 |
||||||
Jesus
said: “Anyone who hears my words and puts them into
practice is like the wise man who built his house on rock. When
the rainy season set in, the torrents
came and the winds blew and buffeted his house. It did not
collapse; it had been solidly set on rock. Anyone who hears my
words but does not put
them into practice is the foolish man who built his house on sandy
ground. The rains fell, the torrents came, the winds
blew and lashed against his house. It
collapsed under all this and was completely ruined.”
|
||||||
In the movie "Mission:
Impossible--Rogue Nation," the ideals of the IMF team are of the
highest caliber. They desire only peace and the eradication of "evil"
in the world. In order to achieve it, they must have the freedom to do
what is necessary "without oversight," that is, without any outside
regulation. It is a dangerous position, and one that can never be taken
lightly. One can understand it especially as the agents of the IMF
organization
try to undo the "Syndicate"
which is set up with the same parameters except their desires are not
at all so lofty. The "Syndicate" wants the power and freedom to pursue
their own selfish ways, to carry out whatever they want, with "zero
responsibility."
|
||||||
|
Jesus knew that we needed some type of guide
for our lives because he knew human nature. He was well aware that if
we would not have any law, it would lead to whatever our sinful nature
would desire. In his summary of what we have come to call the Sermon on
the Mount, he told a story about building a house on rock. His
implication was that his "law" would be one that covered every
circumstance of life, the "rock" on which we were to build. The rock
for him was "love." As he said at one time, love was his commandment (John 15:12).
As his missionary Paul said it: "You were called for
freedom. But do not use this freedom
as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, serve one another through
love. For the whole law is fulfilled in
one statement, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself"
(Galatians 5:13-14).
In general, such was the guide for the IMF team of agents. They probably would not have used the specific Christian terms, but they would have spoken of the good of others, and love for the world in which they lived and worked. They realized that they indeed needed to have something to guide them since responsibility to no one easily leads to selfishness and greed as can be seen by the "Syndicate" in the movie. As Christians, our conscience, our morality, must be governed by love. Too often history has shown what happens when such a love is not the moral guide. Selfish men and women have chosen to use others for their own wants and have allowed such thoughts to govern their consciences. The result has been war, hatred and global unrest. On an international scale, on a national scale, and on a personal scale, we must be governed by the rock of love. It is the only way to build a life. |
||||||
|
PRAYER
Good
and gracious
God, You have urged us to build our lives on the foundation of love. We
have heard you, but we also must be reminded over and over so that our
human natures will finally listen to You.
Be with us, we
pray.
|
||||||
+++++
GUIDE
FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT
Theme: The ones forming an organization that has no authority "above" them must have the very highest ideals. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: (session: approximately 61 minutes) 1. What scene during this session is most striking and why? 2. Outline Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew, chapters 5-7). 3. Give an example in modern day of an organization built on rock; of an organization built on sandy ground. 4. The central part of Jesus' story is the "hearing of the word and putting it into practice." In general, in your opinion, do most Christians put the word of God in practice? Yes or no and why? 5. If "love" is the foundation on which Christians build, what are the principal parts of that love? 6. Do you feel that there are some nations who are not guided by the good of their citizens? Yes or no and why? 7. Do you feel that the wars that we have been involved in were necessary for the good of humanity? Yes or no and why? 8. In general, what percentage of people are governed by the rock of love? 9. Scene analysis: Should anyone ever be given the power to operate with "zero responsibility"? Yes or no and why? 10. Do you think that even the IMF agents always worked out of "love for others"? Yes or no and why? 11. The IMF Agents discover that the "bottom line" of the whole reason for the evil operation is money. Do you agree that money is the root of all evil? Yes or no and why? 12. What does the movie "Mission: Impossible--Rogue Nation" teach young people? |
||||||
©2007
Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America |
||||||