20th Sunday - Truth & Division

 

 Today’s readings are about those who proclaim the truth and suffer because of it and those who reject the truth thereby causing division.

In the first reading Jeremiah the prophet is thrown into a cistern because he was accused of demoralizing the soldiers. However, what Jeremiah actually did, was warn the people that if they surrendered to their enemies, their lives would be spared. He was speaking on behalf of God. God wanted to use Jeremiah to save the people. But, they would not listen to him, and instead, the King desired Jeremiah to die a slow and painful death, by being thrown into a cistern. A cistern was a water storage tank that in ancient Israel could hold tens of thousands gallons. Archaeologists have found many cisterns in the Holy Land. Cisterns would often be about 20 feet deep, carved in the bedrock limestone under Jerusalem, and coated with plaster on the inside to keep them water-tight. People would fill cisterns during the rainy season and use them for drinking water during the dry season. Yet, the cistern Jeremiah was thrown into hadn’t had water in it for a long time and was filled with muddy sludge. Jeremiah sinks into the sludge, probably at least up to his knees. There was no food or water, with no hope of escape. But he would later be rescued by the court official who pleaded on his behalf resulting in Jeremiah being taken out of the cistern.

Jeremiah is in image of Jesus. Jesus is the prophet of prophets. The Sanhedrin, declared Jesus deserving of death as a blasphemer, and hands him over to the Romans, accusing him of political revolt, a charge that puts Him in the same category as Barabbas who was accused of sedition. Yet all Jesus did was proclaim the truth of Gospel.

After Jesus was arrested, He was thrown into a dungeon and chained to the wall, until the next day, when He was taken before Pilate and Herod.

Unlike, Jeremiah, whose life was spared, Jesus goes on to be executed. Jesus surrenders to His enemies. As the second reading from the book of Hebrews states, “For the sake of the joy that lay before Him He endured the Cross, despising its shame…” Just as Jeremiah endured opposition, so did Jesus. “Consider how He endured opposition from sinners, in order that you may not grow weary and lose heart.”

In the Gospel Jesus speaks of opposition. He said, “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” Jesus endured opposition to sinners. Not everyone who heard Jesus preach or who saw His miracles accepted Him or the truth He taught.

In another words, those who do not expect division when the Gospel is proclaimed are being unrealistic. And where the fullness of Gospel isn’t preached, its actually false peace. Not based on truth.

Jesus is Truth and truth is objective. It is the same for everyone in every age and culture. Our Lord, then, becomes the cause of unity for those who accept the truth and the cause of division for those who reject the truth. Those who are progressive with regard to the Catholic faith, really are rejecting the truth. They are rejecting Jesus. While those who accept the truth live as faithful Catholics and are accepting Jesus.

`Today people are claiming believe in Jesus, or even claiming to be Catholic, but reject one or more of the basic facets of our Faith.

However, Bishop Tobin said, this in response to a politician who claimed he could separate his faith from politics.

“The politician has been widely identified as a Roman Catholic. It is also reported that he publicly supports “freedom of choice” for abortion, same-sex marriage, gay adoptions, and the ordination of women as priests. All of these positions are clearly contrary to well-established Catholic teachings”; He said, the senator has said, “My faith is central to everything I do.” But apparently, and unfortunately, his faith isn’t central to his public, political life.”

Jesus explains what will happen when the Gospel is proclaimed. He said, “Do you think I have that I have come to establish peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” “…father will be divided against his son, and son against his father, a mother against her daughter and daughter against mother…”

There are times when there is division among family members because of the truth of the Gospel. Unity is found in truth. Division is caused by rejecting truth. Jesus prayed for unity, when He said, “Father that they may be one.” What He really meant is that all may accept the truth and therefore be one in the truth.

We can see this problem in the first reading where the Prophet Jeremiah speaks the truth, the word of God, to the people. Not wanting to hear the word of God, the princes tell the king that Jeremiah should be put to death because he does not care about the people. Jeremiah spoke the truth, but it was inconvenient and unpopular. Those who did not want the truth sought to kill the messenger so that they might continue in their wayward direction. Keep in mind that all of these people professed to believe in God and in the Jewish Faith he had revealed.

So division is coming from those who reject the truth of what Jeremiah told them. With regard to the politician, the division is coming from the politician who is rejecting the truth. Just as Jeremiah suffered for the truth and Jesus suffered for the truth, so Christians who stand up for the truth of Gospel will be rejected and will suffer from their own family members, who oppose the truth.

Jesus, the Prince of Peace, desires everyone to accept the truth, because by doing so, they are accepting Him, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He desires unity which is found in truth, but knowing we will suffer because of it, as He knows well because He suffered and died because of the proclamation of truth of the Gospel. As the book of Hebrews states, “Brothers and sisters: Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood.”