The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today remind us that the fire of Jesus' message may bring our practice of faith into conflict with the beliefs and actions of other people in our environment.
The reading from the Prophet Jeremiah relates Jeremiah in the Muddy Cistern.
* [38:4] He is weakening the resolve: lit., “he weakens the hands.” One of the Lachish ostraca (cf. note on 34:7) makes the same claim against the princes in Jerusalem.
Psalm 40 proclaims all who trust God will experience protection.
* [Psalm 40] A thanksgiving (Ps 40:2–13) has been combined with a lament (Ps 40:14–17) that appears also in Ps 70. The psalmist describes the rescue in spatial terms—being raised up from the swampy underworld to firm earth where one can praise God (Ps 40:2–4). All who trust God will experience like protection (Ps 40:5–6)! The Psalm stipulates the precise mode of thanksgiving: not animal sacrifice but open and enthusiastic proclamation of the salvation just experienced (Ps 40:7–11). A prayer for protection concludes (Ps 40:12–17). (Psalms, PSALM 40 | USCCB, n.d.)
The reading from the Letter to the Hebrews presents a great cloud of witnesses.
* [12:1–13] Christian life is to be inspired not only by the Old Testament men and women of faith (Heb 12:1) but above all by Jesus. As the architect of Christian faith, he had himself to endure the cross before receiving the glory of his triumph (Heb 12:2). Reflection on his sufferings should give his followers courage to continue the struggle, if necessary even to the shedding of blood (Heb 12:3–4). Christians should regard their own sufferings as the affectionate correction of the Lord, who loves them as a father loves his children.
* [12:1] That clings to us: the meaning is uncertain, since the Greek word euperistatos, translated cling, occurs only here. The papyrus P46 and one minuscule read euperispastos, “easily distracting,” which also makes good sense. (Hebrews, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB, n.d.)
The Gospel of Luke 12.49-53 presents Jesus as A Cause of Division.
* [12:49–53] Jesus’ proclamation of the kingdom is a refining and purifying fire. His message that meets with acceptance or rejection will be a source of conflict and dissension even within families.
* [12:50] Baptism: i.e., his death. (Luke, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB, n.d.)
Rev. Andy Alexander, SJ, comments on Fire, Baptism, and Division. Jesus is describing the result of his mission. It brought division.
Jesus came to be baptized into the mystery that, in God’s Good News, death is the path to life. He revealed that our baptism into his way of living is a baptism into his everlasting life. This Good News is the font of our freedom for self-sacrificing love.
Jesus came to offer us light in the midst of darkness, that we might offer light for others. He came to love and forgive us, so that we might bring healing and reconciliation. Jesus offers us his Spirit to accompany us and to gather us in his deepest prayer,
Dear Lord, thank you for the grace to recenter my trust in your Word. In the few opportunities which remain for me, give me the courage to preach your Good News, faithfully. Fill the hearts of your people with the Joy of the Gospel. Allow us to enter into dialogue with each other on a path of greater understanding and unity. Enkindle within us the fire of your love and let us join you in renewing the face of the earth. (Alexander, 2025)
Don Schwager quotes “The fire of the Gospel and being baptized in the Holy Spirit,” by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).
"We affirm that the fire that Christ sent out is for humanity's salvation and profit. May God grant that all our hearts be full of this. The fire is the saving message of the Gospel and the power of its commandments. We were cold and dead because of sin and in ignorance of him who by nature is truly God. The gospel ignites all of us on earth to a life of piety and makes us fervent in spirit, according to the expression of blessed Paul (Romans 12:11). Besides this, we are also made partakers of the Holy Spirit, who is like fire within us. We have been baptized with fire and the Holy Spirit. We have learned the way from what Christ says to us. Listen to his words: 'Truly I say to you, that except a man be born of water and spirit, he cannot see the kingdom of God' (John 3:5). It is the divinely inspired Scripture's custom to give the name of fire sometimes to the divine and sacred words and to the efficacy and power which is by the Holy Spirit by which we are made fervent in spirit." (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 94) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 12:49-53 comments that at this point in his ministry, even before the agonizing events of Holy Week, Jesus experienced an intense distress of heart and mind. He so ardently wanted to set the earth on fire with his love, he so longed to accomplish redemption through the “baptism” of his passion and death, that he was in anguish until it was accomplished (Luke 12:50).
And it has been accomplished! The results of his baptism are still flowing today. This means that even today, you can experience more of all that Jesus so longed to give you—more mercy, more grace, more love, more freedom. So allow the passion that Jesus expresses in today’s passage move you to seek him out! Believe that as you receive his forgiveness and experience the joy of worshipping him, you are doing more than just reaping the fruit of his passion. You are bringing consolation and joy to his anguished Sacred Heart.
Jesus’ pierced heart yearns for every person he created. Allow that passion to capture your heart!
“Jesus, thank you for loving me so deeply! I want to receive all the mercy you died to give me!” (Meditation on Luke 12:49-53, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler reflects on the texts of today. Jeremiah is trapped in a plot to kill him in the time before the Babylonian Exile. People felt he was to betray them in his warning about the enemy, A foreigner wanted to rescue him but the people wanted to blame Jeremiah. The cloud of witnesses in Hebrews indicates that we are called to fix our eyes on Jesus at a time of persecution. We should give witness whatever the cost. The Gospel proclaims Jesus' mission of creating a fire of enthusiasm and courage to give witness even when it is dangerous. Friar Jude reminds us that others may reject our message and person citing "martyrdom of pinpricks," of St Therese of Liseau.
Fr Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that naming any emotion, even if it is negative, as a “sin” is not useful, because guilt and shame, or any sense that “God is upset” with us, usually only increases our negativity and fear—which causes us to close down all the more. In other words, when we try to shut them down, our emotions become more complex, more conflicted, more repressed—and thus less honest “reflections” of reality. If an emotion does not help us read the situation better and more truthfully, we must release it, let it move through us—for our own advantage.
Most of us are naturally good at attachment, but few of us have training in detachment or letting go. Practicing detachment is one of the great tasks of any healthy spirituality, but, when carried to extreme, it’s counterproductive. (It almost took over in much of early Christianity, which was not helpful.) We must take the risk of legitimate attachment (fully feeling the emotion), learn its important message, and then have the presence and purpose to detach from that fascinating emotion after it has done its work. This is the gift and power of an emotionally mature person. [1]
To be truly conscious, we must step back from our compulsive identification with our unquestioned attachment to our isolated selves—the primary illusion. Pure consciousness is never just me, trapped inside my self. Rather, it is an observing of “me” from a distance—from the viewing platform kindly offered by God (see Romans 8:16), which we call the Indwelling Spirit. Then we see with eyes much larger and other than our own. (Rohr, n.d.)
We seek the guidance of the Spirit in our proclamation of the fire of love we experience in our relationship with Christ that empowers our faith.
References
Alexander, A. (2025, August 17). Daily Reflection August 17, 2025 | Creighton Online Ministries. Creighton Online Ministries. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-august-17-2025
Hebrews, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/hebrews/12?1
Jeremiah CHAPTER 38|USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Reading. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/Jeremiah/38?4
Luke, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/12?49
Meditation on Luke 12:49-53. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/08/17/1357646/
Psalms, PSALM 40 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/40?2
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Welcoming but Not Clinging. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/welcoming-but-not-clinging/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). I Came to Cast Fire upon the Earth. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved August 17, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=aug17
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