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Before I was ordained a priest, I taught 3rd grade in Newark through a program called Teach for America. Though they were certainly challenging years, I was honored to teach the future of our nation.
Even here at Saint Catherine’s, I have the privilege of teaching our pre-k through 8th grade students once a week.
With every class, I often wonder:
“What will they make of their lives? Will one of them cure cancer? Will any of them get caught in the opioid crisis? Will they marry the right person? Will they find a share of human happiness?”
Most importantly, “Will they keep the faith that’s been handed on to them?”
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That, in the end, makes all the difference. Faith – or a lack of it – shapes who we become.
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In the Gospel, we encounter three men on the very last day – the last page – of their lives. Two of them are nameless thieves – and one is Jesus himself.
We know nothing about the two thieves, only that Rome judged them worthy of death.
There was no welcome place left for them in this world, only a wooden cross and crowd of bystanders who mocked them as they breathed their last.
It’s humbling to imagine that these thieves were once innocent children, much like the children I teach today.
Why are they hanging there? Where are their parents? Do they have any children, anyone who loves them? Will they be missed? What brought them to that dark and dreary place?
As with all of us: decisions.
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Decisions.
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As the saying goes, “We make decisions all the time. Then these decisions make us the people we are.”
For example, many of us decide where we want to go to high school or college, whom we want to marry, what job we want, and whether or not we want to believe.
We also make small decisions – how we eat, how we care for our bodies, how we guard against addiction, the friends we choose, and so on.
In the case of the two thieves, a series of poor decisions led them down the path of self-destruction. Perhaps they cut corners, took the easy way out, justified stealing, or lied instead of being honest.
Small decisions that lead to bigger ones.
Like us, they charted their own destiny. Their decisions made them who they are – criminals crucified on a cross.
But before they breathe their last, they have one more decision to make on this final page of their lives: to believe in Jesus or not.
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It’s a decision we all must make.
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One of them does. Tradition says his name was Dismas.
Interestingly enough, this repentant thief is the only person in Luke’s Gospel to call Jesus by name. In perhaps his only act of faith, Dismas cries out:
“Jesus, remember me – a man who’s made mistakes, a man in need of mercy – remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Dismas believed that sign written over Jesus’ head – “Jesus of Nazareth, king of the Jews.” He believed Jesus had a kingdom – and he hoped to be part of it.
Jesus’ response becomes, perhaps, the most remarkable words spoken in all of the Gospels. “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
Even as he dies, Jesus doesn’t think about himself; he thinks about the needs of others. A final decision reminding us of Jesus’ inexhaustible mercy.
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Over the next several weeks, you and I will gather with family and friends for the holidays. There will be stressful moments, to be sure, but hopefully they’ll be days filled with joy.
During these days, you and I will make dozens of decisions.
Will I let go of that grudge I’ve been nursing since last Thanksgiving? Will I be greedy? Will I put the phone down? Will I speak kindly about everyone in my family?
And most importantly, will I – will we as a family – remember the Lord in the midst of the holiday chaos?
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Our decisions will define us.
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Like those thieves, we were all children once. And the thousands of decisions we’ve made over the years – both big and small – have defined who are.
But Dismas, the repentant thief in today’s Gospel, reminds us that the most important decision we’ll ever make is whether or not to believe in Jesus.
A decision that’s sometimes made day by day, minute by minute.
In Dismas’ case, he was in the kingdom of God before the ink dried on that final page of his life.
May the same be true for us.
“Jesus, remember me – remember us – when you come into your kingdom.”