Saturday in the 17th Week of Ordinary Time (II)
The Rescue of Jeremiah and John

Readings: Jeremiah 26:11-16, 24; Psalm 69:15-16, 30-31, 33-34; Matthew 14:1-12

Two prophets with different fates – that seems to be the subject of our two readings today. Both Jeremiah and John the Baptist encounter persecution and both face the death sentence. In the first reading, however, Jeremiah finds a protector in Ahikam son of Shaphan. But in the gospel, John the Baptist is beheaded in prison. Were not both faithful to their God-given mission? Did both not cry out to God for help – just as the psalmist does in the responsorial psalm? Rescue me from sinking in the mud; save me from my foes… In your great love, answer me, O God. And yet God does not seem to heed the prayer of John even as God rescues Jeremiah.

John’s experience is not foreign to us. We probably know, at least to some extent, what it feels like to suffer for doing what is right without being rescued in spite of our prayers. And the media brings us news of innocent suffering and death on a daily basis.

At such times, we may think that God has forsaken us. Has He?

A hint of an answer appears at the end of today’s gospel reading. We are told that John’s disciples went off to tell Jesus about John's fate. The last word of the reading provides the consolation in our desolation. Although God may seem to allow John the Baptist to walk into the terrifying mists of darkness and death, it is not a journey into oblivion. Rather, in Jesus, God accompanies John. In Jesus, God shares in John’s agony and anguish. We are reminded especially of Jesus’ cry on the cross: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46) In Jesus, God gives John the answer beyond all answers. In Jesus, God stretches out His mighty arm to save in a manner that transcends all others. For in Jesus, God enters into every human experience possible, even the experience of death. O death where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting? (1 Corinthians 15:55) It is thus also in Jesus, that we find the strength to walk the way of the prophet, to work towards that day when innocent suffering and death may be forever eradicated.

Read in faith, today’s readings tell of how both prophets – both Jeremiah and John – are rescued by God. For the Lord listens to the needy and does not spurn his servants in their chains. How is God rescuing us today?

Friday in the 17th Week of Ordinary Time (II)
Memorial of St. John Vianney – Priest
Survival and Prophecy

Readings: Jeremiah 26:1-9; Psalm 69:5, 8-10, 14; Matthew 13:54-58

In these trying times in which we live, it is easy to get caught up in the ongoing effort to meet all the demands on our time and energy. It can be so tiring trying to meet all our obligations. And yet it seems we have to keep going at breakneck speed simply to survive – to secure our place in the world. Even our religion, our Christian faith, can often become a matter of obligation and survival. As with our secular responsibilities, it seems we need also to satisfy our religious obligations in order that we may secure our place in heaven. But is this all there is to it? Is ours simply a religion of survival?

Our readings present us with another perspective. They invite reflection on prophecy. What are some of its characteristics? First, prophecy is a response to a real need. The people in the first reading worship in the Temple of the Lord without understanding. They need Jeremiah’s call to repentance. The same can be said of the people in the gospel, to whom Jesus speaks. And this word is not proclaimed at the prophet’s whim. The prophet receives it from God with the command to proclaim it. It is a divine imperative. You must speak the words I have commanded you to tell them; do not omit one syllable. Sadly, however, the prophetic ministry often provokes scorn and rejection. They would not accept him. And yet, the prophet is called to continue his God-given mission and so to win salvation not just for himself, but also for those to whom he is sent.

Are the times in which we live any different from those of Jeremiah and Jesus? Clearly, the voice of the prophet is needed now, perhaps more than ever. But who are the prophets of our day? The natural reaction of many to this question is perhaps immediately to look around at others. And yet, is every Christian not called to be a prophet in his or her own unique way? Is each of us not part of a Church that is called to be a prophetic sign to the world? If so, then we need somehow to move beyond our religion of survival towards one of prophecy. Even as we go through the daily grind, we need somehow to find the time and space for God’s word to address us and impel us. Ironically, the survival of our world -- as much as our own -- depends upon it...

Thursday in the 17th Week of Ordinary Time (II)
Pottery and Kite-Flying

Readings: Jeremiah 18:1-6; Psalm 146:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6ab; Matthew 13:47-53

Survival in this world of ours necessitates constant change. Governments exhort citizens to be nimble, to learn to adapt as quickly as possible to global conditions that shift from second to second. We must keep moving towards the new or be left behind. But change, especially rapid change, produces anxiety. And in the midst of our daily struggles, we find ourselves yearning for some firm foundation, something stable and unchanging that can anchor us. Is this not why we are seeing a renewed interest in religion?

And yet, even in religion, one has to be careful how and where to cast one’s anchor. To be a Christian one also needs to be willing to change. Isn’t this an important aspect of the first reading? God calls the House of Israel to learn to be the clay in the hands of the divine potter, who sometimes wishes to start afresh and work it into another vessel. This is radical change.

Is there no consolation for us then? Is our yearning for a firm foundation doomed to remain unsatisfied? No. The readings speak not only of the new and the changing, but also of the old and the constant. Every scribe who becomes a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out from his storeroom things both new and old. Even when the clay is refashioned into something drastically different, does it not remain the same piece of clay?

But there is more. Beyond simply an exhortation to change, the first reading is also an invitation to submit to the firm yet tender hand of the divine potter, even as He sometimes seems to break us. We are being called to let God be our only firm foundation.

I watched a play last weekend. The kite was its central metaphor. There are at least two essentials in kite-flying. The wind, of course, is needed to propel the kite. But one also needs a string to prevent its loss.

Today, how are we being called to submit to the divine potter? How are we being invited to let God be our wind and our string?

Wednesday in the 17th Week of Ordinary Time (II)
The Heartfelt Cry and the Divine Reply

Memorial of Blessed Peter Faber, S.J.

Readings: Jeremiah 15:10, 16-21; Psalm 59:2-3, 4, 10-11, 17, 18; Matthew 13:44-46

There is a question that, at one time or another, probably crosses the mind of everyone who prays: Has my prayer been heard? Or: When will God answer my prayer? Today’s readings help us to reflect on the kind of prayer that actually receives a favorable reply. In particular we are invited to observe how Jeremiah prays and how God answers him.

We notice, first of all, the honesty and directness of Jeremiah’s prayer. There’s no beating around the bush or false diplomacy. Jeremiah says whatever is in his heart. He has faithfully carried out God’s mission for him, but has received only persecution in return. He cries to God for help. Notice how direct he is: Your anger is very slow… I suffer insult for your sake… Why is my suffering continual…? Do you mean to be for me a deceptive stream with inconstant waters?

And God does indeed give Jeremiah a reply – a word that contains a lesson. God tells Jeremiah what he needs to do to experience God’s salvation: If you come back… If you utter noble, not despicable thoughts… Even as Jeremiah complains about the cost of his divine calling, God invites him to an even deeper fidelity, promising that in return, I mean to deliver you from the hands of the wicked and redeem you from the clutches of the violent. In effect, God is asking Jeremiah to be like the two people in the gospel parables of today. Having found something priceless, they sell everything they own in order to take possession of it. Similarly, God is asking Jeremiah to sell all – including his security, his good reputation, redress against his persecutors…

Is this not also the same sentiment expressed by the psalmist when he says that God is my stronghold, a refuge in the day of my distress? Strongholds and refuges are only effective if, forsaking other places, one actually enters them. One cannot be in two places at the same time.

Where do I find my treasure? In whom do I take refuge?

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.

– Hebrews 5:7

Tuesday in the 17th Week of Ordinary Time (II)
Memorial of St. Alphonsus Liguori

Two Faces of Terror

Readings: Jeremiah 14:17-22; Psalm 79:8, 9, 11 and 13; Matthew 13:36-43

There is terror and destruction in both readings today. In the first, the prophet laments the great destruction that he witnesses around him. In the gospel, Jesus describes the terrible fate that will befall the weeds: they will be thrown into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. There are, however, crucial differences between these two faces of terror. The first is seen in time, the second at time’s end. Those who experience the first can still hope for a time of healing. Not so for those in the second. The first is reversible, the second is final.

Perhaps the natural first reaction to these two descriptions is one of fear and anxiety. Clearly, both readings present us with a warning. We must do what is necessary to avoid such horrors.

But deeper reflection makes another reaction possible. More than just a warning, the readings also celebrate something we all need, something for which we all yearn: the merciful compassion of God. They invite us, especially in times of trial, to turn our eyes to the One who makes His rain fall upon good and bad alike. They remind us that the terror at the end of time is still not yet. That it is precisely because of God’s compassion that we still live on this side of eternity. That whatever the trials that befall us in the present, there is still hope – not in any creaturely reality, but in God alone. It is still possible to turn our hearts to God, begging as the psalmist does that God's compassion (might) quickly come to us… (who) are brought very low.

On this feast of St. Alphonsus, we are also reminded of the hope that brings so many to the Novena Church on Thomson Road. We are reminded of the letters of petition and of thanksgiving. And we find reassurance that when our hopes are placed in God, we will ultimately not be disappointed.

Even so, we must not take God’s mercy for granted . We must not delay if there is something for which we need to repent. For the first reaction of fear and anxiety is not without basis. The end of time will ultimately come. And we know what awaits those who have been living the life of weeds instead of wheat. We need to do what is necessary to shine like the sun in the Kingdom.

Whoever has ears ought to hear.