My dad has always been a fan of movies that are based on true stories, and I have inherited this from him. The movie, Of Gods and Men is based on the true story of a group of Cistercian monks who lived and worked in Algeria until the late 90s. They lived peacefully with the mostly Muslim population in the area. Eventually, though, they were caught up in the violence of extremist Muslim groups who seized power, and seven of the monks were kidnapped and martyred. The movie traces the process by which the monks debate whether to stay or leave, as they sense the growing danger in the area they serve.
There is an especially powerful scene between Christian, the head of the brothers, and the leader of one of the violent terrorist groups in the area. It is Christmas night, and a group of terrorists come knocking at the gate of the monastery. The brothers open the gate and immediately a swarm of armed men pour into the courtyard. Their leader confronts Christian, demanding that one of his fellow monks, a doctor, travel with them to tend to their injured men. Christian calmly explains that this will not be possible, as the brother who is a doctor is old, asthmatic and not in good health. He attempts to create common ground with the militant leader by quoting to him portions of the Quran indicating the peacefulness of Christian priests and monks. This seems to placate the terrorist leader somewhat and he finally decides to leave without any further trouble.
Then comes a decisive moment. As they are leaving, Christian speaks up and says, “Tonight is different from other nights.” The terrorist leader and his men turn back and the leader says, “Why?” He continues, “It’s Christmas. We celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace.” “Prince of Peace?” The terrorist questions. “Sidna aissa,” Christian replies in the native Arabic of the terrorist. “Jesus,” he replies, understanding. Then he approaches Christian once again, and after a tense moment, apologizes and extends his hand, which Christian takes. Then, they leave.
Christian could have just let these violent men go, but he didn’t. The Holy Spirit inspired him in that moment with courage to proclaim the Truth, even though it was risky. He knew that those men, violent as they were, still needed to know of the Good News of Jesus. So he courageously told them of the Prince of Peace, even though he knew that it might spark their anger.
This moment reminds us of the power each of us has to be able to stand up for the truth of Jesus Christ, even in the midst of difficulty and opposition. The Holy Spirit is here with us and for us to be our Advocate, as Jesus so fittingly calls Him in today’s Gospel passage. The Holy Spirit works on our behalf to fill us with those gifts, especially fortitude, which we need in order to live out our Christian life.
Some of you may have seen in the news that the Archbishop of San Francisco, Salvatore Cordileone, has released a public letter instructing Nancy Pelosi that she should not present herself for Communion. In that letter, which I recommend you read in its entirety, he says:
After numerous attempts to speak with her to help her understand the grave evil she is perpetrating, the scandal she is causing, and the danger to her own soul she is risking, I have determined that the point has come in which I must make a public declaration that she is not to be admitted to Holy Communion unless and until she publicly repudiate her support for abortion “rights” and confess and receive absolution for her cooperation in this evil in the sacrament of Penance. I have accordingly sent her a Notification to this effect, which I have now made public.
Please know that I find no pleasure whatsoever in fulfilling my pastoral duty here. Speaker Pelosi remains our sister in Christ. Her advocacy for the care of the poor and vulnerable elicits my admiration. I assure you that my action here is purely pastoral, not political. I have been very clear in my words and actions about this. Speaker Pelosi has been uppermost in my prayer intentions ever since I became the Archbishop of San Francisco.
This is a dramatic step for the Archbishop to take, one which he has prayed about for many years. It’s one which I believe he is making under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Like those brothers in Algeria, the Archbishop knew that he had come to a moment where he could not remain silent. He allowed the Holy Spirit to guide him in making a decision which is already, I’m sure, causing him negative consequences. But this is what our Christian life demands. The Holy Spirit empowers us to stand up for the Truth regardless of what popular opinion may be.
We shouldn’t be surprised when things like this happen. They have been happening since the earliest days of the Church. In our reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we see the controversy that happened because some of the Jewish converts to Christianity wanted to make the Gentile converts abide by the laws of Moses regarding circumcision. But Peter and the Apostles, guided by the Holy Spirit, discerned that for the good of the Church, they needed to authoritatively put the question to rest. They sent this message:
It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities, namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols, from blood, from meats of strangled animals, and from unlawful marriage. If you keep free of these, you will be doing what is right. Farewell.
Notice the language they use: “it is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us.” They recognize that it is not their place alone to make this decision, but to allow the Holy Spirit to guide them and use them in the position of authority that Jesus had given them. They are merely cooperating with His gifts given to them as Apostles. Their decision may not sit well with the Jewish converts, but it is meant to maintain that peace Jesus talks about in the Gospel, a peace beyond just a lack of conflict.
Jesus speaks to the Apostles at the Last Supper of the peace He wants to give, in the context of His teaching about the Holy Spirit. He tells them about the coming of the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in His name to teach them and remind them of everything He said. In this way, Jesus is setting them up for the awesome event of Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, that we will celebrate in a couple of weeks. But notice particularly what Jesus says about the Holy Spirit, that He will teach the Apostles and remind them of everything he told them. That is what we see in action with the Apostles responding to the controversy in the book of Acts! They are relying on the Holy Spirit to guide them in their decision making, so that it will be in line with what Jesus taught them.
Notice that right after talking about the Holy Spirit, Jesus tells the Apostles that He is giving them His peace. He says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.” Sound familiar? It should! You will hear me quote those exact words before we exchange the sign of peace here at Mass! So Jesus is connecting the Holy Spirit with this peace that only Jesus can give. All of us who are baptized have become dwelling places of the Spirit. Inside each of us, the Holy Spirit is present to give us interior wholeness and strength beyond anything that this world can give. This is the peace of Christ and it is an awesome thing. It is not simply the lack of exterior conflict that the world thinks of as ‘peace,’ but an interior integration of ourselves that we experience as part of the Body of Christ which is the Church!
It is this interior peace that we make a sign of when we shake hands or embrace each other during the Sign of Peace at Mass. The peace of Christ strengthens us through the Holy Spirit to act not just as individuals but as members of His Body. This strength can manifest itself in many ways, but I want to mention two ways today. We see them at work in the Church right now.
Firstly, the Holy Spirit gives us the courage to speak out in defense of the Truth. This is something meant not to offend or put someone else down, but to proclaim that which we know to be true. Christian did this in the movie Of Gods and Men when he spoke up about Christmas even at the risk of his own life. The Bishops and the Pope do this in authoritative ways despite the opposition it may cause them, as we see with Archbishop Cordileone. We can speak up for what we know is true even though it may anger or offend someone else. The Holy Spirit will help us know when it is a time to speak up, and He will give us the words! Our intention isn’t to anger or offend in these moments, but to defend the Truth in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. These are moments of planting seeds for other people, which the Holy Spirit can cultivate even though the other person may not respond in a good way in the moment.
Secondly, the Holy Spirit empowers us to humbly admit when we are opposing the truth. This had to happen with those early Jewish Christians who were calling for circumcision. Sometimes we can find ourselves saying, “Well, I know the Church teaches this, but I personally don’t agree.” In these moments, the Spirit can knock on the door of our hearts, reminding us of the authority Jesus has invested in the Church and giving us the humility to say, “I don’t want to oppose the truth, Jesus, so help me dig deeper and understand the teachings You’ve passed on through the Church.”
The world would tell us to simply believe whatever we want and not to offend others who may believe differently. But this is not of God. This is the superficial peace of the world. Through the Holy Spirit He has given us as members of His Body, Jesus wants to give us the deeper peace that comes from defending and humbly submitting to the Truth which He has revealed.
+ Father, thank you for sending us Jesus so that we can hear Your voice and live in You through the Holy Spirit. Jesus, help us to seek that peace of the Spirit in our hearts. Help us to trust that You are the Way, the Truth and the Life. Come Holy Spirit, our Advocate, and help us to have Your courage in defending the Truth and living in It. We ask this through Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord. Amen. +