HOMILY, TUESDAY 16TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR A
Micah 7:14-15.18-20, Matthew 12:46-50.
We have no part in Jesus, if we do not share in his ideals. We have no place in Him if we do not live out his values. We are not related to him if we cannot obey him. He said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” John 15:14. To be associated with Jesus, we must share in his experiences.
It is not enough to be related to a popular church figure or to be a friend of one of the Messiahs in our street. True kinship is a heart-to-heart relationship. It is a shared life of common goals.
Moreover, it is a fact that our neighbour is not necessarily the person who lives close to us. True kingship is not a matter of blood relation. A member of one’s household can be one’s enemy.
However, while at his Father’s business, Jesus’ relations came for him. Possibly they thought he had really stressed himself up for the day and deserves to rest lest he breaks down. We need our family member around us. We cannot reject their care. All we need to do is simply schooling them into understanding our goals in life.
“His mother and his brethren stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied t the man who told him, “who is my mother, and who are my brethren? And stretching out his hand towards his disciples, he said, here are my mother and my brethren! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother, and sister, and mother.”
Some people often misunderstand this passage thinking that Jesus rejected his mother and brethren. On the contrary, we should know that he always uses every opportunity to pass his message. His response was not directed to his relations, rather to the man who came to call him.
If this man had actually understood the mission of Jesus, if he was not a distraction to Jesus’ mission, he would have informed the Mother and brethren of Jesus to give him some time to round up what he was doing. Probably, he wanted the people around Jesus to know that he knows Jesus’ family. Can that be a way of massaging his own ego?
There are such people around us who can distract us from our goals. They always come to tell us what they tag as privilege information. They often made themselves our Public Relation Officers. If we are not careful with such individuals, they can destroy our mission with their side-way information. We must pray for discernment and develop the right attitude towards them and their messages.
Interestingly, Jesus’ mother was the first among those who heard the word of God and keep it. She said to the angel at the Annunciation, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to your word.”
Jesus encourages us not to allow family ties to be an obstacle on our way of serving God. We must share in God’s life by following his ways.
PRAYER
O Jesus! Help that I may be a true member of your household, listening to your word and following the path you have traced for me. Thy kingdom come.
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