Reflection for Friday, December 1, 2006: 34th week in Ordinary Time.
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Authors
O'Connor, Roc, S.J.
Issue Date
2006-12-01
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en_US
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Today, we commemorate the lives of 28 Jesuit martyrs, all from England or Wales, who died between 1573 and 1679 during the religious persecution of Catholics in their native lands. Edmund Campion and Robert Southwell are the two more famous members of this group of martyrs.|I would bet that there are few things in life that focus a person's energy, wit, belief, allegiance, intelligence, heart, and effort like a crisis, with a capital "C." Persecution would be like that. The experience of a common enemy would characterize some types of crises. I wonder how that played out for Edmund, Robert, and their companions over a hundred years.|They went about the countryside in disguise serving the Catholic populace, hiding from authorities, alert betrayal, and committed to their religion. They lived with the threat of death everywhere they went, every moment of the day. In their own ways, they lived in anticipation of "the Final Days," the end of their world.|One normal reaction to being hated and hunted by enemies is to hate and detest them. It would seem the most ordinary of all human reactions to demonize one's enemies, seeking to find ways to conquer, punish, and destroy them.|I wonder what Edmund, Robert, and their companions preached to their small congregations who kept them hidden from spies. Preaching, as much as their martyrdom, would be written down next to their names in the Book of Life, eh?|We do have some lines from Robert Southwell, a noted English poet of the late 16th century. They portray the Christ of the Two Standards Meditation (Spiritual Exercises) as a vulnerable baby come to challenge the gates of hell, not by kingly might, but by sorrow and suffering. I wonder if this expresses Robert's personal convictions and experience.|With tears He fights and wins the field, His naked breast stands for a shield, His battering shot are babish cries, His arrows, looks of weeping eyes, His martial ensigns, cold and need, And feeble flesh His warrior's steed.|His camp is pitch and egrave;d in a stall, His bulwark but a broken wall, The crib His trench, hay-stalks His stakes, Of shepherds He His muster makes; And thus, as sure His foe to wound, The angels' trumps alarum sound. My soul, with Christ join thou in fight; Stick to the tents that He hath pight; Within His crib is surest ward, This little babe will be thy guard; If thou wilt foil thy foes with joy, Then flit not from this heavenly boy. ("New Heaven, New War" by Robert Southwell, SJ) As we come to the end of this Church year, perhaps the witness of Robert, Edmund, and their companions could encourage us to attend the Standard of Christ this Christmas. Perhaps we might be drawn to such a stance in our world of crises.
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University Ministry, Creighton University.
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These reflections may not be sold or used commercially without permission. Personal or parish use is permitted.
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Lectionary Number: 507