3 minute read
On the Way | Tasting true freedom
by dkcsj
TRUE Tasting FREEDOM
— Galatians 5:1 From the Bishop
Bishop James V. Johnston, Jr. is the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph
OVER THE SUMMER, I had a chance to go back and visit my family in East Tennessee. A few days before I was to return home, an old friend of our family named Kathy unexpectedly died, and her family asked me if I could delay my departure back to Kansas City to have her funeral. I was happy to do so, as I had been her spiritual director for several years as a priest, and she had faithfully loved, supported and prayed for me over the years.
Kathy was unusual in that she lived with remarkable freedom. We typically use that word to describe our personal and civic freedoms such as we commemorate, for example, on Veterans Day later this autumn. But we don’t often reflect upon the unique freedom that Christ offers us as his disciples.
The saints embody such freedom. I have always been struck by that quality in Saint Paul. It emerges as a primary theme in his epistles to the churches he ministered to. In his letter to the Galatians, for example, he says when we enter a new life in Christ by faith and baptism, we become a “new creation.” Everything changes: “... the life I live now is not my own. Christ is living in me. I still live my human life, but it is a life of faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20) Later in this same epistle, he adds, “It was for liberty that Christ freed us.” (Galatians 5:1) In other words, we were born slaves, but in Christ, we have been freed to live for God, to love and serve, and belong to his kingdom.
We can also observe this freedom in the lives of other saints down through the centuries. One of my favorite quotes is from Saint Joan of Arc, the youthful heroine and patroness of France, who, prior to facing great danger, spoke: “I am not afraid. God is with me. I was made for this.” She lived with a radical freedom because she was a disciple. Also witness the many martyrs who approached death with a liberty that is from beyond this world.
Prior to her funeral Mass, I was struck by something that one of Kathy’s daughters said about her mother that was very insightful. She said that her mother lived with a “freedom that only comes from a deep and trusting relationship with Jesus and the peace that only he can give ... a freedom from fear, freedom from worry, freedom for serving God and building up his kingdom and for those she was given to love.” These words describe a disciple of Jesus Christ. Disciples are free. Disciples are not immune from the sufferings, problems, heartaches and injuries that living in this world brings. In fact, they often experience more of these than most. But they approach the cross in a new way because of what Jesus has done and because they have surrendered everything to him. They even see their weaknesses and sins in a new light — as the point of Christ’s victory in them and for them.
My desire is that I and all of us can live with a similar freedom. It is not something we earn, but something we accept. It is freely offered by Christ, but we must surrender to him to receive it. In some ways, it is against our fallen nature, which seeks to be in control. We can be like a sick patient who insists on telling the doctor how to treat us. We tend to ask God to help us when we ought to be asking God to show us how we can help him when facing problems. We often prefer to worry, thinking that this will help when our surest path is to surrender to God who has us and the universe in the palm of his hand.
Let us continue to grow and mature as disciples of the Lord Jesus. Disciples are free ... to live for God, to love and to serve, to belong to his Kingdom.
