“Woe to the complacent in Zion!” warned the Prophet Amos in our first reading. Complacency: definitely one of the great enemies in the Spiritual Life and in the Christian Life.
I remember back in seminary, one of my classmates, now ordained and a happy, holy priest, used to bring his laptop computer to class to take notes during the lectures. And he had a message taped onto the computer right underneath the computer screen, so he couldn’t miss it, which read, “Complacent, Compliant, or Committed?” Everyone who saw him and his computer were forced to ask themselves: “Am I Complacent, Compliant, or Committed”?
Even as a seminary student preparing for priesthood, day after day, year after year, for 8 or 9 years, going to class could become somewhat tedious. Even though we were studying theology, the queen of the sciences, which would be directly applicable to our priestly ministry, complacency was a dangerous foe.
What is complacency? Complacency is a sort of unwillingness to change because of a sort of smug self-satisfaction. Complacency is a sort of willed inactivity.
Complacency is dangerous for students because he doesn’t push himself to excel and master the subject.
Complacency is dangerous at every stage of the spiritual life. For someone struggling with mortal sin, complacency can hinder them from going to confession and making the changes they need to. For the average Catholic, complacency cause keep us from truly growing in our prayer life by settling for the mediocre.
I pray enough, I’m generous enough, I am charitable enough. After all, I pray more than the person who doesn’t pray at all, I’m more generous and more charitable than the person who doesn’t give anything.
Complacency in the spiritual life is often an indicator that God’s will has taken second place to my own will.
Complacent, Compliant, or Committed.
Part of our Christian life does require compliancy. We do need to comply with the commandments, we adhere to moral truths, and follow Church laws: fasting when we are supposed to fast, attending mass when we are supposed to attend mass.
But, aren’t we called to more than mere compliancy? There is great difference between compliancy and commitment, isn’t there? Compliancy seems to connote that one follows the rules as long as it’s convenient. I’ll go with the flow, unless something better comes up. I’ll go to Church, unless there’s an important sports game, or unless I’m on vacation. I’ll say my prayers before bed, unless I fall asleep watching tv or texting my friends. I’ll abstain on Fridays in Lent from meat, unless I go out to a restaurant and there are delicious juicy steaks on the menu.
Compliancy or Commitment?
To be committed to our faith is another story entirely isn’t it? The saints give us wonderful illustrations of commitment over compliancy.
Yesterday, we celebrated the feast of a layman, the first canonized Filipino martyr named Saint Lorenzo Ruiz. He was a married man and devoted husband and father. He was arrested for his faith while accompanying some missionaries in Japan. At the time, the Japanese were arrested Catholics even putting them to death. Saint Lorenzo was arrested and tortured.
He was brought before a government official and told, “we will grant you your life, if you renounce your faith.” Lorenzo responded: "That I will never do. I am a Catholic and happy to die for God. If I have a thousand lives to offer, I would offer them to God. So, do with me as you please." Lorenzo was martyred for his faith, along with 15 Dominicans from Spain, Italy, France, Japan, and the Philippines.
Would we deny our faith to save our life? Existing documents attest that the Japanese promised him a safe trip back home where he could be reunited with his loved ones, but San Lorenzo chose to witness to Jesus Christ. That’s commitment! Compliancy witnesses to the Faith when it’s convenient. Commitment witnesses to the Truth even when it comes at great personal cost!
Another illustration: we celebrated on Thursday the feast of St. Vincent de Paul. As a charming young priest, Vincent made many friends—many wealthy friends, and he could have lived in comfort and luxury in the aristocratic spheres of society.
As Father Vincent walked through the streets of Paris, everywhere he looked he saw the hungry, the homeless, war refugees, neglected elderly men, women, and children, and those who had been spiritually abandoned and were without hope. He gathered together a group of priests to serve the poor, the Vincentian Sisters who served this diocese for many years trace their charitable work back to St. Vincent.
St. Vincent said, “It is not sufficient for me to love God if I do not love my neighbor…I belong to God and to the poor.” That is commitment. Compliancy gives when it is convenient. Commitment to the poor, considers oneself the servant of those in need.
In the first reading, the prophet Amos gives a warning to the complacent in Zion who lie upon beds of ivory, who are stretched comfortably on their couches. He is calling out the self-regarding, self-indulgent, complacent wealthy people in the Southern part of Israel who were ignoring the poor in Northern Israel.
Likewise in the Gospel, Jesus offers a parable about this rich man, who every night dined sumptuously, dressed in rich linens, while at this door there was a poor man, covered in sores, named Lazarus who would have gladly eaten of the scraps of the rich man’s table. In his complacency, the Rich Man ignored Lazarus at the gate. For this we heard from the lips of Christ himself, there were eternal consequences.
This parable always reminds me how as a young boy, my family would take a vacation to Mexico every year. My folks weren’t wealthy or anything, they worked hard 6 days a week, and they’d save enough each year to be able to afford a family vacation. At night, we would leave the hotel, and go into town. And I remember my first experiences seeing real poverty, homelessness, and beggars. And it struck me, even as a young boy, that just minutes from the 600 foot swimming pool and morning breakfast buffet, there were people, who lived in impoverished conditions that I would never know.
Feasting and celebration in this world is always colored by the fact that there are real people who are starving, and cold, and sick.
I think those guilty feelings we have when we encounter the homeless or the impoverished are good, because they rouse us out of complacency. That guilt feeling can be the Holy Spirit pricking our consciences to not take our blessings for granted, as if we were entitled to them, and to remember to pray and care for those in need.
As Christians, can we have warm houses and clean beds? Yes of course. But never by stepping on others, or ignoring those in need, but always grateful for our material blessings which we are to share.
How do we guard ourselves against complacency, and find life and fulfillment in being committed to our faith? Developing a vibrant prayer life of course is a necessary ingredient. Rattling off the our father once a day, if we remember, isn’t a vibrant prayer life. But spending time with the Scriptures, letting God challenge us and enlighten us by meditating upon his Word.
Secondly, many of us are not necessarily hesitant to help someone when they ask for it, I know this is a generous parish and should be commended for its generosity. The Diocese of Cleveland has the largest Catholic Charities not only in the country, but in the world.
Commitment to caring for those in need, doesn’t just wait for others to ask for helm. So many of the Saints show us not to wait for others to come to us, but to grow in our awareness of the needs of others so we can go out to them, like Saint Vincent de Paul or Blessed Mother Theresa going out into the gutters of Calcutta to lift up the abandoned. Every Catholic needs some direct engagement in the spiritual and corporal works of mercy, going out and seeking, in order to help, and lift up.
Complacent, Compliant, or Committed?
May we be ever more aware of Lazarus at our door, and Lazarus in the streets; nourished by Word and Sacrament, may we go from this Mass in order to bring Christ to those in need, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
I remember back in seminary, one of my classmates, now ordained and a happy, holy priest, used to bring his laptop computer to class to take notes during the lectures. And he had a message taped onto the computer right underneath the computer screen, so he couldn’t miss it, which read, “Complacent, Compliant, or Committed?” Everyone who saw him and his computer were forced to ask themselves: “Am I Complacent, Compliant, or Committed”?
Even as a seminary student preparing for priesthood, day after day, year after year, for 8 or 9 years, going to class could become somewhat tedious. Even though we were studying theology, the queen of the sciences, which would be directly applicable to our priestly ministry, complacency was a dangerous foe.
What is complacency? Complacency is a sort of unwillingness to change because of a sort of smug self-satisfaction. Complacency is a sort of willed inactivity.
Complacency is dangerous for students because he doesn’t push himself to excel and master the subject.
Complacency is dangerous at every stage of the spiritual life. For someone struggling with mortal sin, complacency can hinder them from going to confession and making the changes they need to. For the average Catholic, complacency cause keep us from truly growing in our prayer life by settling for the mediocre.
I pray enough, I’m generous enough, I am charitable enough. After all, I pray more than the person who doesn’t pray at all, I’m more generous and more charitable than the person who doesn’t give anything.
Complacency in the spiritual life is often an indicator that God’s will has taken second place to my own will.
Complacent, Compliant, or Committed.
Part of our Christian life does require compliancy. We do need to comply with the commandments, we adhere to moral truths, and follow Church laws: fasting when we are supposed to fast, attending mass when we are supposed to attend mass.
But, aren’t we called to more than mere compliancy? There is great difference between compliancy and commitment, isn’t there? Compliancy seems to connote that one follows the rules as long as it’s convenient. I’ll go with the flow, unless something better comes up. I’ll go to Church, unless there’s an important sports game, or unless I’m on vacation. I’ll say my prayers before bed, unless I fall asleep watching tv or texting my friends. I’ll abstain on Fridays in Lent from meat, unless I go out to a restaurant and there are delicious juicy steaks on the menu.
Compliancy or Commitment?
To be committed to our faith is another story entirely isn’t it? The saints give us wonderful illustrations of commitment over compliancy.
Yesterday, we celebrated the feast of a layman, the first canonized Filipino martyr named Saint Lorenzo Ruiz. He was a married man and devoted husband and father. He was arrested for his faith while accompanying some missionaries in Japan. At the time, the Japanese were arrested Catholics even putting them to death. Saint Lorenzo was arrested and tortured.
He was brought before a government official and told, “we will grant you your life, if you renounce your faith.” Lorenzo responded: "That I will never do. I am a Catholic and happy to die for God. If I have a thousand lives to offer, I would offer them to God. So, do with me as you please." Lorenzo was martyred for his faith, along with 15 Dominicans from Spain, Italy, France, Japan, and the Philippines.
Would we deny our faith to save our life? Existing documents attest that the Japanese promised him a safe trip back home where he could be reunited with his loved ones, but San Lorenzo chose to witness to Jesus Christ. That’s commitment! Compliancy witnesses to the Faith when it’s convenient. Commitment witnesses to the Truth even when it comes at great personal cost!
Another illustration: we celebrated on Thursday the feast of St. Vincent de Paul. As a charming young priest, Vincent made many friends—many wealthy friends, and he could have lived in comfort and luxury in the aristocratic spheres of society.
As Father Vincent walked through the streets of Paris, everywhere he looked he saw the hungry, the homeless, war refugees, neglected elderly men, women, and children, and those who had been spiritually abandoned and were without hope. He gathered together a group of priests to serve the poor, the Vincentian Sisters who served this diocese for many years trace their charitable work back to St. Vincent.
St. Vincent said, “It is not sufficient for me to love God if I do not love my neighbor…I belong to God and to the poor.” That is commitment. Compliancy gives when it is convenient. Commitment to the poor, considers oneself the servant of those in need.
In the first reading, the prophet Amos gives a warning to the complacent in Zion who lie upon beds of ivory, who are stretched comfortably on their couches. He is calling out the self-regarding, self-indulgent, complacent wealthy people in the Southern part of Israel who were ignoring the poor in Northern Israel.
Likewise in the Gospel, Jesus offers a parable about this rich man, who every night dined sumptuously, dressed in rich linens, while at this door there was a poor man, covered in sores, named Lazarus who would have gladly eaten of the scraps of the rich man’s table. In his complacency, the Rich Man ignored Lazarus at the gate. For this we heard from the lips of Christ himself, there were eternal consequences.
This parable always reminds me how as a young boy, my family would take a vacation to Mexico every year. My folks weren’t wealthy or anything, they worked hard 6 days a week, and they’d save enough each year to be able to afford a family vacation. At night, we would leave the hotel, and go into town. And I remember my first experiences seeing real poverty, homelessness, and beggars. And it struck me, even as a young boy, that just minutes from the 600 foot swimming pool and morning breakfast buffet, there were people, who lived in impoverished conditions that I would never know.
Feasting and celebration in this world is always colored by the fact that there are real people who are starving, and cold, and sick.
I think those guilty feelings we have when we encounter the homeless or the impoverished are good, because they rouse us out of complacency. That guilt feeling can be the Holy Spirit pricking our consciences to not take our blessings for granted, as if we were entitled to them, and to remember to pray and care for those in need.
As Christians, can we have warm houses and clean beds? Yes of course. But never by stepping on others, or ignoring those in need, but always grateful for our material blessings which we are to share.
How do we guard ourselves against complacency, and find life and fulfillment in being committed to our faith? Developing a vibrant prayer life of course is a necessary ingredient. Rattling off the our father once a day, if we remember, isn’t a vibrant prayer life. But spending time with the Scriptures, letting God challenge us and enlighten us by meditating upon his Word.
Secondly, many of us are not necessarily hesitant to help someone when they ask for it, I know this is a generous parish and should be commended for its generosity. The Diocese of Cleveland has the largest Catholic Charities not only in the country, but in the world.
Commitment to caring for those in need, doesn’t just wait for others to ask for helm. So many of the Saints show us not to wait for others to come to us, but to grow in our awareness of the needs of others so we can go out to them, like Saint Vincent de Paul or Blessed Mother Theresa going out into the gutters of Calcutta to lift up the abandoned. Every Catholic needs some direct engagement in the spiritual and corporal works of mercy, going out and seeking, in order to help, and lift up.
Complacent, Compliant, or Committed?
May we be ever more aware of Lazarus at our door, and Lazarus in the streets; nourished by Word and Sacrament, may we go from this Mass in order to bring Christ to those in need, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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