A Plus Sign

Seeing Jesus’ presence as a gain not a loss

03/13/2019

Luke 11:29-32 While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them, "This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. At the judgment the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation and she will condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and there is something greater than Solomon here. At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because at the preaching of Jonah they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here."

A ten year old public school boy was finding fifth grade math to be the challenge of his life. His parents did everything they could to help their son: private tutors, peer assistance, and even hypnosis, but nothing worked. Finally they enrolled him in a small Catholic school. At the end of the first day, the boy walked in with a stern expression on his face, went straight to his room, and closed the door. He spent the rest of the evening toiling away at math, and only emerged to eat and then returned to his room. He did they day after day, week after week, without any explanation.

After the first nine weeks, the boy brought home his report card, quietly laid it on the kitchen table, and as usual, went straight to his room to study. The parents opened it, were surprised to see an “A” next to the subject of math. They rushed overjoyed to the boy’s room and asked: “Was it the nuns that did it?” The boy shook his head “No.” The mother inquired, “Was it the small classes or the one-on-one tutoring?” Again he said, “No.” The boy finally explained: “It was all clear from the first day of school. When I walked into the lobby, and I saw the guy they nailed to the plus sign, I knew they meant business.”

But I would suggest to you that Jesus and his cross are always a “plus sign” and never a “minus sign.” Whenever Jesus enters our life he always brings us more not less; he always exceeds our expectations, never diminishing or disappointing them. I think that’s one reason parents pick Catholic schools for their children, who not only struggle with math, but struggle with life. The Guy we nailed to the plus sign inspires them to achieve more than they thought possible, not less.

In the gospel today, Jesus tries to teach the people he is the Guy nailed to the plus sign, and he has come to give them more than they could hope or dream, not less. His cross is a plus sign not a minus sign. He says, “There is a greater than Solomon here,” and a little later adds: “There is something greater than Jonah here.” You will recall that in the Old Testament no one possessed greater wisdom than Solomon, who even wrote the book of Wisdom. And few prophets were as persuasive as Jonah, who converted the hard-hearted Ninevites in one day. But Jesus says to them: “I am the plus sign, always greater, always wiser, always holier than your dreams and desires can imagine no matter how great they may be. The cross of Christ is always a plus sign, never a minus sign.

My friends, do you truly believe Jesus has come to give us more than we expect or imagine, or do you think he makes our lives less? I think there are many people who believe that Christianity is merely sacrifice and sadness, and less life, not more. Let me give you some examples where I see the cross of Christ as a plus sign rather than a minus sign. During Lent it certainly seems like we’re living less by giving up what we love: chocolate, T.V., social media, etc. But I believe what we’re really doing spiritually is like giving up junk food to enjoy a gourmet meal, or sacrificing heavy metal music to hear the subtle sounds of symphony. What at first feels like a minus in the end turns out to be a plus.

A friend of mine often asks: “Fr. John, why do you get up at 4:30 in the morning to write your sermons instead of working on them during the day?” I try to explain that what seems like unbearable sacrifice and silence is actually a golden opportunity for uninterrupted concentration to hear the Holy Spirit. What seems to all common sense to look like a minus sign is in reality, at least in my experience, a plus sign.

And lastly, everything we lose in this world momentarily – our loved ones like my nephew Noah, or our hair, or our hearing, or our eyesight, or our mobility, or our driver’s license, or our mental capacity, or our memory, or whatever – is but a small minus sign. And Jesus changes that minus sign into a plus sign by his cross and resurrection. In other words, we will get all those losses back in heaven in a way that will always exceed our expectations on earth.

Little boys in Catholic schools are inspired to study math because of the Guy nailed to the plus sign. That Guy, who is our God, always changes our minuses into pluses, and our earthly losses into eternal gains.

Praised be Jesus Christ!