Homily: Fourth Sunday of Year A
Blessed Are Those Who Seek the Lord (B)
Fr. Udoekpo, Michael Ufok
v Zeph 2:3, 3:12-13
v Ps 146:6-10
v 1 Cor 1:26-31
v Matt 5:1-12a
In today’s
Scripture readings, the Prophet Zephaniah, Christ, and Paul remind us of the importance
of peace, justice, righteousness, endurance, and kindness. They also remind us of
the blessings that await the humble and the poor, who courageously and steadfastly
trust in the Lord and in his divine promises.
Today’s
first reading, which is from the prophet Zephaniah, reminds us of prophets like
Habakkuk and Jeremiah. Both were known for asking “Why?” and “Where?”: Why does
suffering and injustice happen, and where is God in the face of such injustice
against the poor and the weak? They asked why bad things happen to good people.
Zephaniah was a contemporary of Habakkuk and Jeremiah. The three of them were pre-exilic
prophets. They addressed the religious, socioeconomic, and political problems created
by the Chaldeans, otherwise known as the Babylonians. The Chaldeans plundered the
poor. They burned the homes of the less privileged. They mocked and starved the
meek and the voiceless. They told lies about them and denied them justice and basic
needs, including food, shelter, clothing, income, fair trade, and religious freedom.
Anyone
would be easily confused, discouraged, and disoriented in the face of such misfortune.
As the champion and conscience of his people, Zephaniah simply steps in as God’s
messenger of hope for his people. He speaks out against the proud and arrogant Chaldeans
and those in Judah who might have collaborated with them.
Zephaniah
recommends humility for all parties. He recommends patience, steadfastness, and
faith (emunah). He recommends justice (misphat) and righteousness
(tsaddeqah). All these things are found in the Lord, who is the source of
joy and peace (shalom) and the sovereign of all creation. To Israel’s prophets,
the righteous are expected to be humble, as was Abraham. They are expected to be
devout to the Torah—the teachings of the Bible. They are peaceful and loving to
their neighbors. They are expected to be seekers and promoters of the common good,
of the less privileged, not always seeking themselves. The righteous are expected
to completely put their trust in the Lord.
In the
New Testament, Paul and Christ constantly apply the messages of Israel’s prophets
to the ugly and suffering events of their time. For instance, Paul reminds everyone,
“The one who is righteous will live by faith” (Rom 1:17; Gal 3:11; cf. Hab 2:4).
When the Corinthian community faced problems of arrogance, cheating, corruption,
rivalry, and bragging to the detriment of the poor, Paul reminded them that God
opts for the poor. He prefers the righteous, the lowly, the remnant, and those who
persevere in righteousness (1 Cor 1:26-31).
Christ
boldly repeats these same prophetic messages of justice, peace, humility, and the
pursuit of righteousness to the crowd gathered in today’s Beatitudes in Matthew’s
Gospel. To those who were in this crowd (the rich, the poor, the lowly, the politicians,
the spies, the oppressors, the oppressed, the persecuted, and the persecutors),
Jesus declared: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven. . . . Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and
utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward is great in heaven” (Matt 5:3, 11-12). Each of us can identify ourselves
in these Beatitudes: the poor, the meek, those in mourning, the hungry, those who
practice mercy, seekers of righteousness, the clean in heart, the peacemakers, those
being persecuted, and those who endure insults for the sake of Christ.
Pope
Francis, in the fourth chapter of his Evangelli Gaudium (the Gospel of Joy),
revisits the prophetic ideas of the inclusion of the poor and humble in the social,
economic, and political fabric of our society. He emphasizes trust in God, justice,
the pursuit of a common, proper minimum wage, and social dialogue as the means to
true peace.
Wherever
we are and in whatever position, whether a position of strength or weakness, let
us pray that today’s messages from Zephaniah, Paul, and Christ may find a joyful
place of peace, justice, and righteousness in our homes and societies.
Reflection Questions:
1. Do you assist in promoting the Beatitudes in your community?
2. What are the challenges of living the Beatitudes in
your faith community?
3. Which is your favorite Beatitude?
Alternate Homily
Happy Are the Poor in Spirit, For Theirs Is the Kingdom
of God (Matt 5:3) (C)
v Zeph 2:3; 3:12-13
v Ps 146:6-10 (response Matt 5:3)
v 1 Cor 1:26-31
v Matt 5:1-12a
The response
to today’s psalm, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven,” which is taken from Matthew 5:3, reminds us of the Jewish and prophetic
origin of our Christian sanctity (Exod 22:25-27; Deut 15:7-11; Isa 61:1-3; Pss 24,
37; 107). It summarizes the teachings of the Prophet Zephaniah (Zeph 2:3; 3:12-13),
Christ (Matt 5:1-12a; Luke 6:20-23), and Saint Paul, an apostle to the Gentiles
(1 Cor 1:26-31). We know that sometimes our obedience to God—doing the right thing—may
result in temporary oppression, suffering, and material disadvantage. For example,
think of those who fight for the freedom of worship, speech, and self-rule around
the world. The Prophet Zephaniah, Christ, and Paul encourage us to reflect on the
everlasting blessings, comfort, happiness, peace, and joy that awaits us when we
are poor in spirit, seek peace, trust God, obey God, exhibit humility, strive to
do God’s will, and live in the spirit of total abandonment to his providence and
divine mercy.
Zephaniah,
who preached in Judah in the late pre-exilic period during the reign of King Josiah
(640–609 BC), faced many problems that were contrary to the spirit of the Beatitudes
heard in today’s Gospel reading. The Egyptians, Assyrians, and Babylonians were
not at peace. They were fighting for power, land, and material wealth. Judah
itself was not free from corruption, arrogance, or the worship of false gods;
these behaviors were even prevalent among Judah’s priests and princes (Zeph 1:1-8;
3:1-13). In fact, some of these behaviors were introduced by evil kings like Manasseh
and Ammon. While encouraging trust in God, Zephaniah also repudiated violence, pride
(Zeph 2:10), and all forms of injustice (Zeph 3:1-11). On judgment day, he saw hope
of salvation for the poor in spirit and the humble.
These
are those who would “seek the Lord,” “who observe the Lord’s precepts,” who “seek
justice, humility and are not deceitful in their behavior.”
Although
the Jewish Christian community to whom Jesus delivered the Beatitudes (Matt 5:1-12a)
was separated from Zephaniah’s audience by many decades, it was still a community
that understood the meaning of suffering. They understood what it meant to be
deprived of land. They experienced the denial of basic needs and of the freedom
to govern themselves. They knew the negative impacts of pride, abuse of human rights,
lack of social justice, and freedom to worship their true God. When Christ got up
on that mountain and pronounced that blessed are the poor in Spirit, those who mourn,
the merciful, those who seek righteousness, peacemakers, and the morally clean of
heart, his audience may have seen in Christ the new Moses (Exod 19ff). Like Jesus,
they were familiar with Hebrew Scripture and the psalms, which stress poverty in
the spirit and comfort to mourners (Isa 61:1-3), meekness of heart (Ps 37:11), thirst
for righteousness (Pss 1; 107:5-9), peace, and purity of heart (Ps 24:3-4). Like
ourselves, they also knew from Proverbs 14:21 and Hosea 6:6 that since God is holy
and merciful, he requires mercy and holy living from each and every one of us.
Paul’s
Corinthian community was not filled with angels and saints, but with people of different
backgrounds, talents, and gifts, both weak and strong. There were rivals among them.
They were envious and biting each other’s backs. Division and pride had eaten deep
into this Christian community’s spiritual being (1 Cor 12–14). Sometimes these elements
can also slip into our modern communities.
It makes
a lot of sense when Paul says: “Consider your own call, brothers and sisters:
not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many
were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the
wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong” (1 Cor 1:26-28).
God chose the poor and the lowly to remind us that the focus our faith, ministry,
and service should be Christ through our neighbors.
Think
of what our lives would be without Christianity and our faith traditions. Think of what our lives would be without
the sacrament of penance, without the church and the Scriptures, without the examples
of the saints—particularly that of our Mother Mary. For our children, think of where
we would be without our mothers, who carried us for nine months and respected and
protected us even in their wombs. Think of where we would be without the support
of our good parents and good examples of faith and morals. Many of us have
had good mentors, catechists, teachers, advisors, priests, spiritual directors,
godparents, friends, brothers, and sisters. How did they impact your lives? Where
would you be without their help and good examples?
The call
for us to live the Beatitudes—poverty of the spirit, peace, hunger for justice,
mercy, purity of heart, the bearing of suffering for the sake of the Gospel, and
trusting God unconditionally—becomes more urgent in today’s world, characterized
by conflict, rivalry, and the erosion of family values. We live in a world crippled
by selfishness, individualism, pursuit of wealth, and secularism. The aggressive
pursuit of personal wealth and satisfaction has left many disinterested in the promotion
of the common good. In terms of communication, individual neighbors have become
anonymous while electronic objects are starting to talk to us.
We know
God is the supreme peacemaker. He is love, righteousness, and mercy. We, as
God’s sons and daughters, are invited in our own little ways to participate in living
the characteristics of a true disciple of Christ in our homes, families, churches,
and communities. We are invited to promote peace and justice by being meek and gentle
in our words, actions, and thoughts, pursuing righteousness and ready to forgive
and be merciful to others after the example of Christ, the true source of our happiness.
Reflection Questions
1. Do you assist in promoting the Beatitudes in your community?
2. What are the challenges in living the Beatitudes in
your faith community?
3. Which is your favorite Beatitude?
