10th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran
God speaks to us in many ways, particularly through the Word of God. This Word is very active in our lives and helps us to grow in our closeness to God. On this Tenth Sunday of Ordinary Time, the Church reminds us that as humans, we all have to struggle against evil. However, the good news is that we are illuminated through the assurance of victory. It is Christ, who helps us to obtain this victory in our daily and earthly struggle against evil.
The first reading is from the story of the fall of Adam and Eve. Which reminds us of something that we inherited from them. That is Adam’s nature due to Original Sin. Also, it reminds us of the consequences of disobedience. Rather than accepting their fault, they tried to justify themselves by blaming each other. Adam blamed “the woman you (God) gave me.” Of course, he did not blame the woman alone; he also indirectly blamed God who generously and kindly gave him a partner. On the other hand, Eve blamed “the serpent that tempted me.” As it is for some of us, it was hard for them to accept their fault. Neither of them said, I am sorry, I was wrong; it was my fault, or even, please forgive me. What helps is humbly accepting one’s fault and asking for forgiveness.
Today’s gospel narrates Jesus’ encounter with his people and family. They thought he was out of his mind. They accused him of being possessed when he was liberating the possessed. They were ready to restrain him with false charges. They wished to tame his miraculous works and powerful preaching. Despite all this, He remained focused. Every true disciple of Christ is His brother, sister, mother, and a member of his victorious family. He came to save all who were ready to do the will of God. Of course, Mary his Mother is the greatest model of this for all of us. Hence, Christ did not disrespect his faithful mother. Rather, he teaches an important lesson today. That, through faith and obedience to God’s will, we all have the opportunity to become members of his victorious and happy family.
Also, Christ reminds us that it is not status but action in response to God’s call that determines who belongs to his victorious family. To become part of the victorious family of Christ is a dynamic process. It flows from a personal encounter with Christ. It also flows from faithfulness and obedience to God’s will. Hence, if we are Disciples of Christ, we must prove it through our faith and obedience to God’s will.
For us, all of this is a call to follow the Lord, no matter what our families or other religious people think about us. We are challenged to do the works of God and to recognize that the fight between good and evil is still going on in our own time. Adam and Eve enjoyed the status and comfort of God’s divine presence, but they lost it through disobedience. Through them, we equally lost our membership in the victorious family. But through obedience to God’s will, our membership of the victorious family has been restored. We must also recognize that it is God who is at work and so we can trust that we are being remade in the image of God.
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