Does anyone know how to play no-limit Texas Hold 'Em? It's a type of poker in which there is no limit to how much you can wager. You are free to risk everything you have on any given hand. If you are really confident that your hand is going to win – you “go all in”. As they say, you put your money where your mouth is. Such a strategy is risky and contrary to the idea of not putting all your eggs in one basket. And yet, in today's Gospel this is the question that Jesus is asking us, his disciples, “Are you all in?” Perhaps we hesitate at going all in and need a little motivation.
The film Braveheart shows an inspiring rally call before going into battle in which William Wallace tells the troops that they are free and then asks them what they are going to do with that freedom. In the Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius invites us to meditate on the call of an earthly king who invites you his subject to labor with him. The charismatic king tells you up front that the work is going to be intense, the risks are great, but promises that if you labor with him then you will share in the rewards. Ignatius then asks, if we are willing to follow such an earthly leader how much more should our desire be to follow Christ the King who labors for our freedom?
If you are willing to go all in with and for Jesus, then you are free. Jesus frees us from sin which causes division. Jesus shows us that freedom conquers such divisions and moves us to a free and committed love and service of one another. And yet, the threats to our freedom are many. Easy access to all sorts of information through the Internet makes it challenging to maintain a pure heart and mind. Societal pressures to have the latest and greatest can encourage materialism. Living beyond one's financial is all to often a source of stress for many individuals and couples. Are we free to occasionally slow down and to live more simply?
Jesuit philosophy professor, John Kavanaugh notes that “It is often presumed that freedom is a state of being loose and unattached. Some people go so far as to think they lose their freedom when they commit themselves”. Freedom is often misconstrued as “giving in to any immediate desire and impulse”. Yet, “we only begin to be free when we start the process of self-definition called commitment. And our freedom is only realized when we give ourselves away in love...Our commitments, ultimately, are our homeland, our nests, our lairs. They are where we reside, where we center our being. Such a prospect is awesome: that our fundamental task and responsibility is to commit in love.
In the first reading, we hear about Elisha being called by Elijah to follow him as a prophet. Elisha was a successful herdsman, but upon being called, he gets rid of everything to follow Elijah. Similarly, in the Gospel, Jesus is very clear about his mission. Jesus is going to Jerusalem even though he knows that doing so is going to cost him dearly. Suffice it to say that the people from Samaria did not get along with the people from Jerusalem. Jesus is walking right into the middle of conflict because that is what God desires. Jesus is single minded and refuses to get distracted. Jesus is all in.
The well meaning disciples attempt to distract Jesus by telling him that the village in Samaria refuses to host him. They want Jesus to punish and condemn the Samaritans for not welcoming them; however, this is not Jesus' mission. Jesus did not come to condemn and thus he quickly scolds the disciples and moves on.
I'm tempted to just let this scolding pass by. I don't like being scolded especially when Jesus is the one doing the scolding. But if I am honest with myself, it is good that Jesus scolds me because I need to be scolded when I become judgmental toward others or filled with a sense of entitlement. Like the disciples, I can attempt to limit the freedom of others. Jesus reminds us that this is NOT His way. Jesus knew that the Samaritan village might not accept him. Jesus does force himself upon them. He respects their choice. Jesus respects the freedom of others.
Jesus invites us to live in great freedom; however, this freedom is not without commitment or risks. Elisha showed great freedom by letting go of all his material possessions and the things that would make one appear successful in the eyes of the world. Jesus shows great freedom in his commitment to continue heading to Jerusalem despite the rejection and risks involved.
Following Jesus does not mean that one's life will be easy. Following Jesus means living in ways that are counter-cultural, ways that root one's identity in a committed, loving service of one another. We are challenged to be free to let go of the illusory security that comes from possessions and the esteem of others and to go all in with Jesus. It is this freedom that gives us the courage to make our own the prayer of St. Ignatius that says we prefer neither riches nor poverty, neither a long life nor a short life, whether we receive the admiration or scorn of others provided that we enjoy the confidence that we are doing God's will. Jesus secures your freedom, this is Christ's gift to you. You are free and called to live in that freedom.
