A scientist was working from home. His 8-year-old son wanted to play with him, but this came to him as a distraction. To keep his son away, he tore a page from a magazine with the map of the United States, cut it into small pieces, and gave it to his son with a roll of transparent tape. He then instructed his son to take them to his room and fix the map by himself. He was very sure that it would take the boy many days if ever, to assemble the map. But in less than an hour, the boy told his dad that he had reassembled the map. The man, surprised, asked his son to explain how he was able to reassemble the map. The boy answered, “Well, Dad, I don’t know the map of the United States, but when you tore the page from the magazine, I saw on the other side a picture of Jesus. When you gave me the map to fix, I tried but I couldn’t. Then I flipped all the pieces and started to fix the picture of Jesus. When I got the picture of Jesus right, I turned it over and saw that I had also fixed the map of the United States.”
God gives human beings the power and the freedom to choose the path to take in life. But this power to choose does not include the outcome of the path we take. When we choose the route to take in life, we cannot determine what we will encounter on that route and at the end of that route. Todays’ First Reading and Gospel Passage are basically about the choices we freely make in life, and how we cannot choose the outcome of each choice.
In the First Reading from the Prophet Jeremiah, we find the contrast between trust in God and trust in human beings. The passage reads, “Thus says the Lord: Cursed is the one who trusts in human beings … Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.” The two ways here are trust in God and trust in human beings. There is a curse attached to trust in human beings and a blessing attached to trust in God. We have the power to choose between the trust in human beings and the trust in God, but we have no power to choose the outcome of our choice. If you choose God, a blessing follows, but if you choose human beings, a curse follows.
The passage continues to explain the outcome of both ways using the metaphor of plants. It says anyone who trusts in human beings and seeks strength in the flesh is like a barren bush in the desert. But the one who trusts in God is like a tree that is planted beside the waters. The heat may come, and the drought may come, but the tree will continue to bear fruits because its roots are in touch with the waters. This contrast reminds us that our help comes ultimately from God. When pride detaches us from God, it leads to a disastrous end. Sometimes, when human beings find themselves in the position of power and influence, or when they establish connections with those in the position of power or influence, instead of keeping their trust in God and acting according to his will through the love of God and neighbor, they turn away from God, and make themselves gods. History reveals disastrous ends for such people. But those who, despite the temptations of their powers and influence, continue to rely on God for directions, even though they face challenges along the way, they always bear fruits and end in glory. Like in individuals, history shows that the fall or rise of nations, civilizations, and groups goes back to their choice of whether to trust in God or to trust in human beings.
Today’s Gospel passage further reveals that God does not curse the bad and bless the good; instead, as human beings and as nations, groups, and civilizations, our happiness or unhappiness depends on the choices we make in life. Today’s Gospel passage is Luke’s version of Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount. In Luke’s case, it is not on the mount, but on the plain. The sermon begins with the beatitude. Luke’s version of the beatitude is shorter than Matthew’s. Each line begins with the word “Blessed.”
The Greek adjective makarios, can be translated into English as blessed or happy. That is why some translations say, “Blessed are the poor,” while others say, “Happy are the poor.” In the Greek version of this text of the beatitude, the verb “to be (are)” is not part of the expression. In Greek, it comes more like an exclamation, so instead of “Blessed are the poor,” it appears more like, “Oh, the blessedness of the poor.” So, it is a recognition of an ongoing experience, not just something reserved for the future or something just added. It is the recognition of something that automatically follows something else. So, those who choose to be poor in spirit are already blessed.
Another difference between Luke’s version of the beatitude and Matthew’s is that instead of the eight beatitudes in Matthew, Luke has four blessedness and four woes or curses. Just as happiness inevitably follows the choice the poor, the hungry, those who weep, and the persecuted make, a curse inevitably follows those who trust earthly wealth. The passage says, “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” Remember, being rich here is not about how many possessions you have, but about how much your possessions possess you. The problem with wealth is that it can easily lead to detachment from God, the source of all we have and are. A friend once told me, “Some people are so poor to the extent that the only thing they have is money.”
Freedom is one of the greatest gifts God has given us as human beings, but there is a limit to this freedom. We can choose our path, but we cannot choose the contents of our chosen path. The little boy in the opening story had the option of focusing on the map of the United States or the image of Jesus Christ. He chose the image of Jesus, which automatically fixed the United States map. When we choose the flesh, there may be temporary success, but it never ends well. When we choose God, difficulties may come, but because of our connection to God, what comes as a stumbling block becomes a steppingstone. In my hospital ministry, there have been times I was too focused on all I read in books and learned from school. There were many times I trusted in my wisdom while ministering to patients, staff, and their family members. At such moments, I recorded some failures. But when I become conscious of the fact that it is not about my ability but my availability to God, the outcome is usually glorious. As such, these days, at the beginning of my shifts, I go before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament in the hospital chapel and pray, “Lord Jesus, thank you for bringing me here today. Please, deliver me from all forms of self-deception. Empty me of myself, and fill me up with you so that everyone I encounter today may experience you in me to the glory of God and for our salvation. Amen.”
Homily for 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C 2025
May the lord grant us his grace to realize that we can do nothing if we detached ourselves from God.
Amen. Thank you so much for the prayer.
Fada,
Always smart words and appreciate the analigies..
Keith
Very kind of you, Keith.