Before sitting down to write this article, I made a cup of tea. On the paper tab attached to the tea bag was, “The worst enemy we have is our own fear.” I laughed, because earlier in the day as I was contemplating what to write, I was thinking about President Roosevelt’s famous quote, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” I never quite understood what the president meant by that until the days and weeks after September 11, 2001. What I finally grasped during those dark days following the attacks was how fear can paralyze, and it is that paralysis we should fear.
This reminds me of a scene in the movie Jaws. Sheriff Brody’s son Michael and Michael’s friends are given permission to go sailing in a small boat in a lagoon thought to be safe from the shark. Of course, the shark enters the lagoon, rams and capsizes the boat. While all of Michael’s friends frantically climb up onto the capsized boat, Michael remains in the water, frozen by fear as the shark approaches him. The shark passes by Michael, but he is so paralyzed by his fear that he has to be pulled out of the water by his friends and father.
In our First Reading from the Prophet Isaiah this weekend we hear, “Be strong, fear not!” Throughout the New Testament Jesus tells his followers to not be afraid, or “fear not” 70 or so times, and for good reason. Recall how the apostles locked themselves in the upper room after Jesus’ crucifixion, out of fear. Imagine if they continued to live in fear after Jesus’ resurrection. Imagine if the apostles withdrew from society out of fear after St. Stephen was stoned to death. Chances are there wouldn’t be Christ’s church, there wouldn’t be the Archdiocese of Detroit, there wouldn’t be the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament, if the apostles allowed fear to paralyze them.
As we prepare for the two-year restructuring efforts for our archdiocese, we have much to contemplate that could cause us to fear. Sadly, our present reality is: fewer people in general are Catholic, fewer still faithfully attend Mass regularly, and even fewer encourage young men to be open to the vocation of the priesthood. This has brought us to this point where we are today: too few priests, too few parishioners, and more church buildings than necessary. Short of a miraculous influx of new parishioners, new priests, and funds there will be church closings. So, we embark on a restructuring effort with some uncertainty and fear. What we cannot do is allow this fear to paralyze us, individually, as a parish, as an archdiocese, such that we end up doing nothing.
Rather than remain in our own upper room with the door locked out of fear, we can open ourselves up to the Holy Spirit. We can pray individually and collectively. We can, as we heard in the Second Reading, be patient, make our hearts firm, refrain from complaining, and take an active part in the process as it unfolds.
But there is something else we can do. We can reflect the glory of Jesus in our daily lives. We can share the good news of salvation and eternal life with others just as the apostles did through word and deed. We can live our faith true to the teachings of the Church. We can do this in ways that people will ask why we are so joyful, why we don’t let evil prevail, why we continually give of ourselves to those in need, why we are welcoming. We can live our lives like the early Christians, which appealed to many more despite the persecution the Church faced at the time. And in doing so, those folks around us will want what we have – a personal relationship with Jesus.
There are many challenges in the coming years. But just as the servants heeded the words of our Blessed Mother Mary at Cana, “Do as he (Jesus) says,” let us do just that, and “fear not.”
In the peace of Christ,
Dcn. Mike