It Ain't Easy

Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
Readings for Saturday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time

Reflection:

It is a tense day in scripture. First we hear Jeremiah who has been really haranguing the leadership for a couple weeks now is about ready to be put to death. His response; “Don’t blame me, God is the one who sent me and it is God that wants you to change.” He dodged a proverbial bullet. Then in the Gospel, just when it seems like King Herod is getting very concerned about Jesus (thinking he is the re-incarnation of John the Baptist), we get a flashback to the execution of John.

As we take in the three servants of God we come to one inescapable conclusion, working for God can be hazardous to your health. Granted, special honor was accorded to the great Prophet Jeremiah and similar honor was given to the precursor of the Lord, his cousin, John the Baptist. Still when the message of God is placed against the back drop society’s norms, it is not what most people want to hear. And when those people are of a far distant time when human life was less revered, the common outcome was pain, frequently resulting in death.

What message does that bring to us today? First, we must understand that if we take our faith into the secular work place in the U.S. we will not win any popularity contests. Those that don’t avoid us will probably do what they can to make us figures of ridicule or contempt. They will make jokes at our expense and the names they use for us such as Jesus freak and fanatic are not meant to be badges of honor (although we should be proud to earn them).

In other parts of the world, especially those parts where radical Islam seems to be taking hold, being labeled Christian can be a death sentence. In the predominantly Islamic states around the holy land (Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, not to mention Iran) professing Christianity is actually a civil crime punishable by death. In China, Christianity is tolerated but subordinate to the state. We in the US are actually quite lucky.

We have an obligation to be faithful to our Creed and to proclaim our Lord Jesus Christ and Him Crucified. We are required to live a life of faith at home, at school and at work. We need to show the face the face of Christ to our families, our friends and neighbors, and especially the stranger we meet. But as we do what we are obligated to do in the name of our faith, let us remember Jeremiah, John the Baptist, and above all Jesus. They gave us an example of what the faith is worth to us and the world.

Pax