Greetings, Sisters, Brothers and Friends of the Community!
All are well here in East Central Wisconsin. The weather has given us an extended fall season with continued beautiful fall colors. As one person reminded me this week, “Every day we get of this nice weather in the fall is one less day of the slippery white stuff in the winter.”
This week’s lectionary readings spoke to me of hypocrisy. [Micah 3:5-12; Psalm 43; Matthew 23:1-12; and I Thess. 2:9-20] Micah had to deal with this 2,800 years ago, Christ had to deal with this 2,000 years ago, and we have it in abundance in today’s world, too. Throughout recorded time we have had people claiming allegiance to God and yet compromising His love and message to suit personal or group interests. Micah predicted that this spiritual corruption was not sustainable and would lead to the downfall of the Hebrew nation. It did. Jesus exposed the Pharisees as hypocrites by saying that although they taught the law of Moses they themselves did not follow it. Even today we learn about high profile politicians or business leaders who claim allegiance to God and yet fall to corruption of varied sorts. And on a personal level, many of us have experienced friends or acquaintances who occasionally succumb to secular forces. We may even experience it in ourselves on occasion.
To live in this world committed to God can be a daunting task. The serpent of Eden comes to visit us in many forms. Consider the forces designed to lead us astray:
· Peer pressure
· Misinformation being propagated by special interests (especially during campaign seasons)
· Monetary pressures (being too heavily linked into financial obligations that we may have to compromise our values)
· Marketing and advertising pressures (We aren’t good enough unless we have whiter teeth or designer jeans)
· Our own instincts and urges that can add fuel to the fire
· What others have you faced?
The mercy and compassion of God understands that our lives are not easy. Just as we were given light so that we can use the gift of our eyes, so too were we given moral choices in life so that we could exercise our free will. But we were not put into the arena alone. We can avoid being carried off to Babylon, or facing personal implosion, if we keep the tools and support that are available to us.
Christ avoided temptation during his ordeal in Matthew 4 by rejecting power, greed and magic. He reminds us that we live by every word that comes from God. We do this through prayer, worship and meditation. We do this by watching the world around us moment-by-moment and listening to the heart whisper. Jesus also reminds us not to tempt or test God. This leads us to acceptance of our life situation. It does not mean we do not attempt to make things better, but it does mean that we can face each situation with a clear mind and heart if we first accept what we have and work from there. And Jesus reminds us to serve God and worship Him alone. Be aware of the false gods of greed, power, wealth, fear and worry. They rob you of the present moment – the place where life happens.
I ask you to reflect on Matthew 4 this week, and let me know your discoveries and thoughts.
Know that you are all loved by Our Lord!
Br. Daniel-Joseph, CTG
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