Saturday.blog
The Catholic Calendar for Saturday, July 31, 2004
Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
St. Ignatius Loyola, religious, priest, founder
Scripture from today’s Liturgy of the Word:
Jeremiah 26:11-16, 24
Psalm 69:15-16, 30-31, 33-34
Matthew 14:1-12
A reflection on today’s Sacred Scripture:
Kill the Prophet
Kill the prophet! Jeremiah is at peril of death for having delivered an unwelcome message from the Lord. His insistent warning about the reception of his message and protection of his life finally yield his safety.
Surely John the Baptist lost his life because his message was despised. “Saving face” by Herod in his moment of prideful passion cost John his head.
Jesus promises that we will die like Him when we proclaim Him. We experience this death for prophesying when the formative guidance offered is rejected by rebellious children, when the bridging of understanding is denied by spouses who reject the teachings of the Church, when a friend compromise their precious values in spite of helpful warnings, by co-workers who find the truth about their behavior contemptuous.
We too, “kill the prophet” when interiorly we deny the promptings of the Holy Spirit or our consciences, to impose our will upon the indwelling God and assert ourselves over Him. We, like Herod, decide our passions and prideful “saving of face” mean more than correcting a failure and humbly protecting the life and presence of God within. Returning to our God we must do all we can to protect and preserve His safe presence as did the repentant believers who protected Jeremiah. We must use the graces of right judgment and faith in the face of sinful selfishness and pride.
O Lord,
may we heed your Word alive in our souls
and protect your presence within us.
Let us humbly hear the correction we need
so as to live with you forever.
Amen
- Mary Williams
(wlmsconsul at pdq dot net)
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