Homily: June 18, 2024 Tuesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

"Since he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his time. I will bring the evil upon his house during the reign of his son." 

This verse from the first reading really struck me. Our sins have far-reaching consequences beyond our imagination. We all carry original sin in us before we are baptized. Original sin is the consequence of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God and passed down through next generations.

We read in the 2nd Book of Samuel how King David committed grave sins but later repented sorrowfully because of prophet Nathan’s revelation. However, the consequence of his sins was him losing his son to death soon after his birth. In today’s reading, Ahab too repented in remorse for his sin, but the consequence of that terrible murder remained in the house of Ahab, even though he did not commit the act himself.

Just as Jesus warned the Pharisees: "Therefore, behold, I send to you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and pursue from town to town, so that there may come upon you all the righteous blood shed upon earth, from the righteous blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Amen, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation."

So it is true that when we sin, the consequences last beyond our generation.

Grave sins, like taking someone's life through murder or abortion, have far and wide consequences. Like Ahab, the Pharisees did not kill these prophets directly, but they either supported or got others to kill innocent lives. And thus their next generations bore the effects of those sins.

The consequences of the sins of our generation will come upon us, and if we do not repent of these, they will be ‘carried forward’ and take effect in our next generation. Because everyone of us are amazingly connected with our earlier generations and future generations spiritually.

Thus, when we fall into temptation, let us always be aware how it might add on to the spiritual burden of our next generations, and so resist and call upon the Lord for His gracious help. And never delay going for the sacrament of reconciliation to ensure we always remain in the state of grace.

However, the consequences passed down to us may already have taken effect in our lives and are beyond the ability of our own merits to cancel. We can never pay back, nor reverse, only God can.

So, repeating today’s responsorial psalm, we call on the Lord to help us, "Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned." Amen!