Wednesday of the 27th week in ordinary time year A
Jonah 4: 1-11 Luke 11: 1-4
Theme: The mercy of God
In the 1st reading of today from the prophet Jonah, we see a very angry Jonah. He is angry because after all what he went through to get to Nineveh, God has resolved to forgive the people of Nineveh and not destroy them as earlier planned. The position of God to show the people mercy has greatly angered Jonah and he presented his position to God in anger. What he seems not to understand is the fact that God does not desire the death of the people of Nineveh, but rather that they should repent of their evil ways and live. The situation was not the same for the prophet Jonah, for him the people should be destroyed, as earlier planned by God. But their sincere repentance, from the greatest to the least touched God and he decided to show them mercy by not destroying them as earlier planned.
This says a lot about the God that we serve, he is merciful and compassionate towards his people. What matters most to him is that we repent of our failings and return to him, and he will forgive us and welcome us as back as his children. It is very easy to condemn the action of the prophet Jonah, but some of us act in a similar way in our daily lives. Each time we decide to keep quiet instead of speaking, because the situation does not affect us directly, we are simply re-enacting the action of the prophet journey. We do things like this in different ways in our daily lives. We must try to activate the mercy of God in our lives, even when we have power over others. Let us emulate the position of God in the 1st reading of today and practice less the position of the prophet Jonah in our lives. At one time or the other in our lives we enjoy the mercy and compassion of God, let us beg for his grace to also practice it in our relationship with one another.
In the gospel reading of today, we see the request of the disciples of Jesus that he should teach them how to pray. This gave rise to the Lord’s prayer that we use at mass. He taught them how to pray, and a comprehensive prayer that is all encompassing. In the same way, when we pray, it should not always begin and end with us. As we pray for ourselves, let us also pray for other people, including those we do not know. As you do this may almighty God bless you in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit. Amen. Peace be with you.