*****
“If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”
The first disciples certainly did ascribe to the fact that Jesus was very probably the Messiah for whom they yearned, and yet he was one with a mission far from the reality that they expected.
Today's Gospel gives a vivid picture of this dilemma in their failure to appreciate the fact that Jesus speaks about his upcoming death and resurrection and the suffering involved in that particular path. The clear unfolding of that prediction met with confusion and fear on the part of his disciples because they found themselves unable to grasp this reality in light of their own expectations, hopes and dreams.
Their perception of their role in the reality of this kingdom led them to argue among themselves. Their expectations naturally convinced them of the importance of their own role in the fulfillment of Jewish hopes for their future and embroiled them in hostility, envy and enmity among themselves. Jesus again clearly demonstrated the importance of their role and how their role would be played out - in ways far different from their own perceptions. The little child in their midst presents clearly the ideal to which his disciples are called. How unaware they seemed to be of the call that was theirs to be of service rather than to be served.
Saint Francis de Sales speaks of the natural difficulty often involved in our acquiescence to the will of God. Often, we find ourselves in the position of the apostles in the Gospel account today, where following the will of God does not conform to our own expectations or desires. In the Treatise on the Love of God (Book 9, Chapter 2), Francis tells us:
“A truly living heart loves God's good pleasures not only in consolations but also in afflictions, but it loves it most of all in the cross, in pain, and labor, because love's principal power is to enable the lover to suffer for the beloved object.”
We need to ask ourselves today how our own expectations, hopes or dreams prevent us from truly acquiescing to the Will of God. Do the difficult times we encounter stifle us in our attempts to follow God's will? Have we been able to abandon our attempts to have God's will conform to our own desires and wills? Do we really appreciate the gift that Jesus is to us?
A prayerful reflection upon these questions will lead to that opportunity needed for us to acquiesce to the Will of God. What a necessary part of our journey of faith this process really is. In the Introduction to the Devout Life (Book 2, Chapter 1), St. Francis de Sales wrote:
“Prayer places our intelligence in the divine love. It is the best way to purge our intelligence of its ignorance and our will of its bad affections...I suggest, above all, Philothea, mental prayer of the mind and heart, especially that which is made on the Life and Passion of Our Lord. In contemplating Him you will be filled with Him; you will learn to act like Him and to conform your actions to His.”
*****
“No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light…”
In his commentary (which he entitles “Laws for Life”) on this selection from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay offers the following reflections for our consideration:
“Verse 16 stresses the essential conspicuous of the Christian life. Christianity is in its very nature something which must be seen. It is easy to find prudential reasons why we should not flaunt our Christianity in the world’s face. In almost every person there is an instinctive fear of being different, and the world is always likely to persecute those who do not conform to pattern. Hard as it may be, the duty is laid upon us of never being ashamed to show whose we are and whom we serve. The Christian, however humble one’s position and sphere, must never be ashamed to show his or her colors.”
“Verse 17 stresses the impossibility of secrecy. Sometimes we try to hide things from ourselves. Sometimes we try to hide things from other people. Sometimes we try to even hide things form God.” But as we all know from our own experience, things have a way of coming out. As the Bard himself reminds us, “the truth will out”. “Verse 18 lays down the universal law that the man who has will get more, and the man who has not will lose what he has. This is just another way of saying that there is no standing still in life. At all times we are either moving forward of falling back. The seeker will always find, whereas the man who stops seeking will lose even what he has.”
May God help us in our efforts to both live in the light and to share our light with others. May God help us in our efforts to refrain from keeping secrets. May God help us in our efforts to be seekers.
*****
“Live in a manner worthy of the call you have received…”
In his book This Saint’s for You, Thomas Craughwell writes:
“During the Roman Empire, tax collecting was one of the most lucrative jobs a person could have. With the emperor’s tacit approval, collectors were free to wring all they could from their district’s taxpayers and then keep a portion of the proceeds for themselves. Caesar did not mind the profiteering as long as the total assessed tax was delivered to his treasury. But Jewish taxpayers forced to pay the exorbitant sums were not quite so forgiving, especially when the tax collector was a fellow Jew, like Matthew. Jewish tax collectors were regarded as loathsome collaborators and extortionists who exploited their own people. It’s little wonder, then, that in the Gospels tax collectors are placed on par with harlots, thieves, and other shameless public sinners.”
“Matthew collected taxes in Capernaum, a town in the northern province of Galilee and the site of a Roman garrison. Christ was a frequent visitor there, performing such miracles as healing the centurion’s servant, curing Peter’s ailing mother-in-law, and raising Jairus’ daughter form the dead. One day, while passing the customs house where Matthew was busy squeezing extra shekels from his neighbors, Christ paused to say, ‘Follow me.’ That was all it took to touch Matthew’s heart. He walked out of the customs house forever, giving up his life as a cheat to become an apostle, the author of a Gospel and eventually a martyr.” (Page 12) Just when Matthew thought he had it made – just when he thought he was living la vita loca – Christ changed his life by calling him to live in a manner worthy of what God had in mind for him. Matthew – who clearly recognized an opportunity when he saw one – dropped everything he had valued up until that very moment to follow Jesus. And the rest, as they say, is history.
It is amazing to consider how a handful of words can change the trajectory of one’s life. A few words from Jesus transformed Matthew from being a human being who was all about taking from others into a man who was all about giving to others - even to the point of giving his very life.
Today, how might God’s words invite us to change and to transform our lives?
*****
“Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick…”
In his commentary on this selection from the Gospel of Luke, William Barclay offers the following reflections for our consideration:
“One thing which stands out about the ministry which Jesus laid upon the Twelve is this – repeatedly in this short passes it joins preaching and healing. It joins concern for our bodies and our souls. It was something which was not to deal only in words, however comforting, but also in deeds. It was a message which was not confined to news of eternity: it proposed to change conditions on earth. This was no ‘pie in the sky’ message. It insisted that health to one’s body was as integral a part of God’s purpose as health to one’s soul.”
In imitation of the Twelve and of Jesus himself, how might we preach a message that heals, in both words and deeds?
*****
“Born Francesco Forgione, Padre Pio grew up in a family of farmers in southern Italy. Twice (1898-1903 and 1910-17) his father worked in Jamaica, New York, to provide the family income.” “At the age of 15, Francesco joined the Capuchins and took the name of Pio. He was ordained in 1910 and was drafted during World War I. After he was discovered to have tuberculosis, he was discharged from the military. In 1917 he was assigned to the friary in San Giovanni Rotondo, 75 miles from the city of Bari on the Adriatic. On September 20, 1918, as he was making his thanksgiving after Mass, Padre Pio had a vision of Jesus. When the vision ended, he had the stigmata in his hands, feet and side.”
“His life became more complicated after that. Medical doctors, Church authorities and curiosity seekers came to see Padre Pio. In 1924 and again in 1931, the authenticity of the stigmata was questioned; Padre Pio was not permitted to celebrate Mass publicly or to hear confessions. He did not complain of these decisions, which were soon reversed. However, he wrote no letters after 1924. His only other writing, a pamphlet on the agony of Jesus, was done before 1924.”
“Padre Pio rarely left the friary after he received the stigmata, but busloads of people soon began coming to see him. Each morning following the 5:00 AM Mass in a crowded church, he heard confessions until noon. He took a mid-morning break to bless the sick and all who came to see him. Every afternoon he also heard confessions. Over time his confessional ministry would consume ten hours a day; penitents had to take a number in order to handle the crowds of people who came to see him.”
“Padre Pio particularly saw the face of Jesus in the faces of the sick and suffering. At his urging, a hospital was constructed on nearby Mount Gargano. Beginning in 1940 a committee began to collect money: six years later ground was broken. This ‘House for the Alleviation of Suffering’ had 350 beds.”
“Pius of Pietrelcina died on September 23, 1968, was beatified in 1999 and canonized in 2002.” (http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1147)
How might we see the face of Jesus in others today?
*****
“My spirit continues in your midst; do not fear!”
Pick a place, people or problem. On any given day, there are more than a few things that might cause us to fear. In a letter to Jane de Chantal, Francis de Sales counseled:
“Be brave – we shall win through God’s help. Believe me, this is a better sort of weather for a journey than if the sun were always shining on us. Recently I was watching bees and how they remained quietly in the shelter of their hives when the air is misty. They came out from time to time to see how things were going and yet they did not seem in a hurry to come out. Rather, they were busy eating to fill their honey. Be of good cheer! We have no control over any spiritual light or consolation except what depends on our will, and that is protected and sheltered by our holy resolutions. While the great seal of God’s chancery is upon our hearts there is nothing to fear.” (Stopp, Selected Letters, pp. 99 – 100)
Life can be a scary at times. Tempted as we might be, however, we cannot play it safe forever. We need to venture out from the hives of our minds and hearts on a daily basis – there is work to be done! Whatever challenges or difficulties we might experience today, let us try our level best not to succumb to fear. Remember – God continues in our midst, with us and among us.
(September 26, 2021: Saturday, Twenty-fifth Week Ordinary Time)
“Pay attention to what I am telling you.”
Some things in life are more important than others. With the hope of trying to impress upon another person that what we are about to say is of greater importance than other things, often, we might preface our advice with words like “listen up,” “pay attention” or “now hear this”.
While we would like to think that everything that Jesus said is of equal importance, Jesus clearly wanted to impress his disciples with the inevitability of his showdown with the religious leaders of his time. And while we know that Jesus raised this issue more than a few times in the Gospels, the disciples seem to have had difficulty in grasping the importance of this prediction.
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:
“The more pleasant and excellent are the objects our senses encounter, the more ardently and avidly do they enjoy them. The more beautiful, the more delightful to our sight, and the more effectively lighted they are, the more eagerly and attentively do our eyes look to them. The sweeter and more pleasant a voice or music is, the more completely is the ear’s attention drawn to it. This force is more or less strong in accordance with the greater or lesser excellence of the object, provided that it is proportionate to the capacity of the sense desiring to enjoy it. For example, although the eye finds great pleasure in light, it cannot bear extremely strong light, nor can it look steadily at the sun. No matter how beautiful music may be, if it is too loud and too close to us, it strikes harshly on the ear and disturbs it.” (TLG, Book III, Chapter 9, p. 186)
There are so many things that Jesus wants us to learn about the ways of living in God’s love. How well will we pay attention to what God may be telling us about those ways - just today?
