Doing it "my Way" needs to give way to "doing it God's way."

It was back in 1969, when Frank Sinatra originally composed and sang the haunting lyrics to:  I DID IT MY WAY.  The song seems so powerful, so masculine, and so confident.  We looked to Frank as a person who knows how to live life.

Yet, the message I DID IT MY WAY is in contradiction to the message of today’s Gospel.  The Gospel gives the infancy account of the birth of Jesus according to the evangelist Matthew.  This account tells us about Joseph.  His profound dilemma was whether to do it my way or to do it God’s way.  Joseph is our model for us to realize that “doing it my way” needs to give way to “doing it God’s way.”

The Scriptures tell us that Joseph was a righteous man.  That meant he was “law-abiding.”  Tell me what the rules are, and I will be a faithful rule keeper.  The laws in Joseph’s time were very strict.  If you found out that the woman you were engaged to was pregnant and you were not the other party to the pregnancy, you were to cancel the engagement, and the woman might be stoned to death.  Did I mention that the laws in Joseph’s time were quite strict!

With a compassionate heart, Joseph was unwilling to expose Mary to shame, and so he wanted to divorce her quietly.

It was then that the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said:  “Do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.  For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.”

“When Joseph awoke from the dream, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him to do.”

In a word, Joseph did it God’s ways.

It is worth reflecting on the discernment-conversion process that took place in Joseph and then to wonder how and if we are to model this discernment in our own lives at times.

For Joseph, “the black and white” decision making was clear.  The rules clearly said to divorce Mary over this pregnancy issue.  Through the guidance of the angel of the Lord, Joseph moved beyond the letter of the law and embraced the spirit of love and followed the mystery of God’s law in his life.  Following the mystery of God’s call in  his life meant not being too tied down to the letter of the law, but rather to be open to the mystery of God’s call leading us to live by the higher law of love and being open to the spirit of God leading us in unexpected ways.

Like Joseph, we need to be open to the mystery of life, however life challenges us and calls.  True religion is open to mystery.  We need a Church lit with the light of God, as Joseph was.  His burden was lifted when he was open to God, to take Mary home as his wife, no matter what others might think.

In the life of the Church, there will always be very strict rule keepers ready to be severe and judgmental about all the folks not keeping the rules.  Their worry, at times very fairly considered, is that we will fall into a slippery slope that if you don’t keep some rules, then this means there only be chaos in the life of the Church.

I was talking to a parishioner recently even concerned about Pope Francis.  In her opinion, the Vicar of Christ seems to be a little lax on enforcing some of the rules of the Church.  After Pope Francis was elected to the papacy in 2013, during his first Holy Week as pope, he went to a prison for young people for the annual liturgy of the washing of the feet.  He raised a few eyebrows and opened the eyes of even some clergy, when he not only washed the feet of Catholics, he also washed the feet of Muslims and women in the ritual.  Previously this washing of the feet was reserved to Catholic men.

Pope Francis has captured the imagination of the world and breathed new life into the Church as he has extended the compassionate love of Jesus to one and all.  For Pope Francis, more than keeping rules, we are to be faithful to the commandment of love that Jesus has given us.

Going back to the Gospel, the angel of the Lord led Joseph to be open to God’s plan for his life.

How does that play out in our lives?  When does "doing it my way” need to give way to “doing it God’s way,” even when this requires us to trust in God’s grace for us?

Have you ever broken the letter of the law in order to follow a higher law?  How do you share your unconditional love for your children and the merciful love of Jesus for your children even when they are not keeping the rules you would like them to keep?  Are all of your children and grandchildren and extended family members going to Church Sunday after Sunday after Sunday? 

What would be an example of letting go of my way in order to be open to God’s plan for us?  This was the life and commitment of Joseph in today’s Gospel?  I know for myself as a priest becoming the pastor of Holy Spirit parish is being open to God’s plan as expressed through appointment I received from Bishop Matano?   When did or do have you have deal will illness in your life or someone you love, when you have to deal with death in the life of someone you love, how is it for you when you need to let go of your children in their growth and development process, and what happens for you when someone you love betrays your trust?

What I do know for myself and for you is that God has a plan for us.  The problem is that sometimes God’s plan doesn’t look like a gift we like to receive.  It requires far more trust to accept what God gives that what Santa gives.   May we pray for the openness to listen with a trusting heart and then to live out God’s plan for us.  Doing it “my way” needs to give way to “doing it God’s way."

Have a blessed day.