Monday of the Fourteenth Week
Today our country celebrates its “Independence Day,” the day that marks the American break with British rule in the 18th century. Our readings, however, turn our attention to trust in God, and not trust in our country. While empires come and go, God’s kingdom is everlasting. Our first reading continues the patriarchal narratives from the book of Genesis. Today we hear about Jacob, the son of Isaac who so desired his father’s blessing that he deceived him in order to get it. When the Lord appears to Jacob in the famous dream of a ladder or stairway to heaven with angels (messengers) ascending and descending, Jacob responds with wonder and awe. He even confirms his experience of God by making a memorial to God and taking a vow.
But if we see Jacob’s trust in God in this scene, our Gospel passage from Matthew reveals trust in God even more concretely. Here the trust is specifically in Jesus, first in the person of the official who beseeches Jesus to heal his daughter and secondly in the woman who reaches out for his cloak. Both of these people find their trust to be well-founded; both receive the healing that they seek from Jesus.
We too, if we trust in God and seek out Jesus, will find a refuge and fortress, a help in times of trouble, consolation in difficulty, and spiritual healing when we need it. We must let the once-popular prayer “Jesus, I trust in you!” become our prayer again, taking the time to say it daily, and even throughout the day as we feel is necessary to cement our trust in Jesus.
On the liturgical calendar for today, we celebrate the feast of St. Elizabeth of Portugal. She was born of royalty and married to the king of Portugal when she was only 12. She was mother to two children, and arranged her day in order that she could attend Mass and recite the Divine Office daily. As queen she did all she could to help the needy: the sick, travelers, women, and abandoned infants. In her own family, she was a peacemaker, as she ended a long-standing family dispute.
When her husband died, St. Elizabeth gave all of her property to the poor and became a Third Order Franciscan, continuing to work for the poor and for peace for the remaining eleven years of her life. In many ways, St. Elizabeth of Portugal can stand as a model of trust in Jesus for all Americans on this 4th of July. All that Elizabeth did, whether motherhood or caring for the poor, was rooted in her prayer life. She used her wealth to help the needy around her. When the time presented itself, she abandoned this temporal wealth to seek more fully eternal wealth. She devoted herself fully to making peace. We American Catholics ought to be inspired by such a life to use our political freedom in a way that not only furthers the good of our kingdom on earth, but is also worthy of our true citizenship in the Kingdom of God.
Maria Morrow