Verbum Dei UK

Isaiah 8:23-9:3 . 1 Corinthians 1:10-13,17 . Matthew 4:12-23

MEDITATION:

The readings this Sunday are about Jesus calling apostles and about God's desire to overcome divisions and to unite everyone. That's a 'mission' for us all. In fact it's when one puts effort into spreading the Word of Christ, that one begins to be truly with Christ. Prayer and evangelization go together.

 

Fortunately, Christ became flesh and blood like us, as we've celebrated at Christmas -born in a stable, and when it comes to settling down in a family home, he chooses Nazareth - a small out-of-the-way village considered to be 'gentile' territory (Galilee). As Andrew asks Nathaniel (in John 1:46 ) "Can anything good come from Nazareth ?'!

The readings today emphasize the geography of it. The regions west of the Jordan river were considered undignified for Jews of the time - as Isaiah says, it was 'gentile country'. By the way, the reference to the day of Midian (Is 9:3) is referring to the time that the Jews overcame opposition in Judges 7 . Then the Gospel tells of how Jesus chose that region (Galilee of the gentiles) to launch his mission. He then launches his Church there - calling Simon and Andrew from their fishing. He later calls him Simon-Peter as he said that he's the rock (petrus) on which the Church would be built.

t's relevant that some years we celebrate a Christian unity week - remembering how God wants us all to be united - from North, South, East and West - black, white, brown and yellow. St Paul is a good example for us - initially a very dignified Jew who ends up an undignified 'Christian' traveling to many a 'gentile' country and getting us all to unite in Christ. In the second reading today he tells the Corinthians that he doesn't want to convince them of anything 'with the wisdom of human eloquence', but he just wants to point out Jesus-Christ. It's calling us to spend time in personal prayer where Christ himself gets his message across to each one of us. I say 'us', because Ireland was certainly a 'gentile' or 'heathen' place until people like St Patrick made it there! The readings today call us to recognize our unity in spite of a world which draws divisions. Paul's community had people who followed Kephas, others Apollos etc even to the point of rivalry. Our world is full of rivalry today - and our private lives also. Let's work to cure Christ's disjointed limbs! It's not a question of finding a group that you like, but of learning to love the group where you are. And it's not a question of pretending, but of genuinely respecting. East or west of the Jordan - of the politically Right or Left etc, we're all a family! Peter ends up with a good catch of fish that day, and Jesus says: "I'll make you a fisher of men"! Let's fish out any superficial prejudices we may have had and attract others to Christ - attract others who'll attract others who'll attract others... We'll all make it to the resurrection together!  

....................Dara.

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