“Do not fear”

This exhortation must have been very important for Jesus, because he repeats it three times in the short passage of today’s gospel. However, before going any further, we need to understand the context of what Jesus is saying. Fear is an important part of our human nature. If I were not afraid of anything, I would be prone to do stupid things that would hurt or damage me. So, in certain circumstances, fear is a natural, healthy way of preserving my well-being.

Today’s gospel passage is taken from the tenth chapter of Matthew’s gospel, where Jesus calls the twelve apostles and sends them out on their mission. He reminds them that they will be going “like sheep among wolves”. He tells them that, not only will there be people who will not accept their teaching, but they will even have to suffer injustices because of their mission. He also reminds them that he himself had been called a devil by his opponents, and they should not expect to receive better treatment! Indeed, humanly speaking, Jesus’ words are not very encouraging!

This is where Jesus tells these disciples that, in spite of all this, they need not fear. Not because they are naïve or ignorant of the dangers. But simply because they are going to be in very good hands, those of God the Father. He who looks after the little birds of the air, will definitely be looking after them. After all, they are much more valuable than a little sparrow! Moreover, God the Father is constantly aware of what they are going through. Our God is not an indifferent god, who does not care of what’s happening in our lives. “Even the hairs of your head are all counted,” Jesus tells them - a beautiful image abut how God knows every little detail about us.

The words addressed to the twelve disciples are also being addressed to us. Thanks to our baptism, we are all called to participate in the mission of Jesus. Wherever we happen to be in our little world, be it at work, at home, or amongst our friends, we are called to bring good news: to help people understand that there is a God who loves and who cares. This is the news that Jesus constantly proclaimed in his life here on Earth. There will be times when this will not be easy. Particularly when we will have to live out what we are trying to convey to others. Jesus’ message was a continuous message of love: loving neighbor, loving your enemy, unconditionally forgiving, constantly giving of yourself and dying to yourself for others. Some may take advantage. Others might make fun of you, especially when you don’t take advantage to advance simply because you want to do the right thing, or when they see you constantly trying to forgive those who harm you. This is where the words “do not fear” will make sense. Irrespective of how difficult it seems, God will be accompanying us and giving us the strength necessary to do what we are being called to do.

​Having said all this, the final words of Jeremiah’s song in today’s first reading ring in our hearts: “Sing to the lord; praise the Lord! For he has delivered the life of the needy from the hands of evildoers.” 

The feast which we are celebrating today always brings to mind one particular Thursday evening, when Jesus was gathered with his close circle of friends to celebrate the Passover meal. It was a very intimate moment for the group. The crowds were not there. This was to be a special day for all of them, a day never to be forgotten. During the meal Jesus takes the bread, looks up to heaven in thanksgiving, blesses, breaks and distributes the bread. This time however, unlike in previous years, some very special words accompany these gestures: “Take this, this is my body” – followed by “this is my blood”, referring to the wine of the chalice he gave them afterwards. All this is followed by a special command: “Do this in remembrance of me”.

During this special gathering, Jesus tells his disciples to do something. They are not meant to be spectators or mere recipients of what is being given. As disciples, they are to walk in the Master’s footsteps. What the Master did there was not a simple sharing of a meal. He was giving his own body, pouring his own blood. “Do this” did not refer solely to the breaking of bread or drinking from the chalice, but also to what it implied: the total giving of oneself to others. What Jesus did sacramentally on Thursday evening, He repeated on the following day from the cross.

It’s interesting to note that in his account of the same Holy Thursday event, St John does not give us any of the above. Rather, he tells us about Jesus washing the feet of his disciples - a great act of humility and service. Here again, Jesus tells the disciples, “as I have done to you, you do the same to one another”.

In both stories we have the same act of giving of self, of dying to the other person, of unconditional, freely given love. And in both stories, we notice one particular detail: Judas was present! Yes, in spite of (or, perhaps, because of) the fact that Jesus knew what was in Judas’ mind, he did kneel down in front of him to wash his feet, and he did share with him the gift of his body and blood. When Jesus tells us to do exactly as he does, he is basically telling us to love everybody, irrespective of who they are or what they have done! This is real “communion” Yes, following Jesus is not for the faint-hearted!

This is what we are living out every time we celebrate Eucharist. During Mass we listen to those words, over and over again: “do this in remembrance of me”. As we slowly start coming back to our churches, it’s good to remember that this is the command I am expected to live in my daily life, as I leave the Church building after Mass. What I celebrate in Church, I am called to live outside of it. “Do this” is asking me to give my life to others, without holding anything back, irrespective of who the “other” might be. Otherwise, my celebration would be a contradiction.

​Humanly speaking, this might be difficult to do. Not unlike what happened in the first story, doing what Jesus is asking me to do sometimes defies all human logic and reasoning. But it is worth taking the risk. The results might surprise us.

Wow … here we go again! This week Jesus continues to challenge his followers to make that extra step from what was normally expected from them. “You shall love your neighbor “ was one of their basic norms in life. Granted, there were discussions going on as to who, exactly, would fall under the category of “neighbor”. But let us not get into that discussion for the time being. Because that norm dictated that, as long as you loved your neighbor, it was accepted that you hated your enemy. “Eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth” was just the right thing to do when disputes ensued. For Jesus, this is unacceptable. As far as Jesus is concerned, love has no limits, no boundaries, no exceptions. If you love those who love you, Jesus tells them, you are doing nothing special. Even tax-collectors and the “gentiles” can do that. Jesus knew how to touch a nerve. Surely, not one of his listeners would have wanted to be compared to either a tax collector or a nonbeliever.

Indeed, what Jesus taught, he lived in his own life. His unconditional way of loving is well-known to everyone. No one was excluded from his love, unless they chose to exclude themselves. He reached out to the infamous taxcollectors, to public sinners and to hated Samaritans. He even publicly pleaded forgiveness, while hanging on a cross, for those who were murdering him. In short, Jesus is telling us that if we want to be his followers, our only choice is to walk on his footsteps, to live the same life he lived, to love with the same kind of love he loved. The commandment to love my neighbor as myself he changed into “Love one another as I have loved you”.

In our lives we often think in business terms. What’s in it for me? It is easy to love those who love me, those who can give me something back in return. Just ask any young couple who are getting ready to get married, “why do you love your partner”? Almost invariably the answers would be because he/she makes me happy, gives me what I need, fills my life, helps me fulfil myself. There is always that element that I love someone because they do something for me, or improve my life. Of course, there is nothing wrong with that. According to Jesus, it is simply not enough. To test myself as to whether I live my life as a true follower of Jesus, I have to ask myself how do I respond to wrongs received? How do I relate to those who do not love me, or who cannot give me anything?

It is providential that this passage is being presented to us for our reflection during the week when we begin Lent. Lent is a time when we are invited to improve our lives, to do that qualitative leap Jesus is asking for. And, during this time, the Church gives us some tools to help us do what, by our own efforts, we cannot do. Because, let’s be honest, what Jesus is asking is not easy! More quality time for prayer, aided by almsgiving and some sacrifice (the three things which are greatly encouraged for Lent) will surely help us in achieving our holy desires.

The Lebanese poet Kahlil Gibran’s words about Love serve as a fitting conclusion for today’s reflection:

But if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires:
To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.
To know the pain of too much tenderness.
To be wounded by your own understanding of love;
And to bleed willingly and joyfully.

To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving;
… And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart
and a song of praise upon your lips.

The old and the new meet. Jesus, the “new Adam”, the “new man” is brought to the temple to adhere to what was written in the old law. Mary and her husband Joseph, the just man, had lived their whole lives making sure they would not transgress anything that was written in the law. He had to be presented in a ritual that would make him the son of Abraham - he who was in fact the Son of God! His mother had to be purified, since the law said that childbirth would make the woman unclean, and she had to be purified after a certain number of days.

As they go into the temple, God’s own house two other people come to meet them. A man and a woman, both old, both having waited for a very long time the coming of the messiah. We can safely say that these two represent the whole people of God, who had been waiting this moment for centuries. Unlike the young parents of that child, these old people’s main concern is not the law, but the child that is being presented, the one whom they had been waiting. Simeon takes the baby in his arms. The focus of his attention is all there. Enlightened by God’s own Spirit, he knows that this is not any baby who will have to make sure he obeys God’s law for the rest of his life. This is God’s own word. The life-giving word that in the beginning had said over and over again ”let there be …” and so it was, is now here, in the form of a human being. This word continues to give life. It brings salvation for everyone, light to those who were in darkness, and glory to God’s own people. Through this word, the “inner thoughts of many will be revealed”. Truth will come out and prevail.

Unfortunately, this Word-made-flesh will not be accepted by everyone. As the apostle John would say many years later, he came to his own, but his own did not receive him. He will have to suffer in order to fulfill his mission. Rejection, incomprehension, betrayal, death will all be part of his story. Mary his mother will be journeying with him. His sufferings will become her sufferings. Moreover, she will have to learn to become a disciple, rather than a mother. Being the mother of the Son of God is different to any other mother. She, too, will have her times of sufferings, incomprehension and confusion. Simeon’s words were difficult to understand, unless it was by the benefit of hindsight. Here the other woman comes to her aid. No one can be there for a woman more than another woman. The prophet Anna comes and starts praising God and speaking about this child and his mission. If Mary had any doubts, they are now completely gone. All Mary can do is return home and continue with her life. With Joseph, she would rear and nurture that child, see him grow, and grow with him in her understanding.

​As we slowly move into the new year, Jesus is being presented to us, not just to his Father. He comes to us as “light” to enlighten our darkness. As we journey into our own temple during these days, let us take him into our arms like Simeon did. Let us cradle him, enjoy his presence, gaze into his loving eyes. And let us allow his light to shine from his eyes into ours. No matter how dark our lives might sometimes feel or be, his light can always do wonders! 

This Sunday the Church is celebrating the “Sunday of the Word of God”. This is a new initiative by Pope Francis - an event which will be celebrated every year - to help us rediscover, appreciate more, study and meditate God’s Word in our lives. God’s word is not like any other word. It is a word that is alive, and in turn gives life. It is Jesus himself, the Word made flesh, as we have recently celebrated at Christmas. As the great Bible scholar St Jerome would remind us, "Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ". In his letter establishing this Sunday, the Pope tells us that “we urgently need to grow in our knowledge and love of the Scriptures and of the risen Lord, who continues to speak his word and to break bread in the community of believers.” We cannot grow in our relationship with Christ unless we grow in our knowledge of God’s Word.

One person who was definitely touched and changed by God’s Word was St Paul. This Saturday we celebrated the Feast of his “conversion” on the road to Damascus. What really changed the course of Paul’s life was the words that he heard in the short dialogue that he had with Jesus. Most importantly, Paul showed that he is willing to listen to this word, and act accordingly. “What am I to do, Lord?” was Paul’s constant mindset through his whole life.

These thoughts accompany us as we enter into this Sunday’s liturgy. Jesus is embarking on his public ministry. Deliberately, he chooses to begin not in Jerusalem or in the temple, but at the periphery of Zebulun and Naphtali, two towns whose faith had been tainted or lost for about seven hundred years. The coming of the living Word amongst these peoples brought “great light”, the gospel tells us, to a “people who sat in darkness”. Before even starting to perform any miracles, Jesus had a word for these people. It was a simple, yet challenging word: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near”. Repentance, or conversion, is not necessarily what happens when a great sinner becomes a saint! It is, rather, a wake-up call, inviting us to realize that all that has to do with heaven is really close to us. Our God is not a distant God. He is the Emmanuel whom we have celebrated during our Christmas festivities: the God-is-with-us. Conversion happens when, realizing the beauty of living for our God, my life takes a different meaning. It does not necessarily change who I am, my character, or my personality. Paul had a fiery character, passionate in all that he did. This did not change after Damascus. Rather, what happened was that he now uses that energy to proclaim God’s love-message wherever he went. Similarly, it is very significant that, when Jesus calls the disciples in today’s gospel, he tells them “I will make you fishers of people” - highly symbolic language implying that, from now on, they will use their talents and all they knew for the sake of the kingdom. Jesus and his mission now take first place in the disciples’ lives.

​This is the invitation for us today. What is it that God is telling me in my life? I know that I am not alone. Jesus’ “great light” comes to enlighten and clarify my choices and my decisions. Then, I know that he is with me, providing me with all that I need to fulfil my mission