5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
It is this time of the year that the whole country looks to Iowa during the caucus and everyone seems to be filled with fear and anxiety about what the future will hold for us. St. Ignatius of Loyola in his great spiritual exercises reminds us that fear and anxiety are usually a sign that we are not looking at things through the proper lens. If we are experiencing this fear and anxiety we may need to change our focus.
Jesus helps to change our focus a bit. He speaks about us being like salt and light. If we let fear and anxiety rule us, then we are like salt that loses its taste or a light snuffed out under a bushel basket. And if we placing our hope in some political structure or human organization to change the world then we may very easily let fear and anxiety snuff out our joy and light.
I am going to be frank with you. I mean, I’m not frank, I’m Fr. Kyle. Anyway, I am not looking to Washington DC or the golden dome in Des Moines to bring authentic change to the world. Why? Because what I see in front of me every Sunday is the light of the world. Authentic people striving to live lives of love and joy. You are the light of the world.
As a priest I have the unique window into people’s lives in both the good and the bad. A few weeks ago I was talking to some students and one referenced how I hear people’s sins in the confessional and so I often times see people at their worst. But here is the thing; what I see in the confessional is not a person’s sinfulness. I see the beauty of a humble person seeking the love and grace of God striving to live a life of love and beauty. At these moments I don’t see people at their worst, I see people at their best. People striving for authentic love.
St. Ignatius reminds us that if fear and anxiety fills our lives, we may need a change in focus. Jesus helps us to find that new focus. What I, and more importantly, what Jesus sees in front of me is the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Do not be afraid to the that light shine.