It’s hard to believe, but we are on the cusp of Holy Week. So, it’s a good time to take time to think about the Paschal Mystery … how Jesus passed from death to life for us. For the baptized, it’s a time to remember that through this sacrament, we have entered into the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We also share in the priesthood of Christ in his prophetic and royal mission.
Have you ever thought about what it means to share in Jesus’ prophetic and royal mission? Well maybe not in those words, but as baptized members of Christ’s Body, we are meant to serve as prophets, leading others to God, each according to our vocation and abilities. But, in today’s world, it’s not hard to find ourselves the object of scorn if we speak about our faith in certain venues, including online.
The prophet Jeremiah offers a powerful witness to God’s protection for these times. He’s under threat; the danger is imminent. He even says, “All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine.” At times, it feels a lot like that in our workplaces, civic meetings, schools, neighborhoods, etc.
If you remember Jeremiah’s or any of the prophets’ stories, they receive a message from God instructing them to lead the people away from sin and back to the goodness of virtue in God’s way. But human nature being what it is, what happens? We don’t want to hear it. And, then, sometimes, prophets like Jeremiah are threatened with loss of friends, reputation, livelihood, threats of physical harm, imprisonment, and even death.
This is what led Jeremiah to have an internal crisis earlier in this chapter. He knew the right thing to do but was still worried about what would happen if he did it.
Most of us have had this happen from childhood. We know God’s way and that, for some reason, He’s chosen us to help others see it, and yet we worry about what will happen. This is when faith, courage, and wisdom are needed. This is when we turn to God or wait or decide we can’t do it at all.
We’ve all been there, but what Jeremiah inspires us to do is to deliberately, in prayer, and thoughtfully, do the right thing, not just for our souls but for others, beginning in our homes.
Jeremiah proclaims, despite all his worries, that the Lord is with him, like a mighty champion, and that his persecutors will stumble and will not triumph. Jeremiah does what each of us is called to do, and we can expect what the psalmist echoes - that the Lord hears our prayers.
Believing that God does “… test the just and probes our minds and hearts …” we can expect that God will call upon us to be like Jeremiah, and when it seems a long shot, just pray for God’s guidance and protection, trust in Him, and He will be there for you. For God truly is our rock, our fortress, and our deliverer!
Reverend David S. Marcham is the Vice Postulator for the Cause of Venerable Patrick Peyton, and Director of the Father Peyton Guild, whose members pray for Father Peyton’s beatification and spread his message of the importance of Family Prayer. Prior to becoming a seminarian, Father David was a physical therapist and clinical instructor, serving hospital inpatients and outpatients throughout the greater Boston area for eleven years. In 1998 he heard the call to priesthood and was ordained in the Archdiocese of Boston in 2005. Father David grew up in Quincy, MA, and has fond memories of playing soccer, tennis and running track. You’re never without a friend when Father David is around, as he welcomes everyone into his circle with a smile on his face!
