Homily: Thirtieth Thursday of Ordinary Time

Thirtieth Thursday of Ordinary Time (Lk. 13:31-35) “Jesus the Prophet”

Jesus is warned in the Gospel of Luke that he should leave Galilee because the king (Herod Antipas) is going to kill him. This passage tells us two things about Jesus.

The first thing that it tells us is that not all the Pharisees were enemies of Jesus. The Pharisees were not alike. The Jews themselves divided them into seven different types. There was the Shoulder Pharisees who wore their good deeds on their shoulder for all to see. Another bad type of Pharisee was the Hump-backed Pharisees who went around bent with a false humility. They were always fawning with false humility.

There was one type of Pharisee who was labeled the God loving Pharisee who were said to be copies of Abraham. They were admired by the general population. Perhaps these were the Pharisees that Jesus befriended and were the ones who came to warn Jesus.

We get the impression that for every six bad Pharisees there was one good Pharisee. One thing that the virtuous Pharisees and Jesus agreed on was that King Herod was a corrupt king.

This brings us to the second insight into Jesus that we can gain from this passage. Jesus often spoke truth to power. He calls Herod a fox. The fox was a symbol of three things to the Jews. All of them were bad. The fox was sly. He would do anything possible to get what he wanted. The fox was considered a destructive animal. It would kill helpless animals to feed itself. Finally, the fox was considered a symbol of the worthless man, the man without honor. Jesus was insulting the king which was a vary dangerous thing to do as John the Baptist found out.

Jesus was compelled to speak up about injustice. Often our fears hold us back when we are confronted with immorality and social sin. We know when to hold back criticism. It is a matter of self-preservation. At certain moments Jesus did not hold back. He could not help himself when confronted with the suffering of others.

Reflection Questions:

1.    Are any of our political leaders like the fox? Why would I say this?

2.    Do I find it hard to speak up when there is obvious injustice?

Is it pragmatic to hold back from criticism? Why?

 Dear Parishioners,

          This weekend we will erect an altar of the dead in our church. This will be in the choir area. We will do this in the choir area in the nave of the church. These altars are usually found in Mexican homes. Pictures of loved ones who have died are placed on these altars. This is done in anticipation of All Souls Day. You are invited to bring in a picture of your family or a friend that you want to remember.

          We will also have the Book of the Dead placed by the Baptistry. You are invited to inscribe the names of loved ones who have died in this book. We will remember them in a special way on All Souls Day.

          Finally, there will be All Souls Day envelopes out available in case you would like to have a Mass offered for a loved one. Please use these practices to grieve for those you love.

          May Our Lady Sorrows pray for all of us as we contemplate our departed loved ones.

          Fr. Mark