Thursday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
(Isaiah 26:7-9.12.16-19; Matthew 11:28-30)
Today’s reading from the first part of the Book of Isaiah
seems misplaced. It ignores the concerns
of the Southern Kingdom for which the original prophet wrote. In its stead, it speaks of a time of perfect
peace when both personal and public conflicts will be resolved. The people have evidently been chastened by
the exile and now find hope in the prospect of resurrection from the dead.
In the gospel Jesus offers himself as the peace of the
people. He bids the poor to accept the
yoke of his teaching. It not only eliminates
the intricacies of pharisaical precepts but also connects them to him as a source
of strength. As he declares in the
Gospel of John, “’I am the Resurrection and the Life’” (Jn 11:25).
July is a time of extremes.
In the Northern Hemisphere temperatures reach their heights. The Southern Hemisphere experiences the other
extreme. Most people working outdoors or
just commuting to work in either clime are struggling with the weather. Of course, most everyone has inner conflicts
to work through. All can look to the Lord for relief. Like a body of water at daybreak or
nightfall, time with him in prayer brings resolution and hope.
