Faithful To The End

 I have been at my current job for almost ten years now. I think it suits me well, I've found my groove, and I'm relatively competent in it. Dare I say, I like what I do. 

But over the course of the past ten years, our department has undergone tremendous upheaval and endured a lack of stability for years on end. I have had six different bosses during that time, and have been pushed to the brink during COVID with the implementation of a new system and having to cover multiple jobs while people were out on leave. There were times when I perused LinkedIn to see what else was out there, as I was generally feeling unappreciated and unhappy. 

My dad was a public school teacher for thirty years. It was his only professional job, and in those last few years, it was a real grind for him. He personally benefited from staying in that position, and I have incentives to stay in mine that other people may not have. For some people, it may make sense to hop around in order to move up the career ladder, or try new things. 

I've heard that "people don't quit jobs, they quit bosses." There's a lot of truth to that. In my situation, I liked my job but experienced a degree of professional PTSD in which what seemed normal to myself my colleagues was actually pretty dysfunctional and unhealthy. For a number of years and during these periods, I just put my head down and grinded it out.

I think the 'grass is greener' mentality is a real thing--that this or that job will be better than my current one--but it isn’t always telling the whole truth. The same way depression says "it will never get better," or you become convinced in your marriage that the only way to happiness is by leaving it.

In my situation, I was glad I stayed and rode out those periods. I got a new director and new dean this year who are great, my colleagues returned from leave and I went back to just doing one job, and we seem to be stabilizing the ship. Even though things were awful, they got better. That's not to say they can't get worse. But even if they do, my intention is to still, hopefully, put my head down and grind it out. 

For many Catholics, remaining in the Church can be trying. The Church, for all intents and purposes, appears to be completely dysfunctional, mismanaged, and corrupt beyond belief. The captain comes across as abusive and vindictive, and demoralizes those most devoted to the mission of the organization. Things appear to have no rhyme or reason; it's as if She has forgotten what she stands for. 

Does anyone else feel this way? I certainly do.

But I also love being Catholic. I am grateful for my ransoming and redemption by Christ the Savior, grateful for the corporal body of the local church, indebted to her timeless teaching, and my life is infinitely better because of my faith and religion. That doesn't mean its all roses and level paths. But were I to "quit" the Church because of the "bad boss" or the drama or dysfunction, I would be infinitely worse off.

Now, a job is not a faith, and there is nothing wrong with job hopping. I only use the example analogously. I have also made the case to "stick it out" in faith and marriage here and here. When all seems lost, that is when the forgotten seed of resurrection sprouts. As Peter asked when people were leaving Christ on account of his teaching, "To whom should we go, Lord? You have the words of eternal life." (Jn 6:68). 

Bad popes come and go. So do good popes. God will reveal all things at the end of the age, and our salvation depends on our own faith and perseverance, not the state of the Vatican or the Church. If anything, when things are most dysfunctional and a source of embarrassment, Christ gives us the great opportunity to rise up and be fools for the Kingdom, to do the work of restoration and in doing so earn our heavenly reward. 

But you don't gain that when you defect, just as those who divorce after decades will never experience the Golden Years of married life. Yes, there may be the allure of "great community" in your local mega-Church, or beautiful liturgy in Orthodoxy, or what have you. The Church is going through a great trial, and as scripture says, even the elect will be deceived during this period, were that even possible (Mt 24:24). But only those who remain faithful to the end will be saved (Mt 24:13). You don't earn the crown by quitting the race.

Darkness comes before dawn. We must remain vigilant and watchful. That is the spirit of Advent, especially, so it is apropos to do so now and not wait. No matter how bad or dysfunctional things get in the Church, nothing can separate us from the love of Christ Jesus. 

Nothing.