20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes
Jesus asked his disciples, “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” Why does he say this? Is he not the one whom Isaiah called the “Prince of Peace”? The Prophet Zechariah foretold: “Behold: your king is coming to you… humble and riding on a donkey… He shall banish the chariot from Ephraim, and the warhorse from Jerusalem; the warrior’s bow will be banished, and he will proclaim peace to the nations.” But this Kingdom of unending worldwide peace has not yet fully come and will not arrive until Christ’s Second Coming.
Jesus told his apostles, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you,” but he added, “because you do not belong to the world… the world hates you. … In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Jesus wished to dispel his followers’ presumptions about immediate peace on earth and warned them of future conflicts. He said, “You will hear of wars and reports of wars; see that you are not alarmed, for these things must happen, but it will not yet be the end.” Jesus also warned his disciples of future religious persecutions because not everyone, even amongst his own people, would accept him as the Christ. “From now on,” Jesus said, “a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three.” “Brother will hand over brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise up against parents and have them put to death.” “You will be hated by all because of my name,” Jesus said, “but whoever endures to the end will be saved.”
You have probably heard both ancient and modern stories about people who suffered and sacrificed a great deal in order to be a Christian or to join his Catholic Church. We are surrounded by great a cloud of such witnesses: like St. Paul the Apostle, St. Edmund Campion St. Kateri Tekakwitha, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, St. John Henry Newman, and many other saints. When we hear of a household divided—three against two or two against three—on account of Christ, we might imagine a family at odds due to some accepting Jesus and his Church while others remain atheists, pagans, Muslims, Jews, or non-Catholic Christians. This sometimes happens, yet Jesus absolutely insists that we love him most of all and follow him no matter what. He says, “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.” If you have been considering becoming a Catholic Christian, I urge you to take the next step and learn more this fall by enrolling in parish OCIA classes (formerly known as RCIA).
Though we typically imagine persecution coming from people outside our faith, resistance can come from our co-religionists as well. The Prophet Jeremiah and those who were persecuting him in today’s first reading were all Old Testament Jews professing to follow the same God and same faith. Yet those who mistreated Jeremiah were opposing God’s will. This can happen inside of a Catholic household as well. What if some family members understand the necessity of worshipping and thanking God every Sunday at Mass while others in the family are unwilling to prioritize him? What if one spouse wants to live in accord with God’s will about the marital embrace, virtue, love, and human life, but the other spouse wants to contracept? What if children want to explore possible priestly or religious vocations but their parents resist what may be God’s will saying, “We want grandchildren”? What if some family members treat our religion like merely “fire insurance,” hoping the Lord won’t mind us doing whatever we prefer, while other members are on fire for the Lord?
Jesus said, “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” He wants us to be on fire for him, aflame with the Holy Spirit, shining light with a warm inner peace which this troubled world cannot take away. If that uniquely describes you in your household, pray for your family members, love them, and keep modeling and advocating for what is right and good. If that does not describe you, then pray for a more fervent heart and obey the voice of Christ challenging your conscience. Realize you cannot clear a six foot charism using only three foot hops.
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