March 6, 2022 (First Sunday in Lent)

“Emulating Jesus’ Mindfulness and Wholeheartedness”

by Deacon John Kerrigan

[This is the text composed by the homilist prior to delivering the homily.]

Our Church reveals its Lenten face this year during such a difficult moment in the life of the world and our Stanford Catholic Community. We have lived through three years of a pandemic that claimed the lives of at least six million people. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has released a geopolitical cloud that has engulfed Europe and other parts of our world with a culture of ongoing violence, and, finally, here at Stanford, our hearts are heavy with news of Katie Meyer’s death.

Amidst all this bleakness, Luke graces us this afternoon with a gospel story that searches for answers in the midst of a world that faced a very different type of anguish and chaos. But similar to current events here at Stanford, if we examine them closely enough, we will find seeds of both hope and healing.

For in today’s gospel reading, Jesus calls his disciples’ attention, and in turn that of each of us, to two important life lessons. First of all, the need to utilize the faculties of our mind, to reframe many of the situations in which we find ourselves, to recast these events within a new context. And second, to fashion our hearts to becoming more completely present—physically, emotionally, spiritually—to the challenges that we face in life. Put simply, you and I are invited to put on the mind and heart of Jesus.

By reframing the situation in which he found himself, the Lord was able to successfully address the temptations that burdened him and, consequently, come to understand more fully his true identity and mission. At the same time, Jesus allowed himself to be present to the actual feelings and stresses associated with these temptations: the hunger, the temptations of egotism and invincibility. He didn’t hold them at arm’s length. 

So, if you remember only two words from this afternoon’s homily, then, let them be “mindfulness” and “wholeheartedness.”

There are many contemporary stories that illustrate putting on the mind and heart of Christ in order to to live out one’s life calling found in today’s gospel. The life of Franciscan Friar Mychal Judge, listed as the first official victim of the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers, is a case in point.

For years, Judge was well known in New York City for ministering to those alienated by society. On one occasion he gave his winter coat to a homeless woman in the street, later saying, "She needed it more than me." When he anointed a man who was dying of AIDS, the man asked him, "Do you think God hates me?" Judge picked him up, kissed him, and silently rocked him in his arms. A few years before his death, Judge described himself to the fire commissioner in this way, "I am a gay, recovering alcoholic Franciscan Friar.”

What was it about this man—someone who came to grips with his alcohol-dependence and his sexuality—that made him so beloved to thousands of firefighters and others? A man who, at one point, was described by his spiritual director as having achieved an "extraordinary degree of union with the divine.”

Judge did what Jesus advised in today’s gospel: he mindfully framed all that he did and strove for within the service of God and his vocation. He also wholeheartedly entered into his suffering—both his addiction, as well as the pain of being part of a generation in the church that had a difficult time coming to grips with his sexual orientation. Throughout it all, Judge put on the mind and heart of Jesus.

From time to time, each of us, like Mychal Judge, faces challenges, temptations, and even a sense of dread. And like Jesus in today’s gospel, we are invited to reframe them so that they become an invitation for growth and service to others.

As well, Jesus and Mychal Judge internalized the struggle, allowing themselves to experience the physical sensations of those threats. They didn’t run from or repress those unwelcome feelings.

When we stop and think about it, aren't the day-to-day challenges in our lives, growth waiting to happen? Challenges to be met and surmounted, if we are but willing to open our minds and hearts to them?

During the days ahead, as we continue to experience the aftereffects of the pandemic, the feelings of helplessness in the face of world events, or suffering the grief and emotional vertigo that so often accompany the death of a loved one, we must ask ourselves: Am I able to reframe tragedy as an opportunity, such as Jesus did?; how can I ensure that adversity becomes a classroom for cultivating wisdom and patience; is it possible to open my heart to God’s will in my life?

In the gospel story, we are told the devil waited for another opportune time to tempt the Lord. How does opening our minds and hearts to today's suffering time and again prepare me for the challenges that lie ahead? You and I, like Mary are meant to bring Jesus to the world in our person. Like her, we must be open to God’s grace and willing to hear God’s word. And for the more stubborn among us, God’s grace will eventually wear away the callouses on our minds and hearts.

The gospel reading from this first Sunday in Lent reminds us of the purpose of this season: to emulate and imitate Jesus, to discover who we are and our mission in life.

So, as we begin the journey of these six weeks, let’s keep their purpose clear and simple. They lead our Church to the mystery of Easter, but they lead you and me to that conversion of mind and heart for which we so long. In both cases, we can be sure that God’s grace will carry us home.