Friday in the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time, Cycle I
Jos 24, 14-29; Mt 19, 13-15.
Someone once said that we cannot look at young children and not be amazed by them. They are young and small, yet they have a genius that we have lost! They know how to stand in awe of things, however simple it may be. They never take anything for granted. Young children are aware of their limitations and are not ashamed of them. They have no inhibitions and do not know how to put on masks. They know that they are dependent on others and that they cannot live on their own.
However something happens as we grow older that we lose all this. Difficult experiences that we pass through might make us bitter. We try and be authentic and we are made fun of. Or else, we show appreciation for something or someone but receive none back. We start realising that others are not being honest with us so we put up our defences. We want to preserve ourselves and do not want to hurt again. Eventually we start losing our meekness and our playful character. Wearing a mask becomes second nature.
Like the disciples, we overlook beauty and tenderness. We see anything that is not productive as worthless, as wasting our time. We start snapping at others, even at those who love us most. We become aware of our limitations and start feeling more and more uncomfortable. Anxiety start setting in and we develop a sense of competition against others whom we start perceiving as threatening to ourselves. And the cycle goes on...
Jesus came to break this cycle. He came to give us life anew. Like Joshua in the First Reading, he is placing a choice in front of us. Joshua told the tribes of Israel, "I am giving you a free choice. You can either choose the God who led you out of slavery in Egypt, or you can go back to the gods of your fathers with all the consequences that that decision brings with it." He goes on, "This is no light decision for you to take. You must make this decision wholeheartedly and requires of you complete commitment." In other words, Joshua is saying, this is a decision that you take with your heart and not just with your actions, a decision that you make with your whole being.
Jesus is asking the same thing of us. We have to make a decision, either to be like those young children, able to appreciate even the simplest things, with a grateful and joyful heart. If we do so, we can be sure that we will be blessed by the Lord. Or else we can decide to continue being slaves of our resentments and of our past hurts, with all the consequences that this brings with it.
This decision too involves a change of heart, a commitment. Let us therefore ask God for the gift of a humble and joyful heart and a childlike (not childish!!) attitude.
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