Sunday Gospel Comment
Alberic Jacovone OSB
YEAR A TWELFTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR - 19.6.05 Jer 20,10-13; Rom 5,12-15; Mt 10,26-33 Do not be afraid - I am with you Tell
‘the truth’ & fear no one. In Church language, a person who accepts to be killed rather than
renounce his faith is called “martyr’, a word which means ‘witness’.
Today’s Gospel calls us to be strong in the face of opposition, & even
though we live at a time when we are not called to face torture & death for
the sake of our faith, still, sooner or later, we all get caught in situations
when evil forces implode in our families & then bitter hatred makes it
impossible for people in the same family to engage in sensible negotiations. In
the face of such blind evil, Jesus’ strong message comes to our support. When
the whirlwind of destruction assails us, we have no choice but cling to Jesus on
the cross, who though mocked & despised, still had the courage to pray:
Father, forgive them they do not know what they are doing. When hatred or
rejection comes, & all seems so unjust & destructive, let us pray &
hope that we will put our trust in the Lord, & choose never to ‘stoop to
their level’ in dishing back as much hatred as we receive. Instead we will try
to stay caring, with God’s grace. Over
the centuries, the words in today’s text, have given strong encouragement to
Christians of the early days & of all time, when they were harassed &
frightened, persecuted & even put to death for the cause of Christ. The same
words of Jesus come across as a strong reassurance to us, as we deal with our
own situations of family hatred & mindless litigation. Caught in our hurts,
we all lose our human dignity, & our children are caught in the middle. One
reassuring thought is that, especially during such tribulations, we are precious
to our Lord & precious to our loving Father in heaven: especially then, our
faith will be rewarded: do not be afraid, not one little sparrow & not one
hair on your head falls without your Father’s knowing, says Jesus Failures
& limitations.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus makes us starkly aware of our failures &
limitations. While we are sent to bring the Good News to the oppressed, we are
sure to meet with misunderstanding & persecution -in & around us - &
even within our family. We will pull through, if we acknowledge our past &
present weakness, and rely on the strength of God & of his Spirit operating
in us. Whereas, remaining tough & know-all will achieve nothing; accepting
our crosses as God’s will, may provide a way out. It’s sad but true that the
perennial ‘Good News’ of God’s mercy for us, is often met with resistance,
because of the strong convictions we all hold, when we have to apply the Gospel
to our day to day situations. In today’s text, Jesus comes across as the
healer of our infirmities, the one who ‘from the cross knows’ how hurting
& heavy laden we are. And he knows that in the stresses & conflicts of
life it is not just a matter of right & wrong or black & white: there
are all sorts of destructive forces to be dealt with. God’s Kingdom will
always require self-giving & sacrifice, tension & struggle, suspense
& hope. Fortunate and blessed are we if in our life, we allow the healing
mercy of God, to cut through our human pride, hurt & blindness. In this Year of the Eucharist, let us devote quality time to
present our hurting to our loving Eucharistic Lord, with prayers of sorrow &
humble supplication & devout adoration: we need his presence & his
strength. In this let us imitate the saints of all time, who were rejected,
persecuted & even killed for confessing faith in Jesus. This courageous
witness is taking place also today, & people are still being martyred for
their faith. Recall Sr. Irene McCormack, Australian Josephite who was working
among the poor in a mountain village in Peru, & in 1991 was killed. ______________________________________ |
