HOMILY: God addresses Job, drawing his attention to a Wisdom inherent in the Mountain Goat and the Deer and their birthing practice, the manner in which their young become able to care for themselves; a Wisdom inherent in the free roaming of the wild Donkey as it forages for green grass; in the flight of the Hawk to the south and the nesting and preying habits of the Eagle.
HOMILY: “Now I see you with my own eyes” … “Now I see you with new/ocean/divine eyes” … There’s something mystical here – a Word other than “word of mouth” (mere human talk, opinion, reverie). The sea is other …
HOMILY: To really love a literary work – a poem, story or philosophical text – is to revisit it. We may not understand them fully, but the words vibrate with potential or promise … there is a “not yet” in the “now” …
HOMILY: The Christian challenge (and it is a theological and practical challenge) is to hold these two symbols, “slow time” and “start again”, to acknowledge covenants/promises in the Spirit of Torah and Gospel. A certain imaginative space is required.
HOMILY: This week’s gospel presents the paradox of divine fire – both divisive and curative. As poetic device it enables the drawing of fine and far-reaching distinctions. Sooner or later, says Jesus, you’ll have to decide. There’s a fire that divides …
HOMILY: The idiom, “steal one’s heart”, seems apt. Online search results list hundreds of hearts stolen – by beauty, mercy, justice, faithfulness … home cities, strange countries, tribal lands and waters … artistic or spiritual visions … muses, music …
HOMILY: Jesus says, “Avoid greed in all its forms.” Imagine these words whispered, between the lines that follow, in some sense hidden. Subversive, slowly revealed. The gospel heralds radical social change …
HOMILY: Orient yourselves to God. Affirm God’s goodness and otherness. Express openness and desire for God’s future. Petition for basic, collective needs – ask to receive and commit to give. Acknowledge human frailty and finitude.
HOMILY: And now we see the full measure of wisdom in the house of Martha and Mary, who, with their (mute) brother Lazarus, offer hospitality (safety, nourishment) to Jesus …
HOMILY: YHWH says, “I am going to measure my people Israel by plumb line. I will no longer excuse their atrocities.” The plumb line, the vertical measure, is social and ecological justice, equity … safety, freedom for one another … true love.
