IN THE SOUND OF SHEER SILENCE

First Reading: 1 Kg 19:9, 11-13
Second Reading: Rom 9:1-5
Gospel: Mt 14:22-33

On this Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time the Lord is inviting us to hear His whispering voice in the midst of thunderstorm. From the Old Testament we know that mountain is the place where humans encounter God, offer sacrifices and prayers. This we see in the life of the Patriarchs, Moses and the Prophets. Rightly, the temple is also situated in a Jerusalem hillock. To claim the mountain is to offer prayers, supplication and sometimes even receive revelation. Last Sunday we had revelation about Jesus divinity in His transfiguration event which also took place in the mountain. Psalm 24 speaks about worthiness to claim the mountain of the Lord. Thus, for Israelites mountain is a holy place. In this context we have to break today’s Word of God.

In the first reading we have prophet Elijah who flees to Mount Horeb to escape from the snare of Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab of Israel. To save his life from human hunters, Elijah runs towards mountain – the place of God. Elijah takes shelter in the hand of God. It is on this mountain He hear the voice of God. At first, there is a heavy wind, then earthquake and fire. God is neither seen nor heard in those fearsome natural events. God’s voice is heard in whispers, in a sound of sheer silence (1Kg 19:12). Yes, the nature acknowledges the presence of God, rather descending of God from heaven to earth with its heavy noise but they are not God. The gentle voice of God in the midst of heavy natural noise reveals the peaceful nature of God. Our God is not fearsome but gentle and kind. He reaches out to us with His mercy and compassion. Therefore, we need to hear the voice of God in silence. The criteria to discern God’s voice in our life is GENTLENESS. One of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is gentleness. It is nonetheless love and forgiveness. Any inner voice that tells us to act with loving kindness and forgiving heart is from God. We need to pay heed to that voice amidst other dominant voices which enthuse us to act according to worldly understanding of justice.

In the Gospel, we see Jesus praying at the mountain top. On the other side, we have His disciples who are battering mighty waves and wind in the sea. Jesus as God is in His place (mountain – Heaven). The disciples in the boat represent the earth especially the community of believers. The Catholic Church is a boat. The captain of the ship is the Holy Father. This scene is witnessed by many saints especially by St. John Bosco in his dream. The boat is battering heavy wind and mighty waves. They shake the boat to the point of sinking. Peter, the captain of the boat has the responsibility to defend every single life in the boat. Apart from peter other disciples are scared by the sight of Jesus. They perceive Him as a ghost. They are not able to differentiate the storm and the silent movement of God. The terrifying nature of storm, waves and wind distract the disciples from perceiving God. It is only peter who hears the voice of God in the midst of rupture. He exhibits extraordinary faith by asking Jesus to command him to walk on the water. While the other disciple want to be saved from sinking, peter wants to get into the water and walk – does peter become crazy? Perhaps it is only in our human foolishness we can know God. With the command of Jesus, peter gets into the water and walks. As he walks the wind has not ceased, the waves continue to batter, yet he is not afraid. This is a sharp contrast to people who are in the boat (people in the boat are more afraid than one who is walking on the sea water!). As prophet Elijah heard the gentle voice of God on the mountain, peter too recognized the voice of Jesus who has come down from the mountain (heaven) to the boat (earth) to rescue His disciples. The accommodation of both Jesus and peter into the boat brings peace and harmony to the tormented situation. Yes, we need to accommodate JESUS and the teachings of the Catholic Church to bring peace in our lives.

And so, if you are shaking probably you are concentrating on the disturbing waves. If you are giving up probably you are terrified by the worldly noise. If you are dying probably you are not willing to accommodate JESUS and the Catholic Church into you and into your home. Dear brethren, pay attention to the gentle voice of God. He is the solution to everything in your life. The devil is very active and terrible just like wind and storm to distract you from hearing God’s gentle voice. In the book of Genesis we see Adam and Eve who adhered to the loud voice of Satan at once but hid themselves from the gentle movement of God in the garden. If they were to respond inversely we would have been saved from original sin. Let us learn from their mistake and do the needful to rectify our lives. JESUS is the solution. Catholic Church is the way to discover this treasure. May we find this treasure and rest in His peace.  

Comments