Second Ordinary Sunday, Year B
Theme: To Bear Witness To Christ 為基督作見證
I am sure all of you are familiar with the story of the call of Samuel, the last of Judges of the Israelites after Joshua had brought the Chosen People into the Promised Land. Still, we need to clarify some terms. The location was the city of Siloh (1 Samuel 1:3) and Eli and his two sons were priests to handle sacrifical businesses (1:3, 9). In today’s passage, we read, “The lamp of God was not yet extinguished, and Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the Lord where the ark of God was” (3:3). We have “the lamp of God”, “the temple of the Lord” and “the ark of God” here. The lamp and the ark were objects put inside the Tabernacle which was built during Exodus. Therefore, this “temple of the Lord” must have been a relatively permanent structure to house the Tabernacle after the settlement in Canaan, and not the first Temple built by King Solomon in Jerusalem later (1 Kings 6:1).
After knowing the physical setup, let’s turn our attention to how God called Samuel. During the first three times, God called and Samuel heard his name called (1 Samuel 3:4, 6, 8). In the last call, God became more concrete, “The Lord came and stood there, calling out as before …” (3:10). From this narrative, we know that the Lord always takes the initiative to build up relationship with us. He would only invite and would never force us to accept. On the other hand, most people are like Samuel, not ready to receive God’s revelation until somebody, in this case Eli the priest, helps them set their sight on God! The story of Samuel reminds us Christians that we should not speak carelessly because “The Lord was with him, not permitting any word of his to go unfulfilled” (3:19), which means Samuel was a prophet and similarly we Christians partake in the prophetic ministry after our baptism. Therefore our words become unimaginably powerful. No wonder St. Paul teaches, “No foul language should come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for needed edification, that it may impart grace to those who hear” (Ephesians 4:29). Similarly, Peter teaches, “Do not return evil for evil, or insult for insult; but on the contrary, a blessing, because to this you were called, that you might inherit a blessing” (1 Peter 3:9). Never curse anybody or anything. Instead, we should love, pray and bless, even those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44).
Let us now narrow down to focus on the gospel passage today. John the Baptist sets us Christians an excellent exemplar that our mission is to draw people to Jesus Christ (1:37). He testifies to his two disciples that Jesus is the Lamb of God. This is the second time and to only two disciples. The Baptist accomplishes his mission by encouraging his own disciples to follow the true groom who must increase and he must decrease (3:29-30). Therefore, if we draw people to ourselves, sooner or later, we shall be overwhelmed by our own successes! No wonder many Catholics are reluctant to evangelize, to testfiy to the light.
The merciful Lord is always aware of the movements and needs of our souls. The two disciples only dared to follow behind, probably they were hesitant and not sure if Jesus would accept them because they were disciples of the Baptist. Jesus knew and took the initiative to invite them by giving them a stepping stone, an open end question, “What are you looking for?” (1:38b). The Baptist did not see himself as a Rabbi, but a voice in the wilderness. He would not explain systematically the Mosaic law to meet the expectations of some of his followers. Taking Jesus’ cue, these two disciples would be able to express their desire to learn the right way to lead their lives under the colonial Roman rule. Furthermore, they also wanted to show their readiness to devote and spend longer time to learn from this Rabbi whom the Baptist had recommended. Thus they say, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” (1:38c) Why are the two disciples interested in where Jesus stayed/lived? The Evangelist gives us a clue, namely that “it was about four in the afternoon” (1:39c) which means there were only two hours left to end the day and there would not be enough time for the disciples to deal with all their existential questions! The merciful Lord is able to fulfil all our needs and to empower us to transcend our limitations. He is always open and has prepared a lot of surprises for us. “Come, and you will see” (1:39a). In the end, the disciples are able to come up with different understanding of “the light of the human race”. Peter’s/Mark’s Christ is an action-hero. Matthew’s Christ is the perfect Rabbi greater than Moses. Luke’s Christ is a merciful Lord for the socially marginalized and is always ready to forgive. John is able to extract the essence of God which is love. Paul is able to find a subtitute for the Mosaic Law, namely faith in Christ Jesus and James concretizes Jesus’ teachings to make them relevant even today etc. Together the disciples have avoided painting a one-dimensional Jesus. Together, they project a multifaceted Christ! Catholics! It is simply impossible to exhaust all the narratives of Jesus Christ. What prevents you from testifying to the light?
Last week we learnt that all of us are Stars of Bethlehem to attract people to the incarnated Son of God. Today, we see how Eli help Samuel; John the Baptist his disciples and the apostles Christians of the future generations etc. to get connected with God, with Jesus Christ. Beloved brethren! If you find it difficult to identify God’s will, or if you are diffident in testifying to Jesus Christ in front of people, it is time to review our relationship with Him. But rest assured that at all times and in all situations, God always takes the initi target=rframe>ative to lend us a hand. Lift up your arms to call out His name. He shall be there to raise you up. Amen!
God bless!
2021 Reflection
Picture Credit: catholic-daily-reflections.com
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