Homily for Thursday
Week 1 of Ordinary Time
Jan. 11, 2024
1 Sam 4: 1-11
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence,
N.R.
The
ark of God was captured, and Eli’s 2 sons, Hophni and Phineas, were among the
dead” (1 Sam 4: 11).
Yesterday we heard (or read privately) of Samuel’s call from God. He’s destined to become the last of the leaders of Israel termed “judges,” tho not a strong captain of armies like those we read of in the book of Judges. In fact, this 1st book of Samuel refers to him as a “seer” or a “prophet.”
But
in today’s reading from ch. 4, we’re still in a time like that of the
judges. Eli, in fact, is described as a
judge (4:18). Israel hasn’t been
faithful in her service of God. In
particular, Eli’s sons Hophni and Phineas have sinned grievously, which is
reported in ch. 2. Defeat at the hands
of Israel’s enemies follows, and the doom of the 2 most egregious sinners
especially. Eli, too, will die for not
having restrained his sons.
Eli,
his sons, and all of Israel knew the terms of the covenant but didn’t fulfill
them. In the collect today, we prayed
that we “may see what must be done and gain strength to do what [we] have
seen.” What must be done is determined
by our discipleship and our religious vocation:
to live the ways of Jesus. We
need strength from his grace to do that, lest we fall into griping about one
another (and our superiors), telling petty fibs, entertaining improper
thoughts, omitting prayer. Such failures
give way to defeat, not on the battlefield but in our souls. But every day we have the ark of God among us
[the tabernacle] to which we can have recourse:
for the strength of Jesus our Lord and for victory over the enemy of our
souls.
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