Don’t Be A Fan!

Rev. Marcel Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Third Sunday of Advent, Year C

St. Mary of Assumption Church, Whittier, California

Sunday, December 13, 2015

According to Wikipedia, a fan is a person who has an enthusiastic devotion to something or somebody, such as a band, a sports team, a book, or an entertainer. A fan is a supporter. Fans of a football club or a soccer club would passionately support their teams and oftentimes spend a lot of money to follow them around throughout the season of competition. The delusion or fantasy that most sports fans  oftentimes have is the belief that they have a special relationship with their teams, which of course does not exist. The owners of those clubs and the players do not even know the fans personally, and the fans do not know them personally as well. The lifestyle of each individual fan may not be the lifestyles of each individual player. Fans are not obliged to emulate the lives of the players that make up the team they support. They are not expected to hold their religious or political views. The passionate devotion for a team can be switched to another team. The relationship between fans and their teams, as much as it may appear deep from the outside, is not really deep; it’s not personal. Fanship is largely a social or entertaining affair. As a fan, you are not bound to follow a set of defined principles and you are not expected to support your team till death. I used to be a huge fan of World Wresting Entertainment (WWE), but today, I am no longer one, and don’t even watch wrestling anymore. Few years ago, I was a fan. Today, I am not. Even when I was a fan, I hated some of the wrestlers. Fans only cheer their teams. Disciples follow the footsteps of their master.  

In today’s Gospel (Luke 3:10-18), the desert preacher, John the Baptist told his audience (which also includes us) to stop being fans of God, to cease being God’s supporters and to become disciples. Last Sunday, (Second Sunday of Advent), we read from Luke 3:1-6 about how he began his public ministry by touring the region of the Jordan and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As the precursor or forerunner of Jesus, he led a movement of baptism at the River Jordan in preparation for the coming of the Messiah. He proclaimed loud and clear to those who cared to listen to prepare the way of the Lord and to make his paths straight. After hearing his message, different groups of people came to him. To the crowds who came and asked, “What should we do?” he said, “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” This means, do not horde. Do not be selfish. Be generous and share with the less privileged. Share your goods and wealth with the less fortunate among us. To tax collectors who came to be baptized, he urged them to, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed” by the law. This means quit the greed and stealing. To soldiers, he cautioned, “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.” This means be content with what you have. Stop the selfishness and corruption.  The summary of John’s message to every group of people that came to him is: Don’t be a fan! 

John understood that there should be no dichotomy between faith and good works. He understood that it is not enough to cheer for God, to root for God, to say, “I believe in God.” Cheering for God must be matched by godly deeds, if not, it becomes a jeer of God. Faith in Jesus Christ must be matched by actions that are Christlike. A Christian who is not godly, not Christlike, not making effort to get better, to be more like Jesus is a fan, and not a disciple. In Matthew 7:21, Jesus says, “Not all who call me, Lord, Lord, will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only those who do the will of my Father in heaven.” And in John 14:15, he said “If you love me, keep my commandments.” Another way of saying this is, “If you believe in me, if you have faith in me, then live like someone who believes in me, who is called by my name. Match your words with actions.” Faith in Jesus Christ is good faith, but good faith must be demonstrated in good actions. Good deeds are testimonies of good faith. Good deeds are the fruits of good faith. Good actions must follow good faith. Terrorists groups like ISIL, Al Qaeda, Boko Haram etc are terribly bad because their beliefs are bad. Talk is cheap! Those who talk the talk of the Lord, must walk the walk of the Lord as well. Without good deeds, faith becomes a matter of cheerleading. The Christian becomes an empty and intense yeller who rubbishes God’s name in the public domain.  

Beloved in Christ, if you have enough dress, food or other material things but refuse to share with the less fortunate due to greed and selfishness, even though you are baptized, you are fan and not a disciple of Jesus. If you are a dishonest businessman or woman, you are a fan. If you are a teacher who does not care about your students, you are a fan. If you are a lazy student who does not want to try and to improve in your studies, you are a fan. If you are a soldier or a police, be loyal and avoid excessive use of force, but if you don’t, then you are a fan. If you are a truck driver who ignores the speed limit and continuously intimidate other road users with your reckless driving, you are a fan. If you are not a loving, lovely, tender and fair parent, you are a fan. If you are a child who does not honor your parents, you are a fan. If you are a husband or a wife who does not forgive and love your spouse faithfully, then you are a fan. If you are a priest or a religious who lacks kindness, compassion and pastoral drive, then you are a fan. If you are an employer of labor who exploits workers and pay them unfair wages, you are a fan. If you are a wasteful employee, you are a fan. A Christian supervisor who treats his coworkers disrespectfully and unfairly is a fan. A Christian politician who does not fight for the common good is a fan.  A Christian doctor or a nurse who does not strive to save life and does not treat the patients with compassion is a fan. Any Christian who practices racism and discrimination is a fan. Christians who are not real are not disciples but fans. The good news is that we can accomplish all these. We can live holy lives, noble lives, worthy lives, lovely lives, gracious lives, friendly lives, merciful lives, humane lives, tolerant lives, virtuous lives, compassionate lives, diligent lives, faithful lives, generous lives, humble lives, and communal lives. We can accomplish these, not by our power or might, but by the grace of God. Ministering to St. Paul, Jesus said to him, “My grace is sufficient for you…” (2 Corinthians 12:9) And in Philippians 4:13 St. Paul assures us that “We (I) can do all things through Christ who strengthens us (me).”