“The Truth Will Set You Free” by Colleen O’Sullivan
Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him; they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God." (Daniel 3:95)
Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, "If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, 'You will become free'?" Jesus answered them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son always remains. So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free. (John 8:31-36)
Piety
My chains are gone; I’ve been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love,
Amazing grace
Study
That word “freedom” has a nice ring to it. I once knew someone just starting college, who was full of enthusiasm for the freedom that was now his. He wrote poetry about it. He composed songs about it. No parents, no one telling him what to do. Ah, freedom…
So why doesn’t freedom sound as good to the Jews in today’s Gospel reading? They don’t see themselves as people in need of freedom from anything. They are descendants of Abraham. Period. Even when Jesus explains that every single one of us is enslaved to sin, they repeat what they just said: We are sons of Abraham. When Jesus tells them he’s only sharing what he’s received from the Father, they say the only Father they know is their ancient patriarch, Abraham. They aren’t really listening to Jesus, because freedom from anything means having to look into their hearts and change, and they have no desire to change a single thing about themselves or how they view themselves. Their minds are made up. No changes, no freedom for them, thank you. They are afraid. They’ll cling to the old ways.
Freedom isn’t simply freedom from something; it’s always for something as well. The young friend I mentioned above used his new-found freedom to play his guitar on the campus mall till all hours of the night every night, jeopardizing his grades and his college career. (Thankfully, he got on track after the first semester.)
In our first reading today, we see three men whose faith has set them free, free to reject any thought of apostasy. Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king, wants them to renounce their God and bow down to a golden statue he has had erected. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego use their freedom to refuse. They know the truth and it has set them free, free to be true to the God of their ancestors. God sends an angel to rescue them from the furnace, but they were free to do the right thing without knowing that that would be the case.
Action
Jesus offers us freedom from anything that separates us from God. But freedom from something can be scary because it means change. Just as we see in today’s Gospel, old identities, old ways of doing things are so familiar and so comfortable, even sin.
What, specifically, is it that Jesus seeks to free you from this Lent? What is it that gets between you and God, creating a separation? What is Jesus asking you to let go of?
Lent isn’t quite over. There are still opportunities in every parish in our diocese to go to confession, to be unburdened of whatever is weighing you down. Tonight, every parish is offering the Sacrament of Reconciliation from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. Go. Unburden yourself. Allow yourself to feel God’s love and forgiveness, God’s loving arms around you, welcoming you back from whatever far country you may have visited.
No comments:
Post a Comment