+ So many times we hear this gospel passage and understand the lesson Jesus is teaching: those who are good, and speak truth are sometimes rejected by the people closest to them – but when it actually happens, it is not all that easy to experience. No one likes to be rejected or ridiculed, or taken to the top of a cliff with the intention of being thrown off. But, if one truly is doing what one has been called and empowered by God to do, then the strength will be there to do whatever that entails – until the very end.
St. Paul in the first reading today tells how he came "with fear and trembling" among the Corinthians to announce to them God's design to be active in their lives. They would recognize it as coming from God, because what they would hear would not be any worldly wisdom or clever political turns of phrases meant to bedazzle them with talk of God. But it would really be God talking to them, through the human instrument of Paul, who knew he was weak and told them so. He would tell them of Christ Crucified – not a popular approach to an intellectual group of people.
But in doing this, Paul, like Jesus, like so many anointed preachers throughout the ages since would bring glad tidings to the spiritually poor, bring freedom to spiritual captives, and recovery of sight to the spiritually blind, letting the spiritually oppressed go free. And these are the ones trapped, blinded and oppressed by the sinfulness of their lives. The Cross of Christ Crucified sets sinners free! And this is not foolishness at all!
May we today allow ourselves to be set free of any encumbrance that sin can apply to our lives – so that we can live the day with great joy – as we go about helping Jesus set as many as we can free to do the same: by our ministry of compassion and helpfulness to them – and by encouraging any and all we come upon to use the great sacramental system of the Church -which Jesus gave us to tap into his love, his mercy, his forgiveness and his peace!
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor!
No comments:
Post a Comment