Jealousy is an Obstacle - Weekday Homily Video
In this time of Ordinary time of the Church’s calendar, Mother Church offers us opportunity to explore different themes that are valuable to growth in different areas of our lives. Today, in our first reading, we explore the theme of jealousy that plays out between King Saul and David. The readings we have heard almost throughout the whole week focus on the dynamic between King Saul and David.
The Popularity Contest
After David killed Goliath, the women of Jerusalem poured into the streets praising David for bringing Israel one of the greatest victories. They sang that while King Saul had killed thousands, David had killed tens of thousands! The King read a lot into the victory songs of the women of Jerusalem. The King saw David as becoming more popular than him, and he was afraid he would lose the Kingdom to David. The King sought a way of getting rid of David to get rid of a threat to his kingdom.
Two human impulses that tend to be conflated are jealousy and envy. The two are not the same.
- Jealousy is when one desires to possess “affection” meant for someone else.
- Envy is when one desires to possess “property” that belongs to someone else. The property can be a house, a vehicle, a talent, or a characteristic of someone else.
In the dynamic between David and King Saul, it was jealousy at play. The popularity of David among the people disturbed the King a lot. The King desired to possess the affection that went to David. The jealousy of King Saul was so intense that he was even willing to shed the blood of David – who had to flee into the desert for safety.
Questions to Think About
We have been witnesses to situations where jealousy destroyed an innocent person’s life. We have also seen situations where jealousy destroyed families, local organizations, communities, and whole nations. As a human tendency, jealousy is a big obstacle to spiritual growth because it stands in the way of love of our neighbor.
- Have you ever been a victim of someone else’s jealousy? What was it about? Who were the parties involved? Have you worked on forgiveness and healing in the same way David did with King Saul?
- Is there someone against whom you have ever been jealous? What was it about? How was the situation resolved?
Let Us Pray
My we ask the Lord to continuously remind us that our value is in Him. May we come to learn that our foundational value is rooted in Him and not in anyone else’s opinion or estimation of us. May the Lord teach us how to be charitable to others and how to celebrate other people’s achievements and blessings.
- Father Fred's inspirational homily was recorded live during Mass at the Father Peyton Center this morning. Please view the video on our Facebook page. (You don't need a Facebook account to view.)
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About Fr. Fred Jenga, C.S.C.
Fr. Fred Jenga, C.S.C., is President of Holy Cross Family Ministries. He previously served as a corporate member on the board of directors for 5 years. He also served in a pastoral role as Regional Director of Holy Cross Family Ministries in East Africa for 7 years where he helped lay the foundation for the dynamic growth in ministry outreach to families and youth. He introduced digital and in-person mission events to help families pray and grow spiritually. He built several teams of lay people, teams that have helped the ministry grow in East Africa. He also creatively educated and helped the members of Holy Cross in East Africa to learn about and embrace the ministry as an important part of the Congregation’s efforts. The first Peyton Prayer Guild Chapters for children were formed under Father Jenga’s leadership. He developed a program that brought children in schools and parishes together to learn the Rosary, pray for their families and learn about the life of Father Patrick Peyton. This program has grown and now thousands of children are participating. Father Jenga has multiple degrees in Communications, including San Francisco State University, Makerere University, Kampala, as well as a Bachelor of Theology from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Nairobi, and a Bachelor of Philosophy from the Pontifical Urban University in Rome. Father Jenga recently completed a Doctorate in Communication from the University of Texas. He is an active researcher in the area of Communication and Religion; and he has published and presented several papers at academic conferences. Father Jenga was born in Uganda, where he grew up on the banks of the River Nile and Lake Victoria, in the Ugandan district of Jinja. Father Jenga speaks several languages, including his ethnic language, Lusoga, as well as Luganda, Rutooro, Swahili, and Kinyarwanda.