Jan. 26, 2020 3rd Sunday A - Word of God Sunday
Jan. 26, 2020 3rd Sunday A - Word of God Sunday
I’ve been privileged to visit the Holy Land three times since my priestly ordination, and I was able to experience the very places where Jesus called forth and taught his disciples, performed miracles, and offered himself as a sacrifice at Calvary. Since that first trip to the Holy Land, the Scriptures come alive for me whenever I reflect on, proclaim or study the Word of God. As I stood on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, I imagined how Jesus called his first disciples to follow him; Peter and others left everything on the seashore and followed him. I marvel time and time again how powerful is the Word of God to evoke in me the same response of Peter and the disciples as I pray with the Scriptures.
The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews wrote, “Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12) The words of Scripture are not mere letters or thoughts but God’s spirit and life (cf. Psalm 19). Jesus said to his disciples, “It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.” (John 6:63) When we read the words of Scripture with openness of heart, we are lifted out of darkness, gloom, and distress. The Psalmist of today’s psalm wrote, “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear? The LORD is my life’s refuge; of whom should I be afraid?” Today’s psalm can bring us much comfort and assurance when we are filled with doubt. Many psalms in the Book of Psalms resonate with our own life experiences and emotional conditions. Simply praying the Psalms can help dispel the fear we have about our life. Scripture reminds us that God knows every fiber of our being; God has known us even before we were formed in our mother’s womb (cf. Psalm 139). God has a plan in mind for each of us, a plan for our welfare and a future of hope (cf. Jeremiah 29:12-14). When we call for Him, seek Him with all our hearts, God will let us find Him and He will transform us.
Was there ever a time when you found scripture to be so life changing? Let me tell you how Scripture changed one woman’s life. During 1972 in Vietnam, a nine year old girl named Kim ran outside from her home when she heard the warning signal of bombs falling on her village. As she ran, napalm fire bombs were blanketing the village and all its people. The chemical fire fell upon her and burned her clothes off and severely burned her skin. As she ran down the road to escape the horror of the bombing, a photographer was capturing the emotional anguish of the villagers. The photo of the young girl running naked from the fire became an icon of the conflict, and she became known as the “Napalm Girl.” After 14 months in the hospital and after 17 operations, her life was miserable with constant physical pain and headaches. She hated that photograph of her. When she entered college, the Vietnamese authorities constantly forced her to attend press conferences as a propaganda tool of the communist government. She sank deep into despondency from lack of pain pills and lack of compassion from others. With no hope in sight, she thought about ending her tortured life. One day when she was hiding in the school library from government officials, she found a book she had never read and began to read. It was the New Testament of the Holy Bible. In the pages she encountered the Risen Jesus. She said, “Jesus presented himself as the way, the truth, and the life, and I accepted Him as my Lord and Savior.” It was through the encounter of the Scriptures that she found answers to her own suffering in a God who suffered himself; thus inspiring her to become Christian. Through the pages of the Holy Bible, she encountered a Savior who truly understood and cared about the depths of her pain. And this Savior taught her how to forgive those whom she blamed for her misery. She said, “My faith in Jesus Christ is what has enabled me to forgive those who had wronged me, no matter how severe those wrongs were."
What keeps us from encountering God’s presence, spirit, and life in the scriptures? Is it busyness, distractions of life, or our misplaced priorities? A young man named Jerome had a dream while enduring a sickness. In the dream, he appeared before the judgment seat of Christ where Jerome professed to Jesus that he was a Christian. However, Jesus replied that Jerome was more knowledgeable about worldly affairs than Christ and his teachings. Jerome was disturbed by the dream, and he realized that he really didn’t know Christ because he didn’t know the Scriptures. Jerome dedicated the rest of his life studying and translating the Scriptures from its original languages to the common language of the day so that many people would be able to read the Scriptures. It was St. Jerome who coined the famous term, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” Unless we are familiar with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, how he fulfilled all the prophecies of the Old Testament, how he had mercy on others, and how he empowered his disciples, we really do not know Jesus.
As we celebrate the first feast of the Word of God Sunday, established by Pope Francis, let us make an intentional effort to grow closer to the Word of God. Instead of listening to the radio on your commute to work, listen to the mass readings of the day or download an audio bible on your phone. I was so touched by all the kids who brought their bibles to the school mass a couple of days ago to have them blessed. Perhaps a good family routine would be to read and discuss with your children the gospel of the day. Nourish your mind and heart with inexhaustible riches contained in the living word of God so that you may become a faithful witness of Jesus Christ.
https://youtu.be/SWH2Vi0PcoI
