Word to the Wise
Monday, October 10, 2022 - Monday in the 28th Week in Ordinary Time
[Gal 4:22-24, 26-27, 31-5:1 and Luke 11:29-32]"This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation....At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because at the preaching of Jonah they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here." [Luke]
For some people, only a "sign" will do to "prove" the power and authenticity of preaching. It is as if miracles can be worked by magic! The story of Jonah would be well known to Jewish audiences. Children are still fascinated by the "whale" that swallowed Jonah and spit him up on a beach! In the Gospel According to Matthew, Jesus uses that particular part of Jonah's story to indicate a foretelling of his resurrection. [Matt. 12:40] Jesus' refusal to give his adversaries a "sign" is in the context of their accusation that his works are the works of the devil, so any "sign" he would work would just harden them even more against him. In the end, THE sign would be his resurrection from the dead.
Preacher that I am, the connection between "sign" and preaching speaks to me because St. Dominic insisted that the life of the preacher had to preach before any words were said. The preacher has to be a "sign" of the kingdom if he or she wishes others to pay attention. Jesus warned his audience that they had someone greater than Jonah preaching to them, but for some it just fell on deaf ears, and any "sign" just cemented their skepticism. Jesus' life and words did reach others which is why I write this reflection and others read it! But the nearest I've come to a whale is at Sea World! AMEN