Burning ships to follow Christ

Homily for 13^th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C 2016

1 Kings 19:16b,19-21; Galatians 5:1,13-18; Luke 9:51-62

Introduction

The story is told of Hernando Cortés.  He was the Spanish Conquistador, who attempted to conquer and colonize the Aztec empire, what is now much of Mexico.  But compared to the Aztecs his army was rather small.

And so, legend has it that after his men got ashore, Cortés ordered them to burn all the ships that brought them from Spain. He did this so that his men would understand fully that their only options were to win or to die – there would be no retreat, no plan B, no fall-back position. And so, knowing that their options were now limited, the Spanish army would fight harder and with more commitment.

Today's readings teach us the same message, that when Jesus calls people to follow him, they must do so without any reservation, they must completely cut ties with their former lives, they must burn their ships.

Scripture and Theology

The gospel passage presents three candidates who want to follow Jesus.  But they all three lack something of the commitment that Jesus wants in a disciple.

One says: "Lord, [I want to follow you but] let me go first and bury my father." This seems like quite a reasonable request.  The man wants to fulfil his duties as a son, to bury his father.  Perhaps the father was quite ill and needed care in his last days.  Perhaps the father of this man was in good health, but still needed him to help around the house.

To this man Jesus says in quite stern terms: "Let the dead bury their dead.  But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God."  Is Jesus suggesting that we must abandon our family obligations?  No.  But he is asking the disciple to reflect seriously on where his priorities lie.  Do his priorities lie with family or with Jesus?  Sometimes, in fact, often, the disciple will have to choose Jesus over the family.

Another candidate says: "I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to my family at home." And we would again agree that this is also a fair request.  Today, if a young man or woman were to enlist in the army, he or she would not just take off without first saying goodbye to mom and dad first, perhaps even to seek their blessing.  That would be like eloping.

But Jesus once again uncompromisingly says: "No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God.”  Again he is using this hyperbole to teach that commitment to him trumps all other commitments.  He demands that his followers burn the ships of their former lives, even of their family ties.

While these two candidate-disciples seem to lack full commitment because they were hesitant, another candidate-disciple lacks commitment in a different way.  This is the one who says: "I will follow you wherever you go."  This man or woman is rather enthusiastic about the mission of Jesus, willing to go anywhere, do anything for Jesus.  But Jesus seem to discourage him by saying: "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."  Why?

Jesus speaks this way because enthusiasm alone does not a disciple make.  The potential disciple must know the realities of what following Jesus means.  That is why Jesus tells him that while wild animals have a place to stay, Jesus is essentially homeless.  This disciple must learn that committing himself to Jesus means also committing himself to the difficult life, the suffering of Jesus.  Jesus is going to Jerusalem to be arrested, crucified and killed; the disciple needs to know this.  The television commercials emphasize only the benefits of their product in glowing colours, clear words and large print, but hide the downside in small print.  Jesus places everything on the table for the disciple to make an informed choice.

Christian Life

Christians have lived out this radical message of the gospel in various ways.

In the Early Church, those who became Christians had to give up a lot: they had to give up ordinary jobs, social status and sometimes even their lives for Christ.  Later this radical commitment was also lived out by some in what we now call religious life.  The hermits, like St. Anthony, left the world to go into the desert.  The monks and nuns like St. Benedict and St. Rita went to a monastery.  The friars like St. Francis of Assisi and St. Dominic lived on the street.  All these men and women cut ties with family and the world, and chose to focus entirely on Jesus Christ and his way, living in poverty, obedience and chastity.  They burnt their ships of family security, material security and personal security.

But the challenging message of Jesus is not just for nuns and priests; it is a call for every Christian.  Day in and day out, Catholic men and women live out this radical commitment to Christ, especially in their families.

I know a couple, Francisco and Maria, who have been married for 57 years.  Whenever I visit them I see how much love they have for each other.  He is 92 and she cares for him every day.  Have things always been smooth sailing? No.  Have they had difficulties?  Yes.  But they never gave up.  They weathered the difficult times because they believe what Jesus teaches about a man and woman becoming one in marriage for ever – they believe that when they said, "I do, in sickness and in health" they were burning the ships that could take them to other relationships; they were committing themselves to each other forever in God.

I also know their adult children, who are just as committed to their parents as the parents are to each other.  I suspect that the children picked up this commitment from their upbringing in the faith, in the Catholics schools they went to, going to Church with mom and dad, but especially in the example set by the parents at home. There is no better school in which to learn about commitment, but the school of mom and dad, who work hard at their jobs to put food on the table, who love and respect each other, who pray with the family.

And yet, you and I sometimes struggle with being totally committed to Jesus:

• Sometimes we are like the disciple whose only possession is enthusiasm, an emotional high, but does not do the heavy lifting that Jesus demands of his followers, like those corporal works of mercy, and the seven spiritual works of mercy.  Jesus reminds us that while the Christian way can be a bed of roses, those roses also have thorns that prick.
• Sometimes we are like the two disciples who hesitate to put their toe in the water, because they are being pulled by other engagements, even of family or work.  Perhaps God is calling you to consider becoming a priest, a deacon, a sister or brother, but you are holding back.  Many of our students at the seminary tell us that they thought about becoming priests for many years, but feared to take the plunge.  Finally one day they heard the radical call of Jesus to leave all behind and follow him, and they decided to come to the seminary and try it out.

Conclusion

And so, as disciples, sometimes with his grace we are fully committed to Jesus, at other times we are only partially committed because we accept only the easier parts of his message, and at other times still we are not committed at all.

Let us turn to Elisha the prophet we heard about in the first reading.  Enthusiastic at first, he asked Elijah to let him first go and bid farewell to his father and mother.  But fortunately, he thought better of it, and like Cortes' men, literally burnt his ships: he slaughtered the oxen and used the ploughing equipment to cook the meat.  Then Elisha left and followed Elijah as his assistant.

What ships do you and I have to burn, so as to follow Jesus with full and unreserved commitment?