our culture changing . Fear of being called to give up everything we have and follow Christ .
We are constantly bombarded with fears . Commercials on tv , radio and the internet tell us that we will not be happy without the newest piece of technology preying upon our deep worry about not keeping up with the times . Our politicians and news people work on our fear of the other by telling us we might be killed or maimed by a terrorist or criminal , and many times we are only told about the ones who look different than we do . There is a constant bombardment of fear regarding immigrants , especially those from the other side of the United States ’ southern border . We are told to be afraid of our neighbors .
These fears often prevent us from seeing Christ in everyone . They hold us back from Jesus commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves along with His further instruction that we broaden our conception of who our neighbor is . Our neighbors include the people who live next door , but it also includes people who do not look , think , dress , love , vote , speak , pray or act exactly like we do . The Christian conception of neighbor includes everyone and our command to love calls us beyond all of our fears , beyond all of our preconceived notions and beyond our attachments .
In an increasingly globalized world , “ my neighbor ” is much bigger than we probably want to admit . Our neighbors are a family in Yemen with bombs made in the United States falling on them . Our neighbors are refugees fleeing torture , oppression , poverty , and war . Our neighbors are people in Bangladesh and island nations seeing their land disappear amidst a rising ocean . Our neighbors are people who go bankrupt because of a health care system that favors the wealthy and healthy over basic human decency .
This Lent I challenge all of us to listen to two of the main calls we hear from Jesus : “ Be not afraid ” and “ Love one another ,” and then look deeply at our lives to see how we live these out . Loving one another is hard , especially when we are called by Jesus to “ love your neighbor as yourself ” and then answer the question “ who is my neighbor ?” The answers to these questions can lead us to be more loving and less fearful people and better at the discipline of following Christ in faith , hope , and love . W seek 2017 , continued from page 5 opportunities to have conversations , celebrate Mass , attend workshops and celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation with the students . I had several good conversations in speaking about our community and spirituality as well as just talking about life and discernment .
In sharing our charism and spirituality , we talked about reconciliation as more than just sacrament . Many students I talked with were faithful in a daily examination of conscience and going to confession , but one thing I kept hearing in these conversations was the wrong and negativity in their lives . Very few of them were finding anything positive or good or life giving about themselves . It was a challenge getting them to see something different about themselves .
Another student shared about the disappointment in not hearing God ’ s voice in her life . She shared that other classmates had been talking about God moments and hearing God ’ s voice and knowing that it was truly God speaking . She was feeling left out , that she was not worthy or not doing something right because she was not having life-shattering experiences . I shared with her from my own experiences and commented that I have never heard that big , booming voice ; rather I have heard God speaking in the quiet of life . It is that peace that one knows deep within after debating about an issue and finally making a decision that one can live with .
Another conversation focused on how to relate to others , including family members , who have not had these same spiritual experiences . One student spoke about having just returned from spending time with family over Christmas break and was uncertain about her parent ’ s faith because they couldn ’ t see eye to eye . It was obvious she was alive with the Spirit but didn ’ t know how to share her experience with others who hadn ’ t had the same experience .
At times , I felt like an outsider or someone on the margin , since I hadn ’ t shared some of those same experiences . It is obvious the students are having great experiences and growing in their faith , but sometimes I wonder if they are making connections with other areas of their lives or with people off campus . Although these were only a few conversations with a few students , it seems many conversations I have revolve around reflecting and making connections in one ’ s life . In many ways , it is one conversation worth having . W
March 2017 • The New Wine Press • 7