We don’t realize it but as Catholics, attending Sunday services, we hear about 75% of the New Testament over a three year cycle. Not bad for a community that is typically discounted as not paying enough attention to the bible.
And, in that 75% there are probably a couple of scripture passages that we are particularly fond of. I have always loved the story of the woman at the well. There are so many messages in that one encounter that I could read it over and over and always find something new.
For you, it is probably something different and once you told me which one it was I would surlily agree that it was also one of my favorite. No doubt there are calendars that you can purchase with readings of the month, or week , or day. I am also fairly confident that today’s gospel reading would not appear on any of those calendar pages.
With all respect, “Brother will hand over brother to death,
and the father his child; children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all because of my name,” is a little bit difficult to get all warm and fuzzy about.
What was Jesus thinking about? To go from, “Love your neighbor as I have loved you”, to “children will rise up against parents and have them put to death” is a bit of a stretch.
But is it really? “Love your neighbor as I have loved you” is not all honey and crackers. The way that He loved us was that He allowed his “brothers” to hand him over to be killed. “Brother will hand over brother to death” The way that He loved us was that His Father allowed him to be handed over to death. “and father his child”.
If we are traumatized from this initial reading of the Gospel how are we not equally traumatized by the events of Good Friday.
Perhaps this is because we think that what He is really telling us is that we should never place any other god before our God. Perhaps that is easier to understand, and easier to put into place. I mean who of us have recently made a graven image in the form of a deity and placed that object above our worship of our God? That just doesn’t happen these days. Right? It was typical for the time of Moses. He couldn’t even go for a short hike and members of his community were pulling out each others gold fillings to melt them down into the form of a half bull something or another. We are much more civilized now. We would never do that.
At least not a half bull something but what about a car? Have we ever placed a car before our God? Or a another possession? Or what about a position? We do not melt things down to set before our God, we raise things up to be above our God. What about my lawn, or my tools, or my personal space?
How often do we place ourselves before our God? Our opinions, our comfort, our time? What are the things that we lift up to the point that it blocks out our God?
Today’s gospel is a tough one. He says, “when they persecute you in one town, flee to another.
Amen, I say to you, you will not finish the towns of Israel
before the Son of Man comes.” He is suggesting that this persecution will take place so often, in so many towns that we will run out of towns to go to before our days are done.
Like I said, not a gospel likely to make that 365 days Readings of Gospel calendar. But definitely one that should make us want to stop and think.
“Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; do not worry about how you are to speak
or what you are to say.
You will be given at that moment what you are to say.
For it will not be you who speak
but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
When the Spirit of truth comes,
he will guide you to all truth
and remind you of all I told you.
Alleluia
MT 10:16-23
Jesus said to his Apostles:
“Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves;
so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves.
But beware of men,
for they will hand you over to courts
and scourge you in their synagogues,
and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake
as a witness before them and the pagans.
When they hand you over,
do not worry about how you are to speak
or what you are to say.
You will be given at that moment what you are to say.
For it will not be you who speak
but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
Brother will hand over brother to death,
and the father his child;
children will rise up against parents and have them put to death.
You will be hated by all because of my name,
but whoever endures to the end will be saved.
When they persecute you in one town, flee to another.
Amen, I say to you, you will not finish the towns of Israel
before the Son of Man comes.”
July 8, 2022
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