Trust in god

TWENTIETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
August 14, 2022

Just last week we heard how important faith is in leading us to trust in God. The author of Hebrews gave Abraham as an example. When God told Abraham that he and Sarah would have descendants as numerous as the stars, Abraham must have thought it unbelievable. Sarah was past childbearing age and they had no children. But he trusted in the Lord, just as he did later when asked to sacrifice their only son, Isaac. He could not understand, but he believed because he trusted. When we hear Jesus say that he has come to set the earth ablaze, setting parent against child and dividing households against each other, we find it very difficult to understand or to accept. But in the end we trust in the Lord because we believe in him. We accept that sometimes we just can’t understand the reason why. We have an advantage that the disciples did not have at this time. We know that after the Resurrection the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples in what was depicted as multiple tongues of flame. We know that the Holy Spirit aided the disciples in carrying out their mission, preaching repentance for the forgiveness of sins and making disciples of all nations. We can imagine that the wisdom and fortitude they received allowed them to confront sin and evil and that the purifying fire could cauterize the wound they produced, allowing healing and reconciliation to begin. In baptism we have received the Holy Spirit as well, enabling us to carry on in Jesus’ mission. The voice of Hebrews can give us reassurance in running the race that can see us confronting sin and evil, perhaps causing division among others. Jesus endured persecution to the point of losing his life, but God watched over him and raised him to new life. His example allows us to avoid growing weary or losing heart, despite the trauma and hardships we may endure. Amen. (Casey, Most Reverend Robert G. Pastoral Patterns. World Library  Publication, 2022)