HOMILY WEEK 04 06 – Year II
A Balanced Life of Wise Compassion and Prayerful Solitude:
Optional Memorial of St. Blaise
(1Kg 3:4-13; Ps 118; Mk 6:30-34)
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Solomon’s prayer in the first reading today is a reminder to us of balancing the rational and emotional mind so that we too can have that wise mind that lives life in a healthier way. His prayer for what God wants to give him is a good example of a genuine, heartfelt prayer grounded in a strong faith, and God grants his prayer, including wealth and honour.
In the gospel, Jesus is trying to balance rest and community with ministry, that is a challenge for him as well as for us as we strive to balance compassion and action.
The journey in a small sailing boat provided the apostles with some down time to rest and debrief. When they arrive, Jesus is ready to minister to the people who are like sheep without a shepherd, because he was grounded in the love of his Father through contemplative prayer.
That the people were like sheep without a shepherd means the official religious system of the Jews at that time was not really reaching out to and helping the poor with their daily struggles to survive in a harsh environment.
Being shepherd of the sheep speaks of Henri Nouwen’s journey, first identifying with the prodigal son, then the elder son, and finally realizing that the goal of his spiritual journey is to become the loving father, at home, always ready to welcome and celebrate and give unconditional love to all God’s wayward sons and daughters.
St. Blaise
Today the church invites us to honor St. Blaise, best known for the tradition of blessing throats linked to him. An Armenian bishop, Blaise suffered martyrdom during the persecution of Licinius in the early 4th century. While little is known about him it is said that religious oppression forced him to live as a hermit in a cave. According to legend, Blaise performed a miraculous cure on a boy who was choking to death. Blaise has long been associated with cures for afflictions of the throat, and the blessing of throats may take place on this day in memory of him. He is a patron of wool-combers and of all who suffer from afflictions of the throat. He is also a patron of wild beasts, as legend suggests he had a remarkable calming influence on animals.
The Eucharist is an oasis, a time of coming away to listen to God’s word and be nourished by the very Body and Blood of Jesus, The good shepherd. Then we are sent out as modern-day missionary disciples and apostles, precisely to be good shepherds to all those around us.
