Memorial of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, religious
Our culture today prizes independence like never before. Of course, there is the independence of our country, the freedoms we celebrate and the pride in our democratic governance and capitalist system. But there is also independence as a value for individual people. We raise our children so that they can go off and live by themselves, making a life for themselves, making the most of their education by finding a suitable career and spouse. My mom used always to say that she wanted to give us wings. I always say that she succeeded, and so we all flew away.
But while there are merits to such independence, this is not what God calls us to. He calls us to dependence –complete dependence on him. In the first reading from 2 Kings, we hear about the Israelite captivity in Assyria. This is understood by the author as a consequence of the people’s sins. The people of Israel wanted to be just like every other nation around them. They even wanted to worship other gods. They refused to be dependent on the one, true God, and instead rejected God’s covenant and laws. Their captivity by Assyria can be seen as a punishment. But it can also be seen as an opportunity, for God does not desire our suffering and destruction. No, he desires our repentance, conversion and complete dependence on him because this is in our best interest. This is how we become the people we were meant to be, in the image of God.
Likewise, in the gospel passage from Matthew, Jesus has some stern instructions for his disciples regarding the judging of others. Jesus is pointing out that we all have a tendency toward self-dependence, thinking that we have the ability and the right to make judgments based on our own opinions and standards. But if we want to see clearly, we have to be completely dependent on God, and let God’s measure, God’s standards, God’s view, drive our own judgments.
If we strive to depend on God, we will be forced to acknowledge our own faults. We will be taken aback by the many mistakes and sins that we constantly commit: a little sarcasm here, a little indulgence of food there, a little negative thought here, a little lack of sympathy there... our whole day is likely filled with such venial sins against charity. “Happy the man who finds fault with himself,” says St. Dorotheus. This person will not be upset by any hardships that come her way because she will know she deserves them, and she will see them as opportunities to make satisfaction for her sin and to grow in holiness.
And if we can identify these faults, we can also move beyond our sins, working to depend on God’s grace to make up for all that we are lacking. It takes daily effort to clear the beam of wood from our own eye, but in the midst of that effort, we will find our sight gradually clearing up as we undergo a constant conversion to a fuller dependence on the love and mercy of God.
Today, let us pray for utter dependence on God, that we may come to know him and serve him as did St. Aloysius Gonzaga, whose feast we celebrate today. This young man was a brilliant scholar known for his purity who was willing to risk everything to care for the sick during the time of a plague. Though the Jesuit died at the age of 23, Gonzaga had spent his life as a prayer, dedicated to his studies and to the people around him. We have the same capacity to live as witnesses to the love of Christ. Let us begin by recognizing the beam in our eye and seeking its cure by depending on God to help us!
- Maria Morrow