I hope you have all had some time for rest and relaxation with family and friends this summer – or that it’s on the horizon. September is only two weeks away! I enjoyed a week in Virginia Beach in July with some longtime friends and am looking forward to another week in Myrtle Beach with one of my sisters next week. I love the eastern shore for a number of reasons. One of them is the opportunity to enjoy spectacular sunrises. Every morning, I make sure to be on the beach before the sun comes up. This is such a mystical experience as the sky slowly lights up and then the sun appears, first as a bleed of molten orange on the horizon and then like a full egg yolk gleaming through the early morning haze and finally a light so bright that you simply can’t look at it; it hurts the eyes. Another day begins in God’s grace.
Our sun is a glowing hot ball of fire. We all know that fire is a primordial element. Without its energy, we could not live. Fire creates, destroys, cleanses, refines, making room for new life. We need fire in order for anything else to be and for new life to arise. And so, we hear Jesus proclaim in today’s gospel passage: “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing.” Jesus knew the power of the fire that was God’s Spirit burning within him. We use the phrase “baptism of fire.” Jesus identified his mission as a great baptism. We hear him continue in today’s gospel: “There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished.” Jesus’ baptism by fire would be his rejection by his own people, his trials before the Jewish and Roman leaders, the horrific scourging and crucifixion. His baptism by fire would destroy his body but, as with a destructive forest fire, he would rise to a new, eternal glory. The fire of the Spirit in Jesus would burn away the destructive force of sin, bringing a new era of grace to all of humanity, even until today.
“I have come to set the earth on fire.” On the road to Emmaus on the day of the Resurrection, two disciples were talking about their encounter with Jesus. “Were not our hearts burning within us?” they wonder aloud after Jesus disappears from their sight. They had caught fire with Jesus’ life and message. They were never the same again.
At our baptism, we — or our parents and godparents on our behalf — were presented with a candle burning with a flame taken from the paschal candle that was first lit by the Easter fire. The bishop or priest or deacon instructs, “Receive the Light of Christ. Keep it burning brightly.” The newly-baptized person is never the same.
We need the light and warmth of the fire of the sun; we benefit every day from the life giving rays of the sun. But, as I mentioned a few moments ago, we cannot look directly at the sun once it shines in its full glory. We need a lens to protect our eyes from the effects of the sun’s rays. Each person must look through the lens of Jesus before they can approach the searing sun of the Gospel message. Jesus teaches that the fire he is casting on the earth will have its various effects. It will bring peace to the one who looks at it through his eyes. But, as we hear in today’s Gospel, not all will accept the fire of his message and his call. Some will choose not to take on the lens of Jesus, and they will go their own way. There will be division. Even members of households will be divided over the fire of the Gospel. That was true in our Lord’s time; it is still true today, as so many of us experience in our own homes, among our own families. In our world today – as in every age – relationships between individuals, groups and nations are strained over beliefs.
We see in our first reading from the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah that, even before the birth of our Lord, so many people were unwilling to listen to the truth that God spoke through his prophets. When God did come in the flesh – in the person of Jesus Christ – the same thing happened. Why are we surprised that it’s happening today? The message that God gives – his unconditional love and call for total fidelity – is challenging. So, we take encouragement from today’s second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews where we hear: “Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses – that is, our ancestors in the faith – let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us.” The fire of Christ must continue to burn brightly and intensely in our hearts. Christ’s fire must blaze in us so that we – and everyone we can gather with us – will come to the peace that only God can give us – for all eternity.