Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Most people do not want to die. Even Jesus avoided death; he didn’t resist it, but avoided it (as we hear in today’s gospel, he did not want to travel in Judea because he knew some there were trying to kill him). And in the book of Wisdom, a few verses prior to the start of today’s passage, we read, “...God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living.” (Wisdom 1:13) I find this reassuring as we are forced to look squarely at death and the heightened risk of so many people’s lives in our country and world right now.
To be honest, although not overwhelmed with anxiety, I am concerned about my parents and parents-in-law in their late seventies, early eighties, during this current pandemic. I’m also concerned for my friends with underlying health problems and compromised immune systems. Granted, even otherwise healthy and fairly young people are not immune to COVID-19 and the risk of death, but it seems to be the elderly and others with health vulnerabilities who are at greatest risk. And now we also see many financially vulnerable people at greater risk of poverty and related issues due to the economic impact this pandemic is having on our country.
As disciples of Christ, how do we discern God’s voice in this challenging time? Perhaps we’re wondering about the argument to prioritize economic concerns over potentially saving more lives. Most of us (including me!) are not ethicists or moral theologians, but we can draw upon the gift of discernment through God’s Spirit.
Today’s reading from Wisdom reminds us that we can be “blinded” by our sinfulness. How can we come to know the “hidden counsels of God?” The author of Wisdom tells us it is by loving Justice. Unlike the “wicked” in this Old Testament book who in their selfishness said to themselves, “Let us oppress the needy just man; let us neither spare the widow nor revere the old man for his hair grown white with time” (2:10), may we pray for the guidance to love and live justice, especially for the most vulnerable.
For as today’s Psalm reminds us, “When the just cry out, the Lord hears them, and from all their distress he rescues them.” (Psalm 34:18)
~Eileen Miller