Saturday

12th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday

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It is no small feat to impress Our Lord, but in today’s Gospel the Centurion, a Roman officer and not a Jew, manages to do it. The Centurion was making an incredible act of faith against all odds. The descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, members of the chosen people, had been prepared, spoon fed, for centuries to achieve the level of faith that the Centurion is showing in today’s Gospel, and, as Scripture often reminds us, they often lacked faith in the Lord. The Centurion in approaching Jesus even knows that by Mosaic law he is not worthy to have a Jew enter his house, since for a Jew it would mean ritual defilement. He’s not entitled to be a Jew, and so he shouldn’t, in the mentality of the time, be entitled to any benefits of the chosen people. Yet even as a “fan” of the Jews and their religion something moves him in his heart to approach this rabbi who is more than a rabbi and ask that someone dear to him be healed. This episode in Jesus’ earthly life was a prelude to to moment when the Gospel begins to be proclaimed beyond the confines of Judaism.

The Centurion also shows us that when we ask Our Lord for something in prayer we need to acknowledge that he is under no obligation to grant it, but with the confidence that he will. If the Centurion did not have this simplicity and confidence he would have asked Our Lord if he could heal his servant, have him come to his house, pepper him with repeated pleas along the way, and perhaps pace around nervously as Jesus attended to his friend. In another moment Jesus teaches us that Our Father knows what we need before we ask (see Matthew 6:8). It is also the faith of the Centurion that gives him the simplicity and confidence to know that Our Lord doesn’t have to do a lot of things to perform the miracle. Faith helps us to not wring our hands in anxious prayer, but to simply ask for what we need, with humility, and to be grateful for whatever we receive from Our Lord.

Let’s ask Our Lord today to grow in a faith that trusts in him and knows that we only have to ask him for what we need and our prayer will be heard.

Readings: Genesis 18:1–15; Luke 1:46–50, 53–55; 8:5–17.

11th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday

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In today’s Gospel Our Lord directs our attention to the signs of God’s Providence in the present in order to not worry about the future. He could have provided for the oxygen we need to breathe by creating lots of molds and fungi, ugly green splotches, but instead he created magnificent trees, flowers and meadows that receive the sun and rain they need to grow and fulfill their purpose in the grand scheme of things in a beautiful way. Thinking about the future can be a source of anxiety and uncertainty if we lose sight of the signs around us every day of how God has created all things to be good and arranges them to help them achieve good ends and often in a beautiful way. He knows what we need before we even ask.

He has also traced out a path to goodness and beauty for our lives, but, unlike plants and animals, he has given us the gift of freedom and responsibility for our actions. We can work with him to help goodness and beauty grow and endure in a lasting way: not just the necessary needs of life that people sometimes worry about too much, but the sum of all noble dreams and aspirations in God’s loving and saving plan that he calls his Kingdom. Goodness and beauty for humanity are justice and love for all who choose to welcome them and strive for them in their lives.

Let’s not just ask Our Lord today for his Kingdom to come; let’s ask him to show us how we can help him to make it a reality.

Readings: 2 Corinthians 12:1–10; Psalm 34:8–13; Matthew 6:24–34.

10th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday

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In today’s Gospel Our Lord reminds us that making a promise or giving testimony is a powerful thing. The promises we make give witness to who we are, and the witness we give is a testimony to how seriously we take our promises. We’ve all experienced how unedifying it is when someone swears something to be true, promises to deliver on something, and then is revealed to have lied or fails to deliver, and not just because of circumstances beyond their control. When something is as simple as “Yes”or “No,” as Our Lord teaches us today, there’s no room for spin, for sophistry, for fine print, or for establishing little grey areas in our conscience instead of admitting we can or can’t deliver on something or whether we know or don’t know something.

Our Lord gives a laundry list of things the people of his day were using as collateral to show how serious they were about the oaths they made. He also puts his finger on the problem: that collateral is not theirs, nor is it under their control. It’s not as common today, but when someone swears “on my life,” or any other number of things or people, we are put on a guard, exactly because they are swearing on something over which they have no control or ownership and usually as a way of convincing others of their sincerity.

The easiest way to be sincere, as Our Lord reminds us today, is simply to be sincere: it’s the simplicity of a yes or no attitude to life, one that leaves no room for deceiving ourselves or others. Let’s ask Our Lord today to achieve that level of simplicity with ourselves and with others.

Readings: 2 Corinthians 5:14–21; Psalm 103:1–4, 9–12; Matthew 5:33–37.

9th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday

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In today’s Gospel Our Lord reminds us that with prestige and recognition comes expectation: the expectations we have, but also the expectations of others. When we seek recognition or prestige for their sake, climbing the social ladder, trying to get ahead in life, at some point we come to the realization, if we’re fortunate, that we’re milking past glories instead of doing the things that’d merit recognition. That’s vainglory. If we don’t realize it we can be sure that others do.  Jesus puts us on guard against resting on our laurels, as some scribes did, who focused on maintaining and increasing their prestige instead of helping people to understand God’s word, which is what they were trained to do, and what was expected of them.

Does that mean we should stop trying to achieve and reject any recognition? Our focus should be on what we can do with the talents that God gives us to glorify him and serve others. Just as most of us go from elementary school to high school and on to college, those diplomas are signposts of recognition along the road of life, but also the expectation that with all that education we’ll accomplish bigger and better things not only for ourselves, but for others. If we focus on giving the best of ourselves for the sake of others, receiving recognition for it or not doesn’t matter to us. This is a healthy way of keeping our accomplishments from getting to our heads.

Let’s try to be more like the unassuming widow in today’s Gospel who gives until it hurts, seeking nothing in return, and not like the rich people who only gave of their excess and were probably just trying to maintain their prestige. Let’s ask Our Lord to show is whether we should be giving more for the sake of others, and to give glory to him for whatever recognition or prestige that comes our way.

Readings: Tobit 12:1, 5–15, 20; Psalm 13:2, 6e; Mark 12:38–44.

8th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday, Year I

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In today’s Gospel the chief priests, scribes, and elders try to throw their weight around, but Our Lord asks them a simple question that shows where their real center of gravity lies. They try to corner him with the question akin to “Who do you think you are doing these things?”, and he responds by asking them who they though John was. He’s not intimidated by their position, influence, or even their threats. Even when someone is in authority over us there is a level of dignity that no position or influence can take away, and that dignity is shaped by our conformity to the truth and to the just thing to do. They have a bankrupt position on their side; Jesus has the truth, and the truth is what sets us free.

From their narrow-minded interest in self-preservation they have a dilemma with no good outcome: to acknowledge that John’s work came from God, which would be to acknowledge that’s John’s testimony to Jesus before his death shows from where Jesus’ own work and authority comes, making their question to Our Lord pointless, or to acknowledge that John’s work did not come from God, which in the sphere of public opinion would be political suicide (maybe material suicide too). Although the passage doesn’t spell it out it’s likely that they thought John was just another effective political player. John sacrificed his life in the defense of an uncomfortable truth; the chief priests, scribes, and elders fear the consequences of publicly acknowledging what they believe to be true, and that shows their true center of gravity. As a result they choose to appear ignorant before the crowds in order to ensure their safety, and at the same time show that self-preservation is their greatest truth.

What’s our attitude before uncomfortable truths? Do we play them close to the vest so as not to get burned? Our Lord has promised that the truth will set us free. Let’s not be afraid of seeking the truth or testifying to it, especially when it means our discomfort or the discomfort of others in order to achieve a greater good.

Readings: Sirach 51:12c–20; Psalm 19:8–11; Mark 11:27–33.