Thursday, January 18, 2018

Thursday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

(I Samuel 18:6-9.19:1-7; Mark 3:7-12)

Life’s great tragedy lies not in becoming old but in failing to become wise.  King Saul in the first reading should realize that the chorus of women praising David is as fickle as weather on the prairie.  If he were a wise man, he would not worry that the people favor David to himself.  Rather he would concentrate on how he, as king, might serve the Lord by attending to the people’s needs. 

Certainly Saul’s son Jonathan better fits the profile of a wise person.  As wisdom seeks the harmony of right order, Jonathan takes pains to reconcile the king with his best warrior.  He reasons with Saul that David is no threat to him.  He also protects David until father promises to do him no harm.  Unfortunately, Saul will allow his envy to reassert itself in a self-defeating manner.  David will once more flee for his life, and Saul and Jonathan will be killed in battle. 

We can locate the virtue that Saul lacks and that which Jonathan exhibits in the Lord Jesus.  In today’s gospel he refuses to have his divine origin in part to avoid misunderstanding.  And he never ceases to cure people of their ailments.  Wise persons will imitate Jesus’ virtue.

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

Memorial of Saint Anthony, Abbot

(I Samuel 17:32-33.37.40-51; Mark 3:1-6)

Aristotle taught that a soldier best exemplifies the virtue of courage.  He saw the warrior’s overcoming the fear of death to fight for the homeland as the essence of bravery.  In today’s readings his ideal would be realized in David who takes up the challenge of Goliath to defend the honor of Israel.  Thomas Aquinas gave the model of courage a different flavor.  Since he understood union with God as the ultimate goal in life, martyrdom became the highest way to practice courage.  In today’s gospel Jesus demonstrates such courage as he heals the invalid on the Sabbath despite the vicious contempt the cure will draw from the Pharisees.

Anthony of the Desert, today’s patron saint, exemplifies another kind of courage.  He gave up everything he had to live most of his life in solitude.  This meant overcoming the fear not of death but of living an unfulfilled life.  He forsook the commonly satisfying experiences of family, comforts, and human accompaniment to deepen his spiritual relationship with the Lord.  In doing so, Anthony provided Christianity a model of holiness.

To be true Christians we also need to pursue a close relationship with the Lord.  He is very near to us -- in our hearts where we can share with him our most intimate thoughts and desires.  He will assist us to bravely face the trials which inevitably come to those who are true to him.  Best of all, he will lead us to fulfillment of our deepest desire – the happiness of eternal bliss.

Tuesday, January 18, 2018

Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

(I Samuel 16:1-13; Mark 2:23-28)

Samuel is an old man in today’s first reading.  He grieves for Saul or, better, on account of Saul.  Samuel believed that Saul would lead Israel to greatness as a nation.  He no doubt hoped that Saul would not only unite the nation and defeat its enemies, but also bring about a divine righteousness.  Reality has proven otherwise.  Saul himself has been disobedient to the Lord’s commands.  Samuel probably wonders if all his efforts were for nothing, if human endeavor could ever bring forth social progress.  However, God is more patient with people than Samuel.  He does not give up on humanity but constantly renews its hope.  He sends Samuel on a mission to find the man who might fulfill the destiny that Samuel once envisioned. 

The tale is reminiscent of a recent book that has been published regarding the education of today’s youth.  The author laments that young people today are not being prepared for the responsibilities of adulthood.  Rather than being challenged and duly criticized as in previous generations, the author finds the young being continually coddled.  The author seems much like Samuel in his lament over Saul.  But it should be remembered that old men and women have always fretted over younger generations.  They have perennially considered the young as lacking basic preparation to meet life’s challenges.  Although education for the future is always a legitimate concern, people often lack the perspicacity to evaluate its potential.

We believe that God has revealed what He expects of humans in Jesus.  In a very real sense, humans have reached their pinnacle in him.  Even more than Shakespeare in drama or Beethoven in music, Jesus shows us how we should live.  We are wise to evaluate our progress of virtue not so much in comparison to past generations but mostly to him.

Monday, January 15, 2018

Monday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

(I Samuel 15:16-23; Mark 2:18-22)

Jesus brings Israel a new holiness.  Seeing saw how many practitioners of the law have become hard-hearted, he provides a fresh interpretation.  He extends some precepts like love to include one’s enemies.  He also accentuates what the law has taught for centuries with uncommon vigor.  He compares this new holiness to “new wine” and warns that it requires “fresh wineskins.” By this he means that the people need to change the way they live.   They must move from an obsession with personal righteousness to a heart-felt care for others.

Today is the ninetieth birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  In a very significant way his ministry resembles that of the Lord Jesus.  He too strove to change people’s minds and hearts.  Where many people thought that laws were fair because they were “on the books,” he showed that some were patently unjust.  More importantly, he always preached respect, even love, for others.  Dr. King is not only an American hero exemplifying both courage and racial justice.  He is also a Christian saint dying, like Christ, for selfless love.

We can test ourselves as being “fresh wineskins” by asking how we see people of different skin color.  If we judge them inferior mentally or morally for that reason, we are old wineskins.  We will fall apart trying to accommodate Jesus’ teaching.  But if we respect them for their differences, then we should be able to follow Jesus to the end.

Friday, January 12, 2018

Friday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

(I Samuel 8:4-7.10-22a; Mark 2:1-12)

Jesus’ enigmatic question, “Which is easier…?” may be applied to today’s first reading as well as the gospel.  Is it easier for God to create a conquering nation or a holy people? Most will respond unreflectively, “a conquering nation,” but the simple truth is that it is much harder to make a people holy.  Yet this is precisely Jesus’ purpose.

Jesus builds on already present faith.  The reading says, “Jesus saw their faith.” It may be referring to the faith of all present, not just to that of the paralytic’s porters. That is, Jesus may be responding to the faith of all who are coming to believe in him as God’s “favored one.”  Through Jesus’ teaching they begin to see that a nation’s true greatness consists not in having a victorious army but in being a loving people.  The people’s care will extend especially to those most in need – paralytics and the poor.

Pope Francis is making every effort to extend this concept of greatness through compassion.  He is sometimes criticized for insufficient concern about orthodoxy.  By all means preserving the apostolic faith is one of the prime responsibilities of the Bishop of Rome.  For this reason Francis continually asks prayers that he does not fail in his duties.  It might be added, however, that the pope is above all the head of apostles.  His primary task is to carry out Jesus’ mission of forming a holy people who will imitate God’s love for all.