History and Challenge

History and biography are intertwined with expectations of and from God in the texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary for the Memorial of St Dominic. The taunt song of the minor prophet Nahum about the destruction of Nineveh is described by Friar Jude Winkler as a poetic and realistic description of warfare in ancient times. The concept that those who are not following the cultural and religious practice of your tribe are guided by the evil one places the vengeance of this passage in a cultural context which even today in this same region seems to drive people to battle one another. The charism of the Order of Preachers founded by St Dominic has been described as harmonizing the intellectual life with popular needs. The Gospel from Matthew is Jesus exhortation that we need to take up our cross daily and follow Him to experience fullness of life. Craig Zimmer reflects that the life we lose when we decide not to take up Jesus challenge to become less self centred is not so much eternal life but that deep experience of living here and now in the Spirit which resonates with the Love between Father and Son that makes today our knowledge of the Kingdom of God.