Amos 2:6-11, 13-16 /
Matthew 8:18-22
Amos prophesies in
Israel:
“You trample on the poor!”
This week’s readings are from Amos. He’s the first of
the so-called writing
prophets, those whose works are recorded in books. Although Amos came from Tekoa,
in the southern kingdom of Judah, he was sent by God to prophesy to the
northern kingdom of Israel. Amos was ill-equipped to be a prophet. He himself
said: “I am a herdsman, and I take care of fig trees. But the Lord .
. . ordered me to come and prophesy to his people Israel.” Amos 7:14-15
At the time Amos preached, Israel was enjoying a
period of prosperity. But the wealth benefited only a few who ignored the
poverty of the masses.
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What is our attitude toward the masses of poor? “Your
extra bread belongs to the hungry; your extra coat belongs to the naked; and
your extra gold belongs to the poor.” St. Basil
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It is almost
everyone's desire to have a comfortable life. So besides having enough to eat
and a cozy place to stay in, we would also wish for financial security and also
luxuries like a nice big car and maybe even servants to do our work for us. Yet,
these desires only exist in dreams and seldom in reality. Even if these desires
are achievable, they are like a bottomless pit and we can never be satisfied
and contented.
There is something
that Jesus said in the gospel that needs to be reflected upon and thought
about. When He said that He has nowhere to lay His head, Jesus is almost like
saying that He has no place in this world and that nothing belongs to Him. If
Jesus can say that, then what about us? And if we want to be His
disciples, are we also prepared to live like Him and have nowhere to lay our
head?
We must remember that
we live in a passing world and we are only stewards of what we have. Nothing
really belongs to us forever, and we also cannot bring anything from here to
the hereafter.
If we have nowhere to
lay our heads on earth, then the other aspect is that there must be somewhere
we can have hope in where our hearts will be at rest and find contentment.
May our hope be in our faith in God
who will grant us peace and protect us from anxiety so that our lives will be
lived in joyful hope.
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