Homily for 2nd Sunday of Lent 

13th March 2022

Abraham, Mary, Gandhi and Charles Colson.

I mention these four people, from many whom I could have chosen, to highlight how the Holy Spirit pulls aside the curtains of people’s personalities to reveal who the real person or Child of G-d they are!

I want to refer us for a moment to the movie “The Wizard of Oz” where Toto the dog pulls aside a curtain to reveal a small older gentleman manipulating a switchboard which is producing an awesome face on a large screen above.            So who is the real Wizard of Oz? It’s not what is seen but what is hidden and is revealed when the curtain is pulled aside. Please keep this image in mind as we go through the homily and apply it to the four people I mentioned earlier.

Abraham began a journey with his dad from Ur in the Chaldeans to the promised land – roughly a journey of over 2000 miles – by foot! He is asked to sacrifice his son Isaac, and has his hand withheld by G-d, who provides an animal sacrifice instead. Abraham reveals his desire, no matter how hard it may be, to be obedient to G-d!

In the event we have just heard from the first reading, Abraham has shown obedience to G-d’s call but there is still this seed of doubt, as heard in Abraham’s question to the Lord, after he has been told that his descendants will outnumber the stars and he will possess land from the river Nile to the river Euphrates. Abraham asks, “O Lord G-d, how am I to know that I will possess it?”

It is at this point that the Lord G-d asks Abraham to prepare sacrifices of animals, all divided – except the two birds, to form a corridor down which Abraham and the Lord G-d will walk. Such an action was saying that, if one of the party reneged or did not keep their part of the covenant, may what has happened to the animals happen to the parties involved in the covenant.

Abraham falls into a deep sleep and during that time the Lord G-d goes between the sliced animals as fire and consumes them. Abraham, representing human kind, is not participating in any way, thus human kind is not participating in any way. Thus the covenant is totally binding upon G-d and it is G-d, by the action of consuming all the animals symbolizes that G-d is totally responsible for keeping the covenant! Human kind is on the side in a deep sleep!

For those of us who see that we have to do our part in this relationship, a curtain is pulled aside to reveal just how wrong we are and that God will do everything through, with and in us to have, eventually, a perfect relationship.

The pulling of the curtain reveals the real Wizard of Oz as a kind and gentle man.

The pulling of the curtain reveals the real G-d as one who goes all the way to maintain the relationship with human kind!

Mary, the mother of Jesus, is told by Simeon that a sword will pierce her heart. Could she have known what that would mean? Mary stays faithful to her role in mothering Jesus, stays faithfully standing at the foot of the cross – the curtain is torn apart in the temple and lo and behold, Mary sees the other side of her son – the Resurrection!

The pulling of the curtain reveals the risen Christ!

Gandhi is trained to be a lawyer in England during the height of the British Empire. On his return to his homeland he witnesses the misuse of the power by the British Empire over his people and as he is beaten with clubs by British soldiers for burning his identity card, the curtain is raised in Gandhi’s mind and he becomes not only an incredible example of non-violence but an awesome leader of the Indian people. So much so that Britain eventually leaves India and allows her to become the incredible country that she now is.

The pulling of the curtain reveals Gandhi’s magnificent, humble and creative ability to lead his people from slavery to freedom!

Charles “Chuck” Colson, known as the “hatchet man”, was part of the inner circle of President Nixon and arrested for entering the head office of the Democratic Party known as Watergate, as the gang of Nixon’s cronies sought to steal information that would assist in the re-election of President Nixon. For this act, Colson was imprisoned for seven months.

In 1973 Colson became an evangelical Christian and he underwent a radical life change that led to the founding of his non-profit ministry Prison Fellowship which became known as Prison Fellowship International. He wrote 30 books and was the founder and chairperson of the Chuck Colson center for Christian World View which has over 1400 outlets across the United States.

The pulling of the curtain revealed a Chuck Colson who brought healing ministry to thousands of inmates.

Finally, in the Transfiguration, the divine essence of Jesus, which was always part of his life, was revealed to Peter, James and John. They saw the Son of G-d, the messiah and the One promised to the Jewish people. They had not seen this before but now they did. This was to be a hidden understanding of Jesus which they would reveal after his Resurrection.

In this short presentation, we have looked at Abraham, Mary, Gandhi, Chuck Colson and Jesus. Each one shows us that there is a deeper and more meaningful life beyond what is seen in normal daily experience.

Now we must ask the question “Are you and I ready to have the curtain covering our lives pulled aside to reveal the real Mike, Fred, Samantha, Elizabeth?

This is part of what the Lenten journey is about. It is two-fold. Firstly, it is a call to rid ourselves of playing hide-and-seek with our personalities. Secondly, it is a call to look at who we are in a far greater depth level.

Be assured, we will not be disappointed!

Pulling this curtain aside requires courage and trust in G-d, perhaps these are the two gifts we could ask of the Lord as we celebrate this Eucharist: 1) give me the courage to lay aside my old self, 2) give me the trust to place my entire life in your care knowing I will be totally safe and unconditionally loved.

It took a small dog called Toto to show us who was the real Wizard of Oz. What will it take to show us who we really are?

My answer to that question is, ask G-d what is it you need, then pray for it. This is what the Eucharist can give us!

Enjoy meeting the real deeper you!

Love and shalom, Mike.