14th August. Thursday, Week 19

Saint Maximilian Kolbe, priest and martyr.

Maximilian Maria Kolbe (1894-1941) was a Polish Conventual Franciscan friar, who volunteered to die in place of a family man in the death camp of Auschwitz near Krakow, in World War II. He is the patron saint of drug addicts, political prisoners, families, journalists, prisoners, and the pro-life movement. (More on Wikipedia).

1) Ezekiel 12:1-12

The word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, you are living in the midst of a rebellious house, who have eyes to see but do not see, who have ears to hear but do not hear; for they are a rebellious house. Therefore, mortal, prepare for yourself an exile’s baggage, and go into exile by day in their sight; you shall go like an exile from your place to another place in their sight. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house. You shall bring out your baggage by day in their sight, as baggage for exile; and you shall go out yourself at evening in their sight, as those do who go into exile. Dig through the wall in their sight, and carry the baggage through it. In their sight you shall lift the baggage on your shoulder, and carry it out in the dark; you shall cover your face, so that you may not see the land; for I have made you a sign for the house of Israel.

I did just as I was commanded. I brought out my baggage by day, as baggage for exile, and in the evening I dug through the wall with my own hands; I brought it out in the dark, carrying it on my shoulder in their sight.

In the morning the word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, has not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said to you, “What are you doing?” Say to them, “Thus says the Lord God: This oracle concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the house of Israel in it. ” Say, “I am a sign for you: as I have done, so shall it be done to them; they shall go into exile, into captivity. ” And the prince who is among them shall lift his baggage on his shoulder in the dark, and shall go out; he shall dig through the wall and carry it through; he shall cover his face, so that he may not see the land with his eyes.

Gospel: Matthew 18:21-19:1

Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.

“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; and, as he could not pay, is lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything. ‘ And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe. ‘ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you. ‘ But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as had mercy on you?’ And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.

Barriers to cross

Biblical motifs like the crossing of the Red Sea and of the River Jordan must be applied to our own lives, and in this we are helped by the prophet Ezekiel and the evangelist Matthew, through parables on how to handle difficult moments in our life. Today too, we might meditate on the self-sacrifice of Maximilian Kolbe as a parable of total generosity, a deeply symbolic gesture showing a way to bring wars of dominance and aggression to an end.

Ezekiel describes two symbolic actions by which God intended Israel to learn a vital lesson. He carries all of his belongings through a hole in the city walls, silently with his head covered, so as to see the land no more. He eats his bread and drinks water in a state of trembling. These action parables fascinate the people and absorb their attention, offering them a period of grace to think and pray. But then they ridicule Ezekiel, he declares that his actions concern Jerusalem and the whole house of Israel. We too may need to look again at some people or ideas we tend to ridicule, and question our motives; for we too can be a “rebellious house” blind to the wider truth and to the consequences of our actions.

Perhaps the most difficult barrier to cross is the need to forgive our neighbour. How often are we obliged to do so? we ask with Peter. The Lord’s simple answer, “seventy times seven times” is not meant literally. So he tells the story of the king who forgave a very serious debt. The implied question is, how are we unable to forgive the debts of a neighbour who owes us so much less? The underlying motive here is not “justice” but as we read in the story, the king was “moved with pity.” We are challenged by this parable: are others allowed to appeal to our patience? Here is a major “River Jordan” to pass – the need for patience with those who have offended us. It seems that this parable is not about some optional, higher sanctity, for our eternal salvation depends on it: “My Father will treat you in the same way, unless you forgive each other from your heart.” Even if forgiveness seems heroic it seems to be required!