Jesuit Memorial of Saints Bernardine Realino, John Francis Regis, Francis Jerome, and Blesseds Julian Maunoir and Anthony Baldinucci
Even the most acerbic of prophets include messages of hope. From the very beginning of his prophecy, Amos has condemned war crimes and monetary exploitation, and has foretold punishment upon punishment. Yet, all of it now is seen to have been a preparation, a clearing of the land of the hearts of the people, the purging of the rotten fruit of old sin. All of this is so that the Lord can plant new, healthy vineyards which will make the land abundant with good fruit, flowing with good wine.
This may help us to hear anew the argument about fasting and feasting in the Gospel. Fasting is given as a means for preparing the way of the Lord, preparing to receive the Word which comes to bear good fruit in us. Yet, this is precisely what Jesus is doing in the days of His public ministry, giving fulfillment to the promises which John the Baptist had been preparing the people to receive. In our own life, we can recognize our need for preparation as given by John’s preaching, for purification as offered by Amos’ prophecies, for the hard honest look at what needs to change in our lives. Yet, we can also see that this is followed by Jesus coming to dwell more deeply in our soul, coming to nourish and even to provide a feast to our hearts. Let us pray for the grace to embrace the times of preparation and to recognize the times when Christ the bridegroom clearly wants to provide a banquet for us.