This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.
There is something of a sweet contrast today between the gospel and the first reading.
In the gospel, the disciples ask Jesus how to pray–and his answer is beguilingly simple. The version of the Our Father that we have before us simply praises our heavenly Father with the confidence of a son or a daughter, and asks for the basics that we’ll need for our day and for life–especially, that we not be tempted away from our relationship with God.
By contrast, in the first reading, we have an account of what seems like St. Paul and St. Peter bickering about a trifling little disciplinary rule about what kind of foods to eat, and in what company. The account reads almost a little gossipy: “Then he did this…” “And I told him right to his face not to be hypocritical…”
Upon first pass, the first reading appears uninspiringly earthly and human; the gospel, ethereal, simple, divine.
But wait, there is a link between the two! St. Peter is present in both! Maybe he is the problem!
In actuality, despite appearances, and despite His teaching about the seed falling among the thorns that are the cares and ambitions of this life, Jesus did not come to rid us of the annoying complexities of life. In fact, more broadly, He did not come to remove the taint of original sin that seems to make everything so difficult, complicated, and tiresome. In fact, when it comes to strictly avoiding a change to such things, we can almost imagine Jesus tiptoeing around, like a man carefully making his way through a cluttered bedroom to avoid waking his sleeping wife. Why? Because the reality of sin, with its consequences, is something that, as a race, we have freely chosen. He did not come to earth to revoke that freedom, but to provide an open door to choose God again.
If we feel the inclination to laugh at the tension arising between Peter and Paul, the laugh may die in our throat if we imagine how dumbfounded they would be at our modern obsession with taxes, business meetings, and renewal of our driver’s licenses and license plates. If we’re honest, our lives are much fuller of trifling complexities than theirs. And it’s precisely these sorts of trifles that get us into a bad mood and make us snippy with our neighbor.
Despite the apparent contrast between the tone of these readings, it is precisely into these daily laundry lists and trifles that the Our Father is meant to enter. We’re not called to skate above them, never touched by frustration over the fact, for example, that a meaningless but necessary task that should have taken an hour took a day. Rather, we are called to have an ongoing sense in our hearts of what is essential, even while experiencing that frustration, even while we’re deep in it–and to renew that perspective often–often, and consistently, in prayer, in time spent with God.
All things considered, Peter and Paul did a pretty good job. I’m giving them an “A.” Peter was concerned not to scandalize the Jewish Christians, and Paul was concerned not to act duplicitously and thus scandalize the Gentile Christians. The matter of what food to eat may appear trifling to us, but their concern was the salvation of souls. In fact, in another place, Paul says the following about eating: “Therefore, if food causes my brother to sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I may not cause my brother to sin.”
The stakes of this tension were actually quite high. But they hashed it out together, honestly and courageously, face to face, and ultimately preserved unity and forged forward.
If the saints experienced tensions, let’s not imagine some utopian life of easy and perfect relations for ourselves by reason of our Christianity. Jesus decided to take flesh and descend into the heart of our messy reality–so in our prayer life, let’s bring Him into everything, and by the invaluable power of the Holy Spirit, He will infuse into us the wisdom to make good decisions within the imperfect mess and the tensions, while ultimately keeping a healthy, eternal perspective–even amidst our frustrations.
Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Call to mind a recent moment of human interaction that frustrated you, perhaps with a loved one or coworker. While bearing that moment in mind, pray the Our Father over it, slowly. See how, while these moments and frustrations are inevitable, God can inject His grace, wisdom, and perspective into them. Ask Jesus to accompany you through the complexities of your day and to fill you with the virtue of Charity, of love, even in the midst of frustration over trivialities. For, as today’s psalm tells us, “steadfast is his kindness toward us, and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.”
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