Encounter the sacred

When I was a teenager, having completed part of my high school studies, I was invited by some friends to partake in a weekend retreat called Youth Encounter. Back in the early 1980s, Youth Encounter, along with Cursillo (a similar retreat for adults) and Marriage Encounter (yes, you guessed it, for married couples who wished to deepen the spiritual dimension of their marriage), were very strongly rooted in Sault Ste. Marie (and, I believe in some other parts of this diocese as well).

It wasn't all teenagers who had even heard of Youth Encounter, nor did all of them come to participate, but for those who did, the weekend experience had the potential at least to be a life changing one. At a time when we craved spending time with peers (many times even more than we craved spending time with parents and families) Encounter gave us a structured weekend which was directed by adults but administered by peers. Perhaps most remarkable about this experience was the fact that our friends, those who were the jocks at school, the popular ones at all the parties, dared to share the deepest secrets of their lives with us. Teenagers speak most powerfully to teenagers when they share their own challenges and fears, and because Encounter provided an opportunity for us to discover the sacred at work within ourselves, it had the power to change our perspectives, to help us appreciate the power of faith, to help us bond with friends.
People who have had an experience of faith, whether through Encounter or some other life changing experience, are not the same after as before. We see such changes from time to time in the people who come to us and ask to partake in the RCIA even today. At the beginning of the process, they are shy, reserved and filled with questions. At the end of the process, they may still be filled with questions. They may even remain shy and reserved, but they often understand the Catholic faith better than most cradle Catholics do. In some cases, they become more committed and fervent Catholics than their sponsors ever were. They too have encountered the sacred, and this encounter has changed their lives.

The story of the raising of Lazarus which we heard today is perhaps one of the best known bible stories. We've heard it before. We encounter it each year. It's even found its way into popular conversation. If I should happen to visit with a particular friend after a long absence, or if I should happen to call after not having spoken with her for quite some time, I may very well be greeted with the words, 'and the dead shall arise and appear to many', reminiscent of the Lazarus story.

Why did Jesus take this opportunity to raise Lazarus from the dead? Was it because he wanted to demonstrate his divine power? Perhaps so, but I think there is more to this story than first meets the eye. Jesus never used his divine power to show off. Rather he used it to demonstrate his compassion for others. In this case, here was an opportunity to be close to Martha and Mary in their moment of anguish and sorrow. Here was a chance to call the people of the village to a new level of faith. Here was an occasion for them to encounter the sacred, and for this encounter to be a life changing experience for them.

The people of Bethany had also heard the words of the prophet Ezekiel, but did they truly believe that God could call out from beyond the grave and restore life? ... and then there was Paul, the apostle who had to be knocked off his horse in order to understand that Jesus and his disciples were actually up to something good. In his case too, this was a life-altering moment, an encounter with the sacred that changed him forever.

The gathered crowd must have looked on with utter disbelief as Lazarus came forth from the tomb. Did he appear to them like a mummy in some well scripted film? Did they run toward him in amazement or did they run away from him in fear? Did they gather around Martha and Mary to rejoice with them or did they look to Jesus in wide-eyed wonder, somehow holding him in a sense of awe and disbelief? Did this encounter with the sacred call them to a new level of faith or did it scare them back into their homes to ponder what life is really about? Did anyone who witnessed that stone as it rolled away from the entrance to the tomb remain unphased by the events of that day?

What about us? What will it take for us to believe that Jesus has the power to raise the dead to life? What will it take for us to have a personal encounter with the sacred? Will we recognize it when it happens? Will our lives be changed or will we be like so many teenagers back in the 1980s, like so many adults and teenagers today who fail to heed an invitation to even perceive much less acknowledge an encounter with the sacred when it becons?