Memorial of Saint
Elizabeth of Hungary, religious
(II Maccabees 6:18-31; Luke 19:1-10)
Old age suffers a lot. The elderly regularly experience
memory loss and loss of friends. Their
bodies naturally weaken and they are more susceptible to disease. But seniors need not suffer the loss of
integrity. In fact, they have the
opportunity to demonstrate the most glorious trait of all – a life surrender to
love of God and neighbor. Such is the
witness of Eleazar in today’s first reading.
The old man is being tempted to eat forbidden pork. It is not that pork is bad in itself but that
eating it clearly defies God’s commandment in the Mosaic law. Eleazar refuses to eat it. Then he is encouraged to feign eating it to save
himself from execution. Eleazar
recognizes this as an even greater outrage.
He would be intentionally deceiving others – an intrinsic evil. Eleazar chooses the high road. He allows himself to be executed rather than
disobey God’s law. His courageous deed
echoes through the centuries.
Our love for God will probably never be tested to the
extent that Eleazar’s was. That itself is
reason to thank God. Yet we are called
to give testimony to our love for God by giving special attention to the poor
and marginalized. When we go out of our
way to talk with a lonely person, we demonstrate the love of God just as surely
as we would by fasting a whole week.
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