Comfortable Christianity

As I was reading chapter five of Lumen Gentium, I was stuck by this passage, “Since Jesus, the Son of God, manifested His charity by laying down His life for us, so too no one has greater love that he who lays down his life for Christ and His brothers” (42).  Continuing on just a few sentences later I read, “The Church, then, considers martyrdom as an exceptional gift and as the fullest proof of love…Though few are presented such and opportunity, nevertheless all must be prepared to confess Christ before men” (42).   

My mind suddenly raced back to the recent news of the 21 Coptic Christians killed by Islamic militants in Libya http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2015/02/17/pope-francis-hails-murdered-coptic-christians-as-martyrs/.  I guess it was close to my mind because of our church's decision to keep their families in our prayers each Sunday as we finally woke up to the fact that there are Christians who live out their faith on a daily basis not from the comfort of a church pew, but from the excruciating awareness that their Christian faith may very well be the cause of their untimely deaths.

This got me to thinking, are we too comfortable in our Christian faith?  With evangelist preachers proclaiming prosperity theology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosperity_theology, have we gone too far away from the gospel message of Matthew 10:38-39, “Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.”  Have we forgotten martyrs like Perpetua and Felicity http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perpetua_and_Felicity?  Do we have the same sincerity of faith that Christians who live in persecuted places have?

I wondered to myself, do we take our church communities seriously enough?  Do we take those who we sit shoulder to shoulder with each Sunday for granted?  Do we choose to care more for those that we have relationships with or have more in common with than the people in our congregations who don’t look like us, smell like us, or act like us? 

Our Christian faith is eschatological.  As it is Paul writes in I Thessalonians 5:1-2, “Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.”  If we proclaim a faith that’s eschatological, do we treat our daily lives in such a way?  Do we live a life of humble service to the Lord daily?  Has the expanse of two thousand years sent us to our couches in a safe slumber?

I like many other Christians often take my faith for granted.  I often take the ability to profess my faith freely for granted.  I believe I am just as guilty as others of resting on the couch of safety and security that this country affords Christians like me and in theory, other people of other faiths as well.   

As I pray for those who are persecuted because of their faith, as I think of my Coptic and Palestinian Christian brothers and sisters, my Christian brothers and sisters in dangerous places around this world, I am reminded to take my faith seriously.  I ask myself, would I, if given the choice between life or confessing Christ as King, would I have the faith and courage to proclaim Christ is King right before having my throat cut.  I hope I would. 

 Listen to the interview by Andrew Summerson on Coptic Christians via Vatican Radio http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/18/coptic_martyrs_were_poor_but_near_to_god_/1124305