Reflection for the 12th week in Ordinary Time…June 25, 2023

by Sr. Theresa Maly ND

Jesus often assured his followers with the words: “Be not afraid”. We are told this week that we are intimately known and loved for even “the hairs of our head are numbered”. We certainly need not be afraid as we trust in God’s tender loving care not only for us but for all, everyone, every moment of every day in every circumstance.  We know that GOD IS LOVE and God can never stop being God.  God is truly love, and Jesus invited us to realize that love and act accordingly.  He even became human to show us how to do it.

Jesus’s warning of one who may ‘kill the soul’ seems a bit puzzling.  I wonder if Jesus may be referring to our very human inclination to analyze, to make judgments and comparisons. We can even find ourselves deciding who is more deserving of God’s love and mercy, almost afraid some people may be getting more goodness and mercy than they deserve.  This kind of thinking can ‘kill’ the Spirit.  It can be deadening to our ability to deliberately join particularly with those who are considered to be ‘outsiders’ in our culture. We join withal, everyone, everywhere in living freely and creatively within the family of God. Let us do so lovingly and FEARLESSLY.