Sunday Homily, July 6, 2014, 14th Ordinary Time, A
Readings:
Zechariah 9, 9-10, Rejoice heartily, shout for joy.
Psalm 145, I will praise your name forever, my king and my God.
Romans 8, 9, 11-13, You are in the spirit.
Matthew 11, 25-30, Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.
Zechariah: Zechariah is the 11th of the 12 Minor Prophets and lived just when the Hebrews were released from the 70 year long Babylonian Captivity, in other words around 555 B.C. He is in Jerusalem and encourages the people to rebuild the temple.
He is called a minor prophet only because his little work has simply 14 chapters, unlike the Big 3, Isaiah, Jeremiah, & Ezekiel, who have many chapters, in fact 66 for Isaiah.
He was a favorite of the N.T. writers because he is rich in messiah predictions. Today we have one of those visions. You might picture how this message is coming across. The people have been crushed, they have been slaves in Babylon, and the Jerusalem they have returned to is nothing but disaster.
Psalm 145, 8-9: here it is again, The Terrific Line: "The Lord is gracious & merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love." Watch for it.
July 4, Independence Day
July 4, 1776, Declaration of Independence signed.
50th anniversary, July 4, 1826: two signers of the Declaration died, the only 2 to serve as presidents, mutual friends, Thomas Jefferson & John Adams (excellent source, David McCullough’s John Adams).
My Yoke is Easy and my Burden Light
This morning I would like to talk about Matthew’s statement about Jesus saying, My yoke is easy and my burden light. I would also like to include that line which is one of my most favorite lines from the Bible, The Lord is gracious and merciful, never gets angry, and is abounding in love.
I would suggest the first line about my burden being light is influenced, sometimes, by the fact that the Lord is gracious and merciful. On the other hand, however, sometimes the burden is really blasted heavy. For example… The Story of The Week:
Thursday afternoon Rosemary & I had just left Plano Cycling, where I had left my bike to have it fitted with a new chain and cassette, the gear assembly on the rear wheel. I was feeling pretty proud of myself, that I had actually worn out a bike chain and cassette. I thought only Tour de France people did such things.
So, we are in the van headed south on Central. The usual traffic, especially for those exiting onto the Bush just past Plano Parkway. I knew we had to get out into the middle to avoid that blockage.
I move over from the right lane. I want to move over even to the next lane. I’m watching in the side mirror. Finally, before the blockage I see a space and move over in front of a big white pickup that seems way back far enough.
The guy in the pickup, however, seems upset. Next thing I know his front bumper is in the back of our van. I can see the hairs in his nostrils. I can see the color of his eyes, black with flames shooting out.
Then, yes, you guessed it. There was space to the left in those lanes. So my friend swerves to the left, floors it, stomps on the horn, races past us with various hand signals, and swerves back in front of us, where he proceeds another 100 yards before he has to hit the brakes because he was climbing the back side of another car.
What did I do? Well, I did not follow my impulse to blow our horn. I also did not want Rosemary cussing me out. I did nothing but continue along south bound Central. I am grateful for that.
As we drive along and talk about this, I admit that if I knew this guy’s story instead of judging the book by the cover, my favorite path, I would probably be more empathic. Has he just lost his job, his wife, his dignity? Has he come from a horrible childhood that has him permanently damaged and angry? This is my profession. I know this. His behavior in itself says so much.
Tell this guy your yoke is light and your burden in life is easy. He would laugh and probably cuss you out. How many people have burdens that are not light? No way.
Look at these kids coming across the border. The little girls, 10-14 years of age, really carrying a heavy burden.
You hear the story of this Louie Zamperini, who just died in his nineties? After his B-24 went down in the Pacific during the war with Japan, he and two other guys spent 47 days on a flimsy raft. After being rescued by a Japanese boat, life got only more brutal in the numerous prison camps he spent time in before being released after the war.
So how do you carry the load if you are Zamperini or the pickup driver?
This sounds almost insulting or obscene, but it is psychologically sound, acceptance. Accept what is happening to keep my mind and spirit sane. Zamperini said that he also worked to keep his spirit alive and hopeful, disciplining himself like he did when he was an Olympic sprinter.
This is where I suggest contemplating the positive. Maybe my childhood was horrible and my life is bad. Can I not find love and graciousness somewhere?
Perhaps that pickup driver is suffering. He does not seem to be handling his suffering well.
How do you deal with the heavy burden?