Campbell’s’ article for August 27^th

Jos 24:1-2, 15-17, 18b                        Eph 5:21-32                        John 6:60-69

I learned a new word this summer.  The word is bling.  This word is so new that the spell check on my computer doesn’t recognize it.  I heard it the word used several times in a context that made bling seem like a good thing.  In fact I was going to tell our liturgy team that we needed more bling in our liturgies until I actually found a definition.  Bling is described as gaudy jewelry. Another definition of bling is showy in a tasteless or vulgar way.  I thought about bling when I read this Sunday’s readings.  In the Old Testament reading Joshua gathers all the tribes of Israel and asks them to make a choice.  He says “If it does not please you to serve the Lord, decide today whom you will serve, the god your fathers served beyond the river or the god of the Amorites in whose country you are now dwelling”  It was important for Joshua to stop and challenge the Israelites because they had drifted from their relationship with Yahweh.  The gods of the Amorites were the latest in a line of false gods would have captured the eye of the Israelites.  The religious practices of the Amorites were showy in a tasteless way.  Joshua reminds the Israelites “It was the Lord who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt out of a state of slavery”.  His response reminds me of a Native American saying. “Certain things catch your eye, but pursue only those that capture your heart”.  Yahweh loved his people and they responded by seeing bling for what it really is and they followed Him. `In the Gospel reading Jesus challenges his disciples to accept his message into their hearts rather than being entertained by what some disciples perceived as bling.  Those disciples continued to ask, “What other miracles are you going to perform for us?”   In John’s gospel many followed Jesus.  At this point when they realize discipleship is not about showiness and ego they say “This saying is hard; who can accept it?”  Jesus challenged them and John tells us “As a result, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him”.  What was their former life?  My guess is their addiction to bling.  Show without substance was all they ever wanted and that desire fueled their restless lives. Yet some did stay.  Through God’s grace and personal conversion they were able to realize that Jesus was the bread of life and that life had touched their hearts.  Once they had such an encounter they probably all echoed Peter’s words when Jesus asked him if he wanted to leave.  Peter said, “Master, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God”.  So what about us?  We call ourselves disciples every time we say the creed.  Yet how much time do we put into personal conversion and how much do we put into chasing bling.  Bling is more than just gaudy jewelry.  It is anything that distracts us from what is really important in life.  What is important; that Jesus is the bread of life who feeds us hearts and that each of us feed one another.  As Catholics we believe that the measure of our lives is how much of an impact we have on others.  Jesus told his disciples “It is the spirit that gives life while the flesh is of no avail.  The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life”.  Perhaps all of us should be less interested in bling and more concerned with Spirit and life.