Word to the Wise
Thursday, September 23, 2021 - Thursday in the 25th Week in Ordinary Time
[Hag 1:1-8 and Luke 9:7-9]
SEPTEMBER 23 ST. PIUS OF PIETRELCINA, ofm cap. [Padre Pio]
Herod had heard about Jesus and was curious. His beheading of John the Baptist was the whim of his wife who was furious when John criticized their marriage as unlawful. Was Jesus' to be another such nuisance? Or worse, was he a revolutionary? Herod would indeed get to meet Jesus when Pilate sent Jesus over to him during the trial process. He (Herod) simply returned Jesus to Pilate for disposal after some cruel physical treatment. [Luke 23:6-11] (For a colorful rendition of Herod's sarcastic interview with Jesus, see JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR.)
I occasionally hear minor versions of Herod's attitude in professors or others who dismiss Jesus out of hand as some kind of first century Palestinian prophet whose message got out of control and spread around the world! I would contrast Herod with Zaccheus, also in the Gospel According to Luke, who also wanted to see Jesus and climbed a tree to get a peek. The result was that he got an eyeful and more than that! [Luke 19:1-10]
Disciples will encounter all kinds of attitudes about Jesus, but the skeptics are hard put to explain the billions of believers whose witness, even to the point of shedding their blood, speaks more loudly than any dismissive skepticism. Nevertheless, we should welcome the curiosity anyone shows about Jesus, no matter what their initial attitude may be. AMEN
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