As preached by Sister Cecelia
Holy Wisdom Church
Oct 8th 2023
ISAIAH 43: 15-21, 44:1-5, 1CORINTHIANS
15: 20-26, 35-38, LUKE 4: 31-39
A writer of
spirituality who also preached, once wrote that the definition he found in the
Oxford English Dictionary to preach was: “to give moral advice in an
obtrusive way.” He commented; “No wonder people do not want to hear them.” To obtrude
is to offer or force ideas upon others without being asked.
Hopefully
our homilies would not be defined that way. Our aim here at NS is to reflect ourselves
on what the words of scripture might mean for ourselves and then perhaps to
share it with others. To break open the words of scripture as frequently they
are not too easy to understand.
One way of looking at Scripture is that the
words envelope or clothe a truth or a mystery and there are indeed many layers in
understanding the core value contained therein. Often one layer of clothing after
another needs to be removed to get to the ultimate meaning. The initial understanding
can be quite different than the ultimate understanding.
According to
the gospel of Luke, the healing of the demoniac and Peter’s mother-in-law were
some of the earliest healings that Jesus did. The people were amazed and in awe
of Jesus’ words and actions and they spread the news so that a great many
brought their sick to be healed. Peter’s mother – in – law rose up on being
healed and set about to serve others- a lesson we can ponder on hoe do we serve.
In this
morning’s epistle, St Paul writing to the Corinthians, assured them that Christ
had truly risen as we will also rise. Then people asked what kind of body will
each of us have? In earlier times it was
thought that the body left the soul completely and the soul then joined again
with God. Another thought we are still individuals joining God as a body/soul
being, being able to accept the mystery of how that could be. While Jesus rose
body and soul, and was seen, the body was somehow different than it had been
when Jesus walked this earth.
Paul was
impatient with the questions about what kind of body, if any, when we died, but
led them to realize the body is like a seed that must fall into the ground to
sprout and come to life.
What kind of lives will we have? Do we take time to reflect on whether we are
reacting to life or are we responding to it? If we are reacting, what is behind
our reactions? If responding, what enables us to do so? Reflecting, contemplation,
breaks us open to ourselves. The fruit of contemplation is self- knowledge, not
self -justification. When we see
ourselves as we really are, we will not be so quick to condemn another. Rather
we will seek to console, rather than be consoled. The prayer of St. Francis
mentioned by Br Luke on Wed. will become our prayer as well. We will come to
understand that kindness, compassion, understanding and accepting of the other
is the mark of holiness we can aspire to. It is the seed that has fallen into
the ground and can grow daily.
Be
encouraged by remembering Jesus promise to send a paraclete: an advocate, an
encourager, a friend, someone who is at our side, someone who sees our troubles
and works with us to improve situations. We are not alone!
Christ is in
our Midst!
go
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