Homily for Saturday
1st Week of Ordinary Time
Jan. 16, 2021
Heb 4: 12-16
Mark 2: 13-17
Provincial House, New Rochelle
“The word of God is … able to discern
reflections and thoughts of the heart” (Heb 4: 12).
That God’s word knows our innermost selves
is both frightening and consoling. It’s
frightening to know that “everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to
whom we must render an account” (4:13)—every thought and desire polluted by
sin: our pride and arrogance, our lusts,
our harsh judgments, our jealousies, our resentments, our callous indifference,
etc. We don’t want to see or admit these
to ourselves, much less have them “naked and exposed” to the eternal Judge,
with the threat of public revelation on the Last Day.
This is not even to mention our words and deeds, especially those we wish to forget and bury somewhere.
The Dies irae[1]
speaks to us, tho it’s no longer part of a funeral Mass:
Dreaded day, that day of ire, . .
.
Fright men’s hearts shall rudely
shift,
As the Judge thru gleaming rift
Comes each soul to closely sift.
. . .
Death and nature stand aghast,
As the bodies rising fast,
Hie to hear the sentence passed.
And so on, for 19
stanzas, which do include some pleas for mercy mingled with the dread. In fact, there are some strong and confident pleas
for mercy. E.g.,
Thou, O awe-inspiring Lord,
Saving e’en when unimplored,
Save me, mercy’s fount adored. .
. .
Mary’s soul Thou madest white,
Didst to heaven the thief invite;
Hope in me these now excite.[2]
The
Dies irae was composed in the 13th century. Much earlier the author of Hebrews voiced his
confidence in Jesus’ mercy, the Judge’s all-seeing knowledge notwithstanding
: “We do not have a high priest who is
unable to sympathize with our weaknesses….
So let us confidently approach the throne of grace…” (4:15-16). The word of God which discerns the depths of
our hearts knows our failings, yes, but also our struggles, our aspirations,
our resistance to our weaknesses, our interior victories, the prayers we’ve
offered silently, virtuous acts done against our inclination or preference. This is consoling. This gives us confidence in the Judge who
“shares our blood and flesh” and was “like his brothers and sisters in every
way,” as Hebrews said on Wednesday (2:14,17).
We
hear more from God’s word, his Word made flesh and blood, that consoles and
gives us confidence: “I came to call
sinners” (Mark 2:17). He came to be with
us, to let us share his company, to enjoy our company. He “was eating with sinners” (2:16)—which is
what he plans to do at the banquet of eternal life, which will be populated
almost entirely by the sinners he’s saved because we “confidently approach the
throne of grace.”
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