In today’s first reading, 2 Maccabees 6: 18-31, Eleazar, a
prominent scribe and an elderly man respected for his integrity, his
faithfulness to Yahweh, determinately refuses to violate the Mosaic law and
thus give scandal to younger generations.
He “prefers a glorious death to a life of defilement.” Even for a brief moment of earthly fame in
the eyes of those who are encouraging him to pretend to be obeying a secular
king, Eleazar refuses, asking “Should I thus pretend for the sake of a brief
moment of life, they [younger generations] would be led astray by me, while I
would bring shame and dishonor on my old age. Even if, for the time being, I
avoid the punishment of men, I shall never, whether alive or dead, escape the
hands of the Almighty. Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will
prove myself worthy of my old age, and I will leave to the young a noble
example of how to die willingly and generously for the revered and holy laws.”
Oh, how desperately we need the examples of adults in our day and age to stand
up to secular governments, secular movements, secular ways of celebrating
sacred feasts and refuse to obey laws contrary to the commandments of God and
of the Church!
How willing am I to
stop pretending to be faithful and, in fact, adhere to what I have been taught
from my childhood of what God asks of me.
What pain am I willing to endure when I am faced with choosing a
direction the Spirit puts before me when it is contrary to what others may be
encouraging me to do.
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