July 9, 2012
- Category: brdaniel
- Published Date
- Written by Br. Daniel Thomas, OP
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Monday in the Fourteenth week of the Church year.
Saint for the day: St. Nichols Pick & Companions (d. 1572)
Scripture readings for today's liturgy:
Hosea 2:16 … 22
Psalm 145
Matthew 9:18-26
“Have courage, my people, your faith will save you!”
Today, we are given some powerful images to help us know what “faith” can do to save us. The story of some obscure martyrs - Nicholas Pick and Companions – whose faith allowed them to hold on to their belief in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist even though they suffered a painful hanging that didn’t kill them straight off.
The reading from Hosea gives us the image of God’s espousal to His people and his patience in not giving up on His Chosen People (that’s you and me, too) and how he will use any means possible to draw us back.
We also get the familiar story of the women with the hemorrhage who wants to hold on to her privacy and secretly reaches out to touch the hem of Jesus' garment for healing. In this same Gospel we also have the “official” who very publicly approaches Jesus asking that Jesus come to heal his daughter.
So, with these three very different situations of how God deals with us we shouldn’t be able to fall through the cracks thinking that there’s no hope for us.
The initial relationship that God desires for us is given to us in the sense of “espousal.” God want to be intiment with us. No room for standing in the shadows. We need to step forward for the embrace – even if it’s more like this women who can only touch the hem of His garment.
The [synagogue] official also faces ridicule by approaching Jesus but his faith allows him to overlook what his peers might be thinking. This is another reminder to us that our faith must be “out there” is some way, even if it might cause us embarrassment.
St. Nicholas and his companions had the ultimate faith in touching and holding on to Jesus’ presence in the Eucharist. A faith that was put to the ultimate challenge.
Bottom line: think about our own manner of approaching Jesus, especially in the Eucharist: do we see that intimate, espousal relationship when we say, “Amen?” After this, then, whether we humbly reach out to touch just the hem of His garment or boldly step forward, we need to say, “Lord, I believe! Help my unbelief.” Amen!
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