Reflection
Today is Saturday, July 18th. It is the Saturday of the Fifteenth Week of Ordinary Time.
“SPEAK SOFTLY AND CARRY A BIG STICK”
“BE BOLD. BE CATHOLIC.”
Upon reflecting on today’s passage from the Gospel of Matthew, those two quotes resonated in my heart. During Jesus’ public ministry, he modeled both. There were times when he spoke softly, if at all, often letting his actions speak louder than His words. There were times when Jesus spoke up boldly and made clear his view on the matter at hand. Jesus boldly lived out His passion; boldly walked the road to calvary.
In reflecting on this, I saw one consistency in the life and ministry of Jesus. Always, always he was aware of the circumstances. Always, always His timing was aligned with the will of the Father. Christ was constantly obedient to the will of the Heavenly Father and His divine plan for our salvation.
“The Pharisees went out and took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. When Jesus realized this, he withdrew from that place.”
To the untrained eye, it appears that Jesus goes into hiding. It appears he is fearful of the Pharisees; it appears that He lacks courage and simply wants to avoid a confrontation.
That is not the case! Later this same passage from Gospel of Matthew states, “This was to fulfill what had been spoken through Isaiah the prophet.” Jesus is the servant that the Prophet Isaiah spoke of; He is the beloved.
Jesus is not being cowardly! Rather He is being disciplined. Jesus is bending His will to that of the Father. He is sticking with the plan. Now it is NOT the time for a confrontation with the Pharisees. There will be time for that later. Now is the time to withdraw and let past words, deeds and actions speak for themselves. At the appropriate time, Christ will stand boldly before Caiaphas and Pilate; when its time He will courageously take up the cross.
“SPEAK SOFTLY AND CARRY A BIG STICK”
“BE BOLD. BE CATHOLIC.”
Always, always Jesus was aware of the circumstances. Always, always Jesus’ timing was aligned with the will of the Father. Christ was constantly obedient to the will of the Heavenly Father…. Some times we need to speak softly; some times we need to be bold.
Today, we are invited to model Jesus – to be aware of the circumstances, to align our will to that of the Heavenly Father, and to bend our will to His.