Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent
How often do we think we know someone because of “where they’re from” or what they look like or who they hang out with? And how often do we miss actually knowing someone as a result? I know I’ve been guilty of the above. Today’s gospel reading about Jesus and today’s saint whose feast day we celebrate (spoiler alert: Oscar Romero) challenges us to consider otherwise.
In the passage from John (7:1-2, 25-30) we hear discussions among some of Jerusalem’s inhabitants who are surprised that the authorities are allowing Jesus to speak openly when there have been rumors of wanting him to be killed. They are questioning, “Could the authorities have realized he is the Christ?” Confusion seems to creep in, “But we know where he is from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from.” Their conclusion? This Jesus can’t be the Christ, because we know where he’s from. (Earlier in John’s gospel we hear Nathanael exclaim about Jesus, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” 1:46) Surely this can’t be the Messiah!
You may already know that Oscar Romero (1917-1980), canonized as a “martyr for the faith,” was murdered while celebrating mass as archbishop of San Salvador. You may not know that when he was appointed archbishop a few years earlier he was considered a “safe” choice, politically, believing they knew him as one who wouldn’t “rock the boat” so to speak. But then his good friend, a Jesuit priest, was murdered in El Salvador for defending the rights of the poor in the face of government oppression, and Romero became ready to risk his own life as well. It seems they did not truly know this disciple of Jesus.
While others thought they knew Jesus and St. Romero, they were missing the truth. How often do we neglect to see the sometimes hidden depths of those we encounter? How often do we neglect to realize our own Christ-light within? Next time we think we know someone – “where they’re from,” how they’ll act, who they truly are (including ourselves) – may we pause and realize that, like Jesus and Oscar Romero, we are ALL daughters and sons of God. Let’s pray for the grace to live it.
~Eileen Miller