Holy Spirit Catholic Church
Homilies
Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
"The
people who walked in darkness have seen a great light." (Isaiah 9:1-2;
Matthew 4:16) We have just
heard that in both our first reading and in our Gospel reading.
Have you ever been afraid of the dark?
It is
very common for children to be frightened of the dark, and that fear is
quite natural. We cannot see
where we are going in the dark.
We could trip and fall, or bump into something or someone that
could hurt us. Eventually,
most of us learn through experience to overcome that fear.
We
learn that darkness does not have to be dangerous and we learn to relax.
Even so, as adults, if we are put into an unfamiliar place in the
dark, we can still feel a bit of panic as we wonder how we will find our
way. And when we find some
light, even the tiniest bit of light, we breathe easier and find
ourselves relaxing.
Isaiah is referring to that experience of seeing the light after being
in darkness, likening it to Israel's experience of freedom after
suffering oppression. And
Matthew quotes Isaiah to show that Galilee is once again blessed with
light . . . this time the light that comes with the preaching and
healing that Jesus does.
Jesus
brings the light of repentance as his new followers see the kingdom of
heaven revealed in their midst.
As Jesus teaches and heals the people, they are forced to see
that God is in their midst, and they respond "at once," "immediately."
Peter and Andrew, James and John, leave their boats and nets to
follow Jesus and to work for a different kind of catch.
Now they will be fishing for people who will join them in
proclaiming the Good News of God's reign.
Jesus
is still calling men and women to follow him as fishers for the kingdom,
and people are still saying "Yes!" and are leaving all to follow him.
We are all called to follow Jesus.
Not just priests, deacons, and religious!
But
sometimes our witness is darkened by the divisions among us.
Just like the Corinthians, there can be rivalries or divisions
among us in our parishes, our diocese, and even in the Catholic Church
as a whole. Abortion and all
the Pro-Life issues would certainly be a very current example.
Such divisions do not serve us well as we try to spread the Good
News.
Whether we identify as "conservative" or "liberal," "orthodox" or
"contemporary," or somewhere in between, we must treat one another with
the love and respect that all people deserve.
I don't think all the heated political rhetoric caused the tragic
shootings in Arizona, but I do believe that we must tone it down; begin
treating each other with a more Christian attitude, even those we
disagree with. We can agree
to respectfully disagree!
Like
the people of Corinth, we need to be "united in the same mind and in the
same purpose" so that the cross of Christ can still bring light into the
world. There is only one way
to solve conflict and that is to make serving Jesus and the unity He
sought more important than anything else.
The only hope for peace and unity that we have, whether it be in
the womb, the family, or the world, is that Jesus Christ has to be more
important than ourselves!
Our best response to Jesus is to seek this unity by building God's
kingdom. We end conflict and
division not by protracting our conflicts, but by reaching out to those
who are separated from us.