The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today offer a meditation on our reluctance to consider options that are difficult to understand when viewed from contemporary culture.
Counter cultural choices
The reading from the Prophet Zechariah reveals his third vision about the blessings for Jerusalem as he appeals to the Exiles.
* [2:15] Many nations…my people: a way of expressing God’s relationship to people in covenant language. The covenant between God and Israel (see Jer 31:33; 32:38) is here universalized to include all nations.1
The response from the Prophet Jeremiah promises God will turn their mourning into joy.
* [31:2–3] Jeremiah describes the exiles of the Northern Kingdom on their way home from the nations where the Assyrians had resettled them (722/721 B.C.). The favor they discover in the wilderness is the appearance of the Lord (v. 3) coming to guide them to Jerusalem. Implicit in these verses is the presentation of the people’s return from captivity as a second exodus, a unifying theme in Second Isaiah (chaps. 40–55).2
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus Again Foretells His Death.3
Tom Shanahan, S.J. has heard the spiritual writer, Fr. Ron Rolheiser, OMI, make claims that when an infant arrives somewhere, the child becomes the center of attention; the esteemed spiritual writer says that no matter who else is in the room, a pro football player, and actor, a revered uncle, in a word, anyone accustomed to the spotlight, takes second-seat to the baby!
Sammy (a great name by the way!) was purely and simply being loved by family and new friends. As a gifted retreat director once pointed out to me: "to love God is to LET GOD love you." There's the truth that Sammy's being was shouting out to all "Hey! Don't forget that the main component of love is that God is initiating love in your heart/mind/body. Get that; receive that love; and then you will be a graced lover of God. Remember: Be bold both in what you receive and how you share that with others. Pretty big thoughts coming from someone who is living the "to love God is to let God love you!" reality right there in front of us. We need to listen to Sammy. Thank you, tiny child, and may you keep discovering love!4
Don Schwager quotes “The scapegoat foreshadowed Christ's passion,” by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).
"The mystery of the passion may be seen also in another instance. According to the Mosaic law, two goats were offered. They were not different in any way from one another (Leviticus 16:7-8), but they were alike in size and appearance. Of these, one was called 'the lord,' and the other was called 'sent-away.' When the lot was cast for the one called 'lord,' it was sacrificed. The other one was sent away from the sacrifice, and therefore had the name of 'sent-away.' Who was signified by this? The Word, though he was God, was in our likeness and took the form of us sinners, as far as the nature of the flesh was concerned. The male or female goat was sacrificed for sins. Death was our desert, for we had fallen under the divine curse because of sin. When the Savior of all undertook the responsibility, he transferred to himself what was due to us and laid down his life, that we might be sent away from death and destruction."(excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 53)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Zechariah 2:5-9, 14-15 comments that now we don’t have to go to Jerusalem to be with the Lord. Through the Holy Spirit, we can experience his life, his presence, and his voice within us wherever we are. We can hear his word, worship him, thank him, lean on him, or simply be with him. In return, he guides us, comforts us, and uses us to build his kingdom on earth.
Sometimes, though, we can forget this important truth. Or it just seems too abstract. God knows that as human beings, we need physical signs of his presence. He gave the Israelites that physical sign through the Temple, and he gives us something even greater in the Eucharist: not just a sign, but his very presence. Now Jesus comes to dwell in us in the most intimate way possible. As we receive his Body and his Blood, he becomes part of our very being. So when you go to Mass tomorrow, rejoice! Your Lord has come to dwell among you, not in a far-off Temple, but in your very heart. “Jesus, thank you for coming to dwell in me. May I never lose sight of this great gift!”6
Friar Jude Winkler shares that the measuring of Jerusalem predicts the expansion of the city as Exiles and other people come to live there. The second prediction of the Passion in Luke seems to be dismissed by the disciples. Friar Jude reminds us of the connection in the words of Jesus to the Son of Man in Daniel and the Suffering Servant in Deutero-Isaiah.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that aging has always been about simplifying and letting go. Sooner or later we realize that we can’t manage all the stuff and activity anymore. We have to let go. The practice of letting go and embracing simplicity is one way we prepare ourselves for what is to come. One day we all will have to let go of everything—even our own breath. It will be a day of utter simplicity—a day when the importance of stuff fades. Learning to live simply prepares us for our last breath while cultivating in us the freedom to truly live here and now. He shares some of the practices for simplifying that Minister Adele Ahlberg Calhoun suggests.
Uncomplicate your life by choosing a few areas in which you wish to practice “letting go.” Clean out the garage, basement, closet or attic. Go on a simple vacation. Eat more simply. . . .
Intentionally limit your choices. Do you need six different kinds of breakfast cereal, hundreds of TV channels or four tennis rackets? What is it like to limit your choices? Does it feel free, or do want and envy surface? Talk to God about this.
If someone admires something of yours, give it away. Find out just how attached you are to your things. . . .
Make a catalog of all the gadgets you have in your home, from the dishwasher to the lawnmower. Which gadgets have made you freer? Which could you share? Which could you get rid of and not really miss?
Where have you complicated your life with God? Consider what actually brings you into the presence of Christ. Spend time there.7
Counter cultural decisions about love, community, and simplicity are part of the life giving journey we are invited to share with Christ.
References
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