My oldest daughter recently moved to Senegal in West Africa. As a college senior she went there for a
semester as part of a study abroad program. She fell in love with the place and the people. She went back a couple of times for about 2-3 weeks each between her graduation in 2009 and 2017. During this time she tried to find a job that would send her to Senegal to work and live doing international development work. It just didn’t work out. So, she decided that as of December 1st of last year she would move there and see what she could accomplish.
If you knew my daughter you would know that she has had a bit of a turbulent history with authority figures…probably relating to some degree on somewhat authoritative parenting principles we had as new parents. As a result, she had a hard time keeping jobs and relating to co-workers and bosses. It often put us in conflict with each other as we questioned her abilities and focus.
So it was to our surprise when we asked her about Christmas and birthday presents, she asked that we visit her this past spring in Senegal. “Of course” was our response and this past April we spent almost 3 wonderful weeks in Senegal getting to know this place she was now calling home and meeting the people who have captured her heart. My wife and I came away from the trip being sure that our daughter was actually born here in Senegal in another life and we were just borrowing her in America. She just fit in with the people and the culture. It was home for her. The best of who she is came out loud and clear as she interacted with the wonderful people in this former French colony. And our relationship with her was also the best it has ever been. She had matured and our relationship with her had matured.
To be honest, I went into the trip expecting more of the same in terms of her behavior with us and with those around her. That she would be combative and short tempered (hmmmm, wonder where she inherited that trait from?). I was expecting to see that same obstinate 14 year old that we used to live with. It took all the patience and prayer time I had to not treat her the way the people of Nazareth treated Jesus. They knew him growing up. They knew who he was and could not allow him to be anything more than that. Just who did he think he was, anyway!? It’s not like he was the Son of God or something. And Danielle? There was no way she could succeed and thrive in this foreign culture when she could not be successful here at home. Did she think she was SPECIAL or something? Well…turns out that she is. And it turns out that our Lord was as well.
When I was still in general veterinary practice, I also was seeing patients at other locations wearing my veterinary behavior specialist “hat”. When clients were referred to me, and I saw them at these other locations as a specialist, I had their full cooperation in implementing treatment plans. But when people came to me in my general practice, and I tried to give the same advice, no dice. They weren’t hearing it. After all, I was just this general practicing vet who they had seen for several years giving vaccinations to their pets…not dishing out advice for their dog’s behavior issues. I was no specialist to them!! There is a saying that says “an expert is someone who is more than 50 miles from home”. And it does not matter if that home is Carol Stream, IL or Nazareth.
Why do we do this…put down someone who we see as stepping out above what we think they should be capable of? Maybe it is easier to cut someone down than to accept what we see. It makes us feel like we have the inside track by blocking someone else. After all, if HE could succeed coming from THIS town, and I cannot, then what would that say about me?
What I thought was interesting is how Jesus continues to refer to himself as the Son of Man during much of the Gospel. This designation emphasizes his humanity and His mortality. This is how God refers to Ezekiel and to Daniel in the Old Testament. He is not denying his divinity but demonstrating His dual nature as God and as man. As God he could force these people to believe and sidestep their free will, but as man he cannot. All he could do is offer himself as he was and then allow the individual to make a choice as to how they will accept the message he is presenting. Allow their faith, or lack thereof, to guide them. Their choice was to try to push Jesus over a cliff. To silence the messenger when you object to the message.
Ezekiel has the same problem. God called him to confront the sinful people that was Israel and speak the truth. Unfortunately, the truth was not welcomed. He was rejected as a prophet by his people but this did not stop him from proclaiming what God wanted him to proclaim. Just because the message is not welcomed, does not mean it should be silenced.
This also means that we must become as educated as possible as to the basic tenants of our faith. We can accomplish this by reading the Catechism of the Catholic Church, by reading other books (I would recommend the book “Case for Christ” and CS Lewis’ “Mere Christianity”, and “I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist” as good places to start) and listening to Catholic Radio such as Relevant Radio and EWTN. I particularly like listening to the Patrick Madrid Show on Relevant Radio.
We live in an age where the message we have as Catholic Christians is not welcomed by most of our society. It tells us that we have no right to question someone’s view of their gender, about who they want to marry, if they decide to abort their baby, if they elect to help end someone’s life. But we know the truth and while we may be rejected by those who know us best, we must look into the spark of divinity that rests inside each of us as Sons of Man and speak that truth.
Today’s Readings:
