Amos 7:10-17 / Matthew 9:1-8
Amos is ordered out of Israel: “Go on back to Judah.”
Israel refused to change her ways in spite of Amos’
preaching. There was nothing Amos could do but pass judgment on her. Israel’s
response to Amos’ judgment was predictable. Amaziah, the high priest of Bethel,
ordered him to leave the northern kingdom. “Go on back to Judah and do your
preaching there,” he said. Amos risked his neck by staying a little longer. He
still had a few more things to say. Eventually, however, he returned to Judah.
But his words kept echoing in the land of Israel long after he left.
***
How do we respond when people tell us things we don’t want
to hear? Do we close our ears to them? Do we try to silence them?
Jesus said, “This people will . . not understand . .
.because their minds are dull, and they have stopped up their ears.”Mt 13:14-15
****
If people don't like to hear bad things said about them,
then how would the people of God respond when they hear bad things said about
them? Certainly they, like everyone else, would not like to hear it nor will
they be happy to hear it. But being the people of God, they would also have
this responsibility of discerning what was said and how true it is.
In the 1st reading, the prophet Amos prophesied against the
people of Israel, and they could no longer tolerate what he was saying. But
there was no denying that Amos spoke the Word of God. The priest Amaziah called
him "seer" and told him to go back to Judah to do his prophesying
there. And for not heeding the oracle of the Lord and the prophet, the people
of God had to face the consequences.
In the gospel, it was the paralytic who listened to the Word
of God when Jesus told him - Courage, my child, your sins are forgiven. The
paralytic then understood that forgiveness comes before healing and so he
opened his heart to forgiveness, and when Jesus told him to get up and walk, he
was healed and got up and walked home. When we acknowledge our sinfulness and
the call to repentance, our sins will be forgiven and we too will get up and
walk towards Jesus.
May we not let our sinfulness prevent us from listening to
the voice of God and the call to repentance.
****
FAITH ON TRIAL
Introduction
The priest Amaziah, in the name of the lord king, judges as
inopportune the word of God through the prophet Amos. It is not politically
relevant. It was, humanly speaking, a meager consolation for the
cripple to hear that his sins were forgiven. But to the believer, sin is the
root of human ills; when this root is taken away by forgiveness, the whole
person is saved, also in one’s body. In the gospel the scribes call Jesus a
blasphemer. The official people of institutionalized religion challenge the
true message of God, on account of so-called true religion. Let us pray today
that we may recognize the true Spirit of God when here is a message to tell us,
even when it is unpleasant.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God, often we do not
understand what you ask of us in life. Give us a trusting
faith, we pray you, that we may keep believing in
you even when we don’t see where you lead us. Give us the
faith of Abraham, who was willing to sacrifice his
son; give us the faith of the lame man who found fresh
courage when his sins were forgiven. Tell us to stand up
and walk with the certainty that you love us and want to bring us
home to you, who are our God forever.
Commentary
In pre-exilic Israel, there were groups of prophets who
carried their messages throughout the country. Their conduct was frequently
ecstatic, oftentimes self-induced. Amos, however, works alone; although a
southerner, he preaches at a northern sanctuary. Amaziah, the priest
of the Bethel sanctuary, is clearly annoyed by Amos’s presence and orders the
prophet to leave the Bethel sanctuary. Amos argues that this seems to be a case
of mistaken identity. He is not part of any prophetic group but rather a sheep
herder and a vine dresser by profession. Even though commanded not to speak, he
utters his message of destruction. He does so because he is not his own
man. The word of truth is not always welcome and is often flat- out
rejected. In today’s Gospel Jesus vindicates his power to forgive sins in his
dealing with the paralytic. Even in the face of hostile opposition, he
continues to speak the word of truth. The word of God cannot be
silenced. We cannot fail to speak it because of human respect. Amos suffered
for his mission but he could only remain steadfast. Jesus never shrank from the
truth; for this he had come into the world. At times we remain silent when our
convictions are attacked. But we too must remain firm.
Points to Ponder
Bands of prophets and the classical prophets
The duty of the prophet Jesus’ mission: forgiveness of
sin Faith and courage
Intercessions
– That the Church, aware of its shortcomings, may humbly
offer compassion and forgiveness to all who err, and become in our world a sign
and instrument of reconciliation, we pray:
– That we may show special love and care for the
handicapped, for children who will never be able to play, for those who will
never see God’s colorful world, for those who will never hear or sing songs of
joy, we pray:
-That our homes may become places of mutual
understanding and reconciliation; that the young may learn from their parents
and each other to forget injuries and to accept one another in their diversity
and individuality, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God, through this bread and this
wine you unite us with your Son. He remained faithful to
you when you demanded of him an impossible
sacrifice. As we offer this sacrifice of your Son, help
us to learn from him to say yes to any task or
sacrifice which you demand of us in life. Give us this
faith, this love and loyalty through Jesus Christ our
Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God, you have strengthened us
again by the presence of Jesus, your Son. Widen the
horizons of our faith and help us to accept, not only with our
minds but also with our hearts and our whole person, that
you see farther than we, that your heart is greater than
ours, and that sacrifice may be the toll to pay for
freedom, joy and happiness. Dispose us to accept this in trust and
love through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessing
With the lame man when he was healed, we praise and thank
God who says to us too when we have sinned: “stand up and walk.” May God keep
you walking and may he bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
***
St. Elizabeth of Portugal
On July 4, the Catholic Church celebrates St. Elizabeth of
Portugal, a queen who served the poor and helped her country avoid war during
the 13th and 14th centuries.
Elizabeth of Portugal was named for her great-aunt, St.
Elizabeth of Hungary, who was canonized in 1235. Their lives were similar in
some important ways: both of them were married at very young ages, they sought
to live the precepts of the Gospel despite their status as royalty, and
finished their lives as members of the Third Order of St. Francis.
The younger Elizabeth was born in 1271, the daughter of King
Pedro III of Aragon and his wife Constantia. Even in her youth, Elizabeth
showed a notable devotion to God through fasting, regular prayer, and a sense
of life's seriousness. While still very young, she was married to King Diniz of
Portugal, a marriage that would put her faith and patience to the test.
King Diniz was faithfully devoted to his country, known as
the “Worker King” because of his diligence. Unfortunately, he generally failed
to live out the same faithfulness toward his wife, although he is said to have
repented of his years of infidelity before his death. Diniz and Elizabeth had
two children, but the king fathered an additional seven children with other
women.
Many members of the king's court likewise embraced or
accepted various forms of immorality, and it would have been easy for the young
queen to fall into these vices herself. But Elizabeth remained intent on doing
God's will with a humble and charitable attitude. Rather than using her status
as queen to pursue her own satisfaction, she sought to advance Christ's reign
on earth.
Like her namesake and great-aunt Elizabeth of Hungary,
Elizabeth of Portugal was a devoted patroness and personal friend of the poor
and sick, and she compelled the women who served her at court to care for them
as well. The queen's bishop testified that she had a custom of secretly
inviting in lepers, whom she would bathe and clothe, even though the law of the
land barred them from approaching the castle.
Elizabeth's commitment to the Gospel also became evident
when she intervened to prevent civil war in the kingdom on two occasions.
Alfonso, the only son of Diniz and Elizabeth, resented the king's indulgent
treatment of one of his illegitimate sons, to the point that the father and son
gathered together rival armies that were on the brink of open war in 1323.
On this occasion, St. Elizabeth placed herself between the
two opposing armies, insisting that Diniz and Alfonso come to terms and make
peace with one another. In 1336, the last year of her life, she intervened in a
similar manner to prevent her son from waging war against the King of Castile
for his poor treatment of Alfonso's own daughter.
Following King Diniz's death in 1325, Elizabeth had become a Franciscan of the Third Order, and had gone to live in a convent that she had established some years before. The testimony of miracles accomplished through her intercession, after her death in 1336, contributed to her canonization by Pope Urban VIII in 1625.
