#2 (9th gr) Obedience & Mercy

Obedience & Mercy

Take a look at these extremely tall buildings located all over the world.  The one on the left, Burj Khalifa, is located in Dubai and is over 2,700 ft tall.

If one were to jump from the top of Burj Khalifa it would take about 13 seconds.  Let's put this in perspective...

First of all no, just no.  This is nuts.  In the interest of this particular lesson however, we'll pretend sane people are interested in doing this extreme act of stupidity.  ;)

Second, these guys did this with a chute, thankfully, or you can be certain the video wouldn't be shown here.  Maybe some of you thrill-seekers would really enjoy doing this, I'm having a panic attack just thinking about it.  

What if I told you to jump from Burj Khalifa and do it without a parachute.  Now does it sound exciting or fun?  If you did this without a net there is no way you'd walk away from this. Nothing would be able to cushion the fall, even a big, bouncy net would feel like concrete.  You just wouldn't survive.  No thanks?  (if you still want to do this please contact me as this would not be a good sign)

Here's the thing, Jesus did something like this for YOU and me and everyone actually.  He willingly did something this scary because he was, is, and always shall be obedient to God the Father.  What's more, Jesus knew WHAT was going to happen, he knew WHEN it was going to happen, and he knew HOW it would FEEL.  Jesus' obedience allowed both a horrible and beautiful thing to take place.

Please read in your YouCat 98, 100-101 (p.65-67), think about why Jesus' obedience to God the Father was so important.  In the margin (p.65) please read the quote by St. Bernard of Clairvaux as well.

Question 1:  In your opinion, was God the Son forced to suffer and die on the cross or was he truly acting in obedience, meaning, did Jesus WILLINGLY die for you and me?  Explain.

Question 2:  Why do you feel it was important that Christ had a choice to suffer and die on the cross for our sins?

Know this, while we too are called to be obedient to God the Father, we will never be asked to do anything as horrific as what Jesus was called to do.  Why?  Because Jesus did it for us.  We are, however, asked to still be obedient, but whatever God asks of us will never be as difficult as what Jesus has already done.  This is not to say being obedient to God is a piece of cake, it's not.  Doing what God has called us to do is extremely difficult, but if we look at what God calls us to do versus what He called Christ to do, there's no comparison.  We get the easy task, no doubt.

What IS our task?  Holiness.  

We are called by God to be holy.  Being holy requires sacrifice, but it will NEVER be to the extremes that Christ suffered.  Even if we suffer martyrdom at the hands of our enemies, our suffering and sacrifice will be sweetened by remembering what Christ has already accomplished for our sake.

What is holiness?  Watch this video.

Question 3:  What does it mean to be holy?

Go to your YouCat 342 p.189.  Are we all supposed to become "saints"?  Yes, we are.

Question 4:  What is your one purpose in life?

While we are called be obedient and this requires us to strive for holiness, we also know God is infinitely merciful.  Which is really great news for us because eventually we'll mess up. When we sin we are actually turning our backs on God. Thankfully, we can reconcile and return to God because of His mercy.

Read in your YouCat 314 p.177-178.  Also read the quotes in the margins on pg.177-178.

Question 5:  Look at the quote by St. John Vianney on p.178, please explain, in your own words, what St. John Vianney is saying about God's mercy.

Who's worthy of God's mercy?

The Pope's friend, Jerry, was seen as a threat by the men protecting Pope Francis.  Pope Francis recognized Jerry as his friend whom he had earlier helped at the Vatican.  Within the Vatican Pope Francis has established areas which offer free showers and barber shops to help the city's homeless. Jerry's ragged appearance before his shower and haircut can be seen as what we look like covered in sin (non-holiness).

Question 6:  Please explain how the care and concern Pope Francis showed to Jerry relates to the mercy God shows to us.

Part of our job of obedience to God, striving towards holiness, is showing mercy to others.  If God shows mercy to us, even when we don't deserve His mercy, the least we can do is show mercy to others.  (Especially when they seemingly do NOT deserve our mercy)

Here's another Pope Francis cartoon.  (by the way these clips are obviously animated and spoken in English, however, the stories and words are really true things that our Pope has said and done)

Besides the fantastic quote about having a "perfect" mother-in-law, which will be way more funny when you're married, think about how this family had to show mercy to one another.  While none of you are yet married, you all have families, this video is still relevant.

Question 7:  What are the three things Pope Francis wants you to remember and say to show mercy within your own family?

What if a sibling or other family member is particularly annoying and you'd rather not show mercy?  Take a look at this photo and think about what Jesus said to St. Faustina.