(The Bible) reveals to us a fact: it tells us
what we really are; it says, “This is the form in which God created you, to which He has restored you; this is the work which the Eternal Son, the God of Truth and Love, is continually carrying on within you.”
- Frederick Denison Maurice What kind of work has God been carrying on within you lately? How
are you called to cooperate?
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1 Maccabees 2:15-29
Psalm 50:1b-2, 5-6, 14-15 Luke 19:41-44 As Jesus drew near Jerusalem and came in sight of the city he shed tears
over it and said, ‘If you in your turn had only understood on this day the message of peace! But, alas, it is hidden from your eyes! Yes, a time is coming when your enemies will raise fortifications all round you, when they will encircle you and hem you in on every side; they will dash you and the children inside your walls to the ground; they will leave not one stone standing on another within you – and all because you did not recognise your opportunity when God offered it!’
Reflection on the Scriptures
Today’s readings present faithfulness from two very different perspectives. The Old Testament passage portrays a fierce and even violent defense of fidelity to God’s covenant. The Gospel, however, reveals another
kind of faithfulness, God’s compassionate response to our blindness and stubbornness. Jesus’ tears over Jerusalem express a love that refuses to give up on us, even when we cannot yet see the way to peace. Still, I am reminded that Mattathias died in exile and Jesus died on the cross. Faithfulness does not always lead to comfort or immediate success. I think of a group of retired nuns who I greatly admire. Their lives offer me a model of response. I see in them a deep lament for the world’s pain and for their own shortcomings in stewardship. Yet they remain steadfast as an aging group of women who are active in service, unafraid to openly speak against injustice, mutually supportive, and rooted in prayer. Their witness reminds me that faithfulness is both contemplation and action, grounded in love. My prayer today is to seek my own faithful response. Dear Lord, Give me a heart free from hardness.
Rooted in the Ignatian way of contemplation and
action,
open my eyes, my ears, and my spirit as I pray,
and show me the path of faithful service.
Grant me the courage of Mattathias
and the compassion of Christ. -by Mike Cherney
The Imitation of Christ, Thomas A. Kempis https://amzn.to/40FrikB Paperback and Kindle versions available BOOK
ONE: Thoughts Helpful in the Life of a Soul
The Ninth Chapter: Obedience and Subjection Everyone, it is true, wishes to do as he pleases and is attracted to those who agree with him. But if God be among us, we must at times give up our opinions for the blessings of peace. Furthermore, who is so wise that he can have full knowledge of everything? Do not trust too much in your own opinions, but be
willing to listen to those of others. If, though your own be good, you accept another's opinion for love of God, you will gain much more merit; for I have often heard that it is safer to listen to advice and take it than to give it. It may happen, too, that while one's own opinion may be good, refusal to agree with others when reason and occasion demand it, it can be a sign of pride and
obstinacy.
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