A Slavic proverb advises: “Tell the truth and run.” The prophets of old “spoke truth to power” and they were persecuted, jailed, stoned, exiled, or killed. Our first reading recounts the clash between the prophet Amos and the priest, Amaziah. Amos was a shepherd and a trimmer of sycamore trees who lived just south of Bethlehem in Judah. He had no special training for a religious ministry, but God called him from his flock and sent him north to Bethel in Israel where the king had endorsed idolatry. Amos spoke out against this infidelity and indicted the affluent for their sins of injustice, especially toward the poor. He did not let the consciences of the rich rest easy. For their transgressions, Amos prophesied the overthrow of the sanctuary, the fall of the royal house and the peoples’ captivity.
Amaziah told the king that the country could not endure all Amos’ words, and confronts Amos, He tells him to pack up and take his message back south, from whence he came. But Amos remained steadfast and warned the leaders and the people that they would face God’s fierce judgment if they did not repent. Amos faced hostility and rejection but carried on.
Let’s fast forward, about 800 years to the time of Jesus. Last week’s Gospel recounted Our Lord’s rejection in Nazareth—his hometown! Jesus, however, carries on and today we hear that he went to the nearby villages and sent out his disciples with specific instructions and a warning: expect rejection, and when it comes, “shake the dust off your feet” and carry on.
Someone once said that most of our pain in life comes from rejection. And more often than not we internalize it and carry the pain for a long time, thinking ourselves failures. But Our Lord doesn’t see us that way. Rejection does not always mean failure. When we meet rejection, we must move on and not carry the pain with us. Trying to avoid rejection, our inclination is to stay on topic and plead our case, trying to make others want us, accept our point of view, our advice, or direction.
So much of our pain comes from trying to change the way a person feels about us. Sadly, if someone doesn’t want to be part of our life, it is painful and nearly impossible to change.
For instance, while the priesthood is certainly a joy-filled life, it is not immune from sorrow. To use my mother’s phrase, “a life of many roses and a few thorns.” One of those thorns is precisely that of rejection. It is in a priest’s DNA to keep everyone happy, and it is a deep sorrow when a parishioner leaves a parish not because he or she has moved to another town, but because they disagree or are disturbed by a truth that is preached or raised in conversation. These can be many of the hot button or controversial issues, the cultural and popular trends that run contrary to the teachings of the Church: the truths underpinning issues such as, human life, human sexuality, defining marriage, cohabitation outside of marriage, gender identity, social justice, racism, authority. Bring up such issues and rejection cannot be far behind.
Parents feel this thorn of rejection when they see their children accepting so much of the prevailing culture without much thought to what the Gospel and the Church teach.
No priest wants a parishioner to ever walk away. No parent wants to alienate or anger a child. They want to be close to them and love them. But priests and parents must teach, guide, affirm and admonish and that task comes at the risk of rejection. St. John Vianney reminds us, “The rising sun does not hide its light for fear of inconveniencing the owls.” St. Paul reminds us that we must always teach the truth in love in charity…remember, Veritas in Caritate not to be confused with In Vino Veritas…in wine there is truth!
Teach the truth courageously and lovingly. Expect rejection and move on, but never slam the door shut. They may return. Always keep the door ajar, always praying and the truth will prevail.
