Discipline

Catholics are often accused of burdening their congregations with a heavy yoke full of rules and procedures.  I, have many days where I feel overwhelmed with the immense amount of  practices included in joining the Church, compared to that of my non denominational Church.  Many times, these practices are labeled by non Catholics as heavy burdens, not being of the Lord, but of men.  For, as Jesus said,

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matt. 11:28).

Today was a watershed moment for me when I saw that I have been reading this passage incorrectly when combining it with passages about discipline, as in Hebrews 12:5, 1 Corinthians 11:32, and Deut. 8.  I had always read the Discipline of the Lord as a negative connotation.  As in a time out, a reprimand, or a removal of a privilege.  But that is only one aspect of a much deeper word.  The word discipline, in Greek,  "Paideia" includes much more of a definition than simple punishment.  It includes training and teaching of a child, cultivation of mind and morals, the curbing of passions.  In other words, learning how to obey. 

Deuteronomy 8 gives a beautiful explanation of the use of this understanding of discipline:
"Remember, how for these forty years the Lord, your God, has directed all your journeying in the wilderness, so as to test you by affliction, to know what was in your heart; to keep his commandments, or not.  He therefore let you be afflicted with hunger, and then fed you with manna, a food unknown to you and  your ancestors, so you might know that it is not by bread alone that people live, but by all that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord.  The clothing did not fall from you in tatters, nor did your feet swell these forty years.  So you must know in your heart that, even as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord, your God, disciplines you.  Therefore, keep the commandments of the Lord, your God, by walking in his ways and fearing him."  (2-6)

Here, Moses is first reminding the people of the goodness of the Lord.  He has kept them safe, protected, and fed in the desert.  He has tested their hearts, so that He would know if they loved him.  He took away their comfort of food, and then fed them from his own heavenly source.  He made them first depend upon him alone for everything, and then supplied what they needed to live.  He taught them how to be his chosen ones, he "disciplined" them through training, through teaching the importance of obedience.  Discipline not being used in a negative way here as when a child is scolded, but rather as when a runner disciplines his body through practice so that he may win the race. An Olympic runner would never expect to reach Gold through slothfulness and missed practices.  Rather an Olympian trains daily, hourly, always striving for a better outcome because that is what will allow him to see the heights of glory.  So too, is it with Godly discipline. 

Hebrews 12:5 warns of this lack of discipline:

"You have also forgotten the exhortation addressed to you as sons:
'My son, do not disdain the discipline of the Lord or lose heart when reproved by him; for whom the Lord loves, his disciplines; he scourges every son he acknowledges.' Endure your trials as "discipline"; God treats you as sons.  For what "son" is there whom his father does not discipline?  If you are without discipline, in which you have all shared, you are not sons but bastards.  Besides this, we have had our earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them.  Should we not then submit all the more the Father of spirits and live? They disciplined us for a short time as seemed right to them, but he does so for our benefit, in order that we may share his holiness.  At the time, all discipline seems a cause not for joy but for pain, yet later it brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it. So strengthen your drooping hands and weak knees.  Make straight paths for your feet, that what is lame may not be dislocated, but healed." 

In other words, do not consider the discipline (training) of the Lord as burdensome.  Do not regard it as annoyance in your busy life, but rather the very key which makes your life entirely whole.  For the Catholic: do not consider Mass attendance as a chore, but as a great honor, and the only place where we come to accept and partake of our Savior in his Fullness. Do not consider confession as a heavy yoke, but the very act that replaces the chains of sin with the freedom of Christ.  For the purpose of all of the training is to make us holy.  To make us partakers in his Divine Nature. 2 Peter 1:4.

For if there is no discipline, it will result in a lack of respect, for God himself.  I would raise that there are many Christians who claim that God requires so very little, that their respect of the Lord is incredibly lacking to a point of being almost equals; reverence for the Holy One is replaced by dissatisfaction when our requests are not answered as we see fit.  Salvation is trumpeted as a simple act, labeling any doctrine that demands results, or works, as legalistic.  Yet, Paul tells us to work out our salvation, to struggle, to labor, for it is the Pearl of greatest price. 
"Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed--not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence--continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose." Phil 2:12,13

And then In I Corinthians 11:
Paul is reprimanding the church at Corinth for partaking in the Eucharist with impure hearts and selfish attitudes.  The rich are drinking too much wine, while the poor go hungry.  Resulting in sickness, judgment, and in some cases, death.

"Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily  will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord. ... If we discerned ourselves, we would not be under judgment; but since we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world." (vs. 27,32). 

Paul is adamant: discipline (or obedience) is the tool that the Lord gives and sets before us so that we may be able to find our way out of the  mire of the world, and into the fullness of life that is Him.  "If you love me you will keep my commands." (John 14:15).

So the question then needing answered is this:  Do the teachings of the Catholic Church foster a discipline that burdens the laity with yokes of works, rules, and doctrine that appear good but lead to empty souls? Or does the Catholic Church's teachings lead to Godly discipline, where if followed, righteousness is fostered and spiritual muscles are created in place of a weakening human nature?    

I believe this must be answered in light of the starting verse:

Come to me all who are weary and I will give you rest. 

Lined up on a sheet of paper, some practices seem arbitrary and legal in direct conflict with a life of rest and peace.  Yet, as I consider my life now, in view of my Catholic belief, I see them in an entirely different light.  I see how even partaking of a few of them have changed my life. Jesus offers himself in the Eucharist, therefore at the Mass, I will receive all of my Savior.  Reconciliation restores ones soul.  Therefore freedom is found in forgiveness.  The teachings of morality actually help to make me more human, more myself than I would ever have been in the world, on my own, therefore bringing Peace to the restless.  Fasting on days of obligation train me to control the desires of my flesh so that during times of deep trouble, I may be thoroughly equipped to resist temptation and stand firm for Him. In Christ, in the Church, he allows me to receive every Grace that is offered to me, through his death, and apply it to my life.  Through his body, the Church, I learn how to love my neighbor and I learn to Love him with all of my heart.

This the burden of freedom.  It is a Yoke full of peace, joy, and love for the Savior.  It is a holy yoke that is fought for, sought after, and achieved with endurance and discipline.  For we strain towards what is ahead, and press on toward the goal to win the prize, for which God has called us heavenward in Jesus Christ.  Come to Him, all who are weary, and you will find rest for your souls.