When Catastrophe Happens, What Next?

Ascension 2022

I polished up my Ascension Day homily last Sunday. Then I tore it up on Tuesday afternoon. Senseless, mindless murder down the road in Uvalde, a place many of us have visited or lived. When catastrophe happens anywhere in the world, don’t we all grieve, and ask “Lord, WHY?” “What now?” I’ve been praying like St. Paul all week, moaning, groaning. Well, I can’t answer “why” but I can take a stab at “what now.”

Let’s start with Christ’s words from last Wednesday’s Gospel, written by St. John, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.” Theologians write books about the “problem of evil.” They confront the critical question in their minds, “How can an all-good God allow so much evil in the world?” But those answers may not help today. Our brothers and sisters of Sacred Heart parish in Uvalde are living that critical question right now. Evil deeds happen, caused sometimes by people who look normal. The truth is that every person in this building over the age of about six has sinned. We are all sinners. Every one of us. When I stop saying “yes” to God’s will, and yield to temptation, I sin. Let’s admit that. Jesus came, the sinless one born of a sinless virgin, to lift us out of that foul swamp. He came to save sinners; without Him and His gifts, we would have no hope.

Now let’s turn to the words of Scripture. Our Lord said, “Amen, I say to you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” Even after that, even after the Resurrection and on the very day of His departure, His followers asked, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” They were still playing the same broken record, over and over, “Lord, summon your angelic host and kill all the Romans. Be the Messiah we want. Give us the power back” There are still many, many leaders who tell us if we just pass some more laws, we’ll stop all this violence. They say, “We can have a perfect society if you’ll just let us control more of your lives.”

Well, Mussolini was leader of such a society, and, yes, he got the trains to run on time in Italy. But none of us would want to live in a country like that. External control of human behavior can solve some problems, but you have to have a police force nobody wants to enforce it. The problem is not solvable that way, and we all know it. The problem starts here and here in the human mind and heart. If minds and hearts are not in tune with the Divine Will, hands and feet and eyes and ears will be either doing self-serving and injurious actions, or planning them. No external law can fix a problem that comes from deep within a twisted mind and heart.

So that’s why Jesus told us it’s for our own good that He ascended into heaven. Because only the Spirit of Jesus, the greatest gift of the Trinity, can enter and mold and inspire human minds and hearts. Only the Holy Spirit has the power to transform our lives, and make thousands, millions, even billions of human beings over into images of Jesus Christ. Moreover, the Spirit builds us into a community of faith, hope and charity taking action to spread His mission and change society for the better.

That’s what St. Paul is trying to tell the Ephesians and us today: he is praying for them and us to have a spirit of wisdom and revelation. He wants us to have enlightened hearts and minds, the heart and mind of Jesus, so we are confident that after this life, we will have the inheritance of God the Father, all the rich glory and joy of being His sons and daughters.

With that joy, we go into our schools and offices and neighborhoods to image Christ, to care for the poor, to create safe environments for children and other vulnerable people, to help the Holy Spirit change minds and hearts. Without face masks, we can once again read the looks on a human face and offer to help people in need. When horrible events happen, as we know they will do, we can step in to help. God will not force us to do good and avoid evil. But when good is done, His Holy Spirit is active. When evil happens, He is acting in us to help the victims and bring hope.