8 June 2016
Wednesday of the 10th Week of Ordinary Time
While humans destroy, God rebuilds. Ahab turned to the worship of Baal, and had the altar of God destroyed. When Elijah went to prove God’s superiority over the false, pagan gods Ahab had turned to, he first “repaired the altar of God that had been destroyed.” When Jesus came to tell people the good news of their salvation, many assumed he was going to destroy the Old Law, but He assures us today that He has “come not to abolish but to fulfill.” We renew by tearing down; God renews by bringing to completion.
In spite of Jesus’ words, we still think renewal means destruction. Quite a few movies lately have seen human civilization almost completely destroyed, and then there is hope for a new flourishing thanks to a small group of good people. A lot of angry political rhetoric in the United States in recent days has told us that we have to dismantle before we can bring about national renewal. People who talk of renewing the Church sometimes speak along similar lines. But as we look to renew–be it the Church, the nation, or our own souls–we should start not by asking what we need to tear down, but what we need to repair and bring to fulfillment.