11th Week, Ordinary Time, Saturday, June 18
2 Chronicles 24: 17-25 / Matthew 6 : 24-34
Zechariah speaks out; Zechariah was murdered by the people.
Jehoiada was the high priest who hid the royal infant in the Temple until he was old enough to be anointed king. When Jehoiada died, he was succeeded by his son Zechariah. When Zechariah stood up for what was right, the king whom his father had saved and anointed gave the order to kill him.
Jesus referred to Zechariah when he warned the religious leaders of his day that they were in danger of doing to him what their ancestors had done to Zechariah. Standing up for truth and doing what is right has never been easy. It wasn't easy for Zechariah in his day; it wasn't easy for Jesus in his day; and it still isn't easy for us in our day.
***
How courageously do we stand up against evil? "Men reject their prophets and slay them, but they love their martyrs and honour those whom they have slain." Feodor Dostoevski
***
It is dangerous to be a prophet who dares to speak out, particularly against the mighty. It cost the prophet Zechariah his life.
Too often, we worry much more than we should and about things that, after all, don’t matter much. Are not our fears and worries mostly about things and events of the future, and do they not usually prove groundless? We are in God’s hands. He who cares for the birds in the sky cares for us and knows what we need. Let’s be concerned, then, about making his kingdom a reality now; this is all that matters.
***
I have analogue and digital watches and clocks. But my preference is the analogue timepiece. Not only do I know the time at a glance, there is also something worth reflecting about the ticking of the second hand. If we do some calculations, that second hand goes 60 ticks a minute, 3600 ticks an hour, 86,400 ticks a day, 604,800 ticks a week and 31,449,600 ticks a year.
Now that is a lot of ticking. Yet, that humble second-hand shows us something. It takes one tick at a time. That is what Jesus is telling us in today's gospel. Putting it simply, it is: Take one tick at a time. We don't have to worry about how many ticks we have to accomplish in a year, or in a week, or in a day or even in a minute. That is all taken care of by God.
What we need to do is to let love, joy, peace, patience, compassion, kindness, generosity start ticking in our lives. That is what is meant by setting our hearts on the Kingdom of God and on His righteousness.
***
Opening Prayer
Lord God, our Father, you care about the birds in the sky and let them find food in due time. You clothe the flowers in the field with colours and fragrance. So why should we worry? We thank you for the gift of life, for loving us and caring for us free of charge. Keep us firmly in your hand on account of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen
