Sunday, July 9, 2023

FOURTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, July 9, 2023

(Zechariah 9:9-10; Romans 8:9.11-13; Matthew 11:25-30)

The gospel today contains one of the most famous passages in the Gospel of Saint Matthew. When Jesus says, "'No one knows the Father except the Son...'" he is speaking of an intimacy that is not seen in Mark and Luke. We have to examine the entire passage more closely to appreciate its great value.

Jesus is thanking God the Father as if everything is going well for him. In reality, however, his ministry has stagnated. In the passage before this Jesus condemns the cities of Corazín, Bethsaida, and Capernaum for having rejected him. Except for some “little ones”, the people have not accepted his call to repent. The little ones are the same whom we have met in the gospel last Sunday. They seek to carry out the will of God. They are people like our grandmothers who prayed for us every day and if they found a few extra pennies in their handbag, they gave them to us to buy a chocolate on the way to school.

Simple people live according to the Spirit of Christ as Saint Paul says in the second reading. They do not live according to the flesh” that characterizes many in the world. Politicians today often describe themselves as the people's saviors while cursing their adversaries as liars and scoundrels. In the words of Jesus they want to be seen on the street giving nickels and dimes to the poor when they only have their own interests in mind.

We see in Jesus true humility. In this gospel he boasts neither of his intelligence nor of his achievements. Rather, he says everything he has comes from the Father. It is true that he says that only he knows the Father. However, he adds that he wants to reveal Him to others.

Then Jesus issues his great invitation to all who feel "labor and our burdened." He especially considers those who feel troubled by the 613 Covenant laws that they don't even quite understand. However, we can include as “burdened” those young people who feel disillusioned by the “hook-up” culture where another sexual partner is sought out every night. We can also add to those who labor adults who have grown tired of the constant pursuit of fortune and fame.

To all these Jesus wants to unite under his yoke. This yoke does not overwhelm them because he is by their side to help. Father Emil Kapaun, an American army chaplain, represented this kind of help to the troops in Korea. For everyone, both Jews and Protestants as well as Catholics, he was "Father" because he instilled respect with his words of strength and hope. Captured by the Chinese, Father Kapaun searched for food for the sick and picked lice from the weakest so they wouldn't die. Eventually he himself died as Christ sacrificing his own life for the good of others. He shared the small ration his captors gave him with other prisoners so that in time he ran out of energy. Then he was infected with dysentery that brought about his death.

Jesus leads us to salvation through good people like Father Kapaun and by his inspiring wisdom. Above all, he saves us through the sacraments that unite us with him. We never want to reject him for fear that he will ask for what we don't want to give. Any sacrifice he demands only makes us more loving like him.