Discerning Doorways Amid Darkness & Danger

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

Readings: Jeremiah 20:10-13; Psalm 68 (69):8-10, 14, 17, 33-35; Romans 5:12-15; Matthew 10:26-33

Picture: By Milo Bauman on Unsplash

My dear friends, what do these two brief biblical phrases have in common? The first is, away with you. And the second, let it be. Away with you, and let it be… Each phrase has a meaning that’s the opposite of the other. The first is an expression of firm resistance. It’s what Jesus tells the devil in the wilderness, in Matthew’s gospel (4:11): Away with you, Satan!… The second phrase speaks not of resistance but of humble submission. The Blessed Virgin Mary uses it to respond to the angel Gabriel, at the Annunciation, in Luke’s gospel (1:11): Let it be with me according to your word… Firm resistance versus humble submission. Away with you, and let it be. What could these two phrases possibly have in common? Isn’t it true that both resistance and submission require courage? It takes courage to resist the devil, and to submit to God. And not just courage, but also wisdom. Wisdom to know when to resist and when to submit. But if this is true, then how, or from where, might we receive such courage and wisdom, especially if we happen to find ourselves surrounded by darkness and danger? Isn’t this the question our scriptures invite us to ponder today?

The first reading, presents us with another brief but striking phrase. This time spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: Terror from every side! In its biblical context, this phrase has more than one meaning. First, it refers to the persecution that the prophet himself is suffering. Most recently, he has been beaten up, and imprisoned overnight in the Temple. But beyond that, he has also been tormented by dark whispers, disparaging rumours, that others, including his friends, have been spreading about him behind his back. And what is the reason for this cruel persecution? It’s because Jeremiah has ignored repeated warnings from the authorities, telling him to stop preaching the unpopular message that God has given him. He has persisted in calling the people to surrender to the invading Babylonian army. In other words, through his actions, the prophet has been both resisting and submitting. To his opponents, he has effectively been saying, away with you. And to God, let it be. But that’s not all. The phrase terror from every side is not just a reference to Jeremiah’s sufferings. It’s also the nickname that the prophet gives to his chief persecutor. The one responsible for his beating and imprisonment. The priest, Pashur. For whether Pashur realises it or not, he too has been resisting and submitting. But in the opposite way. By submitting to popular demand, Pashur has been resisting God. And, as a result, a great disaster will soon befall the people. They will all experience terror on every side. The horrors that follow from being defeated in war.

But from where does Jeremiah receive the wisdom and courage to keep recognising and submitting to the will of God, while resisting all who oppose it? The prophet himself gives us the answer. Despite his own painful experience of terror from every side, Jeremiah is still able to cling to his faith and hope in the presence and action of God. He believes he is not alone. (T)he Lord is at my side, a mighty hero… And it is the Lord who sustains him. Giving him the wisdom and courage he needs to persevere. To know when to resist, and when to submit.

In the gospel too, we find yet another brief but striking phrase. One that Jesus utters repeatedly: Do not be afraid… Again, in order to better appreciate the significance of these words, it’s helpful to recall their biblical context. Just a little earlier, Jesus had summoned the Twelve, given them authority, and then sent them out to proclaim the good news, ’The kingdom of heaven has come near’ (10:7). But not before telling them to expect persecution, even from the closest members of the family. Then, in today’s reading, Jesus gives an indication of how they might receive the wisdom and courage needed to persevere in their difficult mission. How to not be afraid. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the daylight; what you hear in whispers, proclaim from the housetops… Implying that, even amid the dangers of persecution, the Lord remains with them, mysteriously guiding them, through whispers in the dark.

All of which may help us better understand the distinction St Paul is making in the second reading. The difference between Adam and Jesus. By disobeying God, and listening to the serpent, Adam makes himself a doorway for sin and death to enter and rule the world. In contrast, by resisting the devil, and submitting to God, Jesus becomes the Doorway for divine grace, overflowing from his Cross, as an abundant free gift for us all. And isn’t it true that, even amid the darkness and dangers of our hyper-modern world, both these spiritual doorways remain open to us? Inviting us to choose between them?

Some of us may recall that let it be is not just a phrase found in the Bible. It also happens to be the title of an old Beatles hit. It seems fitting to conclude our reflection with these memorable words from that hopeful song: And when the night is cloudy, there is still a light that shines on me. Shine until tomorrow. Let it be. I wake up to the sound of music. Mother Mary comes to me. Speaking words of wisdom. Let it be…. Whisper words of wisdom. Let it be…

Away with you, and let it be… Sisters and brothers, what can we do to help one another receive the wisdom and courage we need to continue properly resisting and submitting today?

Meal, Memory & Metamorphosis

Solemnity of The Most Holy

Body & Blood of Christ (A)

Readings: Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14-16; Psalm 147:12-15,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; John 6:51-58

Picture: By Joshua J. Cotten on Unsplash

What do butterflies and frogs have in common? One is a winged insect, flitting about from flower to flower. The other is an amphibian, hopping around ponds and streams on webbed feet. Yet we know that each of these creatures begins life with a very different appearance. A butterfly starts out looking like a worm, a frog like a fish. Then, at some point, a big change takes place. Something called metamorphosis. The lazy leaf-chewing caterpillar turns into an airborne nectar-sipping beauty. And the guppy-like water-breathing tadpole grows lungs and legs, to begin a new life on land. Both creatures undergo a radical transformation, not just in diet, but also in form. We might say that, in the process of growing up, both butterflies and frogs have to make a crossing from one way of life to another.

In contrast, we are spared such biological upheaval. A human baby is really just a tiny version of the adult. And as tumultuous as the teenage years may be––perhaps even more so for the parents than for their children––no real metamorphosis takes place. Even so, isn’t there another kind of crossing we need to undergo? One that’s not so much biological as it is spiritual? Isn’t this what our scriptures are inviting us to ponder today? To better see this, it helps to consider what the first reading and the gospel have in common. In each, we find someone giving a speech. First Moses, and then Jesus. And we need to pay attention not just to the content of the speech, but also especially to its context.

In the first reading, Moses addresses the people at a very specific point in their journey. They have recently completed a forty-year crossing of the wilderness. And now, they are preparing to cross the Jordan River, in order to begin a new life in the Promised Land. But more than just a change in geographical location, these 2 crossings have a profound spiritual significance for the people. They point to an ongoing journey, a process of radical transformation, of spiritual metamorphosis. By which a bunch of nobodies are being formed into the People of God. Isn’t this what Moses is asking them to remember and not forget? How the Lord your God… brought you out of the land of Egypt… guided you through this vast and dreadful wilderness… How God humbled you, made you feel hunger… fed you with manna… Why? To make you understand that… man does not live on bread alone but… on everything that comes from the mouth of God… It was to refine their spiritual appetites. To help them learn to be nourished by the Word of God. Much like how, in order to become an adult, a leaf-chewing caterpillar must learn to drink nectar. And a tadpole must learn to breath air, so as to live a new life on land.

Similarly, in the gospel, Jesus has been making crossings. As we may recall, he had earlier crossed from Capernaum to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Where he had miraculously multiplied bread for the people to eat. Before crossing back again to Capernaum. And those he had fed also crossed the lake in search of him. Likely hoping to keep enjoying free food. But Jesus takes care to point out that both his miraculous provision of food, as well as his multiple crossings of the lake, have a deeper spiritual significance. They point to the need for human beings to undergo a radical transformation, a spiritual metamorphosis, in order to reach maturity. A crossing from slavery and idolatry, to freedom and true worship. From selfishness and sin, to love and new life in the kingdom of God. And to help us make this life-changing crossing, Jesus himself will soon make another crossing of his own. He will Pass-Over from Death on the Cross to the Resurrection on the Third Day.

Through his Sacrifice on Good Friday, and the Supper eaten with his disciples the night before, Jesus will offer his flesh and blood as true spiritual nourishment. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in him… When we gather to remember and give thanks for his Sacrifice, and to be nourished at his Table, as well as when we subsequently disperse to become what we celebrate, we allow our appetites to be refined, and our lives to be transformed. So that together we may grow to true maturity. To become who we are meant to be. As the second reading tells us, by partaking of the one cup and the one loaf, we are drawn into communion in and with the One Lord. We are formed into a single maturing Body of Christ.

Isn’t this the deeper spiritual significance of the feast we are celebrating with such solemnity today? Isn’t this what it means to share in the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ? To celebrate and live the great Mystery of the Most Holy Eucharist? And isn’t this something we need to bear firmly in mind and heart? Not least because we live in a society devoted to and defined by a juvenile form of consumption? Where appetites are warped by advertising, and attentions waylaid by compulsions that may appear and feel so urgent, but are actually illusory. A world that, for all its technological advancements, often finds itself still stuck in a tumultuous self-absorbed adolescence.

Sisters and brothers, a caterpillar is meant to become a butterfly. A tadpole must grow into a frog. What can we do to help one another to keep making that crucial crossing to true maturity in the Lord today?