How can I be a witness to Jesus?
They tell the story of an atheist philosopher in the days of the Soviet Union who set out to study theology, in his own way, so that he could deny the existence of Jesus. He went from city to city and village to village, gathering people to tell them that Jesus did not exist, believing that in this way he was achieving his atheist goal. Until one day, at one of these gatherings, a Russian peasant, poor and with little schooling, but whose faith in Jesus was all his learning, stood up at the end of the philosopher’s lecture and said: “Professor, we really enjoyed your lecture, because it convinced us that Jesus exists. It isn’t possible for someone to go to all this trouble and put in all this effort for someone who doesn’t exist. Can anyone spend their life on someone who doesn’t exist?!”
They say that this philosopher, on his deathbed, told those around him: “No one troubled my conscience my whole life except that peasant. If only you could send for him, so he could show me now where I am going.”
My dear friends, yesterday, on the first day, we saw that the Lenten retreat invites me to think in a new way, Christ’s way.
Today, after this story, the Lenten retreat invites me to be a witness in Christ’s way, with what I have, with the means available to me, in the moment I find myself in, but with one small difference… that it comes across with a little love. That is where the whole difference lies. A witness to Jesus doesn’t need to be a great preacher or a good speaker. A witness is someone who simply passes on the love of Jesus through his daily life.
What is striking is that Jesus did not write the Gospel himself. He didn’t even ask his disciples to write down what he dictated… nor did they receive divine inspiration while taking notes on Jesus’ words… It was only after they had lived the Word for years and borne witness to it that they began to write, under divine inspiration.
A few days ago I read a lovely line on Facebook: “This man is poor, because all he has is money.” That line struck me. I can say the philosopher was poor too, because all he had was his knowledge, lacking love and faith; at one moment he felt it all collapse before the courage of the witness of a peasant with little schooling, but whose knowledge was that of a heart and mind enlightened by the power of faith in Jesus. We remember here the words of Jesus: “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.”
The peasant’s witness changed the philosopher’s thinking and his life. A few simple words, spoken as a witness full of love and conviction, were enough to leave a deep mark.
My dear friends, if we wanted to define our Christian religion in one word, it would be “the religion of witness”. We sometimes even say that Christianity is not one religion among others: it is a community of witness, a community that bears witness to a person called Jesus. Pope Francis says on this subject: the Christian faith is more than a set of theological and doctrinal truths, more than social services, however important they are, more than getting along well with one another. It is an encounter… an encounter with a person called Jesus. This encounter changes me, opens new horizons for me and makes me a witness, his witness.
And I can express this witness in different ways.
Through a thought: this peasant bore witness to Jesus through a simple but profound thought. Our thoughts, despite their weakness and sometimes their weariness, should let Jesus pass through them. Our gatherings and our conversations are all ways to bear witness to Jesus.
Through expression: how we express ourselves reflects what is inside us; it shows the truth of our identity and personality. The way I say good morning and good evening… Simple things through which I express great love. Jesus expressed his love for people through many human gestures: touch – he touched the leper tenderly, he touched the blind man’s eyes; he looked with love at the rich young man; he heard the cry of pain of the blind man of Jericho and stopped the whole crowd to meet him and speak with him… he forgave from the cross… Expression also means taking firm and uncompromising positions in our lives: when Jesus tells us to build our house on rock and not on sand, it means knowing how to take the right, strong and sincere positions, without falling for the temptation of compromises and deals at the expense of God’s dignity and of human dignity within us… Jesus’ firm stand before the Jewish elders and the woman caught in adultery… even his stand before his father and mother, when he chose to stay in the Temple… In a moment of truth, witness can go that far: giving up those closest to us, giving up everything, for him.
And finally, through life experience: the easiest and most natural way to express it is through life experience. How beautiful it is sometimes to hear the experiences of people from all walks of life, to see how God has worked in their lives… We are amazed, and our faith grows stronger.
Let us try, with what he has given us, to be his witnesses, especially this year as the Maronite Church celebrates the Year of Witness and Martyrs.
Homily by Fr. Joseph Abi Aoun during the Lenten retreat at Our Lady of the Rosary Church, Zouk Mosbeh
