Mass (Dc. Luebanos) - 8/11/24

Today we hear about the suffering of the prophet Elijah. He walked a whole day through the desert, fleeing from Jezebel who wanted to kill him, and he arrived at Mount Horeb, the mountain of God.
And there, desperate, he cried out to God, asking for death, saying that he is not worth more than his parents. Then he fell asleep, and the reading says that God sent an angel who woke him up and told him “get up and eat”. This happened twice and with this food Elijah was able to walk another 40 days, until he crossed the desert and continued with his prophetic work which was destined by God. God never changed his plans, he simply gives the most precise objective to which he had sent Elijah.
In the second reading Saint Paul is exhorting us to change our way of being, acting and speaking. He is inviting us to banish lies, anger, hatred, theft and all reprehensible behavior. With these behaviors every believer afflicts the Spirit Holy, which they received when they were baptized. He invites us to transform ourselves by imitating the Lord Jesus Christ himself. And he invites us as Christians to foster a relationship in mutual help, mercy and comprehension which should predominate between us.
It is not just about getting along, but about doing what God did. Christ came down to be with us. If God acted like this for us, why shouldn't we act like this with others? Why not be kind to those we live with? If there are people who push you to the limit sometimes, and the answer is yes, forgive not seven but seventy times seven, says the Lord.
In baptism we were made children of God and we must act as such in the likeness of Christ, whom I love until I became an oblation pleasing to God.
This invitation is very timely and invites us to continue acting with love, to revive ourselves in following the Lord. Let us always try to spread the fragrance of God's love to please the Holy Spirit at all times, instead of saddening Him.
When a person completely shuts down and doesn't want to listen, they invent all kinds of excuses and arguments, even the most bizarre ones, in order not to listen to you. Especially if you are talking to them about the things of God. The gospel tells us that Jesus is speaking to people about spiritual things and that he was very clear about what ground he was treading, and what things he wanted them to understand. But did you see what happened? The human being when he does not want to accept a certain truth often resorts to sarcasm. And that is precisely what those who listened to Jesus were doing.
The Gospel of Saint John offers us three objections that regulate the development of the conversation between Jesus and his listeners. They object to his carnal descent. They know his earthly parents. For the Jews, Jesus is a mere mortal. They know the son of Joseph, the son of Mary, but they do not yet know the son of God. They were scandalized by the poor and humble origin of Jesus. And Jesus makes a revelation to them, he tells them that he came down from heaven and for that reason no one can accept him. He tells them not to murmur, that no one comes to him if his Father does not bring him. I will raise him up on the last day, he gives them another announcement; Then he decodes the metaphor of bread and tells them “I am the living bread that has come down from heaven.” But to understand this it is necessary to have faith and know God, and this was something that the Jews have not known until now and are still waiting for.
Jesus rejects the murmurings of the Jews. He does not enter into discussion about his own origin. He specified the way and meaning of believing in him. It is by the grace of God.
God the Father drives us and the result is eternal life and resurrection.
While we are on this journey, we need to accept the hard tests.
Knowing God involves a long process which requires deep fidelity to avoid fears and temptations, which do not allow us to go to the end. Following Jesus and believing in him means having eternal life and having a communion with the Father and the Son. Jesus is the bread of life. He feeds us with his testimony, his teachings.
Death does not put an end to this, like those who were fed with manna in the desert. The bread of life frees us from death, what gives us eternal life is the blood of Christ, his body which hung on the cross.
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