This sermon was given at the Profession Service of the Company of Jesus, 10/27/06 at Forest Avenue United Methodist Church, Chatannoga, TN. The text for the day was Luke 10:38-42.
In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
For nearly 800 years, lay people, religious, and priests who recognize a calling to follow Christ in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi have been striving to live the Gospel life in the world under the Third Order Rule of Francis. For some 1500 years, individual Christians have been offering themselves to Christ’s service by becoming Oblates of particular monasteries, focusing on prayer, work and service in their daily lives. Both Franciscans and Benedictines are interested in personal holiness, social justice and peace. Both are keenly committed to serving Christ and to letting nothing come before devotion to Christ.
At times there seems to be a sort of Mary/Martha split between the two Charisms. Benedictines initially appear more contemplative and stuck in one place, while Franciscans seems more active and Spirit-led. But a closer look reveals that this is a false dichotomy, and that we can easily find Benedictines who are actively engaged in teaching and other ‘secular’ pursuits, as well as Franciscans who live in a convent and have an intensely contemplative prayer life.
In the Company of Jesus, we are the happy recipients of two distinct but complementary spiritualities: the best of Francis and Benedict, Mary and Martha. All of us in the Company of Jesus are interested in an “Eschatological Existence” That is, we have been smitten with the idea of living our lives in a way that brings Heaven to earth. And while we all look forward to the blessings of the Celestial City, we also believe that it is possible to practice the Peaceable Kingdom now, before it arrives in its fullness here, or we go to meet it there.
In order to witness the New Jerusalem come down out of heaven and to see angels descending and ascending the ladder to heaven we must practice a cardinal virtue. Both Francis and Benedict agree that this virtue is Humility. Benedict thought Humility was so important that he devoted a long chapter to it in his Rule (#7) and describing its Tools – 74 in all in another chapter (4). Francis was so intent on following Christ literally that he stripped himself of every earthly privilege and emptied himself just as Christ did, walking naked into the world. Fro both men and their female counterparts Clare and Scholastica, Humility was the Key to living the Christian life – an Eschatological Existence in which Heaven is brought to earth by following a Rule of Life based on key values. Franciscans enumerates them as Poverty, Chastity and Obedience, while Benedictines express it through Obedience Stability and Conversion of Life (Conversatio Morum). Both sets of values express a desire to sit faithfully at the feet of Jesus while also serving Him in acts of Love in the world.
When Francis was first starting out in his monastic life, he used to say that the only Rule he and his brothers followed was the Gospel. By this he meant that simply following Jesus in his lifestyle of total dependence on God would produce an intimate acquaintance with Christ and personal transformation that also touches the world. Lady Poverty was the constant, sweet companion in this life, embodying the paradoxes of the Gospel, bringing riches out of weakness and joy out of misery. Benedict took Poverty for granted, insisting that none of his monks would own anything in private, but yet at the same time would have everything basic they needed to help them along the path of Holiness of life. Poverty was seen as the twin virtue of Humility, the basis for a true Conversion of Life, bringing the monk or nun into conformity and union with the Poor Christ.
Obedience to a Superior was considered by both our patrons to be a necessity. To listen to the abbot or the Minister General was to listen to God, thus denying oneself in imitation of Christ, and certainly requiring taking up the Cross! Monastics placed themselves under the authority of another in order to gain freedom from stubbornness, selfishness and self-centeredness – and to grow in Humility unto Christ. But Obedience is a two-way street. This is seen in Benedict’s admonition to his brothers to listen to the newest member of the Order during Chapter meetings, because often God speaks through the youngest member. Francis required holy obedience from his Friars, but at the end of his life was compelled to obey brother Leo, who insisted that he was loaning Francis a tunic that did not belong to him and so was forbidden to give it away or take it off! It is a measure of Francis’ growth in Humility that he was able to rejoice in obedience to his dear brother and disciple in the faith.
Finally, the vow of Chastity focuses stability and fidelity to our Lord- either through abstaining from sex altogether, or by remaining faithful to one’s spouse. The story is told of a young monk who arrives at a monastery. He is assigned to helping the other monks in copying the old canons and laws of the church by hand. He notices, however, that all of the monks are copying from copies, not from the original manuscript. So, the new monk goes to the abbot to question this, pointing out that if someone made even a small error in the first copy, it would never be picked up! In fact, that error would be continued in all of the subsequent copies.
The Abbot says, “We have been copying from the copies for centuries, but you make a good point, my son.” He goes down into the dark caves under the monastery where the original manuscripts are held as archives in a locked vault that hasn’t been opened for hundreds of years. Hours go by and nobody sees the old Abbot. So, the young monk gets worried and goes down to look for him. He sees him banging his head against the wall and wailing, “ We missed the ‘R’! We missed the ‘R’!”
His forehead is all bloody and bruised and he is crying uncontrollably. The young monk asks the old abbot, “What’s wrong, father?”
With a choking voice, the old abbot replies, “ The word was…CELEBRATE!”
So why choose this kind of life in America, in the 21st Century? As I have worked with new members coming in to the Company of Jesus, I see several things: First, a sense of being personally drawn to the faith and spirituality of one’s patron. Our members seem to feel that Christianity, as personified by Benedict or Francis, ‘fits’ me and my God-given termperament. There is also the feeling of being drawn inexplicably to this life despite faith backgrounds that are often almost diametrically opposed to my desired vocation. I attribute this to the active, drawing work of the Holy Spirit and the conviction that God is not done with the monastic expression of spirituality, but wants instead to do something in our day through these ancient forms of devotion.
In fact, I think part of this purpose is to reconnect us with generations of saints who have gone before us, growing toward perfection in their life in Christ. WE don’t have to reinvent the whell when it comes to following Christ. If you can think of it, someone has tried it! In Benedict and Francis, we have a near-compendium of everything that “works” in the spiritual life.
Lastly, making a profession or an oblation to a religious order expresses a desire for accountability and mentoring as a follower of Christ. The Celtic saints used to say that a Christian without a Soul-Friend is like a body without a head. Without a guide, it is easy to get off the track. Most of our members are ordained clergy. It doesn’t have to be that way. It’s not even ultimately desirable. Traditionally, most Friars, monks and oblates are lay people.” Yet, we see the desire for a deeper and more ordered spiritual life even among those who are “professional” Christians. In a word, I would describe this as a desire for Discipleship; a desire to fulfill the Great Commission in one’s own life, Obeying the Lord by following the wise and sure examples of our father and mother in the faith, bringing peace and justice to ourselves and those around us, bringing a little bit of Heaven to Earth in our daily acts of Humility and Love, being like Jesus in all things, and preferring nothing whatsoever to Him. Amen.
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