Reflection for 10/11/17

As we continue to hear the story of Jonah, we may be surprised to learn that Jonah was running from the Lord because he was afraid that his preaching might actually cause the Ninevites to repent and for God’s wrath to be relented.  You see, Nineveh was a Gentile city, and it was at odds with Israel.  Jonah wanted the wrath of God to reign down on the people of Nineveh because he hated them.  And in the end, God uses a simple plant to demonstrate the love that he has for ALL people, regardless of whether or not they are living up to our standards.  God says, “You are concerned over the plant which cost you no labor and which you did not raise; it came up in one night and in one night it perished. And should I not be concerned over Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot distinguish their right hand from their left…”  Indeed, God loves us more than we can imagine, and he raises up those around us to help us on our journey to him. 

 

We are all called, by virtue of our baptism, to love one another and to assist one another in getting to heaven.  We do not have the luxury of picking and choosing who we will love and help; rather, God calls us all to love everyone—even our enemies.  When we give ourselves over to the will of God and begin to see everyone as our neighbor, then the Lord's grace can do powerful things in our lives and in the lives of those around us…BUT we have to begin to try to love everyone.

 

In our Gospel, Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray by giving them the Our Father.  Far too often we forget that when we pray the our Father we are praying that God will “forgive us our trespasses AS we forgive those who trespass against us.”  In essence, we are asking God to treat us just like we treat those around us.  If we are hard on others, if we judge others harshly, if we refuse to forgive others, if we are not merciful to others, then we are asking God to be hard on us, to treat us harshly, to NOT forgive us, and to NOT give us his mercy.  Lord, help us to begin to love everyone as you call us to do.