S1 Ep. 20: Ever Wonder If We're Doing This Right?

Father Mark invites us into a sacred space of curiosity, reflection, and wonder to consider a simple yet profound question: Are we truly living our Christian faith the way Jesus intended?

Through the lens of wonder, a gift too often left unopened, he explores how the early Church lived differently, radically, with courage and community. And he asks us to consider what it means for us today, surrounded by a secular world that often pulls us away from Christian values.

Transcript

Carol Vassar:

From SS. Isidore and Maria Parish in Glastonbury, Connecticut, I'm Carol Vassar, and this is Living in Faith, Hope, and Love. Each week, our Pastor, Father Mark Suslenko, delves into Scripture, shares insights from the saints, prophets, and theologians, and discusses practical ways to cultivate faith, strengthen hope, and embody love in the world around us. Through his reflections and spiritual encouragement, this podcast aims to inspire you to live your Catholic faith with joy and purpose. Welcome. 

In the Gospel from Luke for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, we hear of Jesus sending out 72 disciples—ordinary followers, not part of the original Twelve—to go ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place he intended to visit. Their mission? To proclaim peace, to heal, and to prepare hearts for the coming of the Kingdom of God. These 72 represent everyday believers like you and I entrusted with the same extraordinary calling. In this episode, Father Mark invites us to ponder—deeply and honestly—whether we are living out this Christian calling as Jesus intended. Are we courageously living and even proclaiming the Gospel? Are we building authentic communities rooted in love, truth, and justice? Or have we settled into a version of Christianity shaped more by the secular world than by Christ?

Let’s wonder together. Here’s Father Mark. 

“Ever Wonder If We're Doing This Right?” by Father Mark S. Suslenko, Pastor, SS. Isidore and Maria Parish, Glastonbury, Connecticut

Father Mark Suslenko:

One of our capacities as human beings that we don't engage often enough is our capacity to wonder...to wonder. Wonder is an intriguing thing. It leads to innovation, creativity, an experience of awe, and even love. If you look at the evolution of humanity, we have come to this point our lives because of the gift of wonder. I wonder what will happen if I rub two sticks together. I wonder what will happen if I mix this element with that. I wonder if I could take what I see in the sky as electricity and render it useful for our purpose. I wonder if I can illuminate my house without having to use a candle.

Because people wondered about their existence, they were able to design and become creative and innovate tremendous things.

The gift of wonder.

I find myself wondering today. I find myself wondering about something I wonder about often and have so for many years. I wonder if we're doing this Christian thing correctly. I wonder if we're doing this Christian thing correctly.

And the great thing about wondering is you can put a bunch of people in a room with the task of wondering about something, and it becomes just a shared conversation of ideas, of thoughts, of inspirations. When somebody wonders, they don't need to be right. They're just sharing a piece of what they see and what they believe.

Wondering is a great way to dialogue with others. And when we wonder about something together, those shared thoughts and feelings will inevitably give rise to the truth.

The ability to wonder.I wonder if we're doing this Christian thing correctly.

You know, when Jesus commissioned the 12 apostles, we can look at that particular commissioning and put it into context. They had a specific leadership role in the Church, a leadership role that then got translated to our bishops. Their charism passed on century after century.

But then, today, we see something a bit different. Today, Jesus is sending out 72 people - 72 people - to go out and preach and teach and prepare the way for him. That number intrigues me and causes me to wonder. Because it's so much greater than 12, it appears that this is now a blueprint, a way of doing things, indeed, a way of being Christian, of going out and proclaiming the Gospel to the world.

And listen carefully to how Jesus instructs those folks. He gives them very clear instruction, all of which appear a bit odd. Take only one tunic. Don't pack anything. Prepare for rejection. Go from one house but not to another.

Those instructions are clearly different than the instructions of the world. He didn't say to them, go out into the town, set up housekeeping somewhere, get a job, and then tell people about the kingdom of God once you're settled. There was this understanding right from the beginning that this message and this Christian lifestyle was a radical diversion from secular life, that this was something different, to go out into the world.

If we look at what has happened over the course of history through the centuries, there's been a great shift. Those early Christian communities were what we could call alternative communities, where those early Christians were supported by one another. The Eucharist wasn't just something they did every once in a while, but it was the source and summit of their nourishment, their inspiration to go out and do as Jesus taught.

And he pulled no punches about it. He said you're gonna get ridiculed. You're gonna have doors slammed on you. People will not like you. And you're not gonna be very happy as a result of all of that. But prepared for what they knew would to come, they went out with perseverance because they had support.

You and I are very much entrenched in our world. We live in our world, and we're sidelined by our world. More often than not, we're asked to adopt values that go directly against what we know to be true in our workplaces, in our schools, wherever we look. The mantra that we hear time and time again is: "That's the way it is, what can I do about it?" Or "That's the way it is. Accept it."

When I listen to our families, who are torn apart on weekends by commitments galore, running all over the place, spending everywhere but together around the table and around a meal, and wondering why family life is suffering so greatly. Well, that's the way it is.  What can you do about it? These things are scheduled on a Sunday.

We have to choose, and we can't choose our faith. It just doesn't fit. And so we've moved our understanding from what it means to be a Christian to every once in a while going to church. But then going out into the world and getting mucked up in all that stuff again. Getting bogged down by all the stress. Getting bogged down by all the conflicted values. And I wonder, do we ever really have an opportunity to preach and teach the Christian message? Do we have a voice when society says that life is dispensable? Do we have a voice when people are treated poorly, not as individuals, but as objects? Do we have an alternative when the world says we need money to survive, and more power is better than no power, and war is necessary to defend our turf?

All of those things go directly against what Jesus taught. But yet, we justify them, and I find myself wondering why.

I wonder if we could do this better, and I don't have the answer to how. I'm simply wondering and encouraging you when you leave here this week to go home and wonder as well. Is there a way to do this better? Does it boil down to the fact that we're afraid to use our voice? Let's face it, I know for a fact that none of us likes conflict. None of us wants to be rejected. None of us want a door slammed on us. None of us want to be put aside, and our fear of doing so prevents us from speaking the truth quite often.

But yet Jesus said that's part of the package deal. You're not gonna be liked. You're not gonna be welcomed, and you will have doors slammed on you.

And so I wonder, are we doing this Christian thing correctly? Can we do it better?

Imagine all of the Christians throughout the world, if they would set their divisions aside and come into space and gather together and wonder about the world's problems. I wonder if we would find creative, innovative solutions to the very things we now just roll over and die because we have no control over their occurrence. I wonder if the life of humanity could be a bit better if the Christian voice was really heard, spoken, and absorbed.

You know, I talk with a lot of young people these days, young people who are coming back to the faith. And one of the things they're looking for is an authentic community, a place that's different than out there. A place where they hear of values that are different from what they are bombarded with on the internet, a place where they can find a different way to do this thing called life, a place where they can connect with the truth of their God.

And so, I wonder if we're doing this Christian thing correctly or if we can do it better? And who is winning? Is the world winning? Or is the Gospel winning? I wonder.

Carol Vassar:

Father Mark Suslenko is the pastor of SS. Isidore and Maria Parish in Glastonbury, Connecticut. If you like what you've heard today, please subscribe to Living in Faith, Hope, and Love on your favorite podcast app and take a moment to leave a review.

SS. Isidore and Maria is an active parish community, so whether you’re a long-time parishioner or are just getting to know us through this podcast, we welcome you to join us at Masses or any of our other community events and services. Visit our parish website - isidoreandmaria.org - for a full schedule of Masses, services, and other happenings. That's isidoreandmaria.org. We're also active on Facebook and Instagram.

On behalf of Father Mark, I'm Carol Vassar, and we thank you for listening to this episode of Living in Faith, Hope, and Love.