“At the mountain of God, Horeb, Elijah came to a cave where
he took shelter. Then the Lord said to
him, ‘Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord; the Lord will be
passing by.’ A strong and heavy wind was
rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the Lord – but the Lord was not
in the wind. After the wind there was an
earthquake – but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire – but the
Lord was not in the fire. After the fire
there was a tiny whispering sound. When
he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the
entrance of the cave.”
Second reading: Rom. 9: 1-5
“Brothers and sisters: I speak the truth in Christ, I do not
lie; my conscience joins with the Holy Spirit in bearing me witness that I have
great sorrow and constant anguish in my heart.
For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for
the sake of my own people, my kindred according to the flesh. They are Israelites; theirs the adoption, the
glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises;
theirs the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, is the Christ,
who is over all, God blessed forever.
Amen.”
Gospel reading: Mt. 14: 22-33
“After he had fed the people, Jesus made the disciples get
into a boat and precede him to the other side, while he dismissed the
crowds. After doing so, he went up on
the mountain by himself to pray. When it
was evening he was there alone.
Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about
by the waves, for the wind was against it.
During the fourth watch of the night, he came toward them walking on the
sea. When the disciples saw him walking
on the sea they were terrified. ‘It is a
ghost,’ they said, and they cried out in fear.
At once Jesus spoke to them, ‘Take courage, it is I; do not be
afraid.’ Peter said to him in
reply. ‘Lord, if it is you, command me
to come to you on the water.’ He said,
‘Come.’ Peter got out of the boat and began
to walk on the water toward Jesus. But
when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to
sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’
Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught Peter, and said to
him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’ After they got into the boat, the wind died
down. Those who were in the boat did him
homage, saying, ‘Truly, you are the Son of God.’”
Introductory theme summary:
Today’s readings all share in common our struggle with
doubt. In the first reading, when Elijah
was faced with full realization of where we find God’s presence he hid his
face. In the second reading we have
Paul’s anguish over the Israelites inability to believe in how God chose to reveal
himself as our Messiah. Finally in the
gospel reading we have an example of Peter’s failed attempt of faith.
Reflection:
Doubt is a very tricky but unnecessary thing! It seems to me the only time doubt becomes
even a possibility is when we depart from placing our faith strictly in God’s
truth, which includes those things specifically given for us to believe in by
the Church, by allowing ourselves to believe in a personalized view without
consideration for orthodoxy.
There are countless examples of this in how when entering
into dialogue with any of the vastly differing views of faith an argument inevitably
ensues. The Argument ensues not due to
the simple right or wrong of an issue. The
argument ensues due to the doubts suffered by both sides. The doubt suffered by one who actually holds
the “right” position manifests itself in the need to convince the other party
of their position – as if a needed assurance will be acquired by successfully convincing
the other person. The doubt suffered by
the one who is deficient in the truth manifests itself in a reactionary
defensiveness. This reaction is
instinctive because the opposition is perceived as an attack against beliefs, therefore
poses a grave “threat” to that person’s well-being.
Unfortunately, in many cases agreeing on the truth – i.e.
orthodoxy – is precisely the problem.
In the interest of peace I offer this perspective for a solution:
God can have as many different relationships with his creation – human beings –
as he wants. God alone knows which ones
are authentic, by reason of having truly inspired its origin, and which ones
are not. Every legitimate relationship –
religion – will be different, and by reason of that difference will be for a
different purpose as well as to a different ultimate end. Each religion will obviously believe it is in
full possession of the truth, which may actually be correct when considering
the different purpose and ultimate end of each different religion. In other words: the truth each religion is in
possession of, is to its own purpose and end for which God established it,
which may actually be known only to God.
Thus: no one can judge the legitimacy of any other religion,
but everyone has the right to judge which religion appeals to his/her desire
for a relationship with God. If the
individual soul is willing to stay with their choice of religion even if it
proves false in some way or another – then that person’s choice must be
respected by everyone else, come what may!
The only real obstacle to faith is its absence!! And, the only real condition for faith is
humble submission to God!!!
“Let the wicked still act wickedly, and the filthy still be
filthy. The righteous must still do
right, and the holy still be holy.”
(Rev. 22:11)
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