June 29, 2014
Reflection on Lectoring
Only God can make something out of nothing.
If we acknowledge the truth of the above statement, what is
left for people to make? Is our ability
to make something unique limited to reworking old ideas over and over?
God created us to do more than memorize and repeat simple
facts and formulations. Instead, he asks
us to be active and reflective collaborators in the ongoing process of our salvation.
He asks us to discover for ourselves the
depth of his love and his great desire for us to be with him.
Even if we could live several lifetimes, we would never fully
plumb the depth of his love. Nevertheless,
we are invited to continue discovering how much he cares for us and our
ultimate happiness.
There is a theory of artistic creation that places the
artist in the role of the discoverer - someone who finds truth and beauty in God’s
creation. The artist seeks to discover
and express in his or her own way the wonder in everything God has made. It is a journey of discovery not limited to
the artist, but available to every one of us as God’s children.
In a similar way, lectors are asked to find and express
the truth and beauty revealed by God in the Scriptures. It is a collaborative process, because God
has chosen lectors to work with him on the project.
______________________________________
First Reading - Acts of the Apostles 12:1-11
The Price of Belief
To get an idea of how important Peter was, consider the
fourth verse of today’s first reading.
It says that sixteen soldiers were assigned to guard him. Later on in verse 19, it says Peter’s
jailbreak was such a serious matter that Herod Agrippa had all sixteen soldiers
tried and executed.
The story of Peter’s imprisonment and potential death is
not something to be proclaimed lightly.
The safe and familiar surroundings of our parish church should not
mitigate the reality of the dangerous and life-threatening conditions existing
in Judea around 44 AD. Believing in
Jesus came with a high price.
Peter especially recognized the price. Today’s reading parallels a remarkably similar
story found in chapter five of Acts in which Peter is arrested by the Sanhedrin
and again slips past the guards with the help of an angel.
In some ways, these stories remind us of the stories of religious
persecution reported almost daily in today’s news. These horrific stories are often accompanied
by the heroic stories of people who refuse to compromise their beliefs.
___________________________________
Second Reading - 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18
The Ultimate Price
Paul, like Peter, was also someone who refused to
compromise his beliefs. He was someone who “kept
the faith.” But what did he get for
his faithfulness?
“Five
times at the hands of the Jews, I received forty lashes, minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I
was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked” (2 Corinthians
11:24-25). He also spent years in jail,
and was ultimately martyred in Rome. He
paid a high price for remaining faithful to his mission and beliefs.
In today’s second reading Paul knows he is going to
die. He is about to experience the most
frightening event of his life. Far more
frightening than all of the trials he endured.
For him death will be the final reality, the ultimate loss of control,
the final end of all his travels. It
will be the time when Paul most needs to trust in God’s mercy.
© George Fournier, 2014
