02/09/2023

There are some beautiful images in all the psalms. Today the rivers clap their hands, the hills ring out their joy for in creation we can know something of the Majestic Glory of God. People rejoice and give thanks for the salvation from sin that comes to us from accepting God as our "ruler"on Earth. 

The psalmist sings of the the Covenants of the Old Testament. The prophets of the Old Testament had to continually remind the Chosen People of the need to always remember that they had to praise God by obeying his commands with joyful thanks. 

St Paul knows that the Thessalonians have learnt to live in peace with each other directly from Father, Son and Holy Spirit for he is teaching and writing in the first years of the world that has been redeemed by the Incarnation. God has chosen to become man, to share our life and death and to reveal the Glory to come by his Resurrection. He has walked with and taught his disciples.

First of all, Jesus taught by example. He is the perfect man and we should strive to imitate him. It seems to be an impossible task but our Saints both men, women and children have stretched their humanity to the limits, as did he, in devotion to God. Jesus also taught directly. Sometimes, he would capture their imaginations with a story and his listeners would interpret the message for themselves or sometimes the Apostles would ask him for an explanation.

For me, today's parable falls into the category of "hard sayings of Jesus" i.e. a category that seems to be contradictory to the Gospel and thus not easy to understand. I have, for example, been able to be at ease  with "I come to bring a sword"which does seem to contradict "peace I bring to you", but today it seems that the third servant is condemned  for feeling and being powerless before God. That is indeed a "hard saying".

Dear Lord, you know I keep on trying. I bumble along but sometimes trip over a boulder that I should try to move around. Please give me the grace to understand your teaching and the sincerity to imitate your life. May Mary and all the Saints, who must have sometimes misunderstood your word's, pray that all sinners on Earth accept your mercy with the gratitude and never to be doubted sincerity of repentance of the Holy Souls in Purgatory.