IS HARDSHIP GOOD FOR US?
“. . . they took Jeremiah
and threw him into the cistern of Prince Malchiah,
which was in the quarters of the guard,
letting him down with ropes.
There was no water in the cistern, only mud,
and Jeremiah sank into the mud. . . .
Ebed-melech, a court official,
and three men along with him,
drew the prophet Jeremiah out of the cistern.” Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10
“Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,
let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us.” Hebrews 12:1
“Jesus said to his disciples:
‘I have come to set the earth on fire,
and how I wish it were already blazing!
There is a baptism with which I must be baptized,
and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished!
Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth?
No, I tell you, but rather division.
From now on a household of five will be divided,
three against two and two against three.'” Luke 12:49-53
Is hardship good for us and maybe even needed for our own growth into being the persons we are meant to be? And what part should we be playing in our own and other people’s hardships?
Two points and then I suggest that you listen to Bishop Barron’s homily using the link below.
GOD CALLS US: SOMETIMES TO BE PROPHETS, OTHER TIMES, TO BE PROPHET-RESCUERS
In the first reading we have a prophet, Jeremiah, and four men who rescue him. That’s the way God works, even today. Sometimes we are to be today’s prophets, and, at other times, we are to be today’s rescuers of prophets. Recall your recent moments when you were (1) called upon to be the prophet, and (2) called upon to be the rescuer of the prophet: How did you respond? How can you better respond in the future?
ACCEPT JESUS’ WHOLE MESSAGE, NOT JUST THE PARTS THAT ARE EASY FOR ME TO ACCEPT
This is a Gospel that tends to make more than a few of us cringe, for it seems to go against the loving-kind-forgiving Jesus we want to focus on, rather than looking straight into the eyes of the Jesus who came to fix a world gone wrong and to show us how to keep on doing this. Is this loving-kind-forgiving Jesus the whole Jesus or just a one-sided construct of our imaginations, of our wanting Jesus and God simply to love us, no matter what we do or don’t do? (God does, but how would you feel if you children chose to waste their own gifts and all that you give them? Don’t you think your feeling that way toward your children was instilled in you by God to give you a sense of what God hopes you will do with your capabilities?)
This Lukan Gospel comes after the story about a servant who knew what his Master wanted but instead did what he wanted. Have I ever given in to this temptation? Am I doing that now: being quite sure about what God wants of me – like going to Mass and helping people around me who need help – but, instead, choosing to do something more to my liking?
And the next Lukan Gospel passage is Jesus telling the people of his day that they take note of the signs of nature (wind and clouds) to forecast the coming weather, but they don’t take note of societal signs that indicate future ramifications of present day societal trends. Do our images of God and of Jesus need to be “set on fire” and replaced with “the baptism with which we must be baptized” – our deaths to our ways and births to being ablaze in God’s ways.
“Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,
let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us.” Hebrews 12:1
Sister Loretta
Link to Bishop Barron’s homily on these readings.