Speak in the Light

Speak in the Light

Saturday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Jacob gave his sons this charge: “Since I am about to be taken to my people, bury me with my fathers in the cave that lies in the field of Ephron the Hittite, the cave in the field of Machpelah, facing on Mamre, in the land of Canaan, the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite for a burial ground. There Abraham and his wife Sarah are buried, and so are Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and there, too, I buried Leah–the field and the cave in it that had been purchased from the Hittites.”  Genesis 49:29-32

“Therefore, do not be afraid of them. Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.”  Matthew 10:26-28

Piety

If you are insulted for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of God rests upon you. 2 Peter 4:14

Study

The scriptures continue to reinforce the theme of exile, exodus, and separation from the world. As Richard Rohr writes, “Prophets, by their very nature, cannot be at the center of any social structure. Rather, they are “on the edge of the inside.”  They are on the proverbial “fringe.”

Take Jacob as a prime example.  Jacob’s exile was so permanent, and he knew he would not return to his homeland. Therefore, he planned his burial in a cave purchased from the Hittites.  The episode recounted here is just the latest reminder of how the children of God are set apart from society in the Hebrew Bible.

The same conflict continues to concern the disciples of Christ.  Jesus continues to remind them not to be afraid of the political and religious forces which oppose them.  Jesus aims to encourage his disciples to continue to preach the Good News no matter what fate might be in store for them.

Any secrets that Jesus reveals has to be passed on.  The concealed and secret coming of the kingdom is to be proclaimed by the disciples.  Nothing (not fear or failure) can deter them from living out that proclamation.

Action

Following Christ is a matter of engagement in this world.

“…living unreservedly in life’s duties, problems, successes and failures, experiences, and perplexities. In so doing, we throw ourselves completely into the arms of God, taking seriously, not our sufferings, but those of God in the world—watching with Christ in Gethsemane. That, I think, is faith, that is metanoia.” —Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The call is to preach the Gospel in the world but not to be consumed by the world. We can start a list anywhere to see how what the Gospel calls us to do is different from what popular culture calls us to do. Both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament invite us to “Welcome the stranger” and to “Hear the cry of the poor.”

Newspapers and television confront us with images of detention facilities for people seeking legal asylum that present terrible conditions for children and adults. That is according to the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and other independent reports. 

July 18 is the Catholic Day of Action for Immigrant Children.  From 10 am until noon, people will gather on the Capitol Lawn outside of the Russell Senate Office Building.

Images of immigrant children detained in cages, separated from family members, and living in unsanitary, unhealthy conditions have outraged the nation in recent days. Some members of faith communities including the Catholic Church have decried this treatment of children not only as a violation of human dignity and rights but also as contrary to religious teachings and the sacred call to care for people who are most at risk, especially children.

Participants will include immigrant community leaders, Catholic clergy, religious brothers and women religious, Catholic lay leaders, and a wide range of supporters. The event will consist of prayer and singing among 100-200 participants and will culminate in nonviolent civil disobedience which will be exercised by a cohort of Catholic leaders. Join Catholic organizations, partners, and supporters in a campaign calling for an end to the inhumane treatment of immigrant children and child detention by the U.S. government.

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious is among the co-sponsors.  According to its statement: “We stand in solidarity with our immigrant brothers and sisters, and we condemn these immoral policies which threaten family unity and the well-being of children. This nation is better than that. We are better than that.”

Note that calls for more humanitarian action are not coming from just “fringe” groups.  Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, joins Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin, Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Migration, in calling on the federal government to hear the cry of the poor and vulnerable.

“We join with our Holy Father Pope Francis in immense sadness, having seen the horrific images of Oscar Martinez and his daughter Angie Valeria who drowned in the Rio Grande Valley while attempting to flee persecution and enter the United States. This image cries to heaven for justice. This image silences politics. Who can look at this picture and not see the results of the failures of all of us to find a humane and just solution to the immigration crisis? Sadly, this picture shows the daily plight of our brothers and sisters. Not only does their cry reach heaven. It reaches us. And it must now reach our federal government.”

Add your voice to the chorus asking the nation to provide additional funding to address the needs of children in federal custody. A supplemental appropriation bill also should increase protections for immigrant children, including heightened standards and oversight for border facilities. It is possible and necessary to care for the safety of migrant children and the security of our citizens. By putting aside partisan interests, a nation as great as ours can do both.