Not Peace – but Fire and Division? - What happened to happy Jesus? The cute baby in a manager – bringing peace on earth and says to do good, talks about joy, mercy, and forgiveness? - Here we have no peace on earth – instead – division and a fire blazing.
A historian might say that it is good that Jesus said he would bring division and strife, not peace, to the nations – After all, there has been a lot of strife through time. It was only shortly after Jesus’ birth that the holy innocents were slaughtered. Jesus was divisive to the point of the crowds chanting crucify him – Early Christians were seen as a threat to the empire, with many being killed as martyrs – going through history, there is strife, war, and division - within and between nations. Not even families are immune – after all, in the Civil War here in the United States, families were split, north and south – fighting, shooting on opposite sides – divisions and strife splitting through families.
Yet there is the challenge, how does this fit with Christ’s mission of unity and peace? A first question might be, what is fire? Fire can indeed be destructive – fires can burn through cities, destroy homes, businesses, and churches alike – they can cause destruction beyond reckoning – there is a reason Hell is typically thought of as that eternal fire burning heat and destruction. There is a fire to Hell.
But fire is also an essential tool – fires provide heat, to keep warm in winter, and to cook – fire is used in crafting, by a blacksmith to bend and mold metal. First is used to purify, by heat –burning away impurities – perhaps fire is not always destructive or evil, but is also essential to the good.
John the Baptist said Jesus was going baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit - And Jesus here talks about a baptism –this is not one with water – that one already happened – this baptism is in fire and the Holy Spirit. – Pointing first to Christ’s death and resurrection – but also to the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. The Spirt, often represent by fire, who has come into the world for the forgiveness of sins, purifying us as metal is purified in a fire.
So why does Christ want to set the world on fire? Why does he wish it were already ablaze? – because he wants to purify the world of sin, to redeem the world and save it – to bring peace, peace in their souls to those that will hear it, listen, accept is – Yet the very fire that he brings – the purifying fire of the Holy Spirit – it also brings Division – Division splitting families two against three and three against two.
Jesus wants to save the world –Salvation, redemption – the works of Christ - the love of God – these are the most important things- more important than everything – for it is these that shape all, purify and redeem everything. It is only here that we have peace, this is the peace Christ brings, but it affects everything in life, shaped by the love of God and being purified. There are priorities, and God is first.
But not all share that priority; some give Christ no priority at all. This might be for many reasons. Perhaps they have never heard the gospel; Perhaps they misunderstand it. Or maybe they have actively chosen against Christ – declaring “I will not serve” – but they are divided by differing priorities. St Ambrose goes as far as to say, based on this gospel, that each person is either of the house of God or the devil. For they either worship God, or something that is not God.
Difference in priorities in any group will cause divisions - In some ways the cost of the divisions might be pretty minor; one’s child might not understand why it is so important to go to Mass on Sunday and complain. It can also be more severe, where a family disowns the member who gets baptized. It can even lead to wars and persecutions, as seen throughout history. Thankfully, today in the United States we mostly see minor cases, but the divisions are readily seen even here. There are many alternatives to God found to be the priority – It could be wealth, power, pleasure, personal autonomy, prestige, or respect. Just see our modern political debates and all of these and more are found - Division and conflict will come.
It is not that Christ wants to divide a family – he wants unity in the family – but the family is only truly united when they share priorities. And the only happens where purification of sin is found is in God and his Church – Purification through the Holy Spirit – without that purifying fire – there is sin and destruction.
There are challenges that we face - obstacles that exists. A purifying fire is still a fire. There are divisions that are painful – but Christ is the answer – therefore, letting the purifying fire of the Holy Spirit in our souls, let us listen to St Paul - “let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to usand persevere in running the race that lies before uswhile keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith.” There, purified of all imperfection and sin, we find at last that happy Jesus – bring forgiveness, salvation, and peace on earth to people of goodwill.