When, in the First Book of Kings, the prophet Elijah hides in a cave on Mt. Horeb (Sinai), he is fleeing from the office God conferred on him. But God sends Elijah to stand outside his cave, for the Lord will be passing by. By calling him out, God is restoring Elijah to his prophetic office, calling him back to the service he had abandoned. Like the psalmist in Psalm 85, Elijah can be reassured by the promises of the Lord: The Lord himself will give his benefits. When kindness and truth meet and justice and peace kiss, the people can be reassured that God will take care of them; God has not abandoned them.
Peter also needs reassurance in Matthew’s Gospel, for he doubts his own eyes. On a boat tossed about by the waves and wind, Peter and the other disciples see Jesus walking on the sea, but Peter’s challenge is full of doubt: Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water, Peter says. If? It is easier for Peter to believe in the tangible, the concrete – the strength of the wind, the crashing waves – than to have faith in the Lord. Still, he does find a shred of hope and, when he begins to sink, calls out for salvation: Lord, save me! Peter is reassured when Jesus stretches out his hand and catches Peter.
What reassures us? How do we know we are on the right path, following the proper guides? The Gentile Christians in Rome have their doubts; they see that Jews have not been converting to Christianity, and wonder if they have chosen correctly. In his Letter to the Romans, Paul laments his own people, his kindred according to the flesh, but reassures the Roman Christians that the only thing that matters is that they remain open to the work of God within them; the Christ, who is over all is the one in whom they must put their confidence.
In whom or in what do we place our confidence? What reassures us that we are on the right path? When Jesus steps into that boat, calm ensues; the storm is gone. God is revealed in the calm, not in our agitation, our storms, our battles. God is to be found in the small whispering sound. It is in that calm, that reassuring presence, that we must place our trust, open to the work of God within us, that we might fulfill the role to which we too have been called.
This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com
No comments:
Post a Comment