HOMILY FOR TODAY: THURSDAY 29TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR A)
THEME: THE BLOOD OF THE PROPHETS
BY: FR. KARABASRI PAUL
“The blood of the prophets will be required, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah.”
A prophet is someone called to speak on behalf of God through divine inspiration. He is an instrument by which the will of God is revealed to all who cares to listen. He is, therefore, the messenger of God. In the Old Testament and even in the New Testament, there were many prophets who were killed because they ruffled the feathers of people in authority. Some famous examples were Prophets Isaiah who suffered martyrdom under King Manasseh, Jeremiah who was killed by stoning, John the Baptist who was beheaded as ordered by Herod Antipas and Zechariah as mentioned by Jesus in the gospel reading above. After the death of Jesus, most of His apostles also suffered violent death. Many more people afterwards were persecuted and killed for preaching the Word of God. Just go over the lives of the saints to know their names.
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In the Gospel of today (Luke 11:47-54), Jesus rebuked harshly the religious leaders and scholars of the law for their hypocrisy. While they built memorials for the prophets of old, they themselves continued the evil practices that led to their murder. In other words, He was telling them that they were no different from their murderous forefathers.
This is a caution we must observe diligently not to inherit the sins of other people by participation. God knows the past, the present, as well as the future. He sees everything we do to others even when we pretend about it. Our false disposition towards the truth doesn’t change what it is. Whether we accept it or not, it remains. Are we surprised that Jesus would be angry, even today at us religious leaders? We have continued to block channels of truth.
Jesus is the ultimate prophet. His prophetic mission was and is to bring glad tidings to the poor (Luke 4:18). As His followers, we carry the burden of continuing this prophetic mission. It is, therefore, the duty of every baptized person to be on the side of God by avoiding anything that is disruptive to God’s design. GOD IS STILL ON THE THRONE. God bless you and your household always through Christ Our Lord Amen. Good morning
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