HOMILY WEEK 09 05 – Year I
Trusting In God at All Times:
Optional Memorial of St. Ephrem
(Tobit 11:5-15; Ps 146; Mk 12:35-37)
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“That day there was joy for all the Jews who lived in Nineveh”
Tobit faced trial after trial. By the end of this story, however, his circumstances had flipped. Not only had his son returned with a bride, but Tobit could see again! Rejoicing, he proclaimed, “It was God who scourged me, and it is he who has had mercy on me.”
So how did Tobit and his family get through their trials? They held fast to their faith. Tobit didn’t give up or turn away from God, even when he was being persecuted. He continued to pray and in humility, do the next right thing. Sarah didn’t give up either. She married once more, an eight time, hoping her husband would not fall to the demon as her other husbands had. And Tobit’s son, Tobias, with his new wife, Sarah, offered a beautiful prayer to God asking for mercy and protection.
It’s during hard times like these that our faith can be tested. We can wonder why God is allowing bad things to happen to us, as did Rabbi Harold Kushner with his book When Bad Things Happen to Good People, or why God isn’t answering our prayers. It’s okay to ask these questions; sometimes it’s difficult not to. But what’s most important is that we don’t turn away from God. When we try out best to stay close to God, we open ourselves to God’s love, mercy and grace so that we too can do the next right thing.
In Tobit’s case, the ending was a happy one. But whether we are in a time of prosperity or facing a trial, Tobit’s story shows us that as we cling to the Lord, he will sustain us. God will give us the grace to deal with whatever happens. Just as Tobit and his family had the archangel Raphael walking with them, we can trust that God will send his help to us in both expected and unexpected ways.
God has a plan for us even if we can’t see it at the moment. That plan is unfolding as we continue to remain close to God in good times and in bad times. And the good news is that a happy ending awaits us too. Just as Tobit and his family rejoiced in God’s mercy and providence, so we too will one day rejoice in heaven with our Father and all our brothers and sisters in Christ.
The saint we honour today is St. Ephrem, who lived from about 306 to 373. Born in Mesopotamia, Ephrem was baptized at 18 and eventually became a deacon, but he humbly refused ordination to the priesthood. After the fall of his home city to the Persians in 363, Ephrem retired to a life of solitude in a cave to write commentaries and hymns. Recognizing the power of music and poetry to evangelize, he was the first to introduce hymns into public worship. Called “The Harp of the Holy Spirit,” he died at Edessa on June 9th. In 1920, he was declared a Doctor of the Church.
The Eucharist is what sustained the saints, and can sustain us, when our faith is challenged, and obstacles stand in our way. May our celebration empower us to live these words, “Lord, help us to hold fast to you, whatever life brings our way.”
