14TH SUNAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR A
Zech 9:9-10; Ps 144(145):1-2,8-11,13b-14; Rom 8:9,11-13; Matt 11:25-30 THEME: VICTORY WITHOUT A SWORD In the first reading, Zion and Jerusalem are presented with their king, who comes victorious and triumphant, yet riding, not on a chariot, but on a donkey. He is presented, not as a fierce warrior coming back with his battle-chariot, but as a humble king riding on a donkey, on a colt. Not only is this king riding on a donkey, but he will banish chariots from Ephraim, and horses from Jerusalem, and even bow of war. Yet, he is a victorious and triumphant king. Victorious and triumphant means that he conquered his enemies in battle, thereby rising above all his enemies. But which king wins a battle without his warrior’s chariot? This king of Zion and Jerusalem was not only victorious in battle, but now has all the ends of the earth, the kings, and their people, under his rule. And he will guarantee peace for the nations, as their king, yet without instruments of warfare. This image of the Jerusalem king is totally contradictory to the status quo. At this time, when kings fought for expansions and occupations, horses and bows and chariots were essential for that to happen. Having armies without any of these instruments was like having dogs that do not have even a tooth. A mighty king without any of these instruments is like a toothless lion. Yet, this king of Jerusalem could achieve victory and peace without any of them. It means that there is another way beside horses and donkeys and bows. What is this ‘bow-less’ and ‘chariot-less’ way to victory, triumph, and peace? The Revealed Way of the Father The way for victory and triumph and peaceful governance of nations other than horses, swords, donkeys and bows (which in actual sense do not secure any permanence to the king) is provided by Jesus in the Gospel reading. It is not the way of the world, nor the way of men, nor the way known to men of statistics, analytics, war-planners, warlords, army-commanders etc. It is rather the way known only to God, and then revealed by the same God to mere children. Why is the Way Revealed to Mere Children? Children are always presented as innocent beings, always dependent and cannot do anything on their own but must rely on the instruction of others. They are presented as those who know nothing but who are open to learning. Children learn from their parents and need their permission and authorization before they can execute certain tasks. In other words, they rely on their parents to lead them. Who Then Are These Children? Children are the inheritors of their father’s properties. They are those to take over the things belonging to their parents. As such, they must have a good knowledge of their father and form a serious and sincere bond with him. Hence, Jesus presents himself as the first and only Son of the Father. He is the only one who knows (ἐπιγινώσκω) the Father, just as the Father is the only one who knows (ἐπιγινώσκω) the Son. The Greek word ἐπιγινώσκω does not mean a simple ‘knowing’ of someone but ‘a deep knowledge of someone’, that is ‘to know exactly, fully, completely’. It is to have a perfect knowledge of someone and everything that involves him/her. The one who knows the Father in such a way is only the Son. Only the Son has been with the Father, and he is the only one who knows how the Father acts, and what the Father’s method is. For any other person to have this knowledge of the Father, it must have to be revealed to him/her by the Son. Hence, it is not knowledge that rises from the world, nor knowledge derived from the circumstances of life, nor knowledge that flows from the worldly deductive and inductive reasoning. Rather, it is the knowledge revealed to those chosen by the Son. And with this knowledge, those people who now become children (sons and daughters) of the Father, can now know exactly, fully, and completely, who the Father is, how he acts and the methods he adopts. They will have knowledge different from that of the world. And in whatever thing they do, […]
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