Reflection
Memorial of St. Ignatius of Loyola
Readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/072426.cfm
In today’s Gospel, Jesus preaches in the synagogue in his native area of Nazareth but was rejected by the people there.
Today is the beginning of the fourth of five discourses of Jesus recorded in Matthew’s Gospel. Mercy is the key theme of this discourse. Today’s Gospel, though, is a sad story of how the people of Nazareth refused to believe and rejected God’s mercy.
Those hearing Jesus preach were initially “astonished” (Mt. 13:54) at his words and his wisdom. They knew him as the child of Mary and Joseph. But “they took offense at him.” (Mt. 13:57) Why did they not celebrate their hometown Messiah? Luke’s version of this story (Lk. 4:14-30) provides us further insight. It informs us that Jesus read from a scroll of the prophet Isaiah and identified himself as the Messiah and proclaimed a Jubilee year for the Jewish people. For the people, this was astonishing. But when Jesus taught that the Gentiles would also experience this liberation and mercy, the people reacted harshly, rose up, drove Jesus out of his native town, and tried to throw him down the hill (Luke 4:29).
The Jewish people wanted a Messiah that would overthrow the Gentiles, especially the Romans who were ruling their people. Can you imagine having the ability to receive God’s love and mercy but rejecting it because those you don’t like would also receive the same love and mercy. That would be like Cubs fans wanting to enjoy the fruits of salvation but rejecting it because it was also offered to White Sox fans. Crazy, right? Right? Hmm… Let’s think about that for a moment. No seriously, the people got caught up in their current desires, to be freed from the Romans, and lost sight of the big picture – happiness now and eternal joy forever!
Our faith in Jesus should lead us to seek the liberation and salvation of all people, even those who persecute or otherwise annoy us. We should live according to the message and not be concerned with who receives God’s mercy. None of us can earn our way to heaven. God’s mercy isn’t restricted to a privileged few.
Instead, let us embrace our faith and seek to give God’s love, mercy and forgiveness to others as his grateful disciples.
Today’s Question for Prayer and Reflection
Who are the people in your life to whom you can bring God’s love and mercy today?
Source for today’s reflection: https://epriest.com/reflections/view/3508