ALL SAINTS MARGARET STREET

Trinity XIII – 10th September 06, High Mass

Fr Ivan Aquilina

Surrounded as they were by Greek and Phoenician cultural contexts and divinities the people of God in the time of Jesus had to constantly keep an eye on resisting the temptation of going with the flow, with those who controlled the market, and embrace some form of idolatry.

This temptation was not new. The exodus under Moses had two levels: the political and physical exodus and the spiritual exodus away from the idols. The first was achieved the second not so easily. Was it not to idols that the chosen people turned to when Moses was on the mountain of God? All the prophets of the Old Testament warn page after page about the abomination of idolatry and the need to be faithful to the God of the Covenant. This was still true at the time of Jesus and there were many a lax Jew who compromised and lived with Roman and Greek deities. Though not so common in Jerusalem these people were found in the northern regions, just were Jesus is placed in today’s gospel.

In this context we can not be surprised to see Jesus being so hard on this gentile woman. He could not allow himself to be understood as accepting any form of idolatry. There is only one God: the God of Israel and those who cling to other gods (here described by Jesus as dogs, a grave insult in the Middle East) are not to be part of that kingdom. Jesus did his utmost to be clear on this. However, the Syrophoenician women shows that she is ready to understand the uniqueness of the God of Israel, she accepts that in part and so Jesus meets her half way and grants her request knowing full well that many gentiles will form part of his kingdom shortly; hoping that his message will bring to the flock of God that flock which is still far away. Jesus wants to show that there is room in the inn of God for all.

This is an episode that has a lot to say to us. Jesus is willing to come in our hearts. Some form of spiritual consolation that we may experience is the willingness of Jesus to meet us half way as he knows that we have the potential. But we have the tendency of Israel of old and from time to time work hard on producing a golden calf.

The Gospel call for us today is pointing towards the first commandment; it is an exhortation to pull down all the idols that we tend to build, the idols of greed, of power, of lust and of pride.

Jesus will clear us of all these demons if we break down this clinging that takes us back to the spiritual bondage in Egypt and Babylon. The confessional is the place where this healing is given to us in its totality.

The second portrait in today’s gospel is also very near to our own experience. The man presented to Jesus was not able to listen. How very much like us! We have been coming to church, most of us, for a lifetime. We have read the right books and we genuflect properly and follow Fortescue as much as we can or are allowed to, but is it not the case that we have a tendency to hear rather than to listen when we gather in here. What we are called to today is a change in life style, to stop hearing and start listening. With Jesus being sympathetic to the Faith is the starting point only. In order to listen we need to crave for silence, to crave for God, to avoid the idols of noise and busyness. We need to take time to clear our lives and allow the only God to come and dwell in us to transform us and make us holy as He is holy.

In Faith we can turn to Jesus who will open our ears to listen to his words of freedom. His words will deliver us from the punishment of idolatry and the wages of sin. If we loose heart let us listen to Isaiah, shouting at the top of his voice to us today: “Behold our God will come with Salvation”. This listening that brings Salvation will enable us to formulate properly and speak clearly the message of salvation to those around us so that we, in word and deed, can make new disciples. Doing this we can enable others to free themselves from the idols of their own making. This is the work of Faith: as St James tells us today, “…faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” Faith comes from listening to the Word of God, from allowing God to speak to us from the centre of our being which belongs to no idol but to Him alone and that through our work we continue in our own flesh the ministry of Jesus.