Reflections
for Sunday, January 16, 2011
I will make you a light to the nations - so the Prophet Isaiah speaks about
Israel, both as a people and as a person. So much of the Jewish Scripture
rests upon symbol within symbol, just as do our Christian Scriptures. We
don't need to know every individual symbol, but we do need to know that
stories and histories and accounts that are given in symbols are always
open to new meanings - within limits.
We live in an age that prefers scientific and objective discourse at one
level but which also uses all kinds of symbols. We have to be careful when
we discuss and dialogue with others or even when we read the Scriptures on
our own. We need to be aware both of the vast possibilities of meaning and
also of the limits of the meanings. This is not so very easy all the time.
John baptizes Jesus and says that it should be Jesus baptizing John. John
tells us that he knew that the Spirit would come down on someone and remain
with the person, then that is the one who will baptize with the Holy
Spirit. These are kind of mysterious words but we must think immediately:
symbols and realities. What does it mean to see the Spirit come down on
someone and remain? One example is when a person has to explain himself or
herself and is frightened and feels totally incapable - yet in the explaining
of oneself, sometimes we see the person take heart (receive the Spirit) and
begin to speak with confidence. Once that happens, sometimes it remains
and changes the life of the person forever. Sometime it happens once and
not again.
There are lots of ways in which the Spirit can come down on a person and
we must keep our eyes and our, hearts open. A shy individual suddenly
possesses strength to speak out. A person who seems always angry suddenly
seems to change and all of sudden we see joy and peace in that person. It
is easy to understand that such gifts can come down and then disappear
again or they can come down and remain.
With Jesus, it seems that when he takes up preaching, beginning at first
to sound like John the Baptist, something had changed. Jesus had some 30
years of quiet and being more or less unknown. All of a sudden, we seem
Him baptized and His life takes a whole difference course from what had
seemed likely. He does become light for the nations, even when many of us
choose to live in darkness. He becomes the Savior of the world, even
though he was always Savior. He takes on our flesh so that we can take on
His divinity.
Today on this second Sunday in Ordinary Time, may our own hearts be open
to see the glory of God at work in one another and to testify to God's
loving presence.
Readings of the day:
First Reading:
Second Reading:
Gospel:
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Reflections are available for the following Sundays:
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