Thy will be done

President Clinton used to say something like, “America is the sort of place that if you work hard and play by the rules, you will get ahead.” This may or may not be true, but it is not a Christian approach.

Or perhaps it is the approach of Christians. If we follow the rules of Christian living as taught, and work hard at it, we will go to heaven, or achieve some other spiritual good. We don’t believe in “thy will be done,” not really. It is a kind of disgusting passivity, or an acceptance of social injustice, or something of the sort.

Christ let us kill him. Isaiah warns that the savior will not even pinch a smoldering wick. He will “do” nothing. The epitome of human perfection before the divine is Mary’s “yes, whatever you say.”

But this is so hard! Think of St. Peter, flat on his face in the dirt before the immensity of the Transfiguration. He bears it as long as he can, and then he turns from contemplation of the divine to the contemplation of himself—Good thing I’m here! You guys need tents. He has moved the locus of control from Jesus to himself.

Credit: German, 15th century

It is good to know where the locus of control is. It is like knowing in which court the tennis ball is at the moment. Working with other people, you want to know at the end of a discussion whether it is your job to push the project forward, or the other person’s. If you want the ball in your court, you say—I’ll give you a call in a few days to see how it’s going. If you don’t, you say—give me a call in a few days, and let me know. Then the other person has the initiative.

In theory, in theology, we know the initiative is God’s, but it is very hard to let go of the idea that there is something essential for us to do. Clinton’s statement assumes that there is a goal, clearly defined, and an action plan to reach it, also clearly defined. This pathway involves the sacrifice of immediate pleasure for the goal of long-term gain.

This is not a description of a life in Christ! We know this, but how we hate to give up the ball. We would rather suffer and sacrifice while we are in charge than glory in the goodness of the Lord. The Almighty has done great things for us.

All of this applies to groups as well as individuals. With all of the masculine language used in the centuries of written history, it is an advantage for women to not be quite included in the (not enslaved) men who are all created politically equal, for example. We women know from childhood that there is something wrong with this narrative, because we are not in it. The same focus on self that can blind men shows us that there must be more to the story. It doesn’t open our eyes any more than that.

Many people think this clutching onto the tennis ball is in fact a sign of humility, that they are sacrificing to build the Reign of God. A definable goal, with a definable action plan. They are sacrificing, sometimes their health, their comfort, everything, in the service of God. But they will never give up their view of the goal, the plan, or the ball.

If there is a goal, we don’t know it. The action plan is to love, that is all we know.

How do I live if my willed actions are not the main event of my life? An often derided Catholic idea is to unite one’s sufferings with Christ. To accept something you don’t like. To let your resistance and resentment dissolve. To only seek a way to continue to love in whatever circumstance. Only rejoice, with Hannah and Mary, in God your savior. You might want to try it.