20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
In 598 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonia (modem Iraq), sent an army against rebellious Jerusalem, He didn't destroy it this time, but he let it be known that any further resistance would not be treated so lightly. He deported some of the leading citizens to Babylon, including the young king, Jechoniah. In his place, he appointed the king's uncle, Zedekiah, a weak character who could be counted on to follow orders. But precisely because he was weak, he couldn't be counted on for anything.
There was a strong "patriotic" lobby, pro-Egyptian and anti-Babylonian, that just would not learn. It should have been obvious that continued resistance was suicidal, but they were determined to save their country their way. Jeremiah knew better. Besides being a preacher of God's word, he was an astute observer of the international scene. His wisdom, his experience and his genuine love for his people led him to advise compliance with Babylon. For this he was smeared as a traitor, a subversive who had to be silenced.
They put pressure on the king, and he folded: "He is in your power." They threw the hapless prophet into a muddy cistern where he would die of hunger, "letting him down by ropes." But God did not let him down. One of the king's servants, Ebed-melech ("king's slave"), a Cushite, an African, reported the situation to the king, whom he knew to be sympathetic to Jeremiah. Zedekiah did another about-face and ordered the prophet' s release.
Centuries later, Jesus, the prophet of the end time, preached a message that also provoked a crisis. It lighted a fire, symbol of discernment and decision. It was a message of salvation for those who accepted it, but not all did. His rhetorical question, "Do you think I have come to establish peace on the earth?" would seem to call for an affirmative answer. But often in biblical language a result is expressed in terms of purpose. His purpose was to bring peace, but the sad result was "division."
That division is described in terms of actual Christian experience. A decision to follow Christ often split families apart. Both Jews and Gentiles turned viciously against a family member who became a Christian. Discipleship, accepting Christ's word and vowing allegiance to him, was considered a traitorous abandonment of family and national traditions. Like Jeremiah, the Christian was called to follow Christ's word, whatever the cost, and the cost was often high indeed.
Like the addressees of the "letter" to the Hebrews, Christians are encouraged in their decision "by a cloud of witnesses," men and women who fought the fight of faith and won. The image is that of an arena where the contestants are involved in a life and death struggle, cheered on by sympathetic spectators. Like racers, they must keep their eyes fixed resolutely on the goal, a pylon on which rested the crown of victory. In the case of Christians, that goal is not a stone pillar or a diadem of laurel leaves, but a person. They must keep their "eyes fixed on Jesus, who inspires and perfects our faith." He was the pacesetter, the one who first ran the race in spite of all hurdles and obstacles and hindrances. And he won, gloriously! "Hence, do not grow desperate or abandon the struggle."