Hardly surprising, but this week we learned that social media is especially harmful for adolescents and young adults.  When you think about it, it is the perfect storm. Online social media allows anonymity and 24/7 access to anyone who permits it. Given the chronic issues of negative body image, unrealistic ideas of celebrity beauty, and low self-esteem, we should not be surprised at the heightened instances of bullying, emotional abuse, and tragically, increased risk of social isolation and suicide. 

In this weekend’s Gospel, a young man seeking holiness goes away saddened because Jesus asks him “to sell all his possessions.”  The pandemic, now in its second full year, has made  many of us feel entitled to emotional outbursts, an exaggerated sense of outrage, and downright rude and obnoxious behavior.  Who would have predicted so many violent acts on airplanes by passengers not willing to comply with masking directives?  I hear a steady number of confessions each week.  Almost everyone struggles with impatience, hostile responses to other drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians. 

I wonder if the possession we need to “sell” is this idea that we can be in complete control of our surrounding environment.  Control is the driving force behind aberrant online behavior, just as it is when we are in traffic or a crowded place.  Too often, holiness is associated with distance and a contemplative life (although both are good things), yet we do not recognize our need for holiness in unruly situations as well.  A good reread of Jesus’ teaching of his disciples will remind us that God does not guarantee a docile crowd, nor does He guarantee us the control we would like to have. 

The advice Jesus gives applies just as much to us.  Surrender to God, and He will do everything for you.  Surely, that means a surrender of being in control.  What an illusion!  We have never been nor ever will be “in control”.  Thank goodness, God is always in control.

Fr. Gary