27 January 2020
Monday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time
One of the most interesting scenes from the movie The King’s Speech is when the speech therapist, Lionel Lounge, tries to bolster Bertie’s (the future King George VI) morale by suggesting that he would outshine his older brother as a King. Lionel tries to help Bertie to realize that he need not be governed by fear. Lionel asks Bertie, “What are you so afraid of?” But Bertie screams at his tutor, “I am the son of a king, the brother of a king. You’re the disappointing son of a brewer, a trumped-up jackaroo from the outback. You’re a nobody.” Lionel Logue recognizes Bertie’s deep-seated psychological problem, often manifested through the prince’s insecurity, anger, and fear, and through his tangled relationships with his father and his brother. In the end, Lionel manages to assure Bertie that he does not have to be afraid to be a King as he can be his own man.
In the scripture today, we hear the story of how David succeeded Saul as the King. The question is why God seems to favor David over Saul. Saul did make a “minor” mistake by defying God’s order and God abandoned him. Later on, in David’s life, David is guilty for a crime far more greedy than Saul’s. Yet, God forgives David and remains faithful to David. The major differences between both men are Saul does not know how to act like a King and he fails to build the Kingdom. David, on the other hand, establishes the United Kingdom of Israel and develops the theology of Kingship. If we look at David’s policies after he becomes the King, it is obvious that he knows how to govern and how to behave as a King. Consequently, God rewards him with the promise that his Kingdom will last forever, which paves the way for the Messianic fulfillment in the New Testament, with the birth of Christ.
In prayer today, reflect on your own fears preventing you from taking greater responsibility or starting a new role. Do these responsibilities or roles worry you at all? Or, perhaps you know other people who are dealing with anxiety over a new role or responsibilities that they might assume. How would you advise these people who are worried or frightened by these new roles and responsibilities? Ask for God’s help to overcome such fear and anxiety. Then, end your prayer with whatever you would like to say to God the Father, or to Jesus, or to the Holy Spirit.