May we, in this Sunday's Eucharistic celebration, experience the ever presence of God in our lives who bestows on us the graces to remain steadfast in our faith, hope and charity during the daily challenges of our Christian lives.
Happy
Sunday!
(Jeremiah 20,10-13; Rom 5,12-15; Matt 10,26-33: 12th Sunday of the
Year, June 21, 2020)
This
Sunday, the liturgy presents us with a Gospel that has helped the martyrs all through
the centuries to face martyrdom with great courage, fearlessness and
faithfulness. Jesus says to his disciples: Do not fear men [... J. And do
not be afraid of those who kill the body, but have no power to kill the soul.
Martyrdom kills the body, but makes the soul live. But, sin kills the soul. The
Gospel of today is anticipated by a passage from Jeremiah, which expresses the
Prophet’s fearlessness. The Prophet is the object of a conspiracy: Terror is
at hand! But shows himself full of courage, because he is with the Lord,
and the Lord is with him: The Lord is at my side as a brave valiant. Jeremiah
knows that his persecutors cannot prevail, for men cannot prevail over God: My
persecutors will fall and cannot prevail; they will be very confused, because
they will not succeed; their shame will be eternal and indelible. The Prophet
expects to be preserved from death, and will actually be so. The martyrs have
the courage to even suffer death with a winning spirit: they knew that the
death of the body is an opportunity for divine victory.
The death of Jesus was the occasion of the greatest divine victory in all history, because, lovingly facing his death, he won and reversed its meaning: instead of being an event of rupture and defeat, death, thanks to the power of love, has become an opportunity to establish the new covenant. In the Eucharist we celebrate the foundation of this new covenant in the death of Jesus. In fact, at the Last Supper he said: This is my blood of the covenant, paid for many, in remission of sins (Matt 26,28 ff .). The death of Jesus is, therefore, a victory over death, which then manifests itself, completely, in his resurrection. Christ risen from the dead no longer dies; death has no more power over him (Rom 6,9). The martyrs face death with the awareness of participating in Jesus’ passion, in order to also participate in his resurrection. Jesus says to the Christians: Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but do not have power to kill the soul; rather, fear the one who has the power to destroy both the soul and body in Gehenna (hell). Jesus makes us overcome a fear by means of a greater fear: he makes us overcome the fear of men, of persecutors that can kill the body, with the fear of God, who has the power to make the soul and the body perish in the Gehenna (hell). The fear of God helped a lot of martyrs. St. Justin, when he was tried and the judge threatened him with torments, said that he did not fear torments, but only God. It is the fear of God, the profound awareness of his majesty and holiness that gives strength to martyrs. Perhaps today, we do not have enough of this fear of God, that is, the sense of his power and holiness. There is, therefore, the need to rediscover it, because it is a great force against all temptations. The fear of God is the awareness that he is the greatest and most holy, that does not accept any infidelity and cowardice on our part. When persecution threatens a man, the temptation of cowardice is, usually, too much; spontaneously, everyone is tempted to flee, to avoid persecution, and the simplest way out is apostasy. But this behaviour causes the soul to perish; it breaks our filial relationship with God and our fraternal relationship with Christ. Therefore, it cannot be accepted. Jesus says:Whoever denies me before men, I also will deny him before my Father who is in heaven. Also this statement gave the martyrs the strength to testify to their faith with courage, despite all the threats and sufferings they endured.
The bond with
Jesus is the most important thing, and must be defended with great courage.
Jesus says: Whoever recognises me before men, I too will recognise him
before my Father who is in heaven. The martyrs had the hope of being
recognised by Jesus before the Heavenly Father; that is why they did not
succumb to temptation, infidelity and cowardice. On the other hand, Jesus wants
to instil confidence in the hearts of the martyrs by making them keep in mind
that they are not alone. Just as Jeremiah was persuaded that he had the Lord at
his side as a brave valiant, so martyrs know that the Heavenly Father cares for
them. Jesus affirms: Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of
them will fall to the ground without your Father wanting it. As for you, even
hairs in your head are all counted; therefore do not be afraid: you are worth
more than many sparrows! We must not be afraid, because trusting the Father
frees us from all human fears. Thus, if fear of God is very useful to us, trust
in him is even more useful. Martyrs counted on God's help to be victorious in
their struggle; victorious, because despite the torments, sufferings and death
itself, they did not succumb. With the help of God, they knew how to make their
death a victory of faithfulness. In fact, the Father does not abandon, without
help, those who witness to faith in him and in his Son Jesus Christ. The
awareness that we are important in the eyes of God and that he cares for us
gives us strength and great joy.
(GRAPHICS BY CHUKWUBIKE)
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