Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Numbers
11:25-29; James 5:1-6; Mark 9:38-40.45.47-48)
Five hundred years ago
Europe erupted in religious conflicts. Protestants were leaving the Catholic
Church. Catholics often reacted with attempts to maintain by force the
integrity of their city's or town’s religion. In places where Protestants won
the majority, Catholics were harassed. There were martyrdoms on both sides.
After more than a hundred years of wars, the peoples agreed to religious
tolerance. They would not persecute one another but would try to live together
in peace.
Today's readings touch
on this topic of tolerance. In the first reading Joshua asks Moses to forbid two
men from prophesying because they did not receive the spirit of prophecy like
the others. In the gospel Jesus’ disciples
have in mind a similar end. They forbid two men to cast demons because they are
not from their group. However, Jesus objects to this action. He says that those
who are not against him are for him.
In recent years tolerance
didn't seem difficult in the Western world, at least until Covid came along.
The majority of people had no problem living in the same neighborhood with
people of different religions, races, and nations. If a person obeyed the law, he
or she could go to any church, eat any kind of food, and wear whatever hair
style.
However, the pandemic
has created tensions. At first, many did not like to see others without masks
or not practicing social distancing. Now the vaccine has created new
intolerances. Those who have been vaccinated look at the unvaccinated with
disgust and even disdain. Sometimes they openly say that they are threatening
the lives of others. Meanwhile, the unvaccinated accuse their critics of not
respecting the judgment of their consciences. They have their own reasons for
not being vaccinated such as the belief that the vaccine is not safe or is immoral.
In one church the unvaccinated have been asked not to come to Mass in person.
In another there are no protocols for masks or hardly any other protection from
the virus.
It seems that
tolerance, which Jesus insists on in the gospel, has a place in the conflict we
are experiencing today. Since most professionals advise being vaccinated, those
who follow their advice must be respected. When the unvaccinated are in their
presence, they should wear a mask and keep their distance to avoid
contamination. However, the vaccinated have to recognize the right of those who
refuse the vaccine to follow their consciences. If there are no indications
that the unvaccinated person has the virus, then there is no reason to exclude
it from their presence. However, it seems right to remind them to follow mask and
social distancing protocols.
Unfortunately, it
seems that the pandemic will continue for a long time. It has been difficult,
particularly for those who have been hospitalized with the virus and for those
who have lost loved ones. However, the pandemic has given us the opportunity to
practice tolerance and even social love. By practicing tolerance, we respect
others who think about the pandemic in different ways. By practicing love, we make
sacrifices for their good.
