Word to the Wise
Friday, October 19, 2018 - Friday in the 28th Week in Ordinary Time
[Eph 1:11-14 and Luke 12:1-7]Are now five sparrows sold for two small coins? Yet not one of them has escaped the notice of God. Even the hairs of your head are counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows. [Luke]
OCTOBER 19 STS. JOHN DE BREBEUF, SJ, ISAAC JOGUES, SJ AND COMPANIONS - North American Martyrs
The evangelist Luke, whose feast day we celebrated yesterday, shares much of the same traditions that the evangelists Mark and Matthew do. Scripture scholars believe that both Luke and Matthew "borrowed" from Mark and then added materials that they each had received from other sources. Today's passage from the Gospel According to Luke is an example. Various statements of Jesus that were preserved in memory are collected in one place by the evangelist to aid in telling the overall story. Today, God's providence is highlighted in the images of the sparrows and the hairs on our heads! I'm reminded of the phrase from Psalm 147:4, "He counts the number of the stars and calls each one by name."
For the last few years, I have spent part of my vacation on the coast of Oregon where there is a path along the ocean lined by some bushes in which a variety of sparrows seem to make their home. They flit in and out, running along the path and then suddenly plunging back into the depths of the dense foliage. They contrast with the power of the ocean waves just a few yards away and both proclaim the might and providence of God. It is comforting to know that faced with the overwhelming power of the Pacific Ocean, there is also the care for the sparrows darting in and out of the bushes. The gospel today assures us that we are worth more than many sparrows. The survivors of Hurricane Michael's wind and ocean destruction may need this image now! All of us do. AMEN