Why does Christ repeat to us “Do not be afraid”?

By F. Luis Casasús, General Superior of Idente missionaries
Commentary  on the Sunday Gospel of 25-6-2017, Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Book of Jeremiah 20:10-13; Letter to the Romans 5:12-15; Saint Matthew 10:26-33)

非不說子之道，力不足也。力不足者，中道而廢；今汝畫 In other words: Those whose strength is insufficient give up in the middle of the way, but now you limit yourself. This was the response of Confucius to his pupil Ran Qiu, who said that he did not have the strength to follow the teachings of his master.

Confucius meant that what the disciple was doing is like drawing a circle on the ground and imprisoning himself in it: You said that you could not step out of the circle without giving it a try. It was you who drew this circle. Therefore, it is you who limit yourself. It is you who do not want to step out of this circle.

This illustrates the fact that Fear is the most difficult emotion to handle. You cry the pain, you scream the anger, but fear is docked silently in your heart. Fears cripple us from living our lives meaningfully and take away the freedom to live and love. This explains why Jesus reminded his disciples many times: Do not be afraid.

Ever since the original sin, man is afraid. And what is most characteristic is that he even fears God! Thus, right after having disobeyed God and eaten the fruit of the forbidden tree, the man, Adam, answered the Lord who questioned him, saying that he had been afraid of him: Where are you? And he said, I heard the sound of thee in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. The Lord said: Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat? (Gn. 3:9-11)

Even though we were baptized and, through this baptism, the original sin we had has been eliminated, it remains that this same original sin left some of its traces in us especially fear, which weaken us and which can lead us into the worst disorders.

Perhaps you remember a Clint Eastwood movie, Unforgiven. There is a scene were Clint Eastwood’s character, standing over the wicked sheriff, pauses, his gun cocked, and his finger on the trigger. He looks down at the sheriff. The sheriff looks up at him and says: I’ll see you in hell. And, as Clint Eastwood pulls the trigger, he acknowledges that, yes, they will meet in hell.

Yes, through fear, we surrender to evil and became slaves of our passions.

We now well that teenagers are most afraid of being excluded from their friends’ circles or not being accepted by their friends or peer groups. In light of this, in order to please their peer groups not a few young people will choose to speak foul language and do whatever the group wants even to the point of doing evil.

Our enemies are from within and also from without. Today’s first reading describes the latter vividly: I hear the whisperings of many: “Terror on every side! Denounce! Let us denounce him!” All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine. “Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail, and take our vengeance on him.” 

As any psychologist will tell you, we have many fears: fear of death, fear of being separated from people we love, fear of losing control, fear of commitment, fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of losing our job, fear of being laughed at…even the fear of success and its possible consequences, like our friends envying us. Moreover, we have many fears we are not fully conscious about. On the other hand, when someone gives up smoking because they are afraid of developing lung cancer, this is a healthy fear because the danger is real and there are constructive steps they can take to avoid it. If a lion is about to pounce on you, fear can be a very good thing indeed. If you have to take a difficult exam end you experience fear during the preceding week, this might also be a good thing…if it helps to shake your laziness and your sluggishness.

Fear can be very complex. For instance, when the good thief on the cross rebukes the bad thief at the other side of Jesus with the question, Have you no fear of God? he is afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna and at the same time he is asking to be somehow united to Christ.

This is why Jesus is talking about the only positive (and necessary) fear: The fear of God as a gift of the Holy Spirit.

The fear of God defined by the Scriptures as “the beginning of true wisdom” coincides with respect for His authority over life and the world. To be without this ‘fear of God’ is equivalent to putting ourselves in God’s place, to feel ourselves to be a masters over good and evil, life and death.”

Don’t be afraid means “Don’t let your fears rule”. Why are we fearful?  Firstly, because we do not believe that God is in charge of the world and everything is within His divine plan and secondly, we fear because we forget the miracles He has worked in our lives, like the contemporaries of Jesus.  Alas for you, Chorazin!  Alas for you, Bethsaida!  For if the miracles done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

The false (or servile) fear of God is similar to other fears, which eventually will create mess and absence of peace in our life. Even so, it might not be completely pointless. The following story illustrates this fact:

A man owned a beautiful garden and particularly fancied roses. He learned that at a nearby public park there was a strain of roses that he did not have. One morning he rose early and went to the park with his son, where he hoped to appropriate the cherished rose. As they approached the plant, the boy became aware of the purpose of the trip. The father looked first in one direction and then in the other. As he bent down to remove the plant, the boy said: Father, you forgot something, didn’t you? What? asked the father. The boy replied: You forgot to look up.

For some persons, the fear of God is sporadic and momentary. It comes and goes with circumstances; it can be plagued with doubts and tears.

Those who fear Him have the security of a child in the arms of his mother. It is filial fear, the dread of offending or being separated from God. Because we desire union with God, the gift of Holy Fear causes us to fear ever losing the intensity of that union. Only this gift of the Holy Spirit God can save us from being afraid of the world and frees us from the fear of men. Our father Founder said (Sept.4, 1960) that this Holy Fear perfects our humility and our temperance.

When the disciples were fishing, a storm broke out over them suddenly. They were afraid of the storm but, what is interesting is that they were more afraid once all was calm. For it is then they realized that they had with them in their boat one who could command and control the sea: Who is this?

The fear of the Lord confirms the virtue of hope and gives us the desire not to offend God, as well as the certainty that God will supply us the grace that we need in order to keep from offending Him. Our desire not to offend God is more than simply a sense of duty; the fear of the Lord arises out of love, of our filial consciousness and draws us into a deep love for God which seeks union with him. And thus, we fear to offend him in any way, or to act in any way that might harm our union with him. And we do this, not so much out of fear of punishment, but simply because we love him so much, hold him in such reverence, awe and respect.

God cares for us in ways that are difficult for us to comprehend. How can he have every hair on our head counted? This is a way of saying he knows every thought that enters our minds, and he knows all the emotions that flow through our hearts. God’s knowledge of us is not merely “information” that God can use against us, it is the intimate understanding of our bodies, minds and hearts that he can respond to in ways that invite us to open our hearts more to him.

The Book of Jeremiah is telling us: the Lord is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.

A good example of a complete victory over our inner enemies (passions) is the didactic lesson we share in the ascetical examination.

Why do we have an didactic lesson in our ascetical examination? It looks like a light we receive. Should it be not in the mystical examination?

No, not really. Because the Didactic Lesson is an immediate conclusion (not without the grace, of course), a lesson learnt from my weakness:

– either after a failure, a fault, a sin, from which I draw a lesson, mainly the extent and consequences of my evil actions

– or after a successful experience in dealing with temptation.

God takes the good from the bad.

Let us conclude with some famous words taken from the first homily of John Paul II, totally in line with today’s Gospel text:

Brothers and sisters do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power. Help the Pope and all those who wish to serve Christ and with Christ’s power to serve the human person and the whole of mankind. Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ. To his saving power open the boundaries of States, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, civilization and development. Do not be afraid. Christ knows “what is in man”. He alone knows it.

So often today man does not know what is within him, in the depths of his mind and heart. So often he is uncertain about the meaning of his life on this earth. He is assailed by doubt, a doubt which turns into despair. We ask you therefore, we beg you with humility and trust, let Christ speak to man. He alone has words of life, yes, of eternal life.