How many times, last week, did you hear reports on the national news stations about what is happening in the Ukraine? Though the horrors of war are still taking place there, we seem to have forgotten about it. When the news first broke about Russia invading this country, the airways were packed with stories of the horrors of war. Now it seems we have forgotten about it, even in our prayers.
Why is it that we humans have such short-termed memories? Why is it that what happened last week, quickly gives way to some more recent news items of much less importance?
Today we read of two cities which, it seems, were plagued with short-termed memories. The very Son of God, through whom the entire universe was created, chose their towns to perform his great miracles. Nothing had ever happened in either of these places to compare with what Jesus did among them. He was surely the talk of the towns—at least for a while (Matthew 11:20-24).
“Jesus began to reproach the towns where most of his mighty deeds had been done, since they had not repented. ‘Woe to you Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes.’”
The people of these towns must have looked at each other and said, “What’s the big deal with this rabbi? We haven’t done anything that bad.” No doubt many people of these towns brought him their sick and possessed. No doubt groups listened to him talk about the Kingdom of God , applauded his words, and tossed him a coin or two. But, by and large, despite Jesus’ great works there, they returned quickly to “business as usual” and forgot what he said. Unlike the people of Nineveh in Jonah’s day, they did not repent of their sins and make radical changes in their lives. The news of Jesus gave way to headlines like “A great catch of fish was made yesterday…”
The frightening thing about Jesus’ words of reproach is that the towns he addressed probably were not bad places. They were probably much like the ones we live in now. Though they received blessings from Jesus, in the end they rejected Jesus by ignoring him and forgetting the amazing things he had done for them.
Jesus pressed on:
“But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And as for you, Capernaum, ‘Will you be exalted to heaven? You will go down to the netherworld.”
Capernaum, where Jesus set up his headquarters, was also going to go down the tube with Chorazin and Bethsaida. Instead of becoming famous places with pilgrims visiting by the thousands to see the holy places where Jesus worked miracles, they would be lost to history.
How do these sobering words of Jesus apply to us? In our city there are Catholic Churches all over. Within a ten-minute drive from my house, there are eight Catholic Churches. The miracle of the Eucharist is taking place many times a week and various times. The sacrament of Reconciliation is available weekly in all of them. Yet what difference is this abundant presence of Jesus making even in the lives of believers?
Will I receive Jesus’ reproach and turn to the sacraments in a spirit of repentance asking Jesus to transform me into the holy vessel of God that was bought by the shedding of his precious blood?
