3rd Sunday of Easter (B) – April 14, 2024

St. Paul – Lyons, KS

Acts 3:13-15, 17-19; Psalm 4:2, 4, 7-9; 1 John 2:1-5a; Luke 24:35-48

Chick-fil-A: A Metanoia Moment

Today, we continue our series entitled The Day the Revolution Began. Like I talked about last week, what we’re doing here isn’t just trying to be free from sin so that we go to heaven when we die, we’re not just trying to become nicer people—we’re not Catholic because of those things! Fundamentally, we’re here, our faith exists, because that man rose from the dead, Jesus Christ is risen! And if he is risen, everything is changed! Our life, life itself is opened up to a new horizon. Death is no longer the end, there is a new possibility for our life! That “Option 1” I’ve been talking about—it’s no longer the only option! Death no longer has to be the end; “Eat and drink for tomorrow we die” is no longer the only option; the World, Option 1, that way of life is no longer our story! In other words, Jesus has begun a revolution;we can defect from the story the World tells us every day, and we can begin to follow a different path. But like I mentioned last week, that new path has to be just that: a new path. Our temptation is to say all the right things, to “pass the test” with all the right answers, but never concretely change, concretely get on the path. In other words, we continue to operate with the same mentality as if Option 1 is the only option; we never truly join the revolution; it just stays in our head. Like I said, our faith, the change of mentality that our faith brings—it demands concrete action, a concrete response. And we know this! If something is truly going to change, you can’t just think it, you have to live it, do something different. Let me give you an example.

As I have shared many times (so it’s no secret) my favorite place to eat is Chick-fil-A. And what that means is…I’m basic, just like everybody else! According to multiple industry surveys (here and here), Chick-fil-A is now America’s favorite fast food restaurant. And it’s not even close! The question is: how did this private, Atlanta based food chain become one of the most popular restaurants in America? And there’s a few things. One is that their entire business is built on a recipe: the chicken sandwich; instead of expanding their menu like McDonalds and Arby’s to include everything possible, it stays simple, focusing on their core recipe—it’s the same today as in 1967, there’s a simplicity to it. But the bigger thing was their business model: unlike most franchise models where the franchisee will own five, ten, fifty locations, Chick-fil-A owns the restaurants but the franchisee operates the store, is involved in the day-to-day operations. So it’s not just a way for someone to invest and make money, it’s a job dedicated to the team and the mission. And this is the key! Chick-fil-A broke the mold, they broke free from the traditional fast food mentality of just try to open as many stores as possible, as fast as possible, and get as much money as possible. And because of that change in mentality and the concrete actions they took—well, the results speak for themselves: they are America’s favorite restaurant, they “won.”

The Response to the Resurrection: Metanoia

Ok, so what did Chick-fil-A do? They had a change in mind, went beyond the current mindset, and made concrete changes. And why do we care? Because this is precisely what we have to do when it comes to our faith in the Resurrection.

When the disciples began to preach the message of the Resurrection, the message was not, “Hey, this guy rose from the dead, and he wants us to be nice to each other.” No. Go read our first reading again, very famous sermon from St. Peter. Peter goes through the whole history and it culminates in, “The author of life you put to death, but God raised him from the dead.” Sweet! So what does Peter then say we should do? What’s our response? “Repent, therefore, and be converted.” Repent. Ok, biblical scholars, what’s that word?! Metanoia, exactly. Metanoia, meta-nous, go beyond your current mindset, have a change of mind—a change of mind that leads to a new, concrete way of operating. That’s what Chick-fil-A did! Same for us: the invitation is to defect from the current mindset, the mindset of the world, Option 1, and begin to think, and live, and operate in an entirely different way. Why? Because Option 1 is a dead end, but this new horizon, this new direction—our faith generated by the Resurrection, this revolution begun on Easter morning—this will be victorious over the World.

So does that make sense? The Resurrection is a fact, an event which changed the world; it opened up a new possibility for us; it’s not just a cool miracle, it is the beginning of a new option for us! But now we have the choice: will I remain the same, keep the same mentality as before, continue to live Option 1? Or will I metanoia, go beyond that mindset, accept this new possibility, and live this New Option, this faith generated by the Resurrection? Because that is the path to victory. Does that make sense? Are you with me? Ok.

But What Needs Changed?

So the question we have to ask, then, is: so what concrete changes do we need to make? The concrete changes we make are always a result of this new mindset, this meta-nous. So first we have to ask, “Well, what is the current mindset we have that’s so problematic?” Because if we don’t know that, it’s going to be easy to just keep operating the same, right? Again, think of Chick-fil-A: they could have used the exact same franchise model as everyone else; that is the popular mindset, everyone does it! But no! They had a metanoia, they changed their mindset—and it payed off!

So what about us? And again, like I mentioned last week, there are 101 different things, 101 different elements to the mindset we need to change in our lives. So I just want to focus on one essential one, one simple and essential one that will begin to affect 100 others. And uncoincidentally, it’s also the one Chick-fil-A is most famous for. Which is? They’re closed on Sundays, exactly! I was driving on I-70 this week, and every time there was a sign for Chick-fil-A, even on the highway, it said, “Chick-fil-A: Closed on Sundays.” On the sign on the highway!

Sunday. I think this is where we have to begin. Why? Because from the beginning, this day was at the center of the Christian movement. And think: this is also the day that has been most forgotten, the day we no longer take seriously. What is the worldview now? How do we think? How do calculate our days and our time? We talk about the “weekend,” right? In the common worldview, we work for five days, and then get a weekend, right? Right. And I know there are exceptions, shift work, yeah. But in the common parlance, we talk about “the weekend.” And what’s what “weekend”? The weekend is “our time,” time for whatever we want to do: shopping, sports, things around the house. The weekend is ours!

Ok. But that is not a Christian worldview. What is the Christian, biblical worldview? What is the mindset of someone who has faith in the Resurrection? The Christian worldview is that there was six days for work or whatever else we have, but then one day is set apart: the Lord’s Day. As Christians, as Catholics, from the earliest days—literally, from the first day, the day of the Resurrection, the day the revolution began—this day was called, “The Lord’s Day,” not Sunday. In English, we took the Roman name for the day (“the day of the sun”) and Christianized it: Christ is the true “sun,” the sun that never sets, the light of the world. But other cultures and languages call it something else. For example, in Spanish, the Hispanic culture was so shaped by the Christian worldview, that Sunday is “Domingo,” literally “the Lord’s Day.” In Russian, Russian is my favorite—in Russia, Sunday is “Voskresenie,” which literally just means “Resurrection.” 

This is the point: today, Sunday, is not part of the weekend; Sunday is the Lord’s Day. Sunday is the day that we take back. St. Jerome wrote, back in the first centuries of the Church, “Sunday is the day of the Resurrection, it is the day of Christians, it is our day.”

And this is the biggest metanoia, the biggest change in mind that we need to make. I remember when I was young, my dad read the encyclical by Pope Saint John Paul II about the Lord’s Day, and he had a huge metanoia. Changed everything. He shifted everything in the family so that Sunday, the Lord’s Day became a day set apart. He worked five days a week, but then instead of the “weekend,” Saturday became the family work day: work around the house, things for the family, whatever it was. But then Sunday—Sunday was different. Sunday was set apart. One concrete example was going out to eat: we didn’t. I remember that on Sundays, every once in a while, we would go to the restaurant called Spears for lunch after Mass—it was awesome! But when my dad had this conversion, this metanoia, we stopped going. And when we asked him, “Dad, why don’t we go to Spears anymore?” He responded, “Well, when we go to restaurants, we’re making other people work on Sunday. So we can just find other days to eat out.” Now think: did our lack of business cause Spears to close down? No. But what did my dad do? He bore witness to his faith in the resurrection in a very real and concrete way.

I think this is the big change we need to make: to reclaim Sunday as the Lord’s Day. Just coming to church isn’t enough. This is a day we need to completely reclaim. Why? Because if we don’t, we remain trapped in that old mindset of Option 1. We continue to operate in the busyness, a busyness that destroys our relationship with God. Sunday becomes a “catch-all” day, a day for grocery shopping, and catching up on everything else we need to do, and getting ready for Monday, and doing laundry, and watching twelve hours of football, and washing the car, and getting the lawn mowed, and on and on an on. And all of a sudden, we’re back at Option 1.

Ask yourself: do I look forward to Sunday? Is it the center of my life, the best day of the week, the day set apart? Or is it just another day, part of the “weekend”—oh, and I should go to church?

Keep His Commandments

Like I keep saying, it is very easy for us to say we believe all these things, to say that we’re on board with the Resurrection and the faith that flows from it. But are we? It is easy to say we love God, that we know him, that we have a relationship with him—but do we? In our second reading, John wrote this: “The way we may be sure that we know him is to keep his commandments. Those who say, ‘I know him,’ but do not keep his commandments are liars” (1 John 2:3-4). Here’s where you can get an A+ on your Catholic trivia again: What is the third commandment? Keep holy the Lord’s Day. And what does “holy” mean? “Holy” is the Hebrew word kadosh, which means something is completely set apart, entirely different the normal or habitual. Like we pray at Mass, God is Holy, “Holy, Holy, Holy.” So to keep “holy” the Lord’s Day means much more than just going to Mass—although that’s a great start. Keeping “holy” the Lord’s Day is about setting it apart, entirely different than other days.

This is why Chick-fil-A is closed on Sundays. If you go to their headquarters in Atlanta, there is this rock with a quote from their founded that says what Chick-fil-A’s corporate purpose is. It says, “To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A.” Chick-fil-A’s metanoia is much more than just being about business: they are about glorifying God, being faithful stewards of everything God had given, being a positive influence and witness to the world.

“The way we may be sure that we know him is to keep his commandments.” So this is the beginning of the examination we have to make: am I keeping this day holy? or is this day just part of the “weekend”? Is a fast-food restaurant going to live the faith better than I do?

Next week, I want to dive into some practical stuff about reclaiming Sunday. But for today, this is what we can begin pondering: How well am I living Sunday? Is this day holy, set apart? Does Chick-fil-A going to live the faith bette than me?

What if we, here at St. Paul, in little Lyons America, became the center of a new movement to reclaim Sunday as the Lord’s Day? What if we became the people that led the charge in the revolution, and reclaimed this day?