God frequently confounds our expectations and does things we might find shocking. But he does this in order to demonstrate more clearly his purposes. Fr Richard reflects on today’s readings from Mass.
Readings for Friday of the third week of Easter can be found here.
Think of one of the world’s mega-rich, the multi-millionaires and billionaires, and you probably imagine someone obsessed with amassing more and more money, growing their fortune and enjoying the luxurious life which comes with it. Every so often, however, someone comes along who confounds expectations. Chuck Feeney was the founder of duty-free shops in airports around the world. In 1984 he secretly transferred his entire $500 million stake in the company to a charitable organisation he had founded. It’s estimated he gave away $8 billion in his lifetime, and was known for always flying economy and wearing a $10 wristwatch.
God is often in the business of confounding human expectations, and we see this in our readings today. He doesn’t choose a faithful follower of Jesus to be the next leader of the early church’s mission. Shockingly, he calls Saul, someone who sought to eradicate the new faith and approved of the killing of Stephen. This is all too much for Ananias, who protests to God “I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem”. How on earth could Jesus call such a one to be a missionary of his? In the Bread of Life discourse in John’s Gospel, the people are shocked by what Jesus is telling them: “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” Yet Jesus continues with his message: “… unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you”.
Why does God do things which can often be seen as shocking? In the case of Saul, it is surely to remind us that it’s not just the righteous who can serve him. Deeply flawed people also have something to offer; indeed their experience of moving from darkness to light can be crucial for ministry. Jesus’ graphic words about eating his flesh tell us that the Eucharist is not just a symbol or reminder of what Jesus did; it is a participation in his very life. We cannot get closer to him than we do when we receive his true body and blood in the sacrament. May we always be ready to be shocked by God so that we may understand more fully his purposes and his love.
Mass today is in St Saviour’s at 10am.
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