September 2008 REFLECTION

OFFER OURSELVES AS A LIVING SACRAFICE TO GOD
Deacon James Zakowicz, O.C.D.

                                                                       
“It is only by freeing himself through suffering that man finds himself, truth, joy and happiness” (Benedict XVI).

I am writing this article on August 31st after having preached my first homily as a deacon at St. Therese Church.  What a privilege to try and “unpack” the Word of God for you!

In the Old Testament reading from Jeremiah I was struck by his stinging complaint:  “You duped me Lord, and I let myself be duped.”  He is frustrated by the poor response he receives from the people to whom God has sent him.  In fact, he is angry because they mock him for his message that if they don’t turn from their idols they are doomed to slavery.  Serving God is not always rewarding.  In fact, St. Paul tells the Romans and us to “offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God…”  In other words, we should not only accept suffering but we should go the next step and offer ourselves as a living sacrifice. 

How often do we men feel duped?  Our materialistic culture tempts us to seek pleasure and avoid pain.  The more we seek pleasure, though, the more remote it seems.  The need to sacrifice ourselves for the good of the tribe is written in our DNA.  It has been my experience that joy only comes when I give myself away for the sake of the “other.”  I imagine that Paul felt a certain sense of satisfaction in the trials he endured as he traveled through Asia Minor preaching the Word of God.  He probably had a keen awareness of his purpose for the first time in his life.  He was finally living for something greater than the law; he served the Supreme Lawgiver.

I remember reading a story about a woman who was caught in a building in which a shooter was going on a killing spree.  She was absolutely terrified but had a sense that she was strong enough to save herself if she just maintained her composure.  She hid in a filing cabinet hoping the killer would pass her by.  She held her breath as his footsteps creaked just inches from her trembling body.  Her life could end in seconds.  After the rampage was over she came outside and was asked if she had been scared.  She said yes but she also felt more alive than ever during that ordeal.

Let’s not forget what Jeremiah says right after his complaint.  In his desolation he proposes never to mention God again nor ever speak in his name.  “But then,” he admits, “it becomes like a fire burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones.  I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it.”  Like all great prophets and evangelists, Jeremiah and Paul, felt compelled to spread God’s message, even in the face of great resistance.

Let’s face it – at some point we have to make a choice – serve God with my whole heart or forever live in complacency. 

We each have a unique mission.  To fulfill it we will have to endure our share of the suffering inherent in being members of the Body of Christ.  I’d like to suggest that, instead of simply “offering up” our current trials, we give ourselves over completely as a living sacrifice to God.  By putting our entire selves on the line we may just experience life to the fullest extent possible this side of the Beatific Vision.