Homily - 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time - 19th November 2023

Homily

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

19th November 2023

In last Sunday’s reading, we were introduced to Wisdom as a woman, who has understanding and will keep you out of trouble, if you follow the right path. Through the description, we can visualise a person. Someone you would want to be with, especially as she wants to be with you.

The reading from Proverbs, asks a question. The perfect wife, where can she be found? We are presented with someone who wants to be at our side. She boosts her husband’s confidence. She helps build his wealth. She will not harm him. She works hard providing for her family home and their needs. She always rolls her sleeves up to muck in. She provides for the poor and looks after the needy. We are told a charmer is deceitful, and beauty is empty. A woman with wisdom is the one to praise. Her work bears fruit and she deserves to be paid for her labour.

This woman is not a slave. She is not a second-class citizen. She has rights and should be respected. She needs to be listened to, and when she questions her husband, he needs to take heed of what she says, because she is highlighting a blind spot in his thinking. Without her counsel, he could end up taking the wrong path. He may not like what she says, but this is his pride blinding him. He needs to step back and critically analyse what he is saying and how this may impact the family home. If he chooses to do what he thinks is best, what evidence is there he has made the right decision? Is this what God wants? If it is not, then we are heading towards disaster.

In Genesis Chapter 2, God shaped Man from dust and breathed his spirit into his nostrils. Man became a living being. In this version of the creation story, God allowed Man to name all the creatures God created, but Man was not happy. He was lonely. He needed a helper. God did not shape the Woman out of fresh dust but instead took her from Man. In other words, both male and female were created at the same time as a single being, then separated so they could be two. These humans, one male and the other female, could help each other. They could be companions to one another. Each is different, complimenting each other, seeing things differently but allowing them equally to critically assess things, from their own unique perspective.

Genesis 2 verse 24 states: “This is why a man leaves his father and mother and becomes attached to his wife, and the two become one flesh.” This is stated before the Fall in Chapter 3. What is not stated but implied is that a woman also leaves her mother and father to become attached to her husband.

The Psalm tells us that we are blessed if we fear the Lord and walk in his ways. Some say our interpretation of fear is incorrect. In Hebrew, there are two words for fear. One is Pachad, meaning fear of imaginary things stirring up irrational worries. The other word is Yirah, meaning being overawed by our surroundings or having deep respect, reverence and devotion for someone we admire.

So, we should not be fearful, but be in Awe of the Lord and blessed when we walk in his ways. Through work, we should prosper, and our homes should be places where our children thrive.

Our world isn’t ideal. Both parents often need to work. They can struggle to make ends meet, even on good salaries. We constantly seem to live in a world going through labour pains every day. Most are worn out by the pressure. We no longer have time to think due to exhaustion and are made to feel guilty if we take a break. We all miss the quiet and peacefulness.

Fear, as in the automatic negative thoughts that often invade our minds, keep us lost in the future trying to prevent disasters, or stuck in the past, fretting over things we cannot forgive ourselves for.

As we reflect on Matthew's Gospel, we need to consider what talents God has given us that are precious. Our real riches are the spouses we have been connected to, who make us feel complete but who respect us enough to allow us to be ourselves. We should not bury our husband or wife in the produce of our selfishness as this can only lead to ruin. Our job is to nurture our spouses so they can be fulfilled and attain their full potential. Not through what they do but in who they are as a person. We all need meaning in our lives. Our investment in them will enable God to say to us, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

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