For over a week now, same sex-marriage has been legal in all fifty states. Aside from redefining marriage and robbing the American people of the democratic vote (both expansive subjects and worthy of their own blog posts), the Supreme Court’s decision has put people of faith—and for the purposes of this post—Catholics, in a very difficult position. As I read the Supreme Court’s decision on marriage, I felt something that I didn’t expect. I felt afraid. As a pit in my stomach formed, I began to realize what this means for those who support traditional marriage. The ruling of the court has made dissent concerning same sex marriage equivalent to racism. Disagreement is not only unpopular, it is considered unacceptable. Words I had heard the previous week, spoken by Princeton Professor, Robert George, echoed in my head: “Be prepared to pay the cost of discipleship.”
So what exactly is the cost? And what does this ruling mean for true disciples of Jesus Christ? In his book, The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes:
“The messengers of Jesus will be hated to the end of time. They will be blamed for all the division which rend cities and homes. Jesus and his disciples will be condemned on all sides for undermining family life, and for leading the nation astray; they will be called crazy fanatics and disturbers of the peace. The disciples will be sorely tempted to desert their Lord. But the end is also near, and they must hold on and persevere until it comes. Only he will be blessed who remains loyal to Jesus and his word until the end.”
I believe that this is a word for our time, for the Catholics of this generation. As Catholics, we know that the Church’s teaching on marriage is fundamental and cannot be compromised. And because of our support of traditional marriage, we are marked as bigots and haters, people who oppose love and equality. To those who support the redefinition of marriage, we are considered to be on the wrong side of history and are impeding the fundamental human rights of others. Speaking out as a supporter of traditional marriage does not result in civil discussions and disagreements, but the loss of jobs, being ostracized, or even being sued. There is no doubt that we are in the minority. We are at a time in history when Bonhoeffer’s words are being played out right before our eyes. There is no safe zone for Catholics. We cannot dance around between Jesus and the world anymore. These fundamental issues are forcing us to choose: Christ or the world?
Let’s not forget that this is what Christ promised us. He did not promise fame and glory in this world. To his disciples he promised hardships and persecution. He warned, “If they persecute me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20). Jesus told us, in words that I so often am quick to forget, what it means to be his disciple: “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matthew 16:24-25). These are the teachings of Christ, to follow him means to follow him wherever he goes, especially to the cross. Marriage is a teaching of the Gospel, and if we believe in the truth of Christ, we cannot compromise it. Denying the truth about marriage is to deny Christ. If we do not compromise, the world will hate us. It already does. The world will persecute us. Being Catholic is not, and will not be comfortable. For most of us, now begins the time when we must radically deny ourselves, as Jesus calls us to do. This reminds me again of George’s words at the National Prayer Breakfast last year:
“It is now Good Friday. The memory of Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem has faded. Yes, he had been greeted—and not long ago—by throngs of people waving palm branches and shouting ‘Hosanna to the Son of David.’ He rode into the Jerusalem of Europe and the Jerusalem of the Americas and was proclaimed Lord and King. But all that is now in the past. Friday has come. The love affair with Jesus and his Gospel and his Church is over. Elite sectors of the cultures of Europe and North America no longer welcome his message. ‘Away with him,’ they shout. ‘Give us Barabbas!’
So for us there is no avoiding the question: Am I ashamed of the Gospel? Am I unwilling to stand with Christ by proclaiming His truths? Oh, things were easy on Palm Sunday. Standing with Jesus and His truths was the in thing to do. Everybody was shouting ‘Hosanna.’ But now it’s Friday, and the days of acceptable Christianity are over. The days of comfortable Catholicism are past. Jesus is before Pilate. The crowds are shouting ‘crucify him.’ The Lord is being led to Calvary. Jesus is being nailed to the cross.
And where are we? Where are you and I? Are we afraid to be known as his disciples? Are we ashamed of the Gospel?” (Robert George, National Prayer Breakfast).
Where are we? Are we at the cross with Jesus? Because this is the cost of discipleship: everything that we have, even our very lives. And it is scary and it is hard. But as Catholics, we know the true end to the story. We know that the Good Friday we are in now, can only and will only end in the triumph and resurrection of Easter Sunday. So brothers and sisters, let us ask God for the grace and strength to stand with Christ and his Church in this moment, and in the times to come.
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