Monday of the
Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time
(I Maccabees 1:10-15.41-43.54-57.62-63; Luke 18:35-43)
The alienation of Jewish culture begins harmlessly
enough. The First Book of Maccabees
relates how the Greek king begins his program of cultural hegemony. He builds a gymnasium so that Jewish and
Greek men could know one another as they exercise together. At the gym they also expose their flesh to
one another. As the Jews for some reason
feel embarrassed, they begin to hide the mark of their distinction. Increasing socialization among the peoples leads
Jews to break Covenantal laws. Propaganda
then is pitched to malleable children who begin to rebel against traditional
ways. Many Jews, perhaps unwittingly,
begin to make sacrifices to pagan gods.
Then the king does the unthinkable.
He erects an idol in the middle of the Temple. If the Jewish people accept this abomination,
they are lost.
But they don’t. The
Maccabee family together with other faithful Jews rebel against the
Greeks. The tale is bloody, but the
Greeks are eventually defeated. Regrettably,
the Maccabees and their successors prove to be inept rulers themselves. By the time Jesus is born, the more capable Romans
control the land. Jesus will begin a
peaceful revolution. He will show the
people how to worship the God of Israel in the most worthy of ways.
Resisting the alienation of religion requires intensive
effort. Many parents today homeschool
their children rather than send them to secularistic schools. Wearing religious symbols like a cross helps
secure religious identity. Praying together
in the home and worshipping weekly in church are foundational. Experiencing the benefits of religion may require
even greater sacrifices in the future.
