THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
(Isaiah 8:23-9:3; I Corinthians 1:10-13.17; Matthew 4:12-17)
Galilee may be the region where Jesus came from, but it was
not considered the holy land. To the contrary, in Biblical times Galilee was
under a cloud of suspicion. Isaiah in the first reading today and Matthew in
the gospel tell why. They say that Galilee is the "district of the
pagans." Non-Jews inhabited the land with the invasion of Assyria seven
centuries before Christ. They brought their idols and their offensive customs
to the Jews. For this reason, Isaiah also calls it a "land of
shadows."
Isaiah sees God rescuing the Israelites in the land from
foreign oppression. He describes his action as "a great light"
shining on the people. Matthew tells of Jesus fulfilling this prophecy when he
comes to Capernaum. From there Jesus will preach the Kingdom of God with
powerful words and deeds.
More and more our time is seen as a “land of shadows”.
Certainly, we have cars, cell phones, and other gadgets that make life
comfortable. But we are also seeing the breakdown of the family with divorces
and out-of-wedlock births. Many today prefer having pets to raising children.
Accompanying the destruction of the family, people are losing faith. Yes,
almost everyone celebrates Christmas in one way or another, but relatively few
attend Sunday mass. One sign of things to come is that young people often
answer “none” to polls asking their religion.
Jesus penetrates the shadows of Galilee through his
illuminating preaching. He exhorts people to repent in order to experience the
wonder of God's kingdom. For Jesus, repentance consists of more than feeling
remorse for our sins. Rather, it means leaving behind the things that lead us
away from God and turning to Him with prayer and good works. More to the point,
repentance detaches us from the things that fill our minds with vices so that
we dedicate ourselves to goodness.
A Franciscan friar preaches of repentance in his life. As a
young man, he was very fond of dressing up in fine clothing. He says that he
was always buying new shirts and pants to stay in style. Now this piece of
vanity has passed. He is content with wearing the habit with a pair of shorts
under it.
Each of us has to examine his own life for the thing that
inhibits him or her from moving closer to God and leaving it behind. For many
it is the movies that are increasingly obscene. For others it is the bad company
they keep. If our companions use bad words, in a short time we are going to use
them and, worse, think in such terms. It can be the multiple mirrors that we
have in the house feeding our vanity. Or it may be our fanaticism about football,
hockey, or professional wrestling for their brutality. Of course, there are
many more temptations, but the task is to discover and leave the one that is
keeping us from God.
Paul sees several shadows in the Corinthian community. In
today's reading he addresses factionalism. Later, he will deal with immorality,
the reception of the Eucharist unworthily, and the denial of the resurrection
from the dead. In every case problem Paul will find the resolution in Jesus
Christ. It is Christ into whom all are baptized so that they have become one.
It is Christ with whom they are united in such a way that fornication becomes
infidelity to him. It is Christ who fed his own body to his disciples the night
before his death so that when they come inebriated to receive the Eucharist,
they are rejecting Christ. It is Christ who rose from the dead so that if they
do not believe in their own resurrection, they are denying his resurrection.
The same Christ can also dispel our shadows. First, we must let him into our
lives. Then, we must embrace him with all our soul.
