One good turning away from deserves another good turning away from.
When the Ninevites turned away from their evil ways after hearing the cry of Jonah that their city was going to be destroyed in 40 days, which God would have carried out, instead of a false missile landing in Hawaii in 40 minutes after hitting the wrong button, the Ninevites turned away from their evil ways, knowing it was not a false alarm from God. The voice of Jonah caught. It reached their ears and their hearts, unlike others today who are not heeding the warnings of evil practices and evil ways.
By turning away from their pagan practices, and turning toward the mercy of Jonah’s God, who is God, God copied the Ninevites’ good choice and repented of the evil he had threatened to perpetrate on them. Mercy won out over violence, as it always does with God, and as it always should in our personal relationships. The cry of forgiveness beat the ways of violence, in the same way the Patriots will beat Jacksonville today.
One good turning away from not only deserves another, but will cause, in many situations, another turning way from something that avoids destruction and heartache. The power behind the first reading from Jonah cannot be underestimated in its effect in our lives, and how it should unequivocally touch us very personally. This reading is a method for how to find peace.
We see the same religious thought in today’s 2nd reading; one good turning away from deserves another, but in a slightly different way from Jonah, the Ninevites, and God. In St. Paul’s Letter to the people of Corinth who are now Christians, Paul gives them a new way of seeing the world in which they live, and not return to their old sinful ways. It’s a way that continues to speak to our lives today, revealing the continued relevance of Scripture throughout history for all people.
Before being baptized into Christ and learning the beautiful teachings of Jesus, the Corinthians were pagan non-believers who knew nothing about the one, true God, living totally for the material world in which they resided. In like manner of the many lost souls who still do today. But in this short reading, Paul is instructing these newer converts to turn away from the world for the reason that the world is passing. Even though God created the world and saw that it was very good (Genesis), God knew he created a passing world.
Paul didn’t arrive at this truth in his science class at Damascus High School where he grew up. His “world is passing” comment derives from his Christian understanding that there is now something called eternal life; something that says human beings can live forever with rejoicing, with no more weeping, no buying goods to own, and where a man and his wife is now a relationship that goes so far beyond the joys of the Sacrament of Matrimony.
Paul’s turning away is not too different from Jonah and the Ninevites, because to turn away from the world affected by the stain of Original Sin, and any of the enticements it holds for us – the greed, the power, the lust, the vengeance – to turn away from these present material realities, is to turn towards God. It’s a turning from the finite, the limited, to the infinite and the eternal. That is the penultimate Christian disposition in this life.
So, when Paul writes that the world in its present form is passing away, is that a religious statement of sadness, or a statement of hope? If we call ourselves Christian, then it is a scientific, religious statement of hope. Because the more the world as we know it passes away, the closer we draw toward the eternal perfection of heaven. May we make this beautiful truth central to our lives.
And in the Gospel today, it’s easy to see the turning away that occurs on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. One good turning away from here, deserves a turning toward. It is a daily challenge for us Christians. Peter, Andrew, James and John turn away from their boats, their livelihoods, their comfort zone, and to a large degree, from their families, and they turn towards working for Christ fulltime.
Not all of us are called to be Apostles, or missionaries, or priests or religious to work in a fulltime capacity for Christ. On my one day away each week – not my day off- if something comes my way, I put my superman suit back on, and head out to whatever’s going on. Whether it’s connected to the Parish, the Fire Department, or anything else.
But most of you do in fact do apostolic work in a different way. You turn away from the things you enjoy at times, you make sacrifices, you care for, support, and tend to your families. You minister to those who are emotionally hurting and physically ill in your families, neighbors, and friends. You show Christian concern for how someone may be doing, rather than being consumed by selfishness. These are just a few of the thousand ways in which you leave your boat, your comfort zone, and turn to do the Lord’s bidding.
This turning toward actions of sacrificial love on our part when and where they are needed, participates in the reason why the Apostles left their nets behind for Christ. Any action of Christian love on our part, even the smallest action, is a participation in the salvation of souls. Every action of love on our part turns away from a passing world, and makes the kingdom of God at hand right now. It leaves the boat of this world, and sees that Christ Jesus has called us to something greater than a passing world. He has called us to hope.
Peter, Andrew, James and John turn from their boats so quickly because they visualize a whole new world in Christ. They like what they see. In him alone is the fullness of our deepest joys.
One good turning away from deserves another. Turn from a passing world, and turn to him who is eternal.