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Friday of
the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
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(I Kings 19:9a,
11-16, Matthew
5:27-30)
The “tiny,
whispering sound” conveying the presence of the Lord to Elijah might be translated
the “sound of silence.” God visits him,
as He does each of us, in the silent chamber of conscience where He tempers our
pride and chastens our sloth.
Thursday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 18:41-46; Matthew 5:20-26)
It is hard to overemphasize the radical nature of Jesus’
Sermon on the Mount. It establishes a
new order of moral conduct for Jesus’ followers. No longer will acts be acceptable if they merely
conform to the Mosaic Law. They must never
be done with any maliciousness.
In today’s passage from the Sermon Jesus comments on the law
proscribing murder. He warns that it is
not enough that his followers refrain from harming one another physically. They must not ridicule or denigrate each
other as well. Jesus emphasizes the importance
of this rule in a telling way. He says
that when it is violated, reconciliation takes precedence over offering God
sacrifices. It is as if his followers
show their love for God by how they love their neighbors.
We may wonder if it is possible to live as innocently as
Jesus commands in the Sermon on the Mount.
Jesus, as St. Matthew presents him, would respond yes, of course, we
can. With the help of the Holy Spirit,
given to us last Sunday and always available, we can.
Wednesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 18:20-39; Matthew 5:17-19)
As long as one lives in a land with other kinds of people,
it will be hard to keep syncretism at bay.
Syncretism blends different elements of culture to produce a new
cultural reality. Syncretism often results
in the loss of a major characteristics of the older culture. Santeria exemplifies a syncretism
religion. This cult borrows from African
animist and Catholic traditions. It was
developed in Cuba but is found in other Caribbean cultures as well.
In today’s first reading the prophet Elijah challenges the
people to give up their syncretistic practices.
“How long will you straddle the issue?” he charges, “If the Lord is God,
follow him; if Baal, follow him.” Baal is the Phoenician-Canaanite god of
fertility and weather. Elijah then demonstrates
to the people the Lord’s supremacy. His
prayer to the Lord calls down fire to consume the sacrifice.
We might find syncretistic tendencies in the people we
meet. They may go to mass on Sunday but
during the week put all trust in mammon.
They may keep a statue of the Virgin in their yard but on their porch take
seriously their horoscope. We want to
avoid these tendencies if not these people.
We believe in God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. They have sent their Spirit upon us so that
we might become holy like them.
Tuesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
(I Kings 17:7-16;
Matthew 5:13-16)
A Dominican priest in
Pakistan had a large Muslim following.
The people considered him a holy man of God. They would wait for him after mass outside
church. There he would bless them. The blessing evidently brought cures and
other graces. The widow of Zarephath
looks at Elijah as those Muslims did to that Dominican in Pakistan.
The widow is not a
daughter of Israel. She tells Elijah,
“’As the Lord, your God, lives...”
She must recognize the power of God, or she would not invoke an oath in
His name. She also acknowledges the
authority of God’s prophet when she obeys his commands.
The woman is saved by her
faith in God even though that faith is undeveloped. We do well to imitate it along with her
generosity. We want to do all that God has
commanded through Moses and, especially, Jesus.
In today’s gospel Jesus tells his disciples to be salt and light. He is telling us to lift people’s spirits with
works motivated by love.
Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church
(Acts 1:12-14; John 19: 25-34)
Today’s feast or, more accurately, Memorial of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, Mother of the Church, has only been established recently. It serves at least two purposes. It justly extends the celebration of
Pentecost by a day. It also draws attention
to the family aspect of the Church.
Conventional wisdom sees today’s gospel as Jesus providing
for his widow mother. However true that
is, the evangelist likely has more in mind by the Beloved Disciple and Mary
taking one another as his and her own. Jesus
is forming his Church. In handing over
his spirit a few verses later, he is enlivening the Church with the Holy
Spirit. The scene can be called “a
second Pentecost.”
The chief characteristic of the Church formed by Jesus’
mother and Beloved Disciple will be familiar love. In the Church we share not only Jesus’ Spirit
but his body and blood as well. This reality
helps us to see one another in the Church in a revered way. We may not be as close to most Church brothers
and sisters as we are to our natural siblings.
Nevertheless, we should offer them extra care and affection.
