The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with the attitude of trust that opens us to responding decisively to “Grace moments”.
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| Grace moments |
In the reading from the First Book of Kings, Elisha becomes Elijah’s disciple.
* [19:19–21] Elijah’s act of throwing his mantle over the shoulders of Elisha associates him with Elijah as a servant (v. 21). Elisha will later succeed to Elijah’s position and prophetic power (2 Kgs 2:1–15). Elisha’s prompt response, destroying his plow and oxen, signifies a radical change from his former manner of living.1
Psalm 16 is a song of trust and security in God.
* [Psalm 16] In the first section, the psalmist rejects the futile worship of false gods (Ps 16:2–5), preferring Israel’s God (Ps 16:1), the giver of the land (Ps 16:6). The second section reflects on the wise and life-giving presence of God (Ps 16:7–11).2
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus teaches about making oaths.
* [5:37] Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No’: literally, “let your speech be ‘Yes, yes,’ ‘No, no.’” Some have understood this as a milder form of oath, permitted by Jesus. In view of Mt 5:34, “Do not swear at all,” that is unlikely. From the evil one: i.e., from the devil. Oath-taking presupposes a sinful weakness of the human race, namely, the tendency to lie. Jesus demands of his disciples a truthfulness that makes oaths unnecessary.3
Larry Hopp comments that going through verses 1 through 32 of this crucial chapter in Matthew clarified Jesus’ message in today’s Gospel and clearly brought that message into focus. We are to see our current pandemic fears through His eyes. Today’s Gospel verses about “not making oaths that we cannot keep” points us to the simple truth of our need to trust God and to accept the fact that He alone is in control.
All of this slowly began to make sense for me. So much of these pandemic issues seem to defy world logic, yet I am confident that Jesus is calling us to view these times through His eyes. It seems that the fifth chapter of Matthew was written precisely for times such as these. Are we letting fear paralyze us, or are we keeping our eyes open for opportunities to be a blessing to those God has placed in our lives? Are we trying to impress with fine sounding arguments or just simply demonstrating a simple trust in Jesus? Are we clearly living each day with the rock solid faith of our true inheritance? In the first reading for today, we are introduced to a clear example of what trusting God “in the moment” should look like. Elisha was living his day-to-day life when something totally unexpected confronted him. Elijah showed up with an opportunity that would change Elisha’s world forever. Amazingly, Elisha instantly embraced this challenge with shocking courage. He simply trusted God completely, dealt with the immediate needs of this new challenge and went on to fulfill his God given destiny.4
Don Schwager quotes “The Light of Truth,” by Chromatius, an early Christian scholar and bishop of Aquileia, Italy. He was a close friend of John Chrysostom and Jerome. He died in 406 AD. Jerome described him as a "most learned and most holy man."
"By the grace of gospel teaching, the law given by Moses acquired an advantage. The law prescribes that one must not swear falsely; but according to the gospel one must not swear at all. The Holy Spirit had seen fit to order this through Solomon when he said, 'Do not accustom your mouth to oaths' (Sirach 23:9). And again: 'Even as a well-chastised servant is not deterred from envy, whoever swears and does business will not be purged from sin' (Sirach 23:11). Therefore it is absolutely inappropriate for us to swear. What need is there for us to swear when we are not allowed to lie at all and our words must always be true and trustworthy, so much so that they may be taken as an oath? On this, the Lord not only forbids us to swear falsely but even to swear, lest we appear to tell the truth only when we swear and lest (while we should be truthful in our every word) we think it is all right to lie when we do not take an oath. For this is the purpose of an oath: Everyone who swears, swears to the fact what he is saying is true. Therefore the Lord does not want a gap between our oath and our ordinary speech. Even as there must be no faithlessness in an oath, in our words there must be no lie. For both false swearing and lying are punished with divine judgment, as the Scripture says: 'The mouth that lies kills the soul' (Wisdom 1:11). So whoever speaks the truth swears, for it is written: 'A faithful witness will not lie' (Proverbs 14:5). (excerpt from TRACTATE ON MATTHEW 24.2.2–4)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-10 inspires us to ask the Holy Spirit to help us go “all in” with him. We can have the courage to do this because Jesus already went all in with us. In whatever situation we face today, big or small, he is already there, ready to provide for us.
So take a risk and pray with your sick child for healing, or choose to forgive and reach out to someone who has hurt you, or talk about your faith and risk being misunderstood. God will bless your efforts and reward you. With every act of faith, your confidence in Jesus will grow. Soon you’ll discover that you can take even bigger steps of trust. And that is an inheritance worth betting on!
“You are my inheritance, O God.”6
Friar Jude Winkler invites us to consider the response of Elisha to the “Grace Moment” as we remember sometimes that we may have squandered such opportunities. When God calls, we have to respond. Friar Jude reminds us that Jesus is calling us to be honest and transparent in our dealings with people.
A post by Franciscan media on Saint Anthony of Padua, Saint of the Day for June 13, reflects that the gospel call to leave everything and follow Christ was the rule of Saint Anthony of Padua’s life. Over and over again, God called him to something new in his plan. Every time Anthony responded with renewed zeal and self-sacrificing to serve his Lord Jesus more completely.
Anthony should be the patron of those who find their lives completely uprooted and set in a new and unexpected direction. Like all saints, he is a perfect example of turning one’s life completely over to Christ. God did with Anthony as God pleased—and what God pleased was a life of spiritual power and brilliance that still attracts admiration today. He whom popular devotion has nominated as finder of lost objects found himself by losing himself totally to the providence of God.7
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, cites African American theologian and mystic Rev. Dr. Howard Thurman (1899–1981) who played a pivotal role in the social and racial justice efforts of the twentieth century. Dr. Thurman describes a contemplative and healing experience in the midst of crisis. We consider what we must face, even if we go through it “crying all the way.”
St. Francis of Assisi, in his youth, found it impossible to control his deep physical and emotional revulsion against leprosy. So acute was his reaction that he could not ever run the risk of looking at a leper. Shortly after he had made his first commitment to his Lord, he was riding down the road, when suddenly there appeared a leper. Instinctively, he turned his horse around and went galloping off in the opposite direction, his whole body bathed in nervous sweat. Then he realized what he was doing. Leprosy was one of the things he could not stand—as long as that was true, leprosy would be his jailer, his master. He turned around as abruptly as before, found the leper, and according to the story, remained with him, living intimately with him until every trace of his previous reaction had been mastered. Thus freed, he could be of tremendous service to the victims of the disease.8
Our decisions in moments of Grace are important. Our honest and transparent actions reflect our desire to live guided by the Spirit.
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