A Gospel Enquiry
Introduction
Early in my scripture study days, I came across the word metanoia and learned that it referred to an inner conversion, a change of heart. Reading this Gospel passage again, took me back to that time in my life and my reflections on the need for conversion.
Fast forward twenty-five years and I was involved in a research project that focused on the religious conversion of adolescents. I came across Lewis Rambo’s book Understanding Religious Conversion (1993). Rambo’s stage theory of religious conversion begins with “context” and concludes with “consequences.”
As I reflected on his work, I was drawn to the sixth stage, which he called “commitment.” Rambo describes it as “the fulcrum of the change process” (p.124). Commitment is a necessary part of the enquiry process.
Come forward to today, and I was reading St Luke’s Gospel. Jesus reminds us that when we put our faith into action, we are only doing what is required of us as God’s children (Luke 17:7-10).
The Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I am telling you not to worry about your life and what you are to eat, nor about your body and how you are to clothe it. Surely life means more than food, and the body more than clothing! Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they are? Can any of you, for all his worrying, add one single cubit to his span of life? And why worry about clothing? Think of the flowers growing in the fields; they never have to work or spin; yet I assure you that not even Solomon in all his regalia was robed like one of these. Now if that is how God clothes the grass in the field which is there today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, will he not much more look after you, you men of little faith? So do not worry; do not say, “What are we to eat? What are we to drink? How are we to be clothed?” It is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things. Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.’ (Matthew 6:25-34)
The Enquiry
See
- You have just read the Gospel reading for the Mass celebrated on the feast of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop. Her life is characterized by her trust in God. When in your life did you try to live in the way Jesus describes here? Or perhaps you pretended not to hear Jesus calling you to live a life of faith.
- Recall the circumstances and what motivated you to trust God completely, or to put off responding to his call.
- What happened because of the decision you made?
Judge
- What is there about the world you live in that makes Jesus’ teaching so hard to live by?
- Where can you find examples of people who took Jesus’ teaching to heart and tried to live by faith?
- What can you identify in Jesus’ life that tells you that he lived by what he teaches in this Gospel scene?
Act
- So what do you want to change so that Jesus’ teaching about faith in God can become a reality in your life and in the world?
- What small action can you take that will contribute to bringing about this change?
- Who can you involve in your action and how, when, where and how often will you get them to participate in your action?
Author: Pat Branson
Image Source: Frans Vandewalle (Creator), Rosetti, Sermon on the Mount, Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0