My Seven-Minute-Homily, 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time year C, August 18th 2013
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
The Book of the prophet Jeremiah 38. 4-6, 8-10; Letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews 12.1-4
and the Gospel of St. Luke 12. 49-53
Jesus is the Lord of peace. Jesus is a peacemaker. We follow Jesus to look for peace, peace in heart, peace in family and in community. How come Jesus says in today’s Gospel “I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled. Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division” And he continues his talk by giving many divisions right in one household: “father against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother”.
It is hard to understand what Jesus means. We might come back to the first reading for a better understanding of the Gospel. In today’s first reading, Jeremiah was thrown into a cistern, no water in it, just mud and Jeremiah sank in the mud. What did he do so that he got a penalty from the officials of King Zedekiah? He told people leave the city because God will destroy this sinful city. He spoke what he has been told to say. He told the truth and he got penalty because of the truth. Before the eye’s of the officials of King Zedekiah, Jeremiah was a troublemaker “he is discouraging the soldier” as they said. Finally, he was rescued from the cistern because what he said was happening.
The second reading is taken from the letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews. Saint Paul encourages people to look for Jesus as the pioneer, as a perfect one of faith. Because Jesus has passed all struggles, sufferings and death and finally he rose again from the dead and now he has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. St. Paul gives people a visible comparison: As long as we live, we are on the race that it set before us and the final goal is Jesus himself. To reach him, we should pass through struggles, suffering and death like Jesus did.
Jeremiah was a prophet, a messenger of God. Jesus also is a prophet, a messenger of God. Both of them were suffered a lot. Both were persecuted a lot. Both were on the race to reach the final goal. It is the salvation! it is the kingdom of God. To be faithful with the commission from God, they have to tell the truth, they have to make people think about their sins and they ask people to make a returning to God so that they can avoid from disaster, penalty from God. But people did not listen to them and before people’s eyes, they are troublemakers, they did not let them live in peace. They mean the peace of unspoken conscience. They don’t want any bother them by telling them about God, righteousness and true peace.
So when Jesus said “Do you think that I have to come to bring peace to the earth? No. I tell you, but rather division”. Jesus doesn’t mean that he is a troublemaker to the earth but he wants people have a true peace. The truth peace is Jesus himself. He is the way, the truth and the life. Because of him and the kingdom of God, people are divided from one another. Some go with him but some against him and because they do against him, they against with one another. So in some way, he becomes the reason of division.
However Jesus also says “I came to bring fire to the earth and how I wish it were already kindled”. The catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that “while water signifies birth and the fruitfulness of life given in the Holy Spirit, fire symbolizes the transforming energy so that we would see the true peace that Jesus brings to the earth and we should be faithful with Jesus even there is division in the family.
I think that Pope Francis is the fire of the Holy Spirit. The pope uses that fire to burn down the distance from the Roman Pontiff and the people especially the poor. On July 18, 2013 at 01:55 pm., a Vatican spokesman said “during next week's World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro, Pope Francis will be staying in a modest residency, visiting a slum and traveling without his Popemobile” Pope Francis really lives on earth, he stays in the side of the poor because majority of the population the world is poor and very poor. The pope becomes the real presence of Jesus, the poor in the world. We can say that the pope brings a big surprise and difference to the world. If we want to follow Jesus we have to do some things that are very different from tradition before.
The life we live is not an easy one, especially to live a catholic life. Sometimes we become those who make division in the family between husband and wife and children. Sometimes we become those who make division in the community not for any reason but for the fire of the Holy Spirit, for the renewal, for a better change for family. We should go to the end even suffering, struggles and discouragements. We should carry the fire to everywhere and to everyone so that they can see Jesus Christ, the pioneer, the perfect one that we are looking for. Amen
Oremus: O Lord Jesus, thank you for being with us as a friend, as a teacher and as Master. As a friend, you make us to be close to you. As a friend you share with us our struggles. As a teacher, you show us how to live a life with full of meaning. As a Master, you give us eternal life in heaven. Jesus, we follow you always! Amen.
Father Great Rice
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
The Book of the prophet Jeremiah 38. 4-6, 8-10; Letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews 12.1-4
and the Gospel of St. Luke 12. 49-53
Jesus is the Lord of peace. Jesus is a peacemaker. We follow Jesus to look for peace, peace in heart, peace in family and in community. How come Jesus says in today’s Gospel “I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled. Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division” And he continues his talk by giving many divisions right in one household: “father against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother”.
It is hard to understand what Jesus means. We might come back to the first reading for a better understanding of the Gospel. In today’s first reading, Jeremiah was thrown into a cistern, no water in it, just mud and Jeremiah sank in the mud. What did he do so that he got a penalty from the officials of King Zedekiah? He told people leave the city because God will destroy this sinful city. He spoke what he has been told to say. He told the truth and he got penalty because of the truth. Before the eye’s of the officials of King Zedekiah, Jeremiah was a troublemaker “he is discouraging the soldier” as they said. Finally, he was rescued from the cistern because what he said was happening.
The second reading is taken from the letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews. Saint Paul encourages people to look for Jesus as the pioneer, as a perfect one of faith. Because Jesus has passed all struggles, sufferings and death and finally he rose again from the dead and now he has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. St. Paul gives people a visible comparison: As long as we live, we are on the race that it set before us and the final goal is Jesus himself. To reach him, we should pass through struggles, suffering and death like Jesus did.
Jeremiah was a prophet, a messenger of God. Jesus also is a prophet, a messenger of God. Both of them were suffered a lot. Both were persecuted a lot. Both were on the race to reach the final goal. It is the salvation! it is the kingdom of God. To be faithful with the commission from God, they have to tell the truth, they have to make people think about their sins and they ask people to make a returning to God so that they can avoid from disaster, penalty from God. But people did not listen to them and before people’s eyes, they are troublemakers, they did not let them live in peace. They mean the peace of unspoken conscience. They don’t want any bother them by telling them about God, righteousness and true peace.
So when Jesus said “Do you think that I have to come to bring peace to the earth? No. I tell you, but rather division”. Jesus doesn’t mean that he is a troublemaker to the earth but he wants people have a true peace. The truth peace is Jesus himself. He is the way, the truth and the life. Because of him and the kingdom of God, people are divided from one another. Some go with him but some against him and because they do against him, they against with one another. So in some way, he becomes the reason of division.
However Jesus also says “I came to bring fire to the earth and how I wish it were already kindled”. The catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that “while water signifies birth and the fruitfulness of life given in the Holy Spirit, fire symbolizes the transforming energy so that we would see the true peace that Jesus brings to the earth and we should be faithful with Jesus even there is division in the family.
I think that Pope Francis is the fire of the Holy Spirit. The pope uses that fire to burn down the distance from the Roman Pontiff and the people especially the poor. On July 18, 2013 at 01:55 pm., a Vatican spokesman said “during next week's World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro, Pope Francis will be staying in a modest residency, visiting a slum and traveling without his Popemobile” Pope Francis really lives on earth, he stays in the side of the poor because majority of the population the world is poor and very poor. The pope becomes the real presence of Jesus, the poor in the world. We can say that the pope brings a big surprise and difference to the world. If we want to follow Jesus we have to do some things that are very different from tradition before.
The life we live is not an easy one, especially to live a catholic life. Sometimes we become those who make division in the family between husband and wife and children. Sometimes we become those who make division in the community not for any reason but for the fire of the Holy Spirit, for the renewal, for a better change for family. We should go to the end even suffering, struggles and discouragements. We should carry the fire to everywhere and to everyone so that they can see Jesus Christ, the pioneer, the perfect one that we are looking for. Amen
Oremus: O Lord Jesus, thank you for being with us as a friend, as a teacher and as Master. As a friend, you make us to be close to you. As a friend you share with us our struggles. As a teacher, you show us how to live a life with full of meaning. As a Master, you give us eternal life in heaven. Jesus, we follow you always! Amen.
Father Great Rice