July 5, 2010
Monday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
I will espouse you to me forever: I will espouse you in right and in justice, in love and in mercy; I will espouse you in fidelity, and you shall know the LORD. Hosea 2:21-22
While he was saying these things to them, an official came forward, knelt down before him, and said, "My daughter has just died. But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live." Jesus rose and followed him, and so did his disciples. Matthew 9:18-19
Piety
Every day I will bless you; I will praise your name forever.
Great is the LORD and worthy of high praise; God's grandeur is beyond understanding.
One generation praises your deeds to the next and proclaims your mighty works.
They speak of the splendor of your majestic glory, tell of your wonderful deeds.
They speak of your fearsome power and attest to your great deeds.
They publish the renown of your abounding goodness and joyfully sing of your justice.
The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love.
The LORD is good to all, compassionate to every creature. (Psalm 145:2-9)
Study
Despite everything, the Lord just will not give up on this idea of covenant with his people. Hosea’s prophetic career occurred around 786-746 B.C. By that time, the chosen people had exercised numerous opportunities to turn their backs on the Lord, to ignore his commandments, to fight wars in his name, and more.
Yet, no matter what we do, the Lord remains kind and merciful. He just wants us to get to know him better in a downright practical friendship sense. After all, that is the cornerstone of Christianity and this movement we call Cursillo.
What happens when we are obedient to the will of the Lord? The Gospel has two shining examples of people whose faith in the Lord was rewarded with healing for themselves and the ones they love. God’s grandeur shines through just as the psalmist sings.
Action
This resurrection story certainly gets the people to sit up and take notice. People do not rise from the dead as a regular occurrence. However, I challenge you to follow some of the other details of this story.
See how easily and quickly Jesus follows the official to his home to attend to the sick child. He does not make excuses. He does not have to check his calendar. He is not preoccupied with text messaging on his Blackberry/IPhone/Facebook account, etc. Jesus is asked to do something and he responds.
How quickly can we respond when a need arises? Sure, when a major disaster strikes, we jump to send money to the Red Cross or CRS for earthquake, hurricane or other relief needed. But what about the other everyday occurrences like when a friend is in the hospital, a neighbor loses a job, or the shelves of the food pantry are running low.
Check out your to-do list this week. Make a point of adding one more charitable act, volunteer job, or in-kind donation to the list.
