20th Week, Monday, August 21
Judges 2:11-19 / Matthew 19:16-22
Israel sins against God; They worshiped false gods.
A Hollywood columnist asked Cecil B. DeMille, director of the film The Ten Commandments, "What commandment do you think people break the most today?" DeMille responded, "The first commandment, 'Do not bow down to any idol or worship it.' [Exodus 20:51 It's the commandment Israel broke first and it's the one we still break the most." DeMille added, "Oh, we don't bow down before graven images, but we do worship gods of comfort, gods of money, and gods of power."***
What false gods do we, personally, tend to worship in our modern world? "No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." Luke 16:13
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With today’s first reading, we take up for some days the book of Judges. Its author presents today a sort of theology of history of the Israelites, in four stages: 1. The people desert the God of the covenant and serve Canaanite idols. 2. God is angered by their infidelity and for their punishment hands them over to Canaanite domination and exploitation. 3. Now the people come to their senses and cry out to God for mercy. 4. God hears their cries and gives them a leader, a “judge,” to liberate them and for some time they serve the Lord, until the cycle starts all over. Also, the Church knows times of greater fervor and renewal, alternating with stagnation and backsliding.
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What we heard in the 1st reading is also what we will read about in almost every page of the Old Testament. And just what is that? It is this recurring problem of the Israelites. They turn to idols and worshipped the idols and they did what displeased the Lord.
Two idols were mentioned in the 1st reading: Baal who was chief of the Canaanite pantheon and worshipped as the source of life and fertility, the mightiest hero, and the lord of war. The other idol was Astarte who was worshipped as the beautiful goddess of fertility and sexual love. That brief description would already give us an indication of why the Israelites fell into idolatry.
Because the worshipping of these idols was an expression of the cravings and desires of a human heart that longs for power, might, wealth, sex and freedom from moral obligations. And the problem was that the worshipping of these idols did fulfill these yearnings and cravings and desires. Just like how the obsession with money and wealth can fulfill the yearnings and cravings and desires of the modern world.
Worshipping the one true God has its moral obligations and it also disciplines the wild and straying heart. Yet, in worshipping the one true God, we will have the peace and joy that no amount of money can buy. For all that we give up on earth, God will reward us. That can also be found in every page of the Bible.
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There can be two ways, but only one goal. The goal is eternal life: the vision of God. The two ways are: The way of the commandments and the way of the counsels. The first is obligatory, the second is the way of man's generosity towards God. The ten commandments are the fundamental law, which God has written into the heart of every man. Eternal life depends on the observance of these laws. The way of perfection leads to the same goal: Eternal life. It does not necessarily mean joining a religious order. Even living in the world, one could observe the Counsels. It means to leave all and follow Christ. Christ poor, Christ pure and Christ obedient to his Father's will. By accepting poverty, we say: God, you are my only riches. 1 need nothing else but you for my security. Chastity says: God, you are my only love. In this way I can serve you better. I can be at your full disposition. You are my only care. Obedience accepts God's will in everything.
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We probably pity the young man in today’s gospel for not having the courage to give up his wealth for a higher good. He was a just man, full of goodwill, eager for more than an average, contented life. Yet when Jesus’ call is directed to him, he cannot decide to give up his possessions to become fully happy. But are we better than he? Are we willing to share, also when it hurts, also at a cost of ourselves?
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Prayer
Lord our God, we are eager to follow your Son wherever he leads us, but not if we have to give up our little or big attachments to things or persons. God, give us the mentality of your Son and his Spirit of courage, that with Jesus we may not count the cost of giving ourselves to people and to you. Be you our only God and our all now and forever. Amen
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Saint Pius X
Feast day August 21
“I was born poor, I lived poor, I will die poor.” These words were part of the will that Pope Pius X left at his death on August 20, 1914.
He was born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, the second of 10 children. His father was a poor parish clerk in Riese, Italy, and his mother worked as a seamstress. At 11, Giuseppe was accepted as a student in high school. Every day, he walked five miles to school and back. At 15, he began attending the local seminary. When his father died, Giuseppe wanted to come home and help with the family. His mother, however, would not let him.
In 1858, he was ordained and then worked as a parish priest for 17 years. He believed his call was to encourage those who were poor to lead Christian lives and to help them overcome financial problems. He was, however, named spiritual director of the major seminary and chancellor of the diocese. Later, he became a bishop and then a cardinal.
In 1903, this little-known cardinal was elected to become Pope Pius X. He took as his motto “Restore all things in Christ.” He emphasized the importance of the Eucharist. He directed that children as young as seven should be allowed to receive the Eucharist. He initiated changes in Church music and worship. He began a biblical institute. He gave the first official impetus to the modern liturgical renewal.
Pope Pius X believed that real peace could be achieved only through social justice and charity. He sponsored and sheltered refugees with his own resources. He wrote an encyclical encouraging Latin American bishops to improve the treatment of native people working on plantations. He worked to stop the world from going to war. When Europe entered World War I, Pius was heartbroken and said, “I would gladly give up my life to save my poor children from this ghastly scourge.” Just a few weeks after the war started, Pope Pius X died.
