Monday, February 5, 2018

February 4, 2018: 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Job expresses a reality that we all encounter at one time or another, that life is full of drudgery, miserable and restless.

But God has stepped into that reality in Jesus Christ, showing us that God has come to heal the brokenhearted, as He heals many people in the Gospel reading.  One commentary I read noted that He was not afraid to touch Simon's mother-in-law, even though she was sick, and once He helped her up, the fever left her and she served them.  God raises us up from what holds us down, and gives us purpose in life, to serve others in His Name.  St. Paul speaks of living out this purpose, being devoted to proclaiming the Gospel as a means of service to others.

I couldn't help but think about this as I watched the latest episode of the Masterpiece program Victoria, entitled "Faith, Hope, and Charity".  The Irish people suffered greatly because of the famine that overtook the land due to the potato crop failure, and many people wanted them to languish and die in this miserable existence, largely because they were Roman Catholic.  But many, including Dr. Traill and Queen Victoria herself, showed great courage in wanting to look past denominational divides and help them.  This is truly our call, to show love in service to one another, regardless of who they are, as God has so loved us.

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