SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

23 FEBRUARY 2025

 

          David’s victory over the Philistine Goliath made him very popular.  However, King Saul resented David and became convinced that David was trying to replace him as king.  Even though his son Jonathan told him that it was not true, Saul was blinded by jealousy and paranoia. Saul pursued David with the intent to kill him.  In today’s first reading, David has a chance for revenge.  Finding Saul in a kind of sleep deliberately induced by God, David can end the king’s unfair treatment of him.  But, instead, he takes the king’s spear that is thrust in the ground at his head and waves it from a nearby hill.  Even if the law would have allowed his justifiable taking of an eye for an eye, David does not kill the king.  He recognizes the king as the Lord’s anointed, and he will not harm him. 

            Many centuries later, David becomes an example of how a disciple of Jesus Christ should act.  He is compassionate, forgiving, and humbly respectful of God’s dominion.  As the son of David, Jesus teaches his disciples to follow his ancestor’s example.  He teaches them to do what he will do at the end of his life.  From his agony on the cross, he will forgive his enemies who have treated him unjustly.  He will sacrifice his life for sinners, who do not deserve such a gift of love and who cannot repay him for his total gift of self.  After being raised from the dead, he will expect his disciples to do the same thing.  Today, he outlines the pattern of behavior for all who call themselves his disciples.

            He tells us that we must love our enemies, do good to those who hate us, bless those who curse us, and pray for those who mistreat us.  Although this teaching seems impossible, disciples like Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela have shown us that it is possible to love in this manner.  Along with martyrs through history, they have known that loving enemies does not involve warm feelings toward those who hate them.  Rather, authentic love involves wanting the best for a person, leaving what is best for that person to God’s justice.

            Mercy and forgiveness are part of the love of the Father of Jesus and made visible by his death on the cross.  All of us have been hurt, and some more deeply than others.  Forgiving someone who has hurt us deeply does not mean that the offending person did no wrong.  Instead, true forgiveness means that we are willing to move beyond our feelings of revenge and anger and rage to accept the peace that only God can give.

            Years ago, another priest hurt me very deeply.  Knowing the demands of today’s Gospel, I decided to forgive him and let it go.  But, it was much more difficult than expected.  Just when I thought that I had truly forgiven him, I would see him at a priests’ meeting and wanted to put my hands around his neck and strangle him!  It took a long time to let go, and I often brought my desire to forgive to the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  As I brought that desire to the Sacrament, I began to understand that the Lord’s forgiveness of my own sins gave me the grace to extend that mercy to the one who had betrayed me.  It took time, but it finally happened.

            If you have been deeply hurt, don’t be afraid to bring your pain to the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  If you have suffered abuse in any way, please be humble enough to seek the help of a professional therapist.  What Jesus did on the cross in an instant can take a long time for us to heal.  But, we need to realize that the anger and resentment that builds up in us has no effect on an enemy who has offended us.  Instead, we become angry and resentful people in a world already infected by so many negative and poisonous emotions.  We are disciples of Jesus Christ, who trust that he will be with us as we try to love our enemies.  We can make imitate his sacrifice of love by extending to others the gift the Lord has given to us.

 

SIXTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

16 FEBRUARY 2025

 

          When we hear of the Beatitudes, we usually think of the Beatitudes in the Gospel of Saint Matthew.  Because Matthew writes his Gospel for Jewish Christians, he places Jesus on a mountain, seated in the position of a teacher.  He is the new Moses, who gave the old law from a mountain.  In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus gives eight different beatitudes, repeating that last one for effect.  Because the Greek word “blessed” means fortunate, or happy, those eight beatitudes describe the interior attitudes needed for true happiness for his disciples.

            Today, we hear the Beatitudes from Saint Luke’s Gospel.  In writing to Gentile converts.  he places Jesus standing on a stretch of level ground.  He teaches a great crowd of his disciples.  But he does so in the presence of a large group of people, including Jews from all Judea and Jerusalem, along with pagans from the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon.  He speaks in the ordinary plane of everyday existence.  Luke also implies that he speaks as a seated, respected teacher, because he raises his eyes directly toward his disciples.  Instead of eight beatitudes, Jesus gives four positive blessings and four negative woes.  Matthew’s first beatitude is more nuanced, with Jesus speaking of the “poor in spirit” being blessed.  In Luke’s version, Jesus directly calls “blessed” those who are poor.  He tells them that they are part of the kingdom of God.  In belonging to the kingdom, they are not part of a place or territory.  Rather, they are part of a movement that will last beyond the end of the world.

            In Saint Luke’s Gospel, Jesus has already called people to be his disciples.  Last Sunday, we heard of four of them:  Simon and Andrew, James and John.  Along with the other disciples, these four must be taking comfort from his words.  They have already left everything to follow Jesus.  They have chosen to trust completely in Jesus, without any possessions of their own.  In time, Jesus will teach them how to hunger for him alone.  After they had wept because of his death on the cross, they will laugh and rejoice in his resurrection.  Especially in Saint Luke’s second volume, the Acts of the Apostles, they will know the hatred of those will oppose them. 

            They are learning that true happiness is not found in riches, gratification, entertainment, or fame.  In fact, Jesus says that those who put all of their trust in these values will not be truly happy.  That is why he says that the rich, the well fed and satisfied, those who laugh now, and those whom everyone speaks well of that they will experience woes.  They are pursuing values that cannot last and cannot completely satisfy, especially into eternity.

            Jesus speaks to us and tells us how to be fully happy as his disciples.  We were already incorporated into the kingdom of God when we were baptized.  He is not telling us that true happiness occurs only if we live in abject poverty.  As disciples, we need to be grateful when we enjoy financial security.  We can enjoy nourishing food, as long as we know that food in itself will not fulfill our deepest hungers.  He does not want us going about with sad faces and dejected spirits.  And there is nothing wrong with a good reputation and good relations with others. 

            But, we cannot count on these things as the ultimate source of happiness.  If we do, then we can expect the woes.  Woes are not punishments from God for not living lives of discipleship.  Rather they are results of making bad choices.  Both Jeremiah and today’s Psalm warn us.  We are like the tree planted near life giving waters if we have rooted our lives in Jesus Christ as the center of everything.  Rooted in Christ, we can share our blessings with the poor.  We can feed the hungry.  We can console those who grieve.  We can speak the truth when it is not popular and defend those persecuted for speaking the truth.  We are blessed now when we live the beatitudes and will know the fullness of true happiness in the kingdom of heaven.

 

FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

9 FEBRUARY 2025

 

          Our Scripture readings today provide valuable insights into how God calls people and how they respond.  All three characters are going through the routine of their daily lives.  Isaiah is performing his duties as a priest in the temple.  Suddenly, he is given an extraordinary glimpse of the Lord’s glory.  In the light of that vision, Isaiah realizes that he lacks the absolute holiness of God.  One of the seraphim takes a burning coal and purifies his lips.  Even though Isaiah remains a human far removed from the perfection of divinity, he accepts the Lord’s mercy and proclaims the immensity of God’s power over all of creation as one of the greatest prophets.

            Saul is busy with his mission.  A faithful Pharisee, he is traveling to Damascus to arrest a small group of fellow Jews who claim that their crucified leader is the promised Messiah and has been raised from the dead.  On his way, the risen Christ appears to him and asks why he is persecuting him.  Blinded by this vision, Saul is led into Damascus, where he realizes the depth of his spiritual blindness and sin.  Baptized into the Church he had been persecuting, Saint Paul remains grateful for the Lord’s mercy and becomes the greatest promoter of that Church.

            Simon is busy about his profession:  fishing in the Sea of Galilee.  Simon has already encountered Jesus of Nazareth.  He had been fascinated with this man and invited him to his home.  He had witnessed Jesus healing his mother-in-law of a dangerous fever.  Now he has completed a frustrating night of fishing and is cleaning his nets.  When Jesus asks him to use his boat as a pulpit, he accepts.  As a child, I had realized the benefit of people hearing human speech from a boat.  My brother and sister and I were in our grandparent’s fishing boat complaining about our Dad.  Our mother heard it and punished us.

            After teaching, Jesus tells Simon to put out his boat into deep water and lower his nets for a catch.  Simon, the professional fisherman, refers to Jesus as “master” and sees this request as ridiculous.  But, out of respect for Jesus, he does it and catches so many fish that both boats are in danger of sinking.  Simon falls to the knees of Jesus and calls him “Lord.”  Aware of the truth about Jesus, he acknowledges that he is a sinner who did not fully trust him.  Moved by this miracle, he accepts the invitation of Jesus to become the leader of his Church.  In time he will be successful in catching people to be disciples of Jesus Christ.

            As disciples of Jesus Christ, we must be open to the Lord calling us to deeper faith in the ordinary events of our lives.  Through our baptism, each of us has a mission.  You parents are called to cultivate the faith lives of your children.  Teachers have the mission of directing students to the person of Jesus Christ.  Any of us who engage in management or business are called to make decisions for the common good instead of our own selfish interests.  Like the three characters in today’s Scripture readings, we are all flawed individuals who make bad choices.  But, like Simon Peter, we become more aware of the Lord’s mercy when we acknowledge our sins and receive the grace to start over.

            Like those three characters, we live in a dangerous, divided, and dark world.  In each of our vocations, we need to do what we can to promote Gospel values and try to make necessary changes in our world.  But, we need to be watchful.  Especially when we do not succeed, we need to work with the Lord’s grace to make changes in ourselves.  Instead of nursing anger and resentment, we can be honest about our own failings and be open to the Lord’s mercy in our lives.  When we have the courage to surrender to the Lord’s power, we can avoid putting those with whom we disagree on a list of enemies. We can learn to disagree with respect.  We can pray for them and trust in the inner peace and compassion that only God can give.

 

THE PRESENTATION OF THE LORD

2 FEBRUARY 2025

 

          Howard Thurman wrote:  When the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and princes are home, when the shepherds are back with their flocks, the work of Christmas begins.”  Epiphany is the dramatic reenactment of that Christmas work.  Magi from the east find the infant Jesus in an ordinary house in Bethlehem.  A dove descends at a river anointing service.  The wine runs out at a wedding.  Everyone has an important part to play in seeing and revealing God’s presence.  Today, we turn to another example of ordinary people, two elderly adults, who happen to be at the right time and place for Joseph and Mary to present the child Jesus in the temple.  This moment invites us to find our place our place in the work of Christmas.

            Jewish law requires that mothers of boys remain way from the temple and not touch anything unclean for at least thirty-two days.  So, after forty days, Joseph and Mary follow this law and bring their infant son to be presented in the temple, just like every other Jewish family would be required to do.

            In this ordinary routine, something surprising happens.  An old man named Simeon runs into them.  He is not a Levite, a temple insider.  But he is a faithful believer who is convinced that he will not die before encountering the Christ, the promised savior of the world.  The Holy Spirit moves him twice, first to enter the temple.  Then, in the temple, the Spirit moves him to take Jesus into his arms.  Holding the child, he gives a blessing that his parents need to hear, but maybe not what they expected.  “This child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed, so that the thoughts of many will be revealed, and you yourself a sword shall pierce, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.”
            Before Joseph and Mary have a chance to reflect on these words, they meet another elderly person.  We do not know what Anna said.  But we know that she has lived seven years with her husband after her marriage and then as a widow until she is eighty-four years old.  Anna is an insider, because Jewish law dictates that widows who do not remarry should be cared for in the temple.  That law has a special role for women like Anna.  They spend their entire time in prayer and fasting.  Like so many faithful women before her, Anna assumes the role of a widowed prophetess.  She gives thanks to God for this child and speaks about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

            Each one of us has a role in the work of Christmas.  Like all the characters in the Christmas drama, we must have open hearts to receive what the Lord reveals to us in our daily lives.  The heart is the seat of memories and emotions.  Both Simeon and Anna have opened their hearts for years.  Both have had their hearts broken.  Simeon mentions the work of broken hearts not only for Joseph and Mary and Jesus, but also for all who open our hearts to them.  Anna knows the pain of a broken heart in her many years as a widow with the loss of her husband.

            With open hearts, we can better see Jesus Chris present in the ordinary events of our lives.  But we all know that our open hearts will be broken by life’s difficulties and tragedies. At Christmas, we reflected on the fire of God’s love that warms and illumines our lives.  Today’s feast focuses on the fire of God’s love that purifies broken hearts and painful situations.  If we can allow the fire of God’s when our hearts are broken, we can allow God to make us a part of the drama of revealing his presence with our compassion and love.  To borrow from Howard Thurman, let the work of epiphany begin: “To find the lost, to heal the broken, to feed the hungry, to release the prisoner, to teach the nations, to bring Christ to all, to make music in the heart.”