WORD Reflection November 1, 2022

WORD

"The reason the world does not know us

is that it did not know him.

Beloved, we are God’s children now;

what we shall be has not yet been revealed."

(from the Second Reading 1 John 3: 1 -3)

OBSERVE

I will not talk about the "communion of saints" which includes the "Triumphant Church," "Church Militant," "Church Suffering" that you would hear a lot when you attend the All Saints Day and All Souls Day Masses.

Instead, I would like to reflect on the character of the saints in their relation to the world. "The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him."

One of the characteristics of the saints is that they are not "conformist," they would always be radical non-conformist in relation the world.

However, this radical non-conformity does not come from their desire to rebel or antagonism rather it comes from their faithful conformity with Christ, becoming the "reflections" of Jesus Christ.

Saints are radical non-conformist because they are not listening to the World but to the WORD of God.

This is the reason why John tells us that "the reason the world does not know us

is that it did not know him."

The world has refused to acknowledged Jesus. Consequently, it would also not acknowledge the "saints" who are becoming like Jesus.

If the world has rejected the Master how can it claim to accept the disciple?

Saints are "unknown" to the world which seeks to push its own agenda. The world would always seek to replace what the Lord taught with what is convenient and popular at the time.

Instead, of changing the world with the Word of God, it seeks to change the Word of God to agree with the world.

RESPOND

Lord, you have said that "no disciple is greater than his teacher."

If the world has rejected you, then your disciples would also be rejected by the world.

Your saints have shown to us how to live our lives by listening to your WORD and not by listening to the demands of the world.

Help us reject false teachings that stifle our prophetic voice.

Replace our hearts with zealous hearts of disciples.

Give us the grace of imitating your saints. Amen.

DISCERN

Henri Nouwen, one of my favorite spiritual writers, wrote about how we think of the saints as "holy and pious, and picture them with halos above their heads and ecstatic gazes."

However, he claimed that real saints are "men and women like us, who live ordinary lives and struggle with ordinary problems. What makes them saints is their clear and unwavering focus on God and God’s people."

Do we also have a clear and unwavering focus on God and his people or are we preoccupied with our own agenda in the guise of following God's will?