October 15, 2023
How many times have you fallen today? It seems like a simple, albeit silly question, and you may not be surprised to learn that it is a trick question of sorts. I do dearly hope you have not fallen today, not severely, at least. Nevertheless, I know that most of us have fallen dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of times today alone. Walking, you see, has been termed controlled falling. Infants and children learning to walk know this all too well! Before a child’s first step, there are many falls, and for those in advanced age, a wrong step might be the last they take, at least without the assistance of a cane or walker. To walk at all, to move at all, is to fall. The best we can do is plan on having another foot out there to catch us. In a conversation with a physical therapist, it came up that we often grab hold of something when we are bending over to pick something up or make other such moves. This action, while understandable – because we do not want to fall, has the negative consequence of evading the opportunity to strengthen the stabilizer muscles that keep us from falling. In this way, our fear of falling can lead to worse falls.
The following image always comes to mind as I see the trees turning from green, to yellow and red, to brown and finally falling. Some leaves, it seems, don’t want to fall. To anthropomorphize them a bit, they are scared to fall. What will happen if it does? ‘Sure, all the other leaves are falling, but that doesn’t mean that I need to follow them!’ the leaf may protest. After all, living a Christian life often means not following the crowd. At some point, however, a leaf that refuses to fall is not merely resisting the popular opinion but has instead become obstinate. Where is that line in your life? We’ll work together to discern it. The fact is that the leaf will fall and, all things being equal, there will soon be a new leaf to take its place. It is a part of the beautiful order of God’s seasonal plan.
My point with this leaf image is that if we do not fall, if we absolutely refuse to fall, we will neither move nor will we allow the power of the Resurrection to work in our lives. To make this point, we remember that Christ ‘came down from heaven,’ as we say in the Nicene Creed, took on flesh in the Incarnation, and then later, after His death, ‘descend into hell’ as we say in the Apostles Creed. We also reflect on how Jesus fell three times on His Via Crucis, on His way to be crucified. Christ, God-made-man, not only put Himself in a position of being able to fall, by walking with us in this world, He also did fall – and He fell hard. One reason for His falling was to help us see that we are worth the fall, that sacrificial love is worth the fall. The next time you see leaves falling, I hope you allow the question to sit on your heart – are you ready to fall as Christ fell?
Two Parishes, One Heart,
Fr. Adam