His words
are so harsh that they get our attention.
He is not speaking of the emotion of hate when he talks about hating members
of our families. He is talking about attitudes
and patterns of behavior. If we really
love, then our attitudes and patterns of behavior put God first. Some saints have found that putting God first
did alienate them from their families.
That happened to Saint Francis of Assisi when he put God first and defied
his wealthy father’s plan to make him a merchant and gave everything away. The same is true of Saint Thomas Aquinas when
he wanted to join the Dominicans. His
family locked him up. Sadly, our own
Father Craig Borchard has suffered when he responded to God’s call to become a
priest. He put God first and paid for it
with rejection from members of his family.
The Rite of
Baptism reminds us of the price we pay when we put God first. The first gift we give at Baptism is the
cross. We trace the sign of the cross on
the head of an infant and invite the parents and godparents to do the same. We do the same with the Rite of Welcome when
we prepare anyone over the age of seven for Baptism. The sponsor traces the sign of the cross over
various parts of the Catechumen’s body and then gives a cross to be worn. We remind them of the cost of discipleship
and the need to be prepared for the cross, much as the builder has to calculate
before he builds and a leader of an army before the attack.
Ironically,
if we place God first in our lives, even ahead of family members and all
possessions, we will love them in a more authentic way. We will recognize them more clearly as gifts
from God to be used on our journey to the new and eternal Jerusalem. We will not regard them as ends in themselves
and the necessary guarantee of our happiness.
Saint Paul challenged Philemon to put God first. We don’t know what Philemon did, but we can
decide for ourselves.
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