The Great Commission

 Matthew's Gospel, (Matthew 28:16-20) is often referred to as "The Great Commission." Maybe it's just me but I don't find the label particularly inspiring. I think  it's because it's not the way I see myself as it relates to my faith.  Don't get me wrong it's not that Jesus' words don't resonate with me because they do, Jesus' message could not be clearer and more to the point. It's just that He is asking each one of us individually to pick up where he left off  and spread His Word in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. So, for me the label, "Great Commission," is just a little too impersonal and too lofty. 

As adults, much of our identity is related to our areas of competence...at work, at home, in volunteer activities or our hobbies. When we find ourselves in situations where we do not feel competent, our anxiety levels escalate. (Psychologists tell us, that this is why adults have a hard time learning a new language or a musical instrument; it's not that our brains are too old or incapable of learning something new; it's that we don’t like feeling incompetent and so we  quit before we even make any progress.)

More than we may realize, we  live  our faith in  what St. Theresa of Calcutta referred as the "pots and pans" of our lives each day. Our faith is not separate from who we are and how we live. It's the very essence of how we are known. Our faith informs our behavior and actualizez our identity. As Jesus tells us in John 13, "By this shall all men know you are my disciples." I think our reluctance comes from our confusing faith with church or religion? I'm going to bet that most of us do live, or at least try, to live through our faith in all that we do; it's just that we don't see it because it's embedded in our very being. For me "The Great Commission" is a phrase that actually misses the point and not likely the words Jesus himself would have used. We don't manifest our belief by or through a committee, (often a sure fire way to kill a good idea.)

These few short verses in today’s Gospel summarizes Jesus' earthly ministry and are pivotal to Matthew's gospel. Too often they are assigned, as they are this Sunday, as readings for Trinity Sunday and seem to get lost in the “dogma” of the "Mystery." However, they clearly proclaim the supreme authority of Jesus, as being one with the Father and having no earthly equal and remind us that we are "asked" not “commissioned” to love one another as Jesus did, and remember that God through the life of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit, is with us until the end of time.

So, how can we go about gaining a sense of competence and thereby grow in confidence in living our lives through our faith for one another? My guess is we already do but don't see it for all the noise. Perhaps it starts with moving to a more participatory style of Christian formation in we reach out to one another in our own personal way. Not unlike the answer to one who asked directions to Carnegie Hall, "Practice, practice, practice," our faith requires the same attention. We can't afford to wait until we are perfect and conditions are optimal because as with the musician, that will never happen.