Scream and Scare

Learning the virtue and value of obedience

04/21/2021

John 6:35-40 Jesus said to the crowds, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. But I told you that although you have seen me, you do not believe. Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, because I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me. And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.”

Did you know that I was in the Marines for a little while? It was only for one week but it changed my life because it taught me the virtue and value of obedience. In high school I was in the Marine Junior ROTC program. My senior year we took an orientation trip to Paris Island, while most of my friends were on Spring Break in Florida. If you want to know how hard Paris Island boot camp is, just watch 5 minutes of the movie “Full Metal Jacket” and you will get a really good idea really fast. Let me give you a glimpse.

Our bus-full of 35 cadets (juniors and seniors) arrived around midnight at Paris Island and we were greeted by two drill sergeants at the gate. Their covers (their hats) covered their eyes. Before they stepped on the bus they began barking orders as loud as they could and we all shot to attention. They marched down the center of the bus and paused briefly to shout in the face of some poor scared student.

I remember thinking: I would be so happy to do whatever you are asking, if I could just understand what you are saying! We finally did figure out that he wanted us off “his bus” (everything belonged to him) in 15 seconds. Have you ever tried to unload a bus full of boys with all their gear in 15 seconds? It is impossible. So, some of us actually jumped through the windows to get out of “his bus” in time. And that is how the whole week went: they shouted incomprehensible commands and we guessed what they wanted and learned to obey.

Finally, about halfway through the week, one cadet mustered the courage to ask a question. He asked: “Why do you do that?” In other words, why are you screaming at us and scaring us? The drill sergeant explained: “I have 13 weeks to take a group of 60 men who do not care about others, or care about life, or maybe even care about themselves and get them ready to take a bullet for the man next to them, to lay down their life for each other. I do not have a second to lose.”

He continued: “I have to tear them down psychologically and get rid of their stinking thinking of being selfish so that they start to think like a unit, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. And they must execute my commands without hesitation or second-guessing. That is why I scream at you: to scare the selfishness out of you.” By the way, that is why the Marines are called “the few and the proud.” Not many people want someone to scream at them and scare the selfishness out of them.

In the gospel today Jesus says something surprisingly similar. He says: “I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me.” And by the way, in case you think it was easy for Jesus to do the will of his Father in heaven, Hebrews 5:8 adds: “Son though he was [Jesus] learned obedience from what he suffered.” That is, Jesus’ coming to earth was like going to Marine boot camp for him. Actually, Jesus’ suffering and death would make Paris Island look like a trip to Disney World. The core of Christianity consists in the obedience of Christ, an obedience that was obvious on the Cross.

Now some of you may be thinking: thanks for that “life hack,” Fr. John! Now, I know I do not want to join the Marines or any military service. When I graduate and grow up, I want to do my own will, not what others tell me to do. I will be my own boss. Boys and girls, learning obedience is not just for Jesus or mainly for Marines; it is for anyone who hopes to be happy. If you want to have a boyfriend or a girlfriend, you will have to learn obedience and do what they want, not what you always want. Otherwise, you will not have a boyfriend or girlfriend for long.

Obedience is crucial for every successful marriage. Why do your parents fight and sometimes scream at each other? They scream to scare the selfishness out of each other, like that Marine drill sergeant did with us cadets. Northside and Southside teachers love to have Trinity graduates in their classes. Why? Is it because you are smarter than students from other junior high schools? Not necessarily: all school produce smart students. It is because you learned a little obedience here at Trinity. You listen in class, you do your homework, you study for tests.

Going to Trinity is a little like a Marine Corps boot camp (only a little), and “you learn obedience through what you suffer.” And sometimes we may even scream at you in order to scare the selfishness out of you. In that sense, Trinity students, too, could be called “the few and the proud.”

Praised be Jesus Christ!