We do this because we do not have unlimited amounts of time or energy. We have to allot that time and energy on those things we believe to have the greatest benefit in our lives. If we hold a goal particularly valuable, we will endure the sacrifice and even suffering to attain that goal. Athletes do this all the time. Becoming great at a sport requires the extra sweat and sacrificing of time, energy, and resources. I could draw similar comparisons for many other things. The point is we prioritize the expenditure of time and energy on what we believe is worth it.
In our society, faith has been deemed as unworthy of such effort, time, or priority. Faith is to serve the purpose of the spiritual dopamine; something that makes me feel good. Once it ceases to make me feel good, it loses its value. Faith is supposed to easy and promise great things that are easily acquirable. Certainly, there are faiths that cater to such a desire. In Christianity, it is faith without a cross. It is cheap grace. It is eternal life with no effort; a spiritual comfort food with no nutritional value. It is a custom made faith that allows me to mold something that feed my whims. It is spiritual but not religious.
This kind of faith is easy to fit into a lifestyle that places many other things before it. However, it is largely unfulfilling. It is the quickest way to agnosticism or atheism. It doesn't work. Why? Because the reality of life intrudes upon cheap grace and rolls it. Cheap grace, a crossless Christianity, has no ability to answer life's tough issues. As it doesn't grow strong, it goes into atrophy. If we want a faith that can take on the hardest life is going to throw at it, we cannot strengthen it without the weight of the cross.
The cross, in Christianity, is the willingness to love. Love requires us to put ourselves second to the good of another. That is not easy. It fights our every instinct of self preservation. Yet, the ability to embrace the selflessness of love is essential to our ability to grow in faith. Decades ago, within the Catholic Church, there was premium put on acts of mortification, fasting, and abstinence. These were not constructs there to make us miserable, but actions by which we endure the self denial necessary to become stronger. They reminded us that the cross entailed deliberate self denial. These were simple and little crosses. For some reason, they got swept away by the spirit of Vatican II, a demonic force that sought to cheapen the Catholic life into a trite kingdom of nice. That we whine about Lent and its oh so hard disciplines shows we have gotten seen the cross as undesirable.
Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that we do these in place of love. It is not an either/or proposition. Consider them to be spiritual weight training. Taking time to pray and learn about our faith are also necessary. Participation in the sacraments is absolutely essential. O Father...all these demands!! Think about it: if being physically fit is your goal, does that come without effort?! If mastering an art is your goal, does that come without effort?! Let's be honest, these are goals, noble though they may be, that have no real eternal stake. Your ability to love God and neighbor does. Your ability to pick up your cross does.
We must stop preaching and teaching cheap grace. We must stop preaching and teaching a crossless Christ! We have done such and wondered why our churches have emptied..especially of men! We wonder why priestly vocations dry up?! We wonder why marriage and family life are falling apart?! It is because a church of cheap grace and no cross might look great on paper to the spiritually slothful, but it has no meat or nutrition. It is easy to dismiss and toss aside like rubbish. Christ didn't say it would be be nice if you picked up your cross, He said it was absolutely necessary! This nonsensical 'we're a resurrection people' is cheap grace at its worst! There can be no resurrection without a death first; you have to die to be resurrected. They go hand in hand. No cross, no crown!
It is hard. I saw a story today of a group of young men, standing arms locked together, in front of a Catholic Church in Argentina. They placed themselves between the church and a group of topless and abusive pro-abortion demonstrators who were looking to desecrate the church. Those young men were being slapped, punched, kicked, and vandalized. They stood strong without returning violence for violence. That took guts and strength. That's the Cross. When so many clergy belch candy coated bile as preaching and teaching, so afraid that they might not be liked or the collections might go down, they do a disservice to every man, woman, and child who embraces the Cross. They mock Christ Himself, turning the Cross into shame. Our faith and has and always will call us to excellence. It calls us to strive for the high standard. There is no place for cheap grace and a crossless Jesus. We have work to do. That work can only get done with real grace.
No comments:
Post a Comment