+ In the gospel passage today Jesus
is trying to make the point that those who keep the covenant and commandments
that his Father made with Abraham (and his descendants) are also obeying him
because he was also present at the time those covenants and commands were given
– and that their reward will be everlasting life. The Jews however are not
convinced of his legitimacy and they mock him saying: You are not yet fifty years old, how could you have seen Abraham and
been with him when God spoke with him?
Jesus, in an exasperating way,
raises his voice and cries out: Listen to
me! before Abraham came to be, I AM.
I am eternal! I am with God
always! I am present in all my
Father’s dealings with the human race. So
they picked up stones to throw at him; but
Jesus hid and went out of the temple area: to await his hour when more than
stones will be thrown at him.
In the first reading we see
the historic covenant made between God and Abram: it was the cause of the
changing of his name to Abraham, and
it was the cause of many graces and blessings on him and his physical and
spiritual descendants; but the other end of the deal must never be overlooked:
he would be their God, but they must obey the commands of the covenant – all of
them: and thus they would be eligible for countless blessings.
May we the children of
Abraham, the children of God be quick to obey with our spiritual fathers:
imitate their example, and win the prize that they won for us by their
obedience: life on high forever, with God, his Son and the communion of saints!
And a lesson we can take with
us into this day, a day when the uncertainties, anxieties, and fears associated
with the unstoppable, so far, spread of the coronavirus both local, nationally
and internationally, is that the “I AM-ness” of God still persists in our own
day – and that “I AM – Jesus” and “I AM – his Father” are with us and available
to us to help comfort us, and calm us, and heal us – in so many ways. And what
is more because we can and do say regarding ourselves: “I am” – and we say it
probably hundreds of times a day – it means that “we are” internally, at our
core, in our souls – connected with the Father and the Son, by means of their
Spirit – especially by means of our baptisms – so that we can co-create
solutions to the problems facing us and our friends and families and fellow
countrymen: and the most creative thing we can do is to stay away from each
other – both in public, but also in private – this means husbands and wives and
children and grandparents – for as soon as anyone leaves the house and comes
back in – for any reason – they may have carted the virus back in with them.
I urge you to listen to the
scientists, the doctors, the nurses and the psychologists: find creative ways
to be separate, and to stay inside – it is a matter of life and death!
If
today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts
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