The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with our experience of fidelity and hope in our relationships with our loved ones and God.
The reading from the Prophet Hosea is a description of the Lord and Israel as His Spouse.
* [2:18–19] Baal: the word means “lord, master.” It was commonly used by women of their husbands, but it is to be shunned as a title for the Lord because of its association with the fertility gods, the Baals. Many Israelites saw little if any difference between the worship of the Lord and the worship of the Baals, thereby dishonoring the true source of the land’s fertility. (Hosea, CHAPTER 2, n.d.)
Psalm 145 praises the Greatness and the Goodness of God.
* [Psalm 145] A hymn in acrostic form; every verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Acrostic poems usually do not develop ideas but consist rather of loosely connected statements. The singer invites all to praise God (Ps 145:1–3, 21). The “works of God” make God present and invite human praise (Ps 145:4–7); they climax in a confession (Ps 145:8–9). God’s mighty acts show forth divine kingship (Ps 145:10–20), a major theme in the literature of early Judaism and in Christianity. (Psalms, PSALM 145, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Matthew a girl is restored to life and a woman is healed.
* [9:18–34] In this third group of miracles, the first (Mt 9:18–26) is clearly dependent on Mark (Mk 5:21–43). Though it tells of two miracles, the cure of the woman had already been included within the story of the raising of the official’s daughter, so that the two were probably regarded as a single unit. The other miracles seem to have been derived from Mark and Q, respectively, though there Matthew’s own editing is much more evident. (Matthew, CHAPTER 9, n.d.)
Gladyce Janke comments that In reality, God’s “big miracles” happen every day and everywhere in everyone’s life. God’s overflowing generosity for humanity begins with the creation story, is proclaimed by the Psalmist (The Lord is good to all and compassionate to all His works, Ps. 145: 9) and brought to fullness in the ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Big miracles are in a beautiful sunrise, songbirds greeting the day, rain, and the ordinariness of living. All these, and so many more that go unseen and unacknowledged, are expressions of God’s love – daily “big miracles.”
St. Ignatius teaches us that gratitude is the foundation of the spiritual life, a life for God and others. God’s grace keeps my world safe and provides what I need to live fully and grow my relationship with God. I should not wait until I experience what I consider a “big miracle” before I begin thanking God for all I am and have – the daily miracles that I sometimes overlook. (Creighton U. Daily Reflection, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “Daughter, your faith has made you well,” by John Chrysostom (347-407 AD).
"So what did Messiah do? He did not let her go unnoticed but led her into the center of attention and made her visible. He had many reasons for doing this. Some might imagine that 'he did this merely for love of glory - otherwise why would he not allow her to remain concealed?' But what are they proposing who might say this? That he should keep her silent, that he should ignore her need, and thereby pass up miracles too numerous to mention, all because he is in love with glory? What an unholy thought, inspired by the most unholy one of all."
"What then is his intention in bringing her forward? First, Jesus puts an end to her fear. He does not want her to remain trapped in dread. He gives no cause for her conscience to be harmed, as if she had stolen the gift. Second, he corrects her assumption that she has no right to be seen. Third, he makes her faith an exhibit to all. He encourages the others to emulate her faith. Fourth, his subduing the fountains of her hemorrhage was another sign of his knowledge of all things. And finally, do you remember the ruler of the synagogue? He was at the point of despair, of utter ruin. Jesus is indirectly admonishing him by what he says to the woman." (excerpt from the THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, HOMILY 31.2) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 9:18-26 comments that the official walked past the people who were ridiculing Jesus for saying that the little girl was not dead but sleeping (Matthew 9:24). The woman pushed through the crowd so that she could touch the tassel of Jesus’ cloak (9:20-21). Like this man and woman, we need to be expectant that the Lord will act in our life. Then give him permission to work in whatever way he wants.
“Courage, daughter! Your faith has saved you” (Matthew 9:22). This is what Jesus says to us as well. He is patient and gentle. He is with you and for you in every situation. So pursue him, just as the official and the hemorrhaging woman did. Expect him to work in your day and in your life. He might do something other than what you’re asking for, but he will always do something! “Lord Jesus, I need you to act! I believe that as I reach out to you, I will see your goodness.” (Meditation on Matthew 9:18-26, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the connection between Hosea’s unfaithful wife, Gomer, and the relationship between God and Israel. In Hosea’s time Baal was seen as the god of fertility and Yahweh as the God of Israel in the desert. Friar Jude notes the superficiality of the hired mourners in the Gospel. Friar Jude reminds us that the verb “saved” is associated with healing and faith in the Gospel.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, makes a distinction between first-half-of-life and second-half-of-life spirituality. Fr Richard thinks many Christians have never moved beyond survival and security questions. Even “wanting to go to heaven” is language for securing my future, not a shared future, or a common future for humanity; religion becomes a private insurance plan for that future. It’s still all about me, but piously disguised. It’s not really about love at all! Any sense of being part of a cosmos, a historical sweep, or that God is doing something bigger and better than simply saving individual souls (my soul in particular), is largely of no interest. This becomes apparent in the common disinterest of so many when it comes to Earth care, building real community, simple living, and almost all peace and justice issues. For many Christians—stuck in the first half of life—all that is important is their private moral superiority and spiritual “safety,” which is somehow supposed to “save” them. It creates what he calls a “cult of innocence,” not any real human or divine solidarity. [1]
Once God and grace move us to the second half of life, religion becomes much more a mystical matter rather than a moral matter. Then it’s about union with all and participation in and with God. Indeed, this is the work of true religion: to help us transition from stage to stage, toward ever-deeper union with God and all things. Those who fall into the safety net of silence find that it is not at all a fall into individualism. True prayer or contemplation is instead a leap into commonality and community. We know that what we are experiencing can only be held by the Whole and we are not alone anymore. We are merely a part, and as such a very grateful and totally satisfied part. This is “the peace the world cannot give” (see John 14:27). (Rohr, 2022)
Our transition to spiritual maturity in accord with the prompting of the Spirit broadens our gratitude for love in our life that opens our experience of relationships with God and others.
References
Creighton U. Daily Reflection. (n.d.). Online Ministries. Retrieved July 4, 2022, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/070422.html
Hosea, CHAPTER 2. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved July 4, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/hosea/2?16
Matthew, CHAPTER 9. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved July 4, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/9?18
Meditation on Matthew 9:18-26. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved July 4, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2022/07/04/430721/
Psalms, PSALM 145. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved July 4, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/145?2
Rohr, R. (2022, July 4). From Me to We — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved July 4, 2022, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/from-me-to-we-2022-07-04/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Take Heart, Your Faith Has Made You Well. Daily Scripture net. Retrieved July 4, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=jul4
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