31st Sunday Year C 2013

31^st. Sunday Year (C)

(Wisdom 11:22 – 12:2; 2 Thessalonians 1:11 – 2:2; Luke 19:1-10)

St. Luke has been picking out for us incidents from Jesus' journey towards Jerusalem where He was to be crucified.  He has told us of the ten lepers cleansed by Jesus; of the Pharisee and the Publican, praying side by side (!) in the Temple; of the Rich Young Man who wanted to be perfect; and now he tells us of Zacchaeus endeavouring to catch a glimpse of Jesus passing through Jericho.

Notice that there is something unexpected, from the Jewish point of view, in all of these accounts: first of all, of the ten lepers healed only one -- a Samaritan -- returned to Jesus giving thanks to God; the prayer of the despised publican in the Temple was more acceptable to God than that of the publicly esteemed and respected Pharisee.   St. Luke obviously wants to insist that no one is so far fallen that Jesus cannot raise them: why, he even ends his gospel on the same note, being the only evangelist to tell us of the good thief who, having asked Jesus on the Cross to remember him in His Kingdom, received that unique promise:

Today you will be with Me in Paradise.

No one is too far gone, no one is excluded; and so no one should give up or despair.  On the other hand, absolutely no one can presume anything.  The nine Jewish lepers, the Pharisee praying in the Temple, the Rich Young Ruler whom Jesus loved, all of these compared badly with others who might have been considered non-starters: a hated Samaritan who was truly grateful and responsive to God in Jesus; a despised publican who could pray more humbly than a publicly respected Pharisee; and now Zacchaeus, gladly doing what the rich young man -- who thought he had been seeking eternal life from his youth -- sorrowfully could not do, namely, give up his money.   Absolutely no one can ever be sure of salvation; none, not even one apparently last or least, is out of Jesus’ saving reach; all of us have to seek for ever greater proximity to Jesus throughout the whole of our life.    With that in mind let us now take a closer look at our Gospel reading.

Jesus was not intending to stop, let alone stay, in Jericho; as He walked purposefully along He was being followed by a crowd of people hoping to see a miracle or something notable, not particularly wanting to hear Jesus' teaching.  

Zaccheus, (however) who was small in stature, had climbed up into a sycamore tree to see (Jesus) (as He passed) that way.

This man, Zaccheus, was a prominent citizen: no ordinary tax collector, but rather a Tax Commissioner with much responsibility and authority in what was an important centre for the Romans, since Jericho was a frontier city through which passed vital roads much used by camel trains carrying exotic wares over desert expanses from Syria and further East on their way westwards towards Rome, and which also facilitated a large local trade in costly balsams.  This very considerable civic official, however, exposed himself to both ridicule and contempt by his vain struggles to glimpse Jesus through the crowd, and subsequently, running ahead of the crowd in order to clamber up a tree so as to be able to see Him clearly.

Picture the hustling, struggling, figure of Zacchaeus: he wasn't hanging around in the crowd hoping vaguely for something to happen; he was deeply interested in the Person of Jesus and was making every effort to catch a glimpse of Him. This aspect of effort and haste is reflected by Jesus' words to Zachaeus:

‘Zaccheus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.’   So he made haste and came down and received Him joyfully. 

Can't you see the picture of a true disciple, the model for a true Christian, being traced before our eyes?   Zacchaeus, striving, hurrying to see Jesus; and then hastening again to receive Him ever so gladly into his house; and finally, in total spontaneity, giving up all that might hinder his companionship with Jesus:

Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor, and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.

Surely St. Paul words in our second reading today can be applied to Zachaeus:

May our God count you worthy of this calling, that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in Him. 

However, to arrive at the full meaning of this Gospel passage for us today we must just look at the words Jesus chose when first addressing Zacchaeus:

Zaccheus, make haste, come down, for today I must stay at your house. 

I want to draw your attention to those two words I must.  Jesus "must" stay at Zacchaeus' house.  What does that mean?  Jesus does not say "I will" nor does He say "I would like"; instead He puts it in such a way as to imply that it was not simply His choice but something pre-ordained for Him by His Father.

Listen to the other two occasions in St. Luke's Gospel, and one in that of St. John (10:16), where Jesus uses the phrase, "I must":

At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place. The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him, they tried to prevent him from leaving them.  But he said to them, “To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent.”  And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea. 

At that time some Pharisees came to him and said, “Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”  He replied, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I accomplish my purpose.  Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day, for it is impossible that a prophet should die outside of Jerusalem.’ (Luke 4:42-5:1)   (Luke 13:31-33)

I have other sheep who do not belong to this fold.  These also I must lead.

 

It was pre-ordained that Jesus should preach first of all in the synagogues of Judea, because He had been sent to the lost sheep of Israel; after that had been done it was pre-ordained that He should bring other sheep in, not of the fold of Israel, because that was required for the fullness of redemption that He had been sent to achieve.  Finally it was pre-ordained that His work had to be completed in Jerusalem where He would be nailed on the Cross bearing an inscription -- written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek – that would proclaim Him, Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah to and for the whole world.

Now, how could Jesus' staying at the house of Zacchaeus be of such importance that it too could be said to be pre-ordained?

To find our answer let us now look at the word "house" used by Jesus when speaking to Zacchaeus.  Obviously it was another way of saying: "Zacchaeus, I must stay with you", because Jesus when leaving said:

            Today salvation has come to this house

Salvation had indeed come to Zacchaeus, not to the building which was his house.  In that way "house" can -- in certain circumstances -- mean the person, his mind, heart and soul.  We find this confirmed in a parable told by Jesus:

When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, "I will return to my house from which I came.'  (Luke. 11:24)

In the OT God dwelt among His Chosen People and His presence was shown by the pillar of cloud which hovered first of all over the tent of meeting in the desert and then filled Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem.   In the New Testament times, however, God not only dwells, makes His home, among His People, He also dwells within His People, in their minds and hearts, in their souls, by His Spirit.  Now Moses had said to the Lord, when Israel was experiencing difficulties in the desert:

If Your presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here.  Is it not by Your going with us, that we … may be distinguished from all the other people who are upon the face of the earth?      (Exodus 33:15-16)

God's presence with them was—Moses said -- the distinguishing feature of Israel: not the literal keeping of the Law, not circumcision, not Sabbath observance; for, necessary though these observances were, ultimately it was God's presence among them which distinguished Israel from the pagan nations around them.

Now, it is the same today in Mother Church, because it is God's presence -- by His Spirit -- which alone preserves, protects, guides and sanctifies Mother Church today; and that presence of God's Gift-through-Jesus-of-His-Spirit, must not only dwell among His People in the tabernacles of Mother Church, but also, and supremely, abide within her children.

This meeting of Jesus with Zacchaeus is so essential because Zacchaeus is being shown as the figure of the disciple of Jesus, and the "house of Zacchaeus" means much more than a building, it means his heart, his soul, his mind, as we find again in these words of Jesus: 

When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. (Matthew 6:6)

There, the mind and heart of a man at prayer, the secret depths of his soul, are pictured as an inner room of his house.

So Jesus must stay at the house of Zacchaeus, because He must enter and abide in the soul, the mind and heart, of His true disciples.  He must do this because it is essential for His work of salvation: salvation is not to be gained by law-keeping alone, even though those laws be religious laws.  Salvation can only be gained by becoming, in Jesus and by the Spirit, a true child of God: worshipping the Father, knowing, loving and trusting Him, with one’s whole mind, heart, soul, and strength.   Zacchaeus was personally chosen to show the power of Jesus and of God's grace, because Zacchaeus had practically everything against his becoming a disciple: he was a lapsed Jew, spiritually lost and absorbed in a world where he was powerful, influential, and very rich.  Everyone would have said that he was completely chained by worldly desires and expectations.  Jesus changed that by His call:

Zaccheus, make haste, come down, for today I must stay at your house.  

But, People of God, notice why Zacchaeus is being portrayed as a model disciple.  First of all, because Jesus' supreme power is to be seen: forming a spiritual failure, one addicted to worldly success, into a true disciple.  Secondly, because Zacchaeus, for his part, co-operated with the grace and calling of Jesus.  He first of all struggled in the crowd to see Jesus, and then left the crowd behind and made himself look ridiculous by running ahead in his fine official clothes and climbing a tree in order to glimpse Jesus passing by.  He then, to the disgust of the Jews and no doubt the amazement of his influential friends, gladly welcomed Jesus into his house and whole-heartedly gave his riches away in order to respond to Jesus.

People of God, can you see yourself in Zacchaeus searching for Jesus, striving to see Him, responding wholeheartedly to Him?  I hope that you truly can, because the great failing in Mother Church as we know her today, is that many Catholics, even some apparently devout ones, want to live in a way that Moses, even in OT times, knew to be impossible for us, and unacceptable before God.  Salvation is not a reward for politically correct words and publicly approved deeds; merely statistical fulfilment of our obligations with regard to Mass attendance and reception of the Sacraments are equally fruitless; only the presence of the Spirit of Jesus guiding our minds, ruling our hearts, and consecrating our lives can save us.  Jesus’ Spirit of love and of truth must be able to move and guide us constantly – even though well-nigh imperceptibly – along the way of Jesus throughout our lives: appreciating His truth more deeply, loving His Person -- yes, and His Church -- ever more warmly and sincerely; and, with unwearying patience and humility, listening to hear and waiting to obey His call though it come at an hour we might not expect.  Even in Mother Church we cannot be content to remain in the crowd, doing what others seem to be doing and nothing more.  Each of us is personally called to follow the example of Zacchaeus: searching to see Jesus more clearly, to welcome Him into our hearts more joyfully, and to be ever more willing and glad to get rid of all that would hinder us from responding to His plans for us.  It is so easy and comfortable to remain in the crowd and to rely, as did the Jews, on the old formalities: doing what we have always done, thinking as we have always thought, whilst satisfyingly enjoying what is going on in the world around us.  That I say is comfortable, but it is also very harmful.  Therefore, today, Mother Church invites us to hear Jesus calling us as He did Zacchaeus:

Make haste and come down, (come out of the crowd), for today I must stay at your house.       

                

30th Sunday of Year C

30th. Sunday Year (C)

(Sirach 35:12-14, 16-19; 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18; Luke 18:9-14)

Human pride -- a somewhat ludicrous overflow from the primordial hubris of Satan -- was at the root of the sin of Adam and Eve.  I say a somewhat ludicrous imitation or version of that original catastrophe, because, following its lead, Adam and Eve:

           Started to build and could not finish the task!

With an overweening self-esteem and outrageous desire for self-exaltation, they gave credence to the supreme Liar, by trying to grasp for themselves likeness to God, at the instigation of his promise to Eve, “you will be like God, knowing good and evil”.

Those were indeed devilish words for they evoked in Eve what she could not personally cope with; therefore she spoke with Adam who, like his wife, also found himself unable to appreciate what was happening to them both: they found themselves desiring what they could not believe God would ever give them and mistrusting His will to understand them in their temptation and trial.  The beauty of God attracted them but they could not conceive the measure of His goodness, because of the disorder they were already experiencing in their hearts after having listened to Satan’s proposal so very alien to their native being (they knew it, they had sensed it!) and yet so attractive to their pride.   And so, yielding to that fatal attraction, they allowed themselves to be seduced by Satan, who thus become their chosen lord and master.  

Therefore, the wisdom and majesty of God would once again have to confront fallen Lucifer, hiding now behind a hostage-taken mankind!

And God would also need to find and rescue mankind anew by showing His wondrous beauty and infinite goodness in human form this time: Son of God become Son of Man -- an Infant born of a virgin – where divine Goodness is most attractive to men.  And there it was too that He would defeat and destroy Satan, through the virtue of humility and the practice of obedience, where His divine Power would be made unrecognizable for Satan’s hubris.

We can say, therefore, that lack of trust in God is ultimately a manifestation of inordinate ego-centrism: either that which is directed outwards in aggressive self-assertion and which we generally call human pride, or that which is turned inwards in perpetual solicitude for, and anxiety about, self.  It  highlights a fault-line in human nature as we have received it from Adam and Eve: men and women of all ages and all climes – be they important or non-entities, strong or weak, knowledgeable or ignorant, rich and successful or apparently poor and worthless – are subject to it and can be tempted and even led astray by it to such a degree of pride and self-love which would make them either intolerably superior and disdainful with regard to others, or else cripplingly anxious for themselves, fearful and hesitant in all things: thus alienating them from God and frustrating harmony with their fellow humans.

Our heavenly Father is infinite in holiness, power and goodness, and He wants to give us a share in His own eternal life, joy, and glory.  To achieve that He has willed to give His own Son to us, for us, the Son through Whom He also endows us with His Holy Spirit to work within and with us, so that we might indeed come to gradually experience and appreciate a little something of the glorious  destiny He has prepared for us.   Before such sublime wisdom -- shot through with divine goodness and compassion -- human self-love is clearly shown in the horror of its sinfulness: for our arrogant pride will not readily admit or humbly accept God as supreme Lord, whilst our anxiety and fearfulness cannot believe in, and will not trust, His infinite goodness as our loving Father.

Let us now see how the Pharisee prayed to so wonderful a God and Father:

God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.

Notice that he addresses God first and then puts Him aside as a sort of bystander, whilst he concentrates his whole attention on himself and on his feelings for others, especially for the tax collector nearby.  He is not praying to God so much as proudly detailing his own personal performance and public awareness and appreciation.  In fact he is not praying to God personally at all, he is speaking to, addressing, Him as an important Pharisee; and the few words he directs to Him are merely rhetorical and conventional, the ‘politically correct’ language of a man of God such as he believes himself to be; and after having fulfilled his religious obligation with those few words ‘God I thank you’, he becomes as all men are, though, indeed, far prouder than most, especially with regard to the humble tax-collector nearby.

Our Pharisee is not even truly thanking God for enabling and guiding him to ‘fast twice a week’ and ‘give tithes of all he possesses’, for that would, indeed, have led him to understand somewhat better, and perhaps even feel a measure of compassion for, the tax-collector and all ‘such people’.   As it was, his words to God were nothing more than ritualistic assertion of his professional commitment and success; whereas his personal commitment is shown most clearly in his vehemence against society as a whole, and against the tax-collector individually who happened to be praying so disgustingly close to him in the Temple of God!

Notice how Jesus describes such prayer when He says:

          The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself.

On the other hand, however, Jesus contrasts the tax-collector’s prayer with that of the Pharisee by not only mentioning, but even gently emphasizing, his humility before God:

The tax-collector would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed…

before finally, and most approvingly, revealing  his words  of self-accusation:

          God, be merciful to me a sinner!

There God is supremely important, being recognized as all-holy and most merciful; as for the tax-collector himself, he is just a sinner, humbly acknowledging the fact.  Only two persons are pictured there and the prayer is a truly personal bond of union between them.

Centuries earlier, the Psalmist (Ps. 91:14) had written words perfectly applicable to the tax-collector’s prayer:

I will set him on high, because he has known my Name (known Who I am -- the all-holy God – and what I am -- infinitely merciful).

That was lovingly confirmed by Jesus, Who alone knew His Father in the true splendour of His glory and fullness of His goodness, when He went on to say:

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.

As for the Pharisee whose pride allowed him little more than notional appreciation of God, Jesus could add:

Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

People of God, whoever sets out for a distant destination must always keep their eyes fixed on some object that establishes the right direction: if one were to walk looking at one’s feet, it would be impossible to arrive at the desired destination.  So too in our spiritual life, we need always to have our mind and heart, our intention and our desire, fixed on Jesus in the Church.  Of course, it might be objected that he who does not look where he is putting his feet is asking for trouble; and there are some who allow themselves to be convinced by such an argument and feel encouraged to continue either worrying about themselves or else congratulating themselves for their imagined prudence.  However, the great falsehood hidden in such behaviour is, of course, that it is not we who are going heavenward of ourselves, but rather it is God Who is calling us and seeking to guide us: we attain the destination He plans for us only if we trust His goodness and follow His guidance.  As St. Paul said in our second reading:

The Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!

Jesus wished to impress this upon His disciples when He warned them of pressures to come that would, if they did not take care, lead them to worry overmuch about themselves:

You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.  But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak, for it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.                     (Matthew 10:18-21)

We all know that the apostle Paul suffered more than any of the apostles for Jesus, and the hearing of only a few of his sufferings and trials fills us with admiration for his steadfast proclamation of the Good News (2 Cor. 11:24s.):

From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep.   

How could he endure such punishments and survive such sufferings?  And where did he find the courage and strength to continue his witnessing to Christ?  Listen to him again:

By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. (1 Corinthians 15:10)

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant. (2 Corinthians. 3:5-6)

My dear people, it is not only necessary for our eternal salvation, but it is also a much happier and more fulfilling experience for us here on earth to delight in God, and to be able and willing to trust and thank Him at all times and under all circumstances.  No one is happier than one who is grateful, none stronger than he who trusts in God.

Trust in God is absolutely essential, being the very hallmark of true love.  Trust in God is not, indeed, an integral part of our human nature, it is a gift from God; but like the talents in Jesus’ parable, it is a gift entrusted to us that we can and should develop, an endowment we are exhorted to use, work with, and profit from.  We need to pray constantly for greater trust in God, for a more instinctive and childlike reliance on Him, and we should also seek to support such prayers by resolute endeavours to turn aside from our over-elaborate selves more promptly, through simple and ever more whole-hearted commitment to Him and His purposes; loving Him and doing His will, after the example of Jesus.

As trust grows it brings with it such a deep peace and quiet joy that one wonders how one could have been so foolish as to have relied on, or worried about, self so much before.   Moreover, with a deepening awareness of and trust in the goodness of God to ourselves, we can all the more sincerely sympathize with others in their faults and failings, as we come to recognize ever more clearly where we ourselves would be, were it not for God’s bountiful blessings filling up our emptiness and satisfying our needs.

Dear friends in Christ, unshakeable trust in, and heart-felt gratitude to, God the Father -- for the love and commitment embodied in Jesus crucified and gloriously Risen, and abiding ever with us in the grace and power of His Spirit in the Church – such love and trust, I say, bring us and offer all believers, a fulfilment and peace beyond anything else this side of heaven.   Taste and see that the Lord is GOOD!

29th Sunday of the Year 2013

29^th. Sunday of Year (C)

(Exodus 17:8-13; 2 Timothy 3:14 – 4:2; Luke 18:1-8)

On looking at our three readings for today’s celebration the most striking passage for me is also the last, those mysterious words of Our Blessed Lord which, enigmatic as they are, can serve as the key to interpret all the rest:

            When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?

Faith, that is, in Himself, the Son of God made man for our salvation: The Son of God Who, through the Immaculate Virgin and by the power of the Holy Spirit, willed to assume our flesh so that, as Son of Man, He might be able to take upon Himself the burden -- but not the guilt -- of our sins, making an atonement in which He would suffer and die on the Cross of Calvary before, on the third day, rising from the dead in bodily glory and ascending back to His Father in heaven for our salvation.

Jesus was surrounded by questioning voices on the occasion of our Gospel reading:

Asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he said in reply, “The coming of the kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For behold, the kingdom of God is among you.” (17:20-21)

The disciples said to Him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is, there also the vultures will gather.”  (17:37)

‘When?’, ‘where?’, also, no doubt, ‘how?’  How often was Our Lord tormented by a multitude of inquisitive and distracted observers, sardonic and critical opponents, as well as some few humble seekers, trusting followers, possibly committed disciples!  Now, somewhat wearied, Jesus simply says, almost sotto voce to Himself:

            When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?

Let us now look at our readings to find out what help they can give us to appreciate, protect, and hopefully develop our faith in Jesus, our abiding Glory and sure Shield, on Whom are fixed all our hopes and aspirations, in Whom our complete trust and confidence rest secure.

In our first reading we heard that:

Moses, said to Joshua, “Pick out certain men, and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle. I will be standing on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.”

The battle was long and hard, going now this way and next the other; and since Moses was old he became seriously tired, whereupon:

They put a rock in place for Moses to sit on, while Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands remained steady till sunset.

Looking at Moses we can see prayer losing its ease and probably some of its fervour, but, what we most certainly need to clearly recognize in Moses and re-discover for ourselves today, is his unflinching and unyielding appreciation of the absolute necessity and ultimate efficacy of the prayer to which he was committed.  At this crucial juncture Moses’ prayer was, indeed, far from easy, time was dragging on and pressing down hard upon him, but it was, as Moses could see, saving prayer.   Looking on the battle raging below him between the children of Israel under Joshua and the pagan tribe of Amalek he was forced to forget himself, to humble himself, and to trust God through ‘thick and thin’, as the prospect of victory switched again and again from one side to the other, from the marauding, pagan, nomads of the southern desert land to God’s ‘chosen people’ under Joshua. 

            When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?

Yes -- Mother Church who has juxtaposed today’s readings assures us -- Jesus will find the faith He expects in all who will to pray like Moses, in all who are earnestly looking for, and are seriously willing to suffer for, the well-being of God’s People and the advancement of God’s purposes and glory, rather than supinely allow themselves to become alarmed at, or be dissuaded by, the opposition of others or the personal experience of difficulty or distress.

This understanding  is confirmed when we recall that St. Luke explicitly tells us, Jesus told His parable in today’s Gospel so that:

Men always ought to pray and not lose heart. (Luke 18:1 NKJV)

Was it because of the danger of such weariness overwhelming some – many? – of His disciples, then, now, and in the future, that Jesus went on to say:

            When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?

Our Blessed Lord, therefore, told the parable of the unjust judge and the persistent widow to encourage ‘men’ to pray, and to strengthen them for perseverance; and yet, immediately, so that it seems almost to be part of the parable, He says aloud, or ‘sotto voce’:

            When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?

It would seem quite certain that Jesus was acutely aware of the threat to mankind’s redemption and salvation posed by worldly dissipation and distraction, self-love and faint-heartedness.

Our first two scriptural readings today certainly fit in with such an interpretation; for faith in Jesus as Son of God and Son of Man, conqueror of Death and Lord of Life, our Saviour, totally true, loving, and sure, proclaims and demands that despite whatever may threaten us from within our own selves or from without, we can never be forced, nor should ever allow ourselves, to yield to weariness or despair.

Let us now turn our attention to the second reading from Paul’s pastoral letter  to Timothy his protégé:

            Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed!

Those words can be regarded as another example of St. Paul’s remarkable fidelity, not only to Our Lord’s Gospel teaching but also to His Personal pre-occupations and desires.

Let us find out how Paul would back-up the teaching and encouragement of Jesus’ parable.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, proclaim the word; (because) all scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness.  (Be) persistent, whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand (and) encourage, through all patience and teaching.

‘Proclaim the Word’, that is, proclaim Jesus as the Christ of God in accordance with the Scriptures.  Too many ‘supporters’ of Jesus and even some, always too many, priests think that they have to make Jesus popular; and they aspire to do this ‘good’ by tampering with -- watering down – aspects of Gospel teaching labelled extreme, and the so-called inhuman rigidity and ‘objectivity’ of Catholic doctrine; and/or by trying to make themselves (especially priests, so closely aligned with Jesus) popular, in the hope that their personal popularity might brush off, so to speak, on Jesus.  Paul, however, had no sympathy with popularity polls of whatever sort, for he insists that Christ be authentically preached and proclaimed:

            persistently, whether it is convenient or inconvenient;

neither does he shrink from risking popular abuse and personal vilification by insisting that Timothy:

            convince (and) reprimand (as well as) encourage, 

in order to teach patiently, which means inevitably, perseveringly.

How many priests today are intimidated by the fear of appearing to teach!  Children, O.K., but teach adults who may like to think they already know!!

Yes, I repeat, Mother Church -- who has juxtaposed today’s readings -- assures us that Jesus will find the faith He expects in all those who, in accordance with Paul’s advice to his beloved Timothy treasure what has been handed down to them in Mother Church, will proclaim what they themselves have experienced, learned, and come to know in accordance with the Scriptures of Mother Church solely for love of Jesus and the ‘gospel-good’ of those who will hear them, without fear for themselves or pandering to popular opinion.  But always and in all things, with Christian patience and sincere humility.  

There is still one further aspect of Jesus’ final words (or thoughts) in our Gospel passage: namely that Jesus does not seem to expect what commonly concerns most Catholics, namely a desire for the Faith’s popularity.  The proclamation of the Gospel, love for others, does not require, does not even directly involve, personal popularity, but rather a concern for integrity and humility: integrity -- at the personal, institutional, and doctrinal levels -- in our proclamation, preaching and presentation of Jesus; humility in our response to and relations with those we personally  serve or encounter.

The implications of popularity are widespread and often they are most harmful to Mother Church, of which we have a quite recent and baleful manifestation.   We have a splendid Pope in Francis and a splendid pope-emeritus in Benedict, Francis a blessing from God because of the evangelical simplicity of his following of Jesus, and Benedict because of His inspiringly beautiful writings on the teaching and Person of Jesus.   Why do some people think that to praise Francis they must in some way denigrate Benedict??    

Dear People of God, let us endeavour to give thanks to God with wholehearted simplicity for His unfailing goodness and beauty, especially as we have just been allowed to appreciate something of the wondrous wisdom He has bestowed on Mother Church as has been evidenced for us in her choice of texts made to accompany the Gospel for our celebration today.