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20^TH SUNDAY, YEAR C: REFLECTION BY FR JULIAN EKEH

THEME: CHRIST'S BRAND OF DIVISION BETTER THAN THE PEACE OF THE WORLD

(Luke 12:49-53)

There is time for everything under the earth and a purpose for every activity. There is time to be silent and time to speak up. There's time when silence is golden and other times when it is evil. There are moments when not speaking is noble and other times when speaking is not acceptable. Divine wisdom helps to strike the balance. Christ speaks out with passion His line of action and His idea of mission. He voiced aloud His vision for the world in relation with God and their acceptance of the word. He speaks in wisdom with imageries. He disclosed the contents of His package for us in the world.

FIRE UPON THE EARTH

Of all things, fire? Jesus, Why fire? Yes! It is figurative. Jesus has come to cast fire upon earth. The fire may be inviting. The fire of invitation which Moses saw and drew closer to God. Thus, with this fire, Jesus invites us to closer relationship with Him, to a more personal rapport with God, to a more intimate understanding of the will of God for us. It is a sublime fire of the Divine awareness; it is a fire that calls for human attention. It is a fire that takes us away from every distraction.

This fire is also a purgative one, it plays a purification role, it refines. Jesus sets a fire that brings about the gold in us. The fire is meant to make us shine; the fire is meant to cleanse us from every defilement. It is meant to burn to ashes whatever that is not of God. It burns away evil that good alone may remain.

Here is a story of a community where a wild devouring beast attacked a community and killed some men of integrity, an alarm was raised and the entire hunters in the community came out and pursued the beast and it ran into the big forest of the community known as "ohia ika". They took counsel and decided to set ablaze the forest with the hunters surrounding all the corners of the forest. When the fire became very threatening and started burning the wild beast, it cried out from the forest and was shot dead.

This is what the fire of Jesus has come to do in the world; to make evil and evil men so uncomfortable that they are made to change or are destroyed.

Another perspective from which we can view the purpose behind the fire that our Lord Jesus Christ is coming with is as figure representing zeal. It stands for the zeal in Jesus. It is a pointer to the zeal that should burn in us for the sake of Jesus Christ. How zealous are we for heavenly things? Are we zealous Christians? Are we passionate in defending the integrity of things of God? Are we passionate in our personal prayer life, in our communal spiritual participation and in our defence for moral positions of the Church of Jesus Christ on earth? Jesus is not calling for weak Christians, Jesus is not advocating for Catholics who just come to Church on Sundays, Jesus is disapproving spiritual and moral indifferentism. For Him therefore, it is either we burn with the fire and zeal for goodness or we are burned by the fire that purges. The fire is a dividing line. It is a differential fire. It separates good from evil. It attacks that which threatens clarity. The fire is the source of light. There can't be marriage between the duo. In His division mission, Jesus draws a line between darkness and light. Jesus wills that this light be kindled no matter what it takes. It took Him a fire baptism. It will also please Him that we all queue in to see to it that His will is accomplished in us.

PEACE ON EARTH? NO, INSTEAD DIVISION

This is surprising. Is this really the Jesus we know? The Jesus we read about in the prophecy of Isaiah? The Jesus called the Prince of peace? The Jesus that would command his disciples to greet every house: peace be with you? The Jesus that would impact peace on the apostles after his resurrection? Why would He now turn to contradict what He stands for?

There is indeed no contradiction. However, what there may be is definition of peace by Jesus. If peace would mean condoning evil, Jesus would not allow that. If peace would imply not pushing hard to condemn anomaly Jesus would not permit it, rather, He will choose the opposite. If peace would mean sacrificing virtues on the altar of immorality, Jesus would rather preach division. If peace would mean keeping quiet when my daughter is dressing indecently to an occasion, Jesus says no. Better to make the evil doer feel offended and change than allow him to offend God and make you offend God.

We have to ask ourselves some pertinent questions: what is it that is bonding our Union? What's the thing that we overlook which we are not really supposed to overlook for peace to reign? Let us make peace with God and not with the world. Let our peace with people be on the ground of godly characters they possess. Let us not seek our own peace. Let us not work with the enemies of Christ. Jesus says: "If you're not with me you are against me." The peace of the world is against the peace of God. It is the peace that says: oh, let us allow homosexuals to relax in their practice. For peace to reign let us pass abortion into law, for the peace of the suffering man let us help him die. For peace to reign let the man marry the animal. This peace Jesus condemns is a type that says in order not to hurt my dad I join the secret society, in order not to hurt my mum I will not help that poor woman, in order not to bring shame to my father who is a catechist let me abort that baby, in order to have peace with my aunty let me do the prostitution.

 

RESOLVE

Let us not be at peace until everyone around us becomes at peace with God.

May God bless His word in our hearts.

LET US PRAY

Oh Lord, save us from the temptation of currying favour with enemies of God in the name of peace. May the peace and love of God in all its richness dwell in us, in our homes, in our land in the Church and in the world at large through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Happy Sunday to you. (20th Sunday, Ordinary Time, Yr C)

Rev Fr. Julian O Ekeh