THIRTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
(II Kings 4:8-11.14-16; Romans 6:3-4.8-11; Matthew 10:37-42)
It has been said of some saints that they comforted the
troubled and troubled the comfortable. Could be the way of the saintly. But in
the gospel today Jesus has words that both comfort and afflict both those in
high places and those live in basement apartments. Let's examine this gospel
with its challenges and supports for everyone.
First the challenges. Jesus sounds extreme when he says that
his apostles owe him more love than they owe anyone else. We may want to ask,
“Who does he think he is that we should love him more than our own children?” Our
response to this question justifies his claim on our love. He is the Christ, the only Son of God. When
the martyr St. Thomas More ascended the guillotine for failing to affirm King
Henry VIII as the leader of the Church in England, he said: "I am the
king's good servant, but God’s first." As Thomas More recognized that his
loyalty belongs first to God, we must recognize that Jesus, the only begotten
Son of God, has first claim on our love. Doing so, we will be able to love our children
more, not less. We will not be so
tempted to give in to their excessive desires.
Then Jesus confronts us with a comprehensive challenge. He
tells us to take up our cross and to follow him. Each person has his personal cross.
Sometimes we feel that ours is too heavy, that it constitutes an injustice. But
let us not compare our cross with those of other people but with that of Jesus.
His cross was the heaviest, the most unfair. Despite being completely innocent,
he suffered a horrible death out of love for us.
Now the consolations. Jesus promises eternal life to all who
follow him carrying his or her own cross. We see Pope Francis doing it.
Although he is already eighty-six years old and suffering from severe ailments,
it seems that he is not going to retire until his vision of a truly
compassionate Church is realized. He wants the voices of the poor, women, and
indigenous people to be heard as much as those of white men.
Instead of naming the rewards for the various officers of
the Church, Jesus recognizes those who support the officers. The people who open
their doors to his apostles will be receiving him. This is not a consolation
prize because to know Jesus is to experience eternal life. Also those who
receive a prophet will be well rewarded. The first reading tells of the
God-fearing couple who gave the prophet Elisha a home. The wife and husband
also receive the gift of life in the form of the child they have long desired.
The righteous are people recognized for having followed the
law. Saint Matthew says that Saint Joseph is such a person. His reward
corresponds to that of the fourth beatitude, "Blessed are those who hunger
and thirst for righteousness." He and all righteous men and women are
given a seat at the banquet of eternal life where their hunger is satisfied.
"These little ones" are not children but the many
simple people who try to do the will of God. They are people like most of us
here. People of other religions who help them will also be rewarded. In years
past Jews working in various necessary services sometimes took the place of
their Christian co-workers at Christmas. Although their service was voluntary,
they evidently received God's favor as Jesus promises in this gospel.
We have entered the month of July. Whether it's in the
middle of summer or in the middle of winter where we are, July brings its
challenges. In this gospel Jesus wants to assure us that he will take care of
us when we put him first in our lives. Despite the heat or cold, we don't need
to worry when we love him. He is like our best friend who will never leave us
lacking what makes life worth living.
