2210AFC031122 – A Frank & Earnest Summary – With Special Addendum for online readers
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Luke 9:29 – “While he was praying his face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white.”
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to set us free from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. This is the second portion of the 2022 Lenten series called Lenten Reruns. Last week we said we would look back at A Frank & Earnest Conversation – a three-part study on metanoia. Metanoia is that deep, complete conversions that Jesus often spoke about when he told us to repent. Rather than put all three “acts” into this post, we’ll take a few excerpts. As a reminder you can find all of the dialogs at Catholic365 or at The 2019 Lenten Series Part 2, Series Part 3, and Series Part 4 (it’s a “3-act play”). You can find the whole thing in one piece if you Read it online here: http://aloha-friday.org/archives/13514 – thanks.
The unifying theme for this Sunday’s reading are transformation. We learn of Abram’s covenant with God to inherit the Land God set aside for Abram and his descendants. The Apostle Paul reminds us that Jesus will transform our mortal bodies to be consistent with his Glorified body. In the conversation between Frank and Earnest, the unifying idea is also transformation – from sinner to redeemed sinner. Here are a few excerpts from the Frank and Earnest Conversation:
F: Hi, I’m Frank.
E: And I’m Earnest.
N: I’m the Narrator. (My comments will look like this.)
E: So Frank, you look a little down. What’s going on?
F: Oh, you know. It’s Lent. Time for the whole “fasting, prayer, and almsgiving” thing – and then there’s the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I don’t know why they had to change the name. “Confession” seems good enough to me.
E: What part of that has you worried?
F: Oh, it’s not that I’m worried about it so much. It’s just that … well confession seems to get harder and harder. I don’t know why we repent if all we do is just go out and do the same sins over and over. It’s like “what’s the point?” any more.
E: Well that’s a good question. What is the point?
F: The point is to be reconciled with God and neighbor. You know that! We have Reconciliation because we trust God’s justice and mercy.
E: Yes, that’s why we can – and do – repent. God is just and merciful, your confessor is trained not to be judgmental, and there’s always the Seal of Confession, so what exactly is bothering you?
F: I guess it’s the repentance part. I just don’t seem to get that done right. No matter what I do, it just doesn’t stick. I’m still so angry all the time, and ashamed. The way I’ve acted toward Ethel and the kids, even stopped going to Mass because I don’t want to sit there and not go to Communion because everybody will know I haven’t gone to Confession. Repentance seems impossible.
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F: Think about this: How did you stop smoking 7 years ago?
E: I stopped buying the nasty things.
F: That was the first day. Did you buy any the second day? The third day? The first year? Yesterday?
E: No. Why?
F: You quit by continually quitting, right? How about your medicine for diabetes? What happens if you don’t take it?
E: I get sick and die?
F: Right! Now, let’s remember what Jesus said at the start of his ministry: “Repent and believe the Gospel.” That’s the process called conversion. You decide to change, to embrace “metanoia,” and then you place your faith in him. That’s conversion. (↔ Click Link) Once you experience conversion, you’re ready to follow him. Remember? “Come, follow me.”?
E: That’s all well and good, but it doesn’t last.
F: Unless you make it last. Think of it as a four-step process: Repent, believe, follow, repeat. When we repent and believe we are forgiven, that’s conversion. When we follow and repeat, that’s action. Conversion plus action equals … holiness.
E: I don’t know. It sounds too easy. And, like I said, it doesn’t last.
F: Ernie, it’s never “once and done.” Remember, it has to become a habit – like not smoking. Most days you don’t even have to think about that, right? Repentance works pretty much the same way. If Jesus is as real to you as he was to the Disciples at the Ascension, then you know he’s always there for you, always coming back to you in the Sacraments. AND you’ve got the Holy Spirit to help you, too. Repentance opens the door to holiness.
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F: [The Narrator and I] are just trying to tell you two things [1] if you sincerely confess your sins, there’s forgiveness – you acknowledge your sins and repent. That’s necessary because repentance is turning away from sin – which we recognize and regret – so that we turn again toward God. In this case, repentance involves something many people don’t think about: Conversion.
E: You mean like the “born-again Christians” on TV?
F: In a way, yes, we do need real conversion. Here, let’s ask that Narrator again for some help.
N: (CCC §1427: Jesus calls [us] to conversion. This call is an essential part of the proclamation of the kingdom: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel.” §1429 St. Peter’s conversion after he had denied his master three times bears witness to this. Jesus’ look of infinite mercy drew tears of repentance from Peter and, after the Lord’s resurrection, a threefold affirmation of love for him. The second conversion also has a communitarian dimension, as is clear in the Lord’s call to a whole Church: “Repent!” St. Ambrose says of the two conversions that, in the Church, “there are water and tears: the water of Baptism and the tears of repentance.” §1431 Interior repentance is a radical reorientation of our whole life, a return, a conversion to God with all our heart, an end of sin, a turning away from evil, with repugnance toward the evil actions we have committed. At the same time it entails the desire and resolution to change one’s life, with hope in God’s mercy and trust in the help of his grace. This conversion of heart is accompanied by a salutary [=beneficial] pain and sadness which the Fathers called animi cruciatus [affliction of spirit] and compunctio cordis [repentance of heart]. Emphasis added.)
F: It’s that interior repentance, the “radical reorientation of our whole life” you seem to be wondering about. Trust me, everyone feels the same way, like we should be able to stop being so sinful. Even the Apostle Paul wrote about that.
N: (Take a look at what the Apostle Paul said: Romans 7:15-20 – 15 I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. 17 But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me.)
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E: Like that song “Just As I Am?” (↔ Music Link) [Just as I Am full lyrics]
F: Not quite. Jesus expects you to repent, not just show up without doing anything about your sin. He does certainly accept you as you are as a sinner – you don’t have to wait until you’re holy to repent, because you repent to approach holiness – but he wants you to take it through to the process of conversion. Remember he said, “Repent, and believe the Gospel.” Believing the Gospel without repentance will leave you dissatisfied. Is that how you feel now?
E: I admit, I was feeling like that, but I feel have some things to think about. It seems that metanoia is a change not only in heart and mind but also – and most importantly – a change in actions and behavior. I can change my actions and behavior at least a little and if it doesn’t last long, I can try again, right?
F: That’s right. There’s no limit (N: ← Check it out!) on how many times you can repent – of anything or everything – as long as it includes the aspect of conversion – that “firm purpose of amendment” in the Act of Contrition. Conversion is the key to sincere contrition and effective repentance no matter how many times you have to do it. Because Jesus is as real to you as he was to the Disciples at the Ascension, then that should help you realize that you’re confessing to him, not “just Fr. Kelly.” That’s because God’s Mercy is the result of his Justice being dispensed in Love that is so complete and unwavering, so steadfast and constant that we cannot comprehend its full extent. The best we can do is to think of Grace, “the free gift and unmerited favor of God,” which is always available to everyone.
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E: Yeah, I see; it really is like “Conversion plus action equals … holiness.” But riddle me this, Frank, how come we have to go to a Priest and everyone else just goes directly to God? Why can’t we do that, too?
F: The Church teaches that Reconciliation is a Sacrament, not a DIY project. Because it is a Sacrament, it is firstly instituted by Christ, secondly carried forward by the Church, and thirdly must be conducted by Ordained Clergy with the authority to perform the Sacrament. Not all Christian churches treat Reconciliation as a Sacrament. Our Church does.
E: So you’re saying that Ordination makes it possible for a Priest to forgive sins, is that right?
F: Almost. Think about the prayer of absolution the Priest says: “God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, X and of the Holy Spirit.” God has reconciled us to himself, and it is through the ministry of the Church that God pardons us at the moment when the Priest exercises his Sacramental authority, received during his ordination, to carry out Christ’s instructions found in John 20:21-23. Hey, Narrator, how about a little help with that?
N: (Sure thing: 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”)
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E: I see what you mean. Every repenting followed by reconciliation is a new beginning – like the Apostle Paul said – and all I need to do is accept that this is the will of God for me and believe firmly in his divine wisdom, justice, and mercy. That makes a lot more sense than skipping confession because I think it makes me look bad. I already know how I look; I look like a sinner, but I also already know how I can look. I can look like a redeemed sinner!
(↔ Click Link in the image)
F: Brother, you bring joy to my heart to hear you say that. And if you listen carefully you will hear the Angels rejoicing, too. God bless you, Ernie!
E: I guess I understand now why so many of us don’t repent, don’t seek the Sacrament of reconciliation. It’s Pride. Talk about “stiff-necked people!” It has been my lack of – my refusal to accept the importance of – humility in my life. Humility is, in a way, a masterful blend of the Four Cardinal Virtues – Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, and Temperance. Humility gives us the power to be a statesman rather than a politician, a servant rather than a ruler, and a child of God rather than a spawn of evil. Humility is the form of Love Jesus showed by coming to us as an infant – helpless, impoverished, homeless, and yet mightiest of the Mighty.
F: Well said Ernie! With that attitude, you really can Go Make A Difference. (↔ Music Link) It’s that lack of humility that seems to negate our awareness of sin. We no longer have a sense of sin, what it is, or how much it affects our lives. We excuse it by telling ourselves “Oh, it’s not all that bad,” when instead we still consciously and knowingly choose to disobey God’s call to holiness. We conclude we’re not as sinful as everyone else and so we don’t need to repent. That is a serious error, and it’s really hurting the Church. Ernie, your moments of holiness, along with many other’s moments, can actually help all of us correct that error.
N: (Thanks for tuning in. Someday we might continue this conversation, but that’s all for now.) Scroll to the end for the Special Addendum for online readers
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Special Addendum for online readers
This is a special “Bonus Addendum” for readers who used the online link to this post. It’s just a couple of extra things to remind us that what we really need is continuous conversion. This little verse is something my wife, Crucita, and I used in the Annual Dedication Mass for our Son, Timothy. We prayed for a child for 10 years. For the last three of those years we worked with social workers, adoption agencies, lawyers, and the courts until we completed our first adoption in December 1979. This was Timothy’s portion of the special votive mass we put together for this memorial of the day we returned him to God – just as Hannah returned Samuel to God. Timothy would read …
What can I give him? Poor as I am
If I were a shepherd I would give a lamb
If I were a wise man I would do my part
But what I can I give him?
Give him my heart.
From In the Bleak Midwinter a Song by Christina Rossetti and Gustav Holst
And here is the reason all of us should be careful when we teach, or are being taught, the importance of continuous conversion.
