Sunday readings in brief 12 A
Jeremiah 20:10-13; Psalms 68(69); Romans 5:12-15; Mathew 10:26-33
Do not be Afraid!
Dear friends, today is the 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time A. The theme that emanates from the Scripture Readings today is “Do not be afraid”. In the first reading, the Prophet Jeremiah is terrified by the range of those opposed to his mission and that is planning his fall. However, he cries to the Lord for protection against his enemies and commits his fate in his hands. Finally, he sings praises to the Lord for he delivers him. Are you afraid of something, someone, or the situation you are in right now?
The Psalmists cries to the Lord to answer him because for serving him, he has attracted great opposition even from his own brothers, “I have become a stranger to my own brothers”. He too sings praise to the Lord at the end because he answers the cries of the needy. Have you been in a situation where even your own rejects you because of choosing to do the right thing?
Jesus instructs his disciples not to be afraid of those who can only injure the body but cannot do anything to the soul, but rather be afraid of him who can destroy both body and soul. Today, many people are so much more concerned about their physical and financial security and less afraid about the safety of their souls. Do you have insurance coverage for your soul?
The Google online dictionary defines fear as “an unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain, or harm”. Someone who is afraid or terrified is inhibited from functioning well and may even lose control of his or her faculties. Both human beings and animals react to fear in various ways including fight, flight, freeze, or fawn over. Fight means confronting the source of fear to resist any harm that may befall someone. Flight is running away to avoid being hurt. Freezing is whereby someone’s brain fails to trigger either fight or flight and the chances of getting hurt by the threat are very high. Fawning over means using enticing tactics to please the source of the threat hoping to dissolve the potential harm.
There are many causes of fear in our day-to-day life. While some fears are real and life-threatening, many fears are imaginary or artificially created for a purpose. Some leaders, including religious leaders, use the fear card amongst their followers to maintain the status quo. In our families, workplaces, schools, streets, even in worship places, we come across many threats that make us fearful and unable to perform our functions well. Some parents instill fear in their children such that they develop multiple phobias in their adulthood. Hatred, jealousy, revenge, negative competition, falsehood, greed, selfishness, etc. are some of the things that cause us to fear for our lives.
Some people are unable to speak up and tell the truth or do the right thing because they are afraid of losing their jobs or positions. Others are unable to perform their duties because people spread falsehoods about them. Selfishness prevents us from sharing our resources with others fearing that they might become better than us. Negative competition makes us fear losing our position to others. This fear can lead us to commit atrocities towards others including taking lives to protect our name and position.
However, as Christians, we are taught to respond to fear with hope, application of scriptures, wisdom, courage, prayer, perseverance, silence, love, etc. Jesus himself demonstrated to his disciples how to conquer fear. When Jesus was in front of Lazarus’ grave, he was very afraid because the crowd was laughing at him when he said that Lazarus was only asleep. He faced this fear by hoping that God will do whatever he asked of him (Jn 11:41). When Jesus was confronted by his opponents about his ministry and authority, he applied the Scriptures, “Have you not read” (Mt 19:4). When the Jews sought Jesus’ opinion about paying taxes to Caesar, Jesus wisely silenced them (Mt 22:21).
Jesus prayed often in seclusion to seek the Father’s guidance especially when faced with serious decisions (Mk 1:35). Jesus persevered the way to Calvary though he was very afraid of death on the cross. When the Jews brought to him a woman caught in adultery to seek his opinion Jesus remained silent for a moment to let them cool down and give them a reflection about their own lives (Jn 8:1-11). And finally, even on the cross knowing that he was going to die, Jesus did not insult his accusers but even showed love to the ones crucified with him.
Dear friends, Jesus tells us that the only one we should fear is God. Fear of God is not because God is a threat to us, but it is because God loves us. We are afraid of betraying his love for us. Jesus is showing us how we should confront fear. We cannot avoid fear but as Christians, we have tools to confront it and live fruitful lives in all situations.
Have a fearless Sunday
Fr. Lawrence Muthee, SVD
SVD JAMBO KENTAN 