Rev.
Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.
WHAT
IS OUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE WORD OF GOD WE HEAR EVERY DAY
Reflecting on the disposition of humanity
today towards the Word of God, I can not but asked myself questions about our
faith in God who we often claim to love and belong to. This is because, despite
all the articles of faith and evidence in both scriptures and historical
tradition, we still do not have a good grasp of who God really is in our lives.
This very disposition is always the case
with every generation and this is what Jesus is addressing in our Gospel
passage today when he said: What description can I find for the men of this
generation? What are they like? They are like children shouting to one another
while they sit in the market-place: “We played the pipes for you, and you
wouldn’t dance; we sang dirges, and you wouldn’t cry.” For John came neither
eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a possessed; the Son of Man came
eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of
tax collectors and sinners!
Here Jesus made us to know that the
problem with this generation is that we have failed to listen neither to the
message of John the Baptist nor that of Jesus. No doubt that John’s uncommon
lifestyle made people to accuse him of having a demon, while Jesus’ habit of
eating and drinking with sinners affect his reputation among the Jews. But
Jesus made us to know that his generation finds reason to take offence at both
John and Jesus himself.
So, Jesus compares those who are rejecting
his message to that of children in the marketplace who cannot decide whether
they want to play a wedding song or a funeral song; but can’t get the people to
dance when the tune is piped. For they played their pipes, and expect others to
dance; they beat their breasts in lamentation, and expect others to weep. They
complain if others do not comply with their demands.
To such a company Jesus refers to as evil
generation in which himself and John the Baptist found themselves. Just as in
our own generation today, some people have refused to repent when challenged by
the teachings of John the Baptist and some people also refused to join the
celebrations of Jesus and to take his message seriously.
Dear friends, what is our attitude towards
the Word of God we hear every day? Why have we failed to take the Word of God
seriously? Why have we failed to embrace the article of faith made available
for us by the Lord in our scriptures? Why do we take for granted the signs and
messages the Lord is giving us.
Little wonder we heard St. Paul in our
first reading today saying : I want you to know how people ought to behave in
God’s family – that is, in the Church of the living God, which upholds the
truth and keeps it safe. Without any doubt, the mystery of our religion is very
deep indeed: He was made visible in the flesh, attested by the Spirit, seen by
angels, proclaimed to the pagans, believed in by the world, taken up in glory.
Hence, today we are called Just like St
Andrew Kim Taegon and Companions whose memorial we celebrate today, to make the ultimate choice to belong to the
family of Jesus. For they gave up their lives during the persecution of
Christians in Korea as light of faith
for the people a good example of how to do the will of God. So let us not be
like market people who pay no attention to the message the Lord has for us.
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