March 10, 2013
Reflection on Lectoring
In his book, Everyday
Greatness, Stephen R. Covey includes 63 short stories about individual
people who perform courageous acts or have inspiring messages. “The
Cellist of Sarajevo” is one of these stories.
On May 27, 1992 amid the destruction and death of war, a
man named Vedran Smailovic came out of hiding and took his cello to the a site
of a mortar-bombed bakery where 22 people had died the day before. As a member of the Sarajevo Philharmonic
Orchestra, he came wearing his concert attire, and for the next 22 days he
played his cello in a defiant demonstration of courage and in honor of those
who had lost their lives.
We are touched by stories in which people demonstrate by their
actions the dignity and worth of the human person. Vedran Smailovic is a very real person whose
actions made a very real statement.
The Bible contains hundreds of stories of human courage
and commitment. How do we respond to these
stories? How does the assembly respond
when they hear the lector proclaim these stories?
Are they simply stories about ancient people from the
distant past with all the human passions and emotions drained away? Or are they stories that grab you and won’t
let go? Do we cry, or laugh, or feel
deeply inspired? Do we thank God for putting
those people on the earth?
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First Reading - Joshua 5:9a, 10-12
Year C
An Event Six Hundred Years in the Making
Six hundred years is a long time to wait. The descendants of Abraham had to wait 600
years for God’s promise of a homeland to be fulfilled. At Gilgal after all those 600 years, the
Hebrews finally entered the promised land.
It was a really big event.
In Chapter 3 of the Book of Joshua, the author amplifies
the significance of the moment by describing the Hebrews’ crossing of the
Jordan River and their arrival in the promised land. Reminiscent of the exodus from Egypt and the crossing
of the Red Sea, the Jordan stops flowing, permitting a triumphant passage
across. The ark of the covenant leads
the procession. Soldiers numbering
40,000 march by. Twelve memorial stones
taken from the dry river bed are set up.
And as soon as everyone is across, the Jordan flows again. The chosen people will not be going back.
One of the root meanings of Gilgal is “rolled away” or
“removed.” And it is at Gilgal that the
reproach of Egypt is removed. It is also
at Gilgal that the Passover is remembered and celebrated. God’s promise of a
homeland has come true.
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Second Reading - 2 Corinthians 5:17-21
Year C
A Story of Everyday Greatness
Today’s second reading from 2 Corinthians has connections
with today’s first reading and with the Gospel.
It illuminates both.
The events at Gilgal mark a turning point in human
history. Christ, the new creation, is
another turning point. The Incarnation
changed history. As Paul writes, “The old things have passed away; behold, new things have come.”
Paul also writes that among those new things is the possibility
of reconciliation, the reconciliation of the world to God, and we to each other.
Today’s Gospel gives us one of the most touching examples
of reconciliation ever told by anyone.
If Christ was God’s agent for achieving reconciliation, he was also the
best person for explaining it - in the parable of the prodigal son.
© 2013 George Fournier
