The Blessedness of the Just(HOMILY FOR SATURDAY OF THE 27TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME 14TH OCTOBER 2023

HOMILY FOR SATURDAY OF THE 27TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Joel 3:12-21; Ps.97; Luke 11:27-28

The Blessedness of the Just

As people and nations continue to drift away from the precepts of the Lord all in the name of civilization, it becomes more challenging and controversial to speak and act according to the commandments of God. It seems as though keeping God’s commandments will keep one poor, unpopular and unfree. The seemingly prosperity of the ungodly continue to tempt those who would have wanted to live by Law of the Lord. If we are true to our experiences of what is obtainable in the world today, we will have to ask: what do we really stand to gain by living by God’s commandments? Does the righteous have any advantage over the ungodly? Is the hope of the godly only eschatological?

The answer to these and similar questions is contained in the gospel reading of today. The unnamed woman who raised her voice from the crowd, represent a close encounter with the Divine. She was able to perceive the greatness of Jesus which was obvious is his ministry; a greatness that was not found elsewhere or with any other. She then lauded the privilege of being close to Jesus; for such closeness amounts to a meaningful and profound share in the greatness of Jesus.

This unnamed woman, was not referring to any form of material greatness in Jesus; but something that far supersedes the material. Beloved, what the ungodly stand to gain from deviating from the precepts of the Lord is merely material: money, fame, connections and so on. But in truth, life is worth more than these and this life is created and sustained by only God.

The first reading contains a promised restoration that God has in store for those who are faithful to His Word. Such restoration cannot be obtained through money, neither can it be given by any mortal; they can only come about through the action of the Divine. The Lord does not promise us material benefits when he invites us to abide in Him because material benefits are least among the things that God can do and give to us. The Lord who made us and knows us best, promises us what is best for us: Eternal Life; everyother thing can added to it. 

For this reason, the psalmist exalts the just to rejoice in the Lord. The Lord himself assures the just that they are the truly blessed. The ungodly are never TRULY blessed. So when the wealth of the ungodly tempt us, let us rest on the truth that those who have God, have everything.