Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Memorial of Saint Ignatius, priest

(Exodus 34:29-35; Matthew 13:44-46)

Today the Church honors not just St. Ignatius but also the legacy he left.  Ignatius gave up a military career after he was injured and experienced conversion.  He prayed intensely and studied theology.  At the university he joined a group of scholars to form the Company of Jesus, the Jesuits.  They were ordained and soon spearheaded the Catholic Counter-Reformation.  The Jesuits have become the Church’s most prominent religious congregation.  Seven years ago, for the first time, a Jesuit was elected pope.

Ignatius’ conversion could be compared to the merchant’s finding a pearl in today’s gospel.  In reading and praying, Ignatius found Christ in a much deeper way than in his Catholic upbringing.  He gave up his sword and everything else to be like his Lord.  As the first leader of the Jesuits, he awoke the attention of the world to Jesus’ love. 

Today’s collect remembers Ignatius as a soldier-saint by recognizing the need of discipline in the quest for holiness.  We must take to heart the lesson.  We train ourselves to put aside earthly vanities by keeping our eyes on the Lord.

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

(Jeremiah 15:10.16-21; Matthew 13:44-46)

Ralph Powell was a Dominican priest known for eccentricity.  He used to take two cups of coffee with him to his room every morning.  His brothers in community would joke that the one was meant for him and the other for God.  They did not doubt, however, that the priest had a close relationship with the Lord.  He knew that he was blessed.  Anytime -- on both good and bad days alike – he was asked how he was, he would respond, “Better than I deserve to be.”  It is precisely such a relationship with God that Jesus refers to as the treasure a man discovers in a field and the fine pearl a merchant finds.

When Jesus says that the Kingdom of Heaven is like riches or a jewel, he means that knowing God surpasses anything a person has or does.  Jesus’ preaching began with the proclamation, “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand; repent and believe.”  Now he is making the claim that repentance is tantamount to selling everything one has.  It is turning away not just from evil things but from good things as well that might distract us from pursuing a relation with God.

More likely than not, the good things that distract us need to be put in their place rather than discarded.  We work too hard and should relax to pray more.  We enjoy wine, chocolate, and beef, but a day of abstinence each week from these goods would make us more appreciative to the Lord.  He is the one for whom we are to sacrifice everything.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

(Exodus 34:29-35; Matthew 13:44-46)

“Do not be afraid,” Pope John Paul II told participants of World Youth Day in 1993, “to break out of comfortable and routine modes of living, in order to take up the challenge of making Christ known in the modern ‘metropolis.'” He meant that the rewards are worth any price paid in letting go of personal desires. It is the same message that Jesus conveys in the gospel today.

Both the parable of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price invite listeners to make sacrifices for the Kingdom of God. They are not to worry that in walking the way of the Lord they will forego sensual pleasure and the company of associates. Like an investment in education, sacrifices for the sake of the Kingdom pay multiple dividends in terms of happiness and friendship.

Yet even we, who are inclined to go to church, sometimes worry. A woman argues that it would be all right to accompany friends to a racy movie. No, we are better to tell our friends that B movies are harmful for them as well as for ourselves. Surely John Paul had situations such as this in mind when he invited the youth a generation ago not to be afraid.