God's Justice

Today's liturgy opens with the following antiphon:  Give me justice, O God, and plead my cause against a nation that is faithless. From the deceitful and cunning rescue me, for you, O God, are my strength (cf. Ps 43 (42): 1-2).  In light of those who have recently been stripped of their jobs , I paraphrase this antiphon as follows:  "Give them justice, O God, and plead their causes against faithless leaders. From the deceitful and cunning rescue them, for you, O God, are their strength."

In today's responsorial psalm, we pray to God as follows:  "Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness; in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.  Thoroughly wash me from my guilt and of my sins cleanse me. A clean heart create for me, O God, and a steadfast spirit renew within me. Cast me not out from your presence, and your Holy Spirit take not from me. Give me back the joy of your salvation, and a willing spirit sustain in me...."

May God have mercy on those unjustly firing their employees. May God have mercy on the "deceitful and cunning" and "in the greatness of [His] compassion wipe out [the offenses of those doing the unjust firing]."  It is more difficult to apply the rest of the psalm to the persons who dominate our news today, yet we know that Jesus forgave the good thief on Calvary when he turned to Him and asked to be remembered. "Remember me, Jesus, when You get to Your kingdom" and Jesus responded: "This very day you shall be with me in my Kingdom."  Jesus does not rejoice in even one sinner, you or me or anyone else, being lost. All sin was destroyed on the cross and all sinners saved. I pray for this salvation and for God's saving graces to transform the evil we are seeing in our own lives and in the world of today!  God, have mercy on  us all!

The Wisdom of Solomon

In today's first reading, 1 Kings 10: 1-10, the queen of Sheba comes to visit Solomon to test his wisdom. Is he truly as wise as others have said he is, she is wondering. To her astonishment, she discovers a wisdom greater than she has ever encountered in the past and more profound than the reports she has heard. Solomon, as a young man, a boy, perhaps, when entrusted with the throne, asked the Lord for wisdom. "O Lord, my God, you have made me, your servant, king to succeed my father David, but I am a mere youth.... Give me, your sevant, therefore, an understanding heart to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong"(See 1 Kings 3: 4-13). Note Solomon's humility, his recognition of being God's servant and his request for wisdom. Do I realize that I, too, am God's servant and do I recognize the importance of asking the Lord to give me a wise heart? Frequently, in the Gospels, Jesus takes his apostles aside to teach them wisdom. For instance, in today's Gospel, Mark 7: 14-23, he teaches them that what enters a person's body is not what makes one unclean but what comes out of one's mouth defiles: envy, jealousy, greed, unkindness--abusive, disrespectful, demeaning, murderous, adulterous, deceitful, arrogant words--are what make me unclean in the sight of God and my companions on the journey of faith. I pray, Lord, for this wisdom--the wisdom You taught your apostle and which you also teach me. May I wisely take time each day to allow You to take me aside and explain the Scriptures so that my heart becomes one with Yours.