EIGHT SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR A
Commentary of Fr. Fernando Armellini
“Jesus said to his disciples: "No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they? Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, 'What are we to eat?' or 'What are we to drink?' or 'What are we to wear?' All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil."
A good Sunday to all.
"Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear.” These are words of Jesus that perhaps leave us a little bit disconcerted because they are worries that harass billions of people, including ourselves. We live in a rich world, and those who are in good health and have a job can lead a dignified life, but many have no job, so many impoverished families; how can you go to these people and quote the words of Jesus: 'Do not worry; look at the birds in the sky and the lilies of the field?’
However, these words baffle us only at first glance. We must go beyond this first impression to avoid misunderstanding what Jesus intends to tell us. He does not invite us to close our eyes to severe problems such as food and clothing, and neither does he invite us to live in a carefree and pleasant way, perhaps feeding that naïve conviction that God, with some miracle, with some grace, will solve the problems He wants us to solve. This would not be trusting in the providential love of the heavenly Father, but it would be naive providentialism.
So we ask ourselves, what does Jesus mean when he recommends to us six times, 'Do not worry?’ I would like to make a second premise before explaining the message that Jesus wants to communicate: a message for our life. Jesus speaks of two basic needs that push us to obtain what is indispensable for our lives. Biological life cannot continue without food; we also need clothes, differentiating us from animals. People must be clothed. Food for us is not only the baker's bread; it represents all necessary nourishment for our life; to be fully human, we need many kinds of foods that our life needs. In life, we need a home; we need a profession we need good health and education; we need affection.
We are starving for all these things, and that's why I would put all these needs under this food heading because we know that it's all these things that we can be concerned about. Jesus is not telling us that we don't need them or that we don't have to look for them. He tells us, 'Don't worry.' And the garment is not only that which protects us from the cold, but it represents everything that enables us to present ourselves to others. The garment gives continuity to our body; it presents ourselves to others to be seen; it declares to which category we belong and what relationships we wish to have. The dress guarantees our social life, as food guarantees animal life.
Jesus says that if one seeks food and clothing with anxiety or worry, it means that something in one's inner balance is cracked. Today, he teaches us how to recover harmony with ourselves, with God, with the creatures, and with our brothers and sisters. The premise that Jesus makes is important; now, let's go into the text.
He begins by saying that no one can serve two masters because either one hates and loves the other or vice versa. Jesus takes the image of a social condition that he knows very well; it is that of the servants who cannot simultaneously obey two different masters. The servant is the one who does not dispose of his own life, time, and energies but must put them at the service of his master. Jesus makes a simple and elementary consideration: it is impossible to serve two masters. Another proverb in Jesus' time was: 'You can't ride two horses simultaneously.’ You must choose one.
Jesus says that you cannot be servants of God and of 'mamonah.' At the bottom of the image, I have put the two masters who compete for the money and the person of Jesus of Nazareth. They give different orders, and you cannot serve one and the other. The master (Jesus) does not accept interference in the orders he provides for our life. Money, in turn, does not accept receiving orders from Jesus because he gives opposite orders; one tells you to accumulate, to exploit, to cheat, if necessary, while the other tells you to share, to distribute your goods, to be loyal, and to love your brother.
Here, the text talks about the money of 'mamoná'; ‘mamonah' is an Aramaic expression whose root is 'emunah,' which means 'faith,' for in reality, 'mamonah' indicates what one trusts. Those who trust in money stake their whole life on money, and those who trust in Jesus Christ and his Gospel stake their life on Christ; you cannot serve one and the other. It is necessary to make a choice. There is a famous episode in the Old Testament in the 18th chapter of the First Book of Kings. It is the well-known challenge of the prophet Elijah with the prophets of Baal when he says to the Israelites: 'You must choose Baal or the Lord; for God is jealous, he does not want to have someone take away part of the heart of someone in love with him and carry it away.'
This happens between lovers; they do not accept interference in this love relationship. There is a dangerous reasoning that we also do unconsciously; we can have an impeccable observance of all religious practices but then stop; we are afraid to let ourselves be involved in the proposals of the Gospel.
We follow Christ; we accept the Gospel, but up to a certain point. Then, we become preoccupied with other things and forget about our only love, which should be our only love. The Israelites wanted to give something to the Lord who had delivered them from Egypt and to Baal, the god of the fertility of the fields and animals. Then, it is necessary to choose between these two masters, one that guarantees everything from the point of view of biological life and the other one that wants to give a higher meaning to your existence that goes beyond what is common with the pre-human, which are the animals.
I would say that, at this point, questions arise: Some choose 'mamoná,' and they can lead a biological life, which, if money keeps its word and blesses those who serve it, the biological life can proceed very well. And for those who choose the Lord and his proposed life, the question arises: 'I have biological life. Will not those who gamble everything on money, on this world's goods, be right? I need education, health, and leisure, and I see that those who rely on money lead an enjoyable life. I wonder if I am not wrong to bet on another value to give to my life.'
At this point, let us also consider the social and economic situation of the people Jesus addresses in his message. They live in a subsistence economy; their resources are minimal and poorly distributed. There were the very rich and the wretched, and it is to these people that Jesus addresses his message.
Don't worry about your life; he repeats it six times, but the verb he uses, μεριμναω - 'merignao,' is not 'don't worry'; it's not that he says you don't have to worry about to answer these needs of food or need of clothing; you must 'take care,' but 'worrying' is bad for you. And he begins to present his reasons. The first one: Isn't life more important than food and the body more important than clothes? He says, ' Keep in mind that there is something more important than biological life.' If the person stops at the biological, he leads a boring, meaningless life; he comes to the end and asks himself, 'What have I lived for? I could have food, drink, and have fun, but in the end, what have I lived for?’
This is the first reflection Jesus invites us to make; you need these things and must occupy yourself to get them and not worry because there is something more important than the biological. If you worry, you have withdrawn into these things as if they are absolute. Nutrition is indispensable for living, but it is not the goal of human life. If it becomes the goal of your life, it dehumanizes you. This is the first reflection Jesus invites you to make. He does not say that food and clothing are unimportant, but you have lost your mind when this concern comes in. They are important, but when this worry comes in, you have lost your mind over these things. You must try to take care of them but calm your heart and mind because you have a Father who cares about your life.
Jesus presents a second reason that should set us free from worry, from ‘preoccupation’ and, I repeat, not from occupation. 'Observe the birds of the sky'; he does not say do as the birds of the sky do; he says, watch them; they neither sow nor reap, and your Father (not their father) watches over them, and you, are you not worth more than they? There is a Father who always leads our life. This is the second reason that should take away your worries; otherwise, it means you are not convinced that you have someone who loves you and gives meaning to your life.
Jesus uses a description that must have been very familiar to him, especially when he moved to Capernaum. In fact, along the shores of the lake, there is exuberant vegetation, plants, and flowers; there are three very fertile plains there, and in this lake, there is an immense variety of migratory birds. Indeed, in the 5th century, when the Byzantines built a church on the lake, in memory of the distribution of the loaves and fishes, they decorated the floor of this Byzantine church from the 5th century with beautiful mosaics that look like a snapshot of the places where Jesus lived. These mosaics are a true hymn to the beauty of creation and a hymn of joy and thanksgiving to the Creator.
Jesus uses this imagery not to tell us that we should imitate the birds of the sky and the flowers of the field but to reflect on the loving design of the heavenly Father, who has made all things good and gives meaning to our lives. And if we are confronted with needs that concern those who do not have this vision of a Father who loves you and who is near you, then people worry. The believer cares but cannot worry; if he worries, he gets no result, wastes energy in vain, and becomes anxious.
The difference, therefore, between a believer and an unbeliever is not that one works and the other does not, but, in the face of a difficult situation of need, you occupy yourself, but you keep your mind firmly fixed on certainty that you have a Father who is interested in your life; and this gives you serenity, takes away the anxiety that only makes you lose energy; worry takes away serenity and can even lead you to make foolish decisions and compromise your conscience. You will not do this if you are convinced you have a heavenly Father who loves you.
Let's observe how Jesus employs this first image of male activity: sowing and reaping. Now, we will see feminine activity, another image that Jesus uses to make us understand that worry does not help us at all. Another reason we should not worry is that 'If you worry, can you add anything to your life?'
This is the third reason: Be aware that your life is limited; be mindful that time passes quickly, your life is ending fast, and many of your worries arise from not considering this truth. He who hoards money is convinced that money will give him eternal life; he worries about living eternally here. We know there are worries about the poor man who is deprived of his daily bread and those who are not concerned about their daily bread, but those who think their life here must go on forever. And let us ask ourselves, what do we consider necessary?
Perhaps we worry about many things that we consider indispensable but that are not indispensable at all. Some people are so worried that they take out policies for everything; if they're not insured, they start worrying about life insurance, theft insurance, and health insurance. They never put aside enough money because anything can happen. If they don't feel guaranteed about everything, they start worrying.
They lost sight of all these reasons, and that's why he tells us, 'reason about your life; reason about the meaning of your existence; the reason that you have a Father in heaven will see life differently. You get busy, but worries will disappear from your heart.'
There are also, for example, the worries of the rich. Basil of Caesarea has a memorable page on this subject; he mentions that farmer who had accumulated a lot of goods and was very successful that year, and the harvest had been very abundant, and he was worried because he didn't know what to do. Basil of Caesarea notes that he was unhappy and concerned because things had been going well for him, and he notes that it is precisely the worry of those who have nothing; one worries for bread, but the other worries because he has too much, and does not know what to do with all he has. Many people are worried because they have too much at home, so they must set alarms and live with anxiety because they have so many things.
This is Jesus's reflection on 'worrying,' which is to deprive oneself of the present, the only moment we have, and we project to the future, which does not yet exist. Jesus does not say not to work; he says not to make of work, of things, the idol that takes our breath away from the present, which is God's gift to enjoy to the fullest. Worry, however, does not lengthen your life; it diminishes it and shortens it.
The dress. We have already said that clothing does not only indicate what we wear to protect us from the cold or for modesty. It represents everything with which we present ourselves to others; our person is put on display, makes us appear, and hence our quest to be noticed. Jesus knows us well and knows that we want to give ourselves the best possible image.
“But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, 'What are we to eat?' or 'What are we to drink?' or 'What are we to wear?' All these things the pagans seek.”
Those who have as God 'mamoná,' the goods of this world. Therefore, it is not simply a matter of waiting for God to solve things; we must also take care of things and be committed so that the kingdom of God may be established in this world. Jesus tells us, in conclusion: “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” If we commit ourselves to accepting the proposal of the world that Jesus makes to us, the answer to the food and clothing that we need, we shall have it as an addition.
I wish you all a good Sunday and a good week.
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