What Are You A Slave To?

Gospel Reading | John 8:31-42

Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son always remains. So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free. I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you. I tell you what I have seen in the Father’s presence; then do what you have heard from the Father.”

They answered and said to him, “Our father is Abraham.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works of Abraham. But now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God; Abraham did not do this. You are doing the works of your father!” So they said to him, “We were not born of fornication. We have one Father, God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and am here; I did not come on my own, but he sent me.”

This is an interesting interaction between Jesus and the Jews who believed in Him. Not once, but twice, Jesus calls them out for trying to kill Him, which is strange to hear about the Jews who "believed in Him". If they believed in Him, then why would they want to kill Him?

We might think that sounds illogical, but in a sense, we do the same thing today. We claim to be followers of Jesus, Catholic Christians, but then we turn around and kill our relationship with Jesus through sin. To make sense of what I mean, let's back up to the beginning of this reading.

Jesus tells the Jews that if they live lives according to His word, they will know the truth. The truth of what? Of right and wrong, of how to get to heaven, of how to imitate Jesus in our lives. This truth, then will "set you free", according to Jesus.

It's a logical chain reaction. Living according to Jesus's word, His messages of repentance and redemption, shows us the truth of what's really important in life, ultimately getting to heaven. That goal is more important than anything else here on earth; more important than our career goals, school, friends, hobbies, what brings us pleasure, even our families. If everything we do in life is focused on that end goal, we are set free from whatever on earth might be trying to control us.

Just a few examples...

One common thing that controls just about everyone is money. We work to make money, we pay money to keep a roof over our heads, we exchange money for other things we need, etc. In some cases, money becomes too important, to the point that it becomes the primary focus of a lot the things we do. Of course, we need it to survive to a certain extent, but it's very easy to think we "need" it more than we really do.

With money in control, we can fall into the trap of becoming workaholics and skipping out on Mass, prayer time, or other things that are significantly more important in the long run. If we let it spiral out of control and neglect our faith in favor of money, ultimately, we become a "slave" to money and aren't "free" to pursue heaven and a relationship with God.

Another example that might be relatable to a lot of us: school. As with money, this is also a necessity to an extent. We need to spend a lot of time in class, studying, and completing assignments in order to pass our classes and graduate. This is necessary in order to get a job and be able to provide for ourselves later on. With this situation, the issue doesn't necessarily come with spending time on school-related things, but instead with procrastination.

I imagine most of us can relate to the feeling of thinking we have all the time in the world for homework that's due on Monday, since we have the whole weekend to get it done, only to kill time playing video games or scrolling through social media until Sunday, the day before the assignment is due. Then, at that point, the "most important" thing becomes getting the assignment done, and there's no time for Mass; or, if there is, we spend half the Mass letting our mind wander and thinking about that assignment that needs to get done. At this point, we become a "slave" to procrastination and aren't "free" to do the things we know will help us reach our end goal of heaven.

One last example here is what I'll sum up as general "pleasure"; in other words, doing whatever just feels good to us in the moment. Whether that's sleeping in an extra hour on a Sunday morning and missing Mass, going out with friends when maybe we really need to go to Confession, doing something we know is a sin because "it just feels good" and "God still loves me anyway", or acting selfish around family because we would rather do what we want than spend time doing something for the benefit of the whole family.

In all of these instances, we become "slaves" to pleasure, to what feels good but might not really be good for us in the long run, and we aren't "free" to pursue a greater good that'll lead us closer to heaven.

Jesus elaborates on this more clearly when he tells the Jews, "Everyone who commits a sin is a slave of sin." He goes on to say that, as long as the Son (Jesus) frees us, we will be truly free. How can Jesus free us from this "slavery"? In two ways. One, by His death and Resurrection, which gives us the promise of eternal life in heaven. Two, through the sacrament of Confession, which reestablishes the relationship with Jesus that becomes broken through our sinful actions.

Through Jesus's sacrifice and the graces He wishes so desperately to give to us through the sacraments, we can become free from the slavery of sin... but that requires effort on our part to keep our ultimate goal (heaven) clear in everything we do.

Now, on to the Jews' reactions. They became defensive and weren't happy to hear Jesus saying they weren't truly free. This reaction is even more common today. Society tells us that money, fame, pleasure, etc. will give us freedom. This concept is drilled into our minds, and it directly contradicts what Jesus tells us true freedom is. Catholicism is counter-cultural, though; there's a significant difference between society's way of life and a Catholic's way of life. It takes work and effort on our part to make sure we don't become a "slave" to society, either.

In defending themselves, the Jews try to counter Jesus's claims by reminding him that they are Abraham's children, a common phrase to refer to the Jewish people in connection with their identity as God's people. In a nutshell, Jesus basically tells them that it's not enough to be "Abraham's children" in name only; they need to show it through their actions. The same is true for us. It's not enough to just call ourselves Catholic and go through the motions; we live up to our name as Catholics through our actions.

There's another Bible verse that sums up this idea perfectly, from the book of James in the New Testament:

For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so faith apart from works is dead. - James 2:26

Bottom line: It's not enough to just call ourselves Catholics. It's not enough to live as "slaves" to sin or a lifestyle society tells us will make us happy. If we truly want to call ourselves Catholic, we need to live it in everything we do.

Our actions need to be influenced by our end goal. What end goal do we want: eternal life with God in heaven, or temporary satisfaction in this life?

So, to conclude, here's the big question:

What are you a "slave" to right now, and in what way can you free yourself to live an active Catholic lifestyle?

Share your thoughts in the comments!

(For an example of solid dedication to God, read the First Reading below about three guys who were literally thrown into a furnace for their faith!)

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First Reading | Daniel 3:14-20, 91-92, 95

King Nebuchadnezzar said: “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you will not serve my god, or worship the golden statue that I set up? Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made, whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe, and all the other musical instruments; otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace; and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, “There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up.”

King Nebuchadnezzar’s face became livid with utter rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual and had some of the strongest men in his army bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and cast them into the white-hot furnace.

Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” “Assuredly, O king,” they answered. “But,” he replied, “I see four men unfettered and unhurt, walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God.” Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him; they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies rather than serve or worship any god

except their own God.”