Reflection by Sr. Rosemary Finnegan, O.P.
Readings from: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092722.cfm
The reactions of those we meet in our liturgy today give us a menu of responses to ponder.
First, we meet Job, whose story we’ll read all week. In the short span of these first couple of chapters, the world had come crashing down on Job. Raiders slaughtered his servants and stole his goods. Then his sheep were burned, and wind destroyed his house, killing his children. To top it all off, Job came down with a painful disease.
In today’s readings, he’s pitying himself. Even his wife and friends begin to taunt and blame him. Job was being tested. Would he turn against God? Job’s ultimate response to all this suffering, however, was to steadfastly refuse to turn his back on God. He trusted in God, even when life seemed unfair.
Then we meet Jesus, James, and John in our Gospel. James and John are often called “sons of thunder” because of their impulsiveness, and here we see it again. Jesus rebukes them when they wanted to call fire down from heaven to consume the Samaritan villagers for not welcoming them. James and John’s response to conflict was to want to use violence and force. They lacked the love and compassion that Jesus displayed and modeled for them.
Lastly, today we celebrate the feast of St. Vincent de Paul, whose church and tomb we were privileged to see on our recent pilgrimage to France. Although we know him as the founder of numerous charitable groups, he came to this awareness of the needs of the poor over time. When he was first ordained, he had little more ambition than to have a comfortable life. It was a deathbed confession of a dying servant that opened Vincent’s eyes to the needs of the poor. The rest is history. He began to establish charity organizations for the spiritual and physical needs of the poor. With St. Louise de Marillac, he established the Daughters of Charity. Such was Vincent’s response to the mission of Jesus towards the poor.
Like us, Job, James, John and Vincent were all on journeys of faith, and each can teach us something about responding to Jesus’ call.
Perhaps like Job we’re dealing with suffering. Job teaches us to be faithful to God and believe in his presence with us during these times, despite all the odds. It’s a journey of trust.
Perhaps our own journey is like that of James and John. We’re quick to judge, quick to condemn in ways both big and small. We need to learn, like they did, to temper our human ways and impulses with love and compassion.
Perhaps, like Vincent, we’re discerning and seeking ways to help the poor as Christ calls us to do.
Wherever we are on our journey of faith, may we remember that Jesus will always walk with us along the way, sometimes teaching us how to respond, sometimes challenging our responses, but always loving us as His response.
