“HONEY FROM THE ROCK”
Saturday, 30th July 2016,
Seventeenth Week of Ordinary Time
Jer 26: 11-16, 24;
Ps 69: 14-15, 29-30, 32-33;
Mt 14: 1-12
RIGHT CHOICES!
Today’s readings concern the persecution of God's servants. Jeremiah suffers, while John is killed for the most trivial of reasons. Let us take a look at the two characters of Herod and Herodias who are involved in the murder of John the Baptist. Herod was a worldly man. He also lived in fear. Perhaps Herod had too much to drink at his birthday; in this state he makes a very foolish promise, which his wife Herodias took advantage of. Doing what was right - confronting his wife - didn't enter into his calculation. A victim of pride, Herod reluctantly beheads John and delivers the head to his wife. Herodias had no qualms of conscience to fulfill her wicked designs by influencing her daughter.
The message for us today can be to ask ourselves how we deal with the moral dilemmas that we face. Do we rationalize our evil behavior and entice others to do the same, convincing them it is for their good in order to cover our own faults?
Prayer: O Holy Spirit enlighten my mind to always choose what is right and give me the courage to live up to it. Amen.
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