1 Jn. 3:11-21; Jn. 1:43-51
Have we made any New Year’s Resolutions? Like most people over the years, I have tried making New Year’s resolutions. Initially they had more to do with health like losing weight, exercising more or reading more. In a way they were practical things. Then I began focusing on more personal development like being more patient. I learned be careful what you ask for because to learn patience expect trials to test your patience. I am not the most patient person standing in line and it always seems that I pick the grocery line with the price check, or manager’s overwrite, so I start looking at my phone to exercise patience. With time I began focusing on more spiritual goals like prayer, study, and service. Lately I find myself seeking greater virtues like generosity and this year I sense God’s call to greater joy. If you see pictures of me, I don’t smile much more often I have the “serious” look. I was once asked to make a metaphor of me. I said I was an inverted hurricane, outside calm and collected but inside the winds of the hurricane are strong and sometimes destructive. God calls us to be the best he created us to be and that may be the best resolution of all.
Today, Jesus’ invitation is two-fold, “come and see” and “follow me”. In Jesus, God is greater than our hearts and knows everything”. He knows who is a true child of faith, who belongs to the kingdom if we but follow him. Nathaniel asks, “How do you know me?” God knows our hearts and our hearts condemn us or give us confidence in God. How is it that Nathaniel went from being a doubter to a believer and follower so easily? Jesus provides the answer, “There is no duplicity in him.” Duplicity by definition means “deceitfulness” and other synonyms include “double-dealing, underhandedness, trickery, and dishonesty”. At first we might say, “There is no duplicity in me”. An examination of conscience however may question “how honest am I to myself?” Nathaniel was honest in his comments. Often we try to be politically correct. As soon as someone asks, “How are you?” Our immediate reaction is to say “Fine”. Do we really want to open up and be honest about our aches and pain, physical or emotional? No! We wear a happy mask, we give politically correct answers, we try to see things as we want them to be then when reality hits we are not ready to deal with it and we miss being true to ourselves. Nathaniel saw reality, ready to deal with it, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” That is a bold statement. Jesus is reality. Nathaniel also knew his scriptures, he knew the prophesy of the Messiah, his heart was ready to believe because he had prepared himself by being true to himself and others as God created him to be.
To be labeled a “murderer” is a strong accusation yet may we not be slowly killing ourselves in duplicity, without love of self and neighbor. There are saints like Saint Theresa “The Little Flower” who are gentle souls and there are saints who are rascals, not easy to get along with like Padre Pio but in both there is no duplicity, “What you see is what you get”. Sainthood is not for the weak of heart. It is a response to the call, “come and see” with love and you will recognize the Son of god with us and follow to remain in Him. St. John Neumann, bishop of Philadelphia came to the U.S. seeking to be a priest becoming the first bishop to organize a diocesan school system going from one school to two hundred and opened up a new parish each month. Being true to himself in his frugality he had only one pair of boots his life in the U.S. and when given new vestments he preferred to pass them onto newly ordained priests. At the age of 48 he collapsed and died in the streets while out on errands. There was no duplicity in this simple man though he rose to be bishop of Philadelphia.
What is our resolve this year that we can follow with courage and sometimes sacrifice to be the best God created us to be? He created us to be the image of himself which is truth, goodness, beauty, and love. The real self, come and see and follow.