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Gospel: Matthew 11: 16-19
Jesus said to the crowds:
“To what shall I compare this generation?
It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another,
‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance,
we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said,
‘He is possessed by a demon.’
The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said,
‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,
a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’
But wisdom is vindicated by her works.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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There’s an old saying about faith: “To those who have it, no explanation is necessary. To those who don’t, no explanation is enough.”
Faith takes root in the hearts of people who want to believe.
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This is the essence of what Jesus is saying in today’s Gospel. “To what shall I compare this generation?” he says.
They are like inconvincible skeptics; no person, no explanation, no miracle will be enough.
John the Baptist came to them preaching fire and brimstone. He lived in the desert, fasted, and clothed himself in camel’s hair. His message was of repentance.
But the people criticized him for being too strict.
Then Jesus came living amongst the crowds, dining with tax collectors and sinners, even turning water into wine.
The same people who criticized John the Baptist for being too strict criticize Jesus for being too lax. No display of faith – either from John or from Jesus – was enough. Some simply didn’t want to believe.
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I can’t help but see something of our own modern world in that. Sometimes we can explain our faith until we’re blue in the face, but people just shrug their shoulders.
For those with faith, no explanation is necessary. For some without it, no explanation is enough.
Let’s pray for those who struggle to believe, that somehow God would spark a desire in them to change – and see the goodness of God, present in so many.
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Image credits: (1) Christian images, Amazon.com (2) Britannica (3) Pinterest