Have you ever watched a news program with a crowd surrounding a prominent individual shouting questions at him as they were walking? "Mr. President, did you see those polls?" Sometimes there is an exchange, but sometimes the politician or person in the limelight says nothing, looking straight ahead.
That scene came to mind as I read the gospel for today’s mass. The gospel began by saying that so many people were crowding together that they were trampling one another.
Jesus began to speak but first to his disciples. He told them be careful and to avoid hypocrites who will just tell you what you want to hear. There are people who will promise you everything and rarely curl deliver anything. Beware of them.
Another thing to be careful about is what you say. It will come back to haunt you. What you say in the dark will be heard in the light and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be proclaimed on house tops.
That’s what Jesus was referring too when he cautioned his disciples. Don’t be a hypocrite. Today what with cell phones and surveillance cameras it has become less and less likely that any unsavory behavior can enjoy the cover of darkness.
Jesus and his disciples kept walking and the subject of evil came up. Jesus cautioned them not to be afraid of someone who could kill the body rather fear the one who not only kills the body but kills the soul, sending that soul into the fires of hell. He’s the one to fear. We were not told how his disciples reacted to this when they heard Jesus explain what he meant.
By this time Jesus had said quite a bit, a lot of which was heavy. It appears to me that Jesus felt He had to assure His disciples that challenges were to be expected.
Lastly his words in Luke, Chapter 12, Verse 8, "I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son of Man will acknowledge before the angels of God."
