Reading 1
Responsorial Psalm
Reading 2
Gospel
This week two simple, or two important thoughts come to mind.
In the First reading,
The young men and their mother were not willing to compromise or renounce their faith and they suffered greatly for it.
I found myself asking..
How strong is my faith?
Is it strong enough to die for ?
I hope so…
Look at all those Catholics who died in the Cathedral of Bagdad recently.
They knew the dangers and yet they went to Church…
If it was dangerous for me to come to this Church would I come ?
You know the history of the Church is filled with people who died rather than renounce their faith.
And the history of the church is filled with people who just loved even the unlovable.
How strong is our faith?
How strong is our love for God?
Jesus said,
Greater love than this no one has than to give their life for a friend.
Sometimes we are called to give our lives in one blaze of glory like a martyr.
Other times God asks us to be martyrs but in a different way.
Sometimes God asks us to lay down our lives over and over and over again day in and day out.
Caring for a loved one who is ill…
Putting up with a long term illness
or maybe forgiving someone over and over and over again.
No matter how we lay our lives down
In a moment or day in and day out
That’s how Jesus loved and that’s how we are called to love.
The second thought comes from the Gospel.
The Sadducees were not bad people.
They were the priests of the temple, the religious leaders of their time
They lived thoughtful and sacrificial lives…and yet they failed to recognized the Messiah for whom they had waited for with great expectation.
How is that possible?
What a tragedy.
The Sadducees missed the Messiah because they had closed their hearts to anything new.
They had fixed in their minds how the Messiah would come and how he would act.
And when Jesus didn’t fit the mold they refused to even consider him.
In their pride fullness they felt that they had all of the answers.
Are we set in our ways?
Do we think we have all the answers?
Are we open to the prompting of the Holy Spirit?
It is a great temptation for those who have a lot of life experience,to close their hearts to anything new…
Are we willing to reconsider..and open our hearts more and more to God’s love and God’s prompting?
If we remain open to God’s spirit
if we are willing to listen anew to God’s prompting He will take us on the great adventure of faith.
Are we willing to accept the surprises that God is willing to send our way day in and day out ?
Sadly, tragically the Sadducees were not …
May our love and our faith be strong
And may we always keep an open heart
Lots to think about.
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