+ Our first reading today tells of the “injustice” of God: that
is, “injustice” as we humans would have it with our way of thinking. For our
kind of “justice” involves more times than not “the eye for the eye, and the tooth for the tooth.” Our justice
has to do with “the punishment fitting the crime;” but in this passage from the
Prophet Jeremiah, we see God telling the people: even though you have been very disobedient to me, and your wound is
incurable, grievous your bruise; even though you have been punished at my hand
for all your sins: my justice is to restore you and heal you, to give you back
your lands, to punish now your oppressors; my justice is to have you be my
people, and me your God!
This certainly is not the way
any legal system on the planet would handle any situation; but this is because
every legal system seems to have forgotten that it derives its very essence and
operative powers from the Divine Lawgiver and his supernatural legislations!
May we count ourselves very fortunate indeed to be subjects of the Divine
Lawgiver, the Father of all Mercies, whose Law is all about Love and
Forgiveness, Healing and Restoration: making any other kind of legal system so
much less than it can be.
In the gospel passage Jesus
shows his powers over the “laws of nature” – gravity, to be specific – by
inviting Peter to come to him across the water. Peter gets out of the boat and
does the seeming impossible by walking on the water towards Jesus (who is also
standing on the water); but then when Peter starts to think about what is going
on, the “impossibility” of it all – major doubt creeps in – and he begins to
sink: and he cries out: “Lord, save me!”
And Jesus does reach out,
catch and save him, but not without a fitting rebuke: “O you of little faith!
Why did you doubt?” This is a fitting example for us who are invited by Jesus
to do even “impossible” things in bringing the Kingdom of his Father to all
men: we must keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and not think about the wind and the
waves swarming around us – and we, with Jesus will do great things for God’s
glory!
And then they said to him: “Truly, you are the Son of God!”
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