Foiled Again

Seeing our adversaries as our antagonists and allies

05/20/2017

John 15:18-21 Jesus said to his disciples: "If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you. Remember the word I spoke to you, 'No slave is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. And they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me."

         I loved learning about literature when I was in college. Great authors often use the literary device of a “foil” in their plots. Do you know what a foil is? The foil is the antagonist in the story – we would call him the villain – work works in direct opposition to the protagonist, or the hero. The Joker was the foil to Batman, Khan was the foil to Captain Kirk, the Wicked Witch of the West was the foil to Dorothy. The foil does not just make the plot interesting – because we wonder who will win – but he or she also enhances and highlights the noble qualities of the hero. The hero’s goodness shines in sharp contrast to the villain’s badness.

          My favorite foil of all time, however, is Snidley Whiplash of the cartoon series called, “Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties.” It’s easy to recognize Snidley as the foil or villain because he wears a black cape, a black top-hat and a moustache (all good villains do). Snidley’s favorite crime is tying innocent women to the railroad tracks, who are always saved by Dudley at the last second. Do you remember what Snidley says every time Dudley saves the day? His customary catch-phrase was “Curses, foiled again!” But notice what’s happening in the story: Dudley shines brighter because he stands in sharp contrast to sinister Snidley. In literature, the foil enhances the story but it also enhances the hero; indeed, the foil is the “necessary evil” in all great literature.

   

           In the gospel today, Jesus teaches his disciples that they, too, will have a foil in their life as Christians. Our Lord warns them, “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world…the world hates you.” In the gospel of John, the evangelist employs “the world” as the foil to Jesus and his followers. The world in this sense was embodied by characters like Pontius Pilate, King Herod, Judas Iscariot and ultimately by Satan. These foils not only make the life of Christ the greatest story ever told, but also highlight his holiness. Jesus’ goodness grows greater as he stands next to the world’s sinfulness. Jesus saves his bride, the Church, often tied to the railroad tracks by Satan, and we hear Satan say, “Curses, foiled again.”

           My friends, let me invite you to look at your life as a great work of literature. You are the protagonist (of course!), the hero, Dudley Do-Right. But how will we highlight your holiness and make you look good? We need to give you an antagonist, a villain, someone to antagonize you, a foil! Can you think of any foils in your life: someone trying to sabotage your happiness and make you miserable? Maybe your foil will be your spouse, or perhaps you think it’s your parents, or maybe it’s the opposing political party, or is it Russia? My personal foils are the deacons. You may wish you didn’t have a foil, an antagonist, and that your life would be easier and happier without them. Yes, it would be easier, but it would also emptier, and your life story would not reach the heights of great literature. Your foil is your opportunity to highlight how good you are: how patient you are, how humble you are, how forgiving you are, how cheerful you are. Dudley Do-Right would be a feeble and fickle hero if he didn’t have Snidley Whiplash to make him look so daring and dashing. Folks, you need a foil to defeat daily and make him or her say, “Curses! Foiled again!”

          Have you heard that song called “Let Her Go” by the band Passenger? The lyrics are a haunting reminder of how contrast (or a foil in literature) serves to highlight goodness. They sang, “You only need the light when it's burning low, Only miss the sun when it starts to snow, Only know you love her when you let her go, Only know you've been high when you're feeling low, Only hate the road when you're missing home, Only know you love her when you let her go.” All great literature teaches that the greatest adversary, the antagonist, can also be the greatest ally, the necessary evil that makes goodness shine so bright. 

Praised be Jesus Christ!