Is. 66:18-21; Ps. 117:1,2; Heb. 12:5-7, 11-13; Lk. 13:22-30

The discipline of the Lord is to be endured as a trial “for whom the Lord loves, he disciplines”.    Discipline comes through perseverance and perseverance through faith.  If we do not believe that the hand of the Lord is active in our discipline through life then we fall into the search for the path through least resistance.  What is the easy way instead of seeking the better way?  The Lord calls us to “Make straight paths for your feet” and follow the discipline of faith.  This discipline comes through the teaching of the Church, following the sacramental life, and living life as another Christ in this world.  That discipline is hard we say.  Jesus says, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate”. 

We live in a time in the church when rules, traditions, church law, even church doctrine is frowned on as too institutional, too rigid.  Notice how many Christian churches keep rising up under the banner of “just have faith” or “follow your conscience”, or forget the Old Testament writings and just follow the gospels.  Even in the Catholic church some characterize the requirements of the sacraments and its form and matter as too legalistic after all “Jesus understands”.  Jesus understands the call to discipline as good for the soul.  Today Jesus warns against those who assume because “we ate and drank in your company” we are saved.  The discipline of the Lord is for us to avoid being among those to who he will say, “I do not know where you are from.” 

To those who say “just have faith” risk the pit of destruction by minimizing sin as simply a human fault after all “no one is perfect”.  The theology here is “as long as we believe we are going to heaven.”  Consider the fact the devil believes in God and his sin caused him to fall from grace taking with him to this day all he can get to be deceived by this theology.  The discipline of the Lord is to separate us from sin not to normalize it.  The argument is made for “just have faith” as justified by faith alone but scripture argues that faith without works is dead.  The discipline of our works is the sign of faith we are to live.  In the discipline of the Lord we have works, we pick up our cross and follow him.  One is the visible sign of the invisible faith as the Lord says, “I know their works and their thoughts.” 

To those who say “follow your conscience” believe their thoughts and beliefs will always justify their actions.  Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth and the life” and our ways are not his ways.  A conscience is formed and a well-formed conscience comes through the discipline of the Lord with right teaching.  The word “conscience” implies our thought are “con” meaning “with” the thinking of someone.  Is our conscience united to the teaching of Jesus or with the world’s cafeteria options to choose from?  A well-formed conscience is rooted in the discipline of the Lord and whom a parent loves they discipline in the faith of Jesus Christ. 

The call of a parent to love a child comes with the obligation to discipline beyond behavioral or social norms as visible signs of good parenting.  The call of a parent comes with the obligation to provide the spiritual discipline for an increase of faith, hope, and love in God.  It begins in the discipline of faith to believe in one God, the Father almighty with all the mind of acceptance and in his only begotten Son Jesus Christ with all the heart of love and in the Holy Spirit with all the will of obedience and in his one Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church with all the discipline of the sacramental life.  It is a covenant of love that unites us to God the Father, through the Son in the Holy Spirit in the sacramental life of the Church. 

Then there are those who say the bible is written by men so only what Jesus is quoted can be trusted recall that Jesus gave authority to the apostles to “go and make disciples of all nations”.  It is Jesus who first used the word “church” calling on his followers to gather together in the “house of the Lord” that is “ekklesia” in Greek meaning church.  The discipline of the Lord comes through his church in the unbroken authority given to the apostles we call today the magisterium of the church.  To dwell into the mind of Christ cannot come or be sustained in the mind of one person but in the unity of those he called and continues to call to the priesthood.  We trust in the outcome of this unity as guided by the Holy Spirit.  It is the wisdom of the ages still true today as from the beginning. 

It all begs the question if the world is given all this truth from God why is there a growing phenomenon of persons identified as “nones”?  These are the “unaffiliated” without any religion.  They include atheist, agnostics, and those who say “nothing in particular”.  According to pewrearch.org 60% question religious teaching, 49% have “opposition to the positions taken by churches on social and political issues”.  Below that 41% dislike religious organizations; 37% don’t believe in God, 36% consider religion irrelevant to them, and 34% dislike religious leaders.  What is missing in the “nones” is a personal encounter with the living Christ. 

This is a people who hold to their beliefs justified only by their thinking wandering in the desert of their mind for the living water and die believing there is nothing more and the promise land is a fable otherwise if God was real to them, they would want that connection to him and seek him even in church.  This is a people without hope for eternity and they only exist for this moment and the moment is quickly coming to an end because death is real and unavoidable.  The ”nones” is not something new just a new way of labeling a certain group of people who have always been there.  The reasons given are not new, it is how the world remains from age to age.  What is new perhaps is the number who have grown up in the faith and left the church to become “nones”. 

We as church need to question “what is happening” from within.  Have we become lukewarm, lost the discipline of the Lord, fallen into minimalism, and/or just holding on for the sake of tradition.  Where is the fire that burns from within?  What happened to our “come to Jesus” moment or have we not had that moment yet?  We should not wait for the 911 day in our life for God to rescue us.  God is good and the path opens up to us when we get back to the basic discipline of the Lord and follow the narrow path. 

The USCCB (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops) is calling for a National Eucharistic Revival in this country.  We need a transformation from within as a people of God and Jesus in the eucharist is the “source and summit of our faith”.  In the eucharist is the mystery of faith that is transformative.  Here he lies as the answer and we come in faith to be healed, renewed, and strengthened for this pilgrimage on earth.