Homily: March 22, 2024, Friday of the fifth week in Lent (vengeful)

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 “But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph. In their failure, they will be put to utter shame.”

Jeremiah is arrogantly confident of God. He boasts of God’s might and that He will fight Jeremiah’s enemies down and put them all to ‘utter shame’ for the sake of the prophet.

Don’t we all wish to have a mighty warrior, like a bodyguard, watching our back and causing all our enemies to fear and tremble?

During my school days, kids from my village had to walk two miles every morning and evening, to and from school. There were twenty kids from my village who had to walk that way together every day.

And along the way we would have lots to talk, play and fight about. We talked about anything and everything, and we fought over small and simple things. But the fights never lasted long; very quickly we became friends again.

There was this girl, who was also my sister’s classmate, whenever somebody fought with her, she would threaten them by warning, “I will tell my uncle, and he will fight for me.” We all imagined her uncle to be a big, fierce and strong man.

One day, on our way home from school, her uncle suddenly appeared, and she pointed to some of us and complained to him that we were the ones who had been bullying her and fighting with her. We got worried!

But it turned out that her uncle was a loving and compassionate man. Instead of shouting to scold us, or raising his hands to beat us, he gently told us not to fight, and advised us to be good to one another, then he walked away calmly.

He was not frightening at all! He was nice!

That girl obviously did not know her uncle’s character, lucky for us!

In today’s first reading, prophet Jeremiah claims that God will take revenge on his enemies for him, it seems like he too failed to understand the nature of God. Our God is so compassionate and loving, slow to anger, rich in kindness.

People in Jesus’ time also expected the same of him. They thought he would kill the Romans and reestablish the kingdom of David in Jerusalem. But truly, Jesus came to accomplish the works of His Father, which are works of love, compassion, and mercy to all.

We are eternally blessed to be the children of such a loving God. As we enter Holy Week, let us reflect more and more deeply on God’s great love for us. Instead of killing our enemies, Jesus died for us. Killing does not save, but self-sacrifice does. Amen.


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