7th Week in Ordinary Time (C) : Sunday 23rd February 2025

Anyone who is called to serve the Church will be invested with the power to serve and become a figure of hope for the people. Saul was sought as king by the people but when hope in him faded, then David, son of Jesse, was anointed by Samuel. David proved his loyalty and sincerity. In other words, his hope for Saul remained. He loved even when he was hated by murderous King Saul. In 1 Corinthians 15 short text, mortal power in Adam, the man of dust, diminishes when he returns to dust. However, Christ Jesus, the man of heaven, breathes life into humanity anew. Death has no more sting over true loving as expounded in 1 Corinthians 13.

The landmark attitude of Christianity is Jesus Christ’s act of loving. Christ is not projecting a cowardly sugar-coated image but a passion to restore justice, dignity and right relationships between God and man. Millions of inhumane deaths could have been avoided if we had followed this path. Like Jesus, we must have a readiness to suffer and inevitably to lose much materially and socially. Genuine loving means wanting the good of the other person. I hate the evil of envy, I denounce abuses of all kinds. But I deeply care about conversion. It is really an attitude to instill genuine loving.

Jesus is our model. Stripped of all dignity that is contrary to all human affectation, Jesus unveils the triumphant power of love over unspeakable violence.

Jesus, thank you for loving me and molding my attitude to love truthfully.