The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to learn from “either/or '' characterizations how God’s mercy operates in the “both/and” of our lives.
Life choices
The reading from the Prophet Hosea is a call to repentance in the face of the impenitence of Israel and Judah.
* [6:2] After two days; on the third day: presumptuous Israel expects that soon God will renew them (cf. Ez 37). * [6:5] The word of God proclaimed by the prophets is effective, it accomplished what it promised: punishment.1
Psalm 51 is a prayer for cleansing and pardon.
* [Psalm 51] A lament, the most famous of the seven Penitential Psalms, prays for the removal of the personal and social disorders that sin has brought. The poem has two parts of approximately equal length: Ps 51:3–10 and Ps 51:11–19, and a conclusion in Ps 51:20–21. The two parts interlock by repetition of “blot out” in the first verse of each section (Ps 51:3, 11), of “wash (away)” just after the first verse of each section (Ps 51:4) and just before the last verse (Ps 51:9) of the first section, and of “heart,” “God,” and “spirit” in Ps 51:12, 19. The first part (Ps 51:3–10) asks deliverance from sin, not just a past act but its emotional, physical, and social consequences. The second part (Ps 51:11–19) seeks something more profound than wiping the slate clean: nearness to God, living by the spirit of God (Ps 51:12–13), like the relation between God and people described in Jer 31:33–34. Nearness to God brings joy and the authority to teach sinners (Ps 51:15–16). Such proclamation is better than offering sacrifice (Ps 51:17–19). The last two verses express the hope that God’s good will toward those who are cleansed and contrite will prompt him to look favorably on the acts of worship offered in the Jerusalem Temple (Ps 51:19 [20–21]).2
In the Gospel of Luke, the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax-Collector contrasts religiosity and humility.
* [18:1–14] The particularly Lucan material in the travel narrative concludes with two parables on prayer. The first (Lk 18:1–8) teaches the disciples the need of persistent prayer so that they not fall victims to apostasy (Lk 18:8). The second (Lk 18:9–14) condemns the self-righteous, critical attitude of the Pharisee and teaches that the fundamental attitude of the Christian disciple must be the recognition of sinfulness and complete dependence on God’s graciousness. The second parable recalls the story of the pardoning of the sinful woman (Lk 7:36–50) where a similar contrast is presented between the critical attitude of the Pharisee Simon and the love shown by the pardoned sinner.3
Chas Kestermeier, S.J. comments that Jesus gives the example of two men who are seemingly polar opposites, and yet each of them exists to some extent in each of us – and Jesus encourages us to choose the self-admitted sinner to be more of a model for us than the self-satisfied Pharisee.
This Gospel reading’s final verse, “Everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled while the one who humbles himself shall be exalted,” generalizes this taking the road less traveled. Jesus draws the conclusion for the parable, but that last verse invites us to be dissatisfied with the obvious and logical in every aspect of our lives, especially our religious lives, and to go beyond our past under the direction and in the strength of the Spirit whom Jesus gives us. And the Spirit is lovingly imaginative about where it craves to take us, dreaming dreams for our lives that we could never conceive of for ourselves.4
Don Schwager quotes “God's mercy is our only hope,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Driven out of paradise by You and exiled in a distant land, I cannot return by myself unless You, O Lord, come to meet me in my wandering. My return is based on hope in your mercy during all of my earthly life. My only hope, the only source of confidence, and the only solid promise is your mercy." (excerpt from Commentary on Psalm 24,5)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 18:9-14 shares that Jesus offers an antidote to the various pitfalls of comparing ourselves to other people (Luke 18:9). While the Pharisee focused on congratulating himself, the tax collector focused on asking for mercy. This, according to Jesus, is the remedy to unhealthy comparison. God’s mercy is greater than our neighbor’s sin, so we should love him as Jesus does. God’s mercy is also greater than our weakness. Remember our dignity in Christ and the love with which Jesus always looks at us.
So when you are tempted to put other people down or put yourself down, turn your heart toward God instead. Speak to him with openness and simplicity about your struggles, and place your hope in his endless mercy. That mercy is greater than any sin ever committed. And it’s always available. As St. Faustina wrote, “One thing alone is necessary; that the sinner set ajar the door of his heart, be it ever so little, to let in a ray of God’s merciful grace.” “Jesus, teach me to be as merciful as you are, both toward other people and toward myself.”6
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the connection of the sinner in Hosea to Jesus. The religious pride of the Pharisee is contrasted with the humble pursuit of mercy by the despised tax collector. Friar Jude reminds us of the great generosity of God who offers us mercy.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, offers a description of contemplation and “the mind of Christ” as an entry into prayer.
In contemplative practice, we refuse to identify with any one side, while still maintaining our intelligence. We hold the creative tension of every seeming conflict and go beyond words to pure, open-ended experience, which has the potential to unify many seeming contradictions. We cannot know God the way we know anything else; we only know God subject to subject, by a process of mirroring. This is the “mind of Christ” (see 1 Corinthians 2:16). It really is a different way of knowing, and you can tell it by its gratuity, its open-endedness, its compassion, and by the way it is so creative and energizing in those who allow it.7
Even as the environment of our time seems to continually attempt to corral us into opposing tribes, we are informed by the Spirit of the role both pride and humility play in our relationships with God and others.
References
No comments:
Post a Comment