Listen to the homily.
I don't know if you have ever been in a really scary situation and how you dealt with it. Me, I'm afraid of heights. I remember one summer my family went to the water park. At the top of the waterslide I looked down and became paralyzed. After several agonizing minutes, and annoying the people behind me in line, I finally climbed down. I couldn't do it. I don't know if you are scared of heights; if you've ever had to climb down a waterslide? Even if you haven't, we all have to deal with scary situations from time to time. We all have to cope with our fears.
It seems to me many people would rather live with the burdens and dangers they know, than risk stepping out into an unknown situation where things could get worse- or better. I see it all the time: the couple who suffers a lackluster marriage rather than working on their marriage and risk "rocking the boat"; or the person who works for many years in a job that affects their physical, psychological or emotional health rather than takes the risk of putting together a resume, looking for a new job, moving or starting their own business; I see it in the teenagers who will suffer abuse and mistreatment from so-called friends, or give up on chastity, because they are afraid to risk being alone or disliked.
We all have to deal with scary situations from time to time. We all have to learn to cope with our fears. The question is: how are we as Christians to deal with them? In the Gospel today, during a terrible storm at sea, the Lord came to his disciples walking on the water. He told them, "Take courage and be not afraid!" So, how are we to deal with our fears? Jesus says courage.
Now courage is not the opposite of cowardice. The opposite of cowardice is recklessness. In the Gospel we have an example of both. The disciples in the boat were fearful to the point of inaction. They were paralyzed. If they could have turned around and climbed down the proverbial waterslide, they would have. Then there is Peter. Peter's action was the extreme opposite. He recklessly jumped out of the boat. But that doesn't make him courageous. I made him reckless. He had no fear. As soon as he became aware of his situation, he panicked and began to drown. Neither the disciples cowering in the boat, nor Peter recklessly jumping out of the boat are good examples for us of how to deal with our fears.
If courage isn't recklessness, then what is it? What does it look like? Aristotle defines courage as a virtue. It is an act of understanding our fears and the ability to overcome those fears. As Catholics we speak of "fortitude" -one of the 4 cardinal virtues. The catechism says "Fortitude assures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good." Basically, courage is the power by which we overcome our fears. So isn't a feeling or an emotion. Courage isn't fearlessness. In fact, fear is sort of a prerequisite, because it is the overcoming of fear for the sake of the good that makes an action courageous.
In the Gospel, after initially being reckless, Peter found himself drowning. Aware of his danger, he was finally afraid, and in that fear, he demonstrated real courage. He turned to the Lord and exclaimed, "Lord, save me!" That's courage. It is courage rooted in knowledge and humility. That's what courage looks like. That's what it means to "Take courage and be not afraid!"
My brothers and sisters, being a Christian doesn't mean “no fear.” We all have our waterslides moments. We have them so we might tap into the source of courage and become stronger. When the storms of life come, the challenge is to "Take courage and be not afraid." We need not cower, nor be paralyzed. Neither should we be reckless and jump right in. When the moment comes, we should reach out to Jesus, just as Peter did, and say "Lord, save me!"
In the arms of Christ, Peter overcame his fear. In the Eucharist, Jesus is as present to us today as He was to Peter on the sea. And just as Jesus stretched out his arms to Peter- just as He stretched out his arms on the Cross- in the Eucharist, Jesus continues to stretch out his arms to us today. The Eucharist is the key to fortitude. It is the source of Christian courage. When we receive Holy Communion, when we kneel before the Tabernacle or fix our gaze on the Blessed Sacrament in adoration, we have the opportunity, like Peter, to be courageous. We have all we need to face our fears. "Take courage, be not afraid!"
