The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to activate our faith in the Providence of God to provide the path and support for full life.
The reading from the Book of Numbers explores the dissatisfaction of Moses and the Israelites with their situation in the desert.
* [11:7] Coriander seed: see note on Ex 16:31. Bdellium: a transparent, amber-colored gum resin, which is also mentioned in Gn 2:12. (Numbers, CHAPTER 11 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 81 is God’s Appeal to Stubborn Israel.
In the Gospel of Matthew (CCCB-Year A) Jesus walks on the Water.
Nancy Shirley shares a reflection on faith and transformation.
The Word Among Us Meditation on Numbers 11:4-15 comments that like Moses, each of us faces challenges in our workplace, family, or church that we don’t immediately know how to handle. Where do we turn first? It may be tempting to react with frustration at the situation. But Moses shows us a better course of action: go first to God, confident that he has the entire situation in hand. It’s fine to begin, as Moses does, by honestly complaining. But don’t get stuck in the complaints.
As you keep working through your challenges, keep your eyes, ears, and especially your heart open to signs of God’s help. He may solve the dilemma and see you through. Or he may move you to ask for help from other people. And as Moses found out, receiving help from others is nothing to be ashamed of!
“Father, thank you for the challenges that remind me how much I need you and my brothers and sisters in Christ.” (Meditation on Numbers 11:4-15, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler discusses the Hebrew reaction to honestly express ingratitude to God. He comments on the USCCB Gospel selection of the Feeding of the five thousand with the perfect meal.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, invites us to the transformative process of discovering our True Selves. He asserts that we are made for transcendence and endless horizons, but our small ego usually gets in the way until we become aware of its petty preoccupations and eventually seek a deeper truth. It is like mining for a diamond. We must dig deep; and yet we seem reluctant, even afraid, to do so.
Up to now, we have been more driven by outer authority than drawn in by the calm and loving inner authority (the in-dwelling Holy Spirit) of prayer, practice, and inner experience. This has a much better chance of allowing us to meet and know our True Self. For all practical purposes, this change of identity from the separate self to the connected and True Self is the major—almost seismic—shift in motivation and consciousness itself that mature religion rightly calls conversion. It is the very heart of all religious transformation (“changing forms”). Without it, religion is mostly a mere belonging system or a mere belief system, but it does not radically change our consciousness or motivation. (Rohr, 2023)
We invoke the Spirit to guide us in the difficult process of examining our spiritual discontent and being open to the transformation offered by God to be sustained in Love.
References
Meditation on Numbers 11:4-15. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved August 7, 2023, from https://wau.org/meditations/2023/08/07/751090/
Numbers, CHAPTER 11 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved August 7, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/numbers/11?4
Rohr, R. (2023, August 7). Mining for an Immortal Diamond — Center for Action and Contemplation. CAC Daily Meditations 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2023, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/mining-for-an-immortal-diamond-2023-08-07/
Shirley, N. (2023, August 7). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved August 7, 2023, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/080723.html
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