Both Jeremiah and St. John the Baptist brought unsettling news to their listeners. Jeremiah was sent by God to tell the people to repent of the evil they had done. The people almost put Jeremiah to death rather than listen to God’s message. St. John the Baptist went to Herod to tell him that it was unlawful for him to marry his brother’s wife. Herod liked to listen to him, but ultimately his words gave Herodias the opportunity to have him beheaded.
Jeremiah preached repentance and was spared, but St. John the Baptist preached repentance and was beheaded. We could put ourselves in the shoes of each of these holy men, thinking about what might happen when we preach the Gospel to those around us. What should we expect when we speak the truth courageously to others, when we act as the mouthpiece of God in the face of powerful men?
We could do this, but I think that more often we are on the receiving end of God’s message of repentance. Whether from God, from Scripture, a friend, or an enemy, we are constantly faced with constructive criticism or outright rebuke. As sinners, our actions go before us and color the situations we encounter, and sometimes they earn us chastisement. These readings are a lesson for us in how to react to criticism.
Thinking over the scenarios of the priests, prophets, and princes and of Herod and Herodias, I am reminded of Fr. Walter Ciszek, who spent years in a communist labor camp and in prison under interrogation and inhuman conditions. Although he could easily have lost his faith, he recounts in his book He Leadeth Me how he viewed the harsh circumstances and moral trials as graces from God. His ultimate conclusion was that God places us in certain circumstances for our own good, and that we should seek His will in those circumstances, not wish for a different set of circumstances.
Herodias heard God’s rebuke through John the Baptist and decided to stop up her ears. She wanted to be free of the pangs of her conscience and had John executed. She refused God’s will and substituted her own, and sunk deeper into depravity. The priests, prophets, and princes heard Jeremiah and considered doing the same thing, but stepped back and realized that God was trying to speak to them in these unpleasant circumstances. Seeing that God had placed them in this situation and wanted them to act within it, they chose to listen to Jeremiah and spare his life, reforming their ways.
When we hear a negative comment about our character or our actions, it can be easy to bristle and convince ourselves that we are really doing fine and don’t need any work. But, directly or indirectly, God allows us to experience these moments, and He intends them for our good. With God’s grace and our cooperation they can help reform us into His image and likeness.
Daily Reading
Tuesday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Reading 1 Ez 2:8—3:4 The Lord GOD said to me:As for you, son of man, obey me when I speak to you:be not rebellious like this house of rebellion,but open…
Saint of the Day
Pope Saint Pontian
Pope Saint Pontian, who reigned from 230-235, holds the distinction of being the first pontiff to abdicate.
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