Memorial of Saint Lucy, Virgin and Martyr
(Isaiah 40:25-31; Matthew 11:27-30)
The movie Chariots of
Fire tells the story of the British Olympic track team of 1920. Several outstanding men were on that team,
but the one who captured the most attention was a Christian who refused to
compete on the Lord’s Day. Because of
his insistence on putting the Lord before earthly prizes, he lost the opportunity
to win a medal in his specialty. One of
his teammates, who had already earned a medal, saw the injustice and gave the
him his berth in another race. The
Christian ran and won.
After the race the Christian received a message from a runner
of a different team. The message
contained the verse from today’s first reading.
“They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength, they will soar as
with eagles' wings. They will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint.” This truth was certainly validated in the
case of this athlete who refused to betray his principle of resting on the
Lord’s Day.
We may disagree with the judgment of the athlete not to run on Sundays, but his living what his conscience dictates deserves not only admiration but also imitation. Conscience is the voice of God speaking personally to us. We are obliged to form our conscience guided by Church teaching, and we must always obey what it judges right.
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