A Cold Calculation

Making the spiritual a priority over the material

10/19/2020

Luke 12:13-21 Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.” He replied to him, “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” Then he said to the crowd, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” Then he told them a parable. “There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest. He asked himself, ‘What shall I do, for I do not have space to store my harvest?’ And he said, ‘This is what I shall do: I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones. There I shall store all my grain and other goods and I shall say to myself, “Now as for you, you have so many good things stored up for many years, rest, eat, drink, be merry!”’ But God said to him, ‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’ Thus will it be for the one who stores up treasure for himself but is not rich in what matters to God.”

Quite frequently people ask me, “Fr. John, why did you decide to become a priest?” I am always amazed by that question because once you understand what a priest is and what a priest does, the real question people should ask is, “Why would someone NOT want to be a priest?” Still, the original question is a good one, and I explain that part of my path to the priesthood consisted of a cold calculation. As a teenager I wanted to help people, and it seemed to me there are two basic ways to help others, namely, materially, by giving them food, shelter and clothing, like helping those folks standing on the street corner asking for material help.

On the other hand, you can help people spiritually by teaching them about Jesus, showing them love, joy, hope and peace in the Bible, and ultimately, giving them the grace of God in the sacraments, especially the Eucharist. As I weighed these two ways to help people, both of which are good and important, I asked a further question: Which need lasts longer? Our material needs only last as long as we are kicking up dust on this earth, 80, 90 or 100 years. But our spiritual needs are eternal. We will always hunger and thirst for Jesus’ love. And clearly the vocation which is dedicated to bringing the best of the spiritual life to people is the Catholic priesthood. If all the people who help others spiritually are feeding others spiritual fare, then the Catholic priest is the gourmet chef, preparing the exquisite Eucharist.

Both the scriptures we read and the saints we venerate today invite us to make this cold calculation as well. That is, we should see how the spiritual outweighs the material, even though both are important. You keep bringing this poor priest dinner and I will keep feeding you with the Bread of Angels. In the gospel, a man asks Jesus to take sides in his dispute over an inheritance. Jesus answers him (and us): “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” In other words, do not be so laser focused on material well-being that you forget your spiritual well-being.

St. Isaac Jogues, who came to evangelize the Native Iroquois and Huron Indians in Canada, had a burning desire to help people spiritually more than materially. Maybe that cold calculation is how he discerned his priestly vocation as a young man. He wrote in his diary these passionate lines: “My God it grieves me greatly that you are not known, that in this savage wilderness all have not been converted to you, that sin has not be driven from it.” Then St. Jogues adds this stirring line willing to die for Jesus: “My God, even if all the brutal tortures which prisoners in this region must endure should fall on me, I offer myself most willingly to them and I alone shall suffer them all.” In other words, St. Isaac Jogues, Jean de Brebeuf and their companions valued spiritual goods so highly they were willing to be entirely deprived of material goods, indeed, they were ready to be martyrs. The Christian life often consists of a cold calculation, a weighing of two goods, material and spiritual, and seeing which weighs more on the scales of eternity.

Let me draw one quick practical lesson from the foregoing reflection. I believe this is the primary reason that many bishops throughout the country have asked Catholics to return to Mass every Sunday, even in the face of the continuing pandemic of the coronavirus. Obviously, we need to be careful and practice all the safety protocols of wearing masks, washing hands, and keeping social distance. But at the same time we should not prize and value our earthly life so highly that we are willing to sacrifice eternal life. I fear that the longer people stay away from the sacraments, they more they lose their spiritual appetite for the gourmet meal of the Mass. There are people I have not seen at Mass since mid-March. Our Catholics are starving spiritually more than those people standing on the street corners holding signs asking for material help. When you miss Mass, you make a bad miscalculation.

Sometimes the Christian life consists in a cold calculation, a weighing of material and spiritual goods, and seeing which weighs more on the scales of eternity. So, from now on, don’t ask the question, “Fr. John, why did you become a priest?” Rather ask, “Why would anyone NOT want to become a priest?”

Praised be Jesus Christ!