Just a word...Third Sunday in Ordinary Time...January 20, 2024
“Where can we find light in this never-ending shade?,” asks the young poet laureate, Amanda Gorman. Indeed, if we consider the current state of affairs in both our civic and ecclesial life as the shade, we can imagine ourselves as searching for the light of what might become the new normal. Politicians and some church leaders as well, relish throwing shade, and worse, at opponents, real or perceived. The times of having the loyal opposition have passed, and bombast and defamation are the order of the day. We watch the news, read our newspapers and email and are aghast at the hyperbole we encounter. We begin to realize that we have been mired in this shade for years now, and it undermines many of our institutions, livelihoods, and families.
How do we humans deal with shade? How do we come to the other side of it? We are all so different, and there is no formula for surviving and eventually thriving, although I suspect that having a community of support through the dark times can help. Perhaps enduring shade can provide us with an opportunity to reflect on our lives, to ponder what it is we really need, and how we would like to live once we emerge from it. However we choose to use the time of shade, there is no question that it is an ordeal that can either cripple us or form us into stronger, more thoughtful, kinder and more compassionate persons. The choice is ours.
Our readings today give us figures who are dealing with shades of different sorts. Jonah is actively avoiding the Lord’s desire to save the Ninevites, running from his call until he is literally spat upon the shore of the place where he will grudgingly preach the repentance that will save the city. And our Gospel shows us the calling of the fishermen who are imaged as suddenly recognizing the light that is Jesus and following their call to join him. Of the two situations, perhaps Jonah’s shade is more apparent, however, it can be presumed that those called to join Jesus did some soul-searching and wrestling, within themselves and perhaps within their families, before signing on.
What about us? If we are to break through whatever particular shade we might be under, and leave a legacy of love and light, as is our calling from Jesus, we can all use a bit of help. Scripture is an excellent source of strength, as are conversations with trusted friends or spiritual companions. But let us remember that all that is good and true and beautiful points to God, and can be revealed to us through poetry, nature, other people, liturgy...in fact, all of creation has the potential to mediate the light of God to us. And when we recognize the divine, we, like the reluctant Jonah and the disciples in the Gospel, can respond and follow. The requirements for the journey are simple...an openness to possibility and the courage to follow our hearts.
As the poet laureate concludes: “There is always light, if only we are brave enough to see it, if only we are brave enough to be it."