Beyond Empty Words

Armodoxy for Today: And then what?

For the past week I’ve shared with you stories and events of silence-in-the-face-of-atrocities. From the Armenian Genocide – the first of a series against different people, that continues until today –these horrendous and heinous crimes took place, and take place, on the world stage with relative ease, because of that silence.

I’ve shared with you that the word “Genocide” should not be thrown around lightly. Its meaning is beyond war and is fueled by pure hatred and prejudice. It may be manipulated by politics, but the fuel is evil, just as hatred is.

And finally, I’ve shared with you the urgency of this singular moment. We throw around the words such as, “Never Again” but they are merely rhetoric and empty words without our actions behind them.

Today I add a common theme of Armodoxy to these messages, and that is that our Christian faith is not something that comes alive Sunday mornings only. Jesus is very clear that we must be in sync with God all the time. It is not complicated, it’s merely doing His will, which is to love, to care, to forgive, to nurture, to share, to oppose evil.

Jesus instructs with this parable and asks, “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. “Which of the two did what his father wanted?” “The first,” they answered.

Of course, the first! The one who promises to do the work and does not, is like those with the empty talk of “Never again.”

The Gospel message is very clear. It was pronounced by the angels on the night of Christ’s Birth: Peace on Earth, goodwill toward one another. The message is that God is love. Hatred cannot eliminate hatred. Ask any mathematician: 1 Hate +1 Hate = 2 Hate, not Ø Hate. The only thing the bombings of innocent people will do is ensure the continuity of hatred for generations to come. The message of Jesus is simple: Light is more powerful than darkness, Love is more powerful than hate, and Life is more powerful than death. Not empty words: He proved this with his life. It’s the message the Apostles preached. It is the apostolic message that we share through our means.

We pray, Lord Jesus Christ, you proclaimed You are the Way, the Truth and the Life. Take me beyond empty words to see You as the Incarnation of Love, and let me understand that the Only Way, the Only Truth and the Only Life is Love. Use me as an instrument of that Love. Amen.