2024-07-06 06:28:22
What wisdom is that?
Brothers, peace and goodness.
We reach the fourteenth week of ordinary time. The thing, this time, is going out. What Pope Francis often reminds us of, the “disappearing Church”. It seems to me that Ezequiel was not doing very well. Neither is Jesus. His life became complicated as soon as he left home. And for Pól, in the second reading, that dedication did not solve his life either. Let’s go by parts.
The Lord sends the prophet Ezekiel to speak to the people of Israel who are in exile. Whether the exile was the fault of the exiles or not, what is striking is that God does not forsake His own. Ever. And he uses ordinary people to wake up his people. A man whose only quality is to be called by God. Let us not forget that it is not a prophet who divines the future, nor the one who performs countless miracles, but the person who speaks in the name of the Lord. In this case, bring the Word to the exiles in Babylon. The comfort, because, despite everything – despite being far from home, without a temple, without priests, without hope – the Lord is with them.
The shipping is not very exciting. “Whether they listen to you or not, because they are rebellious people, they will know that there was a prophet among them.” Moments will come when this announcement will bear fruit, for now, we must put, we must work, and leave the reaction to everyone’s conscience. The important thing is that God does not stop sending signs, so that we all repent and return home.
I said first, for Paul, he did not set his life as a messenger. The Apostle to the Gentiles tells us about that “thorn” stuck in his flesh. A version that does not allow him to live. We could think of his position as a guarantee, an insurance against accidents and illnesses. Well no. We often complain that God does not listen to us, that he does not answer, that he does not give us what we ask, when we ask for it… With all the merits that Paul has accumulated, and he is not healed. The question is not what we want or ask for, but what God has prepared for us. For Paul, God does not take away the discomfort, the illness, but gives him the strength to overcome it. Because we already know that God reveals himself through weak people. That is why it does not make us free from illnesses, defects, fatigue…
When I bless an apartment, the first thing I tell them is that holy water is not a guarantee that the upstairs neighbor won’t leave the tap running or the power won’t go out. Rather, it is an expression of our desire for God to be present in our lives. Always. In this way, we become the Lord’s co-workers. With everything we have, our character, our style, our weaknesses and our doubts. Like St. Thomas, who also doubted, and at the last moment, acknowledged Christ as his Lord and God. Let us not be afraid of weakness, then we can be strong with the Lord. So we recognize that we are not omnipotent. Like Paul. He didn’t get the answer he expected, but he got a much better answer: he felt supported by God’s love, God’s strength was achieved in his weakness. God always wants our good, but he limited us and does not want to free us from the difficulties and obstacles that arise from our human limitations.
Even for Jesus things did not go too well. When he is calm at home, not attracting attention, working in the workshop, he has no problems and no one says anything to him. Now, when he starts talking about the Kingdom of God, to try to change ritual and religious habits, everything becomes complicated. Because his offer of the Kingdom of God was an extremely open offer, nothing exclusive, not reserved for any sector with special merits, something similar to what we are told about those who go into the Legion: they are accepted without being asked about their past. history.
The end result is conflict. It is the Messiah, the Savior, someone long expected, but when he appears he is not recognized. It is a drama for Jesus and a drama for his people. Jesus was for them an “unknown old man.” They knew precisely some of his relations: his mother, his brothers, his sisters. But they didn’t even look at the other deep relationship, the one that Mark’s gospel puts before us at the beginning and at the end: Jesus, Son of God. They stayed on the surface; They did not get the truth.
On the one hand, his people are very surprised at the wisdom of those words, which were not like the words of the scribes and the Pharisees. At the same time, the miracles he performs amaze them. On the other hand, they are afraid of the changes in their life (social, community, religious…) that it implies. It seems that everything is already weighed, counted and measured. And an earthquake comes the message of Christ.
Perhaps the basic message we can gather is simply this: Jesus is for you as you let him be. The neighbors of his town did not allow him to be any neighborhood other than another neighbor, instead of allowing him to be what he was and claimed to be: the bringer of health and salvation. Yes: Jesus is for you as you let him be. Ask yourself: do I open myself up enough to meet him? Is he an “old stranger” to me too because I think I know him so much?
Your brother in faith, Alejandro, CMF
#Commentary #Sunday #Gospel #July