Blessed are they who trust in the Lord, Sixth week Ordinary Time, 2/17/19

Blessed are those who are weeping, for you will laugh.  This line from the Gospel really impacted me in light of the disturbing news we all heard today or earlier this week.   Today, it’s hard to imagine being able to laugh.  Many of us are in a state of mourning.    We may be experiencing a range of emotions: sadness, anger, disappointment, confusion.    Some of us may just be numb, and find it hard to process.   How could we laugh in such a challenging situation?

The words from the prophet Jeremiah were striking in regards to how some of us may feel: He is like a barren bush in the desert that enjoys no change of season, but stands in a lava waste, a salt and empty earth.  This sounds like a lifeless, depressing place to be in.   The Israelites that Jeremiah was prophesying to were in a place where there seemed to be little hope.  They were in captivity of a nation that was far from their God.  They may have felt like their God had turned away from them.   We may feel much like they did.

But the second half of Jeremiah offers some words of hope:  Blessed are they who trust in the Lord:    He is like a tree planted besides waters that stretches out its roots to the stream.   IT FEARS NOT THE HEAT WHEN IT COMES: IT LEAVES STAY GREEN; IN THE YEAR OF DROUGHT IT SHOWS NO DISTRESS, BUT STILL BEARS FRUIT.

There is some encouragement in the words of the prophet.   If we trust in the Lord, we’ll be blessed.   God will show us his favor.  Being blessed doesn’t mean that we’ll never experience any trouble.  That won’t happen until meet God in his Eternal Kingdom.     As Christians, we will still encounter troubled times, because we are living in an imperfect world.   But if we trust in the Lord he will help us to endure the trails.

We will experience fleeting glimpses of Gods of Heavenly Kingdom in this life.  Through Christ’s Church, his Word and sacraments will remain with us to sustain us till he returns.  Our faith tells us there is much more to hope for, by trusting in the Lord, where we hope for eternal peace in His Kingdom.

           

Returning to today’s Gospel, Jesus preached the Sermon on the Plain of blessing and

woes.   In the blessings, we hear of people who are in distress, the poor, hungry, sad, and those hated due to their faith in Jesus.   Why would he say they are blessed?   Not because of the condition they are in, but to let them know that God shows them favor. He tells them their present condition will be reversed, which gives hope: they will laugh, be satisfied, and receive their reward in God’s Kingdom.

Those who are suffering cry out to God for help.    God does not want his people to suffer.   Eventually their suffering will pass.  When it will pass, we don’t know.  That’s a great mystery, but by trusting in God it will help us in enduring our trials.

           

Jesus directs the woes to those who have no distress. They are the rich, the full, those who laugh, and are spoken well of.  They have little need for God, as they find all their happiness in the world. They’re satisfied for now, but are missing eternal satisfaction by ignoring a relationship with God.

           

For most of us, in times of distress, we will turn to God for help.  Some of us may thinking with the troubles in our Church, where can we turn? It’s important to remember that Jesus left us his Church to spread the Good News of his salvation and sustain until he returns.    The ministers of His Church, clergy, religious, and lay people, are human, and may humans make mistakes.

Unfortunately a very small few may cause harm.    This is very sad and we pray to God this won’t happen.  We especially pray for healing to those who’ve been hurt.  But, please keep in mind, that the Church is much more than the very few individuals who have committed offenses.  The overwhelming majority of clergy, religious, and lay ministers are doing much good to faithfully lead the Body of Christ through prayer, sacraments, spiritual support, teaching, and acts of charity to show love for our neighbor.

So what can we do when we are weeping?   Head the words of the prophet Jeremiah, and put our trust in God relying on our faith to sustain us. Jesus’ presence through his sacraments, especially the Eucharist, provide graces to nourish us.   By remaining committed to receiving the sacraments it will give us strength to sustain through this challenging time.  Prayer is also very helpful, especially when situations are out of our control.  Some situations must be entrusted to God.  If your struggling with what to pray, turn to the Psalms, the prayers Jesus prayed.  We can pray on our own, and also in community as the Body of Christ.  We’ll have a prayer service Monday night from 6-7 pm for this purpose.   There are also opportunities throughout the week to attend Mass, pray in Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament on Wednesdays, and pray the Rosary on Saturday mornings.  So please pray to the Holy Spirit for all parties involved in this difficult situation that the truth prevails.

As the Body of Christ, our prayers and works of mercy can be offered to bring about healing.   Blessed is the one who trusts in Lord.