Wednesday, September 30, 2020

How Can One, Human Beings, Be Justified Before God?” (Job 9:2);Homily –Wednesday of the 26th Week Of Ord Time/ Memorial of Saint Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church.

 

Homily –Wednesday of the 26th Week Of Ord Time/ Memorial of Saint Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church. Fr. Udoekpo, Michael

v  Job 9:1-12, 14-16

v  Ps 88:10bc-11,12-13,14-15

v  Luke 9:57-62

“How Can One, Human Beings, Be Justified Before God?” (Job 9:2)

Yesterday we celebrated the Feast of Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. Today is the memorial of St. Jerome, priests and the Doctor of the Church. Tradition has it that he was born in Dalmatia, St. Jerome (342-420) and studied in Rome. While living his monastic life he traveled to Syria where he was ordained. Later return to Rome as Secretary to Pope Damasus, who commissioned him to revise the Latin texts of the Bible. After completing this work, he translated the entire texts of the book of the Bible in to Latin. Had great love for scripture, the word of God. The saying, “ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of God” is popularly attributed to St. Jerome.

In other words, in all that we do, say, teach, the foundation is , or should be the word of God (sacred scripture, verbum domini), of which today’s selected readings from Book of Job and Luke’s Gospel form a part(cf. Udoekpo, “Introduction”, “prefaces” Sharing the Word of God).  Understanding it, teaching and living it is indispensable for a faithful Christian and teacher of the faith. It is the soul of theology.

In today’s scriptures, especially the first reading, Book of Job( a wisdom literature, reflective, and didactic in nature), that addresses the issues of theodicy and human sufferings, like Habakkuk, of which Saint Jerome cherished so much,  Job a righteous man from Uz,  who went through, the test of loss of his family and businesses, through the instrumentality of the accuser, Satan, an adversary, yet  knew everything was not about him, but about God, the source of everything( Job 1-2).

 In Job 3, and in the presence of his friends (Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar) who came to comfort him with their own perspectives on life, Job questioned why he was even born, because of the mysterious nature of his sufferings!

For his friends, Job suffers because of his sins. It is retributive justice on him (Eliphaz : 4:7–11; 5:2–7; 15:20–35; Bildad: 8:3–4, 11–21; 18:5–21;Zophar: 11:11; 20:5–29). They argue, Job’s only hope is to repent and then God will restore him (5:8–16, 23–27; 8:5–7; 11:13–20; 22:22–30). But, Job believes, God is unjust to him (Job 9:21-24), some conclusion that any us would easily draw in moments of trials and inexplicable loss of our loved ones and sufferings. Job will soon find out out, as was the case with Habakkuk, that God was not unjust to him in a human sense!

This is why in the reading of today, Job asks “How can the mortal, one, and human beings be justified by God”? As Saint Jerome would recommend it is important to understand this text, as righteousness has been used different in scripture including Pauline writings (cf. Rom 1:16-17 etc).  Recall earlier on in Job 4:17 Eliphaz had asked “can human beings be righteous (yitsdaq) before God “? Job seems to agree, but he uses the term in a legal sense. No one can be just (“yitsdaq”), that is “declare innocent before God because God holds every advantage. He is the source of all power, wisdom and gifts. He can give and he can take. We can fight with God?

As the story continues in Job (4-27), and the three friends could not win Job over because Job is exemplarily convinced that God is the source of true wisdom, endurance, patience, hope, steadfastness, determination to follow Jesus, resoluteness in faith and trust in a mysterious God who is the source of life and death!

Clearly Job’s resolves anticipates today’s Gospel (Luke 9:57-62), where Jesus, reminds his disciples, the cost of discipleship, as he resolutely heads to Jerusalem to be taken up (suffering, death, resurrection, ascension). In other words, to die for us (Luke 9:51).  Following Christ does not need unnecessary procrastination and excuses! Jesus began his ministry in Jerusalem (Luke 4). He is re-inviting us as he returns to Jerusalem to suffer (as we saw in the case of Job) and to die for us. His journey to Jerusalem teaches us among many things, the mystery of the cross, the mystery of loss, love, pains, and of death of a believer!

In our various and daily challenges (including ongoing Covid-19), that are mixed with pieces of advice from our friends and neighbors, we cannot fight nor curse we God. His ways are not human ways and understanding of justice. We can only pray, believe, trust patiently and rely hopefully on his divine mercy, and justice, and in his mysterious ways of doing things.

Reflection Questions

1.      In moments of trials and challenges do we blame God, or thought we are suffering because of our sins or do we rely on his mercy and misery of love?

2.      Are we consistent, resolute, in following Christ, keeping his word and values?

3.      Like Saint Jerome do we cherish the Word of God and how and when?

4.      What have you learned about suffering in the light today’s scripture?