Cue the beginning of the dramatic music: Reflection for Friday, April 11, 2025

Cue the dramatic music. Jeremiah feels the heat all around him. Jesus faces an angry crowd with rocks. How do you face persecution? Readings for today.

Cue the beginning of the dramatic music

It is pretty remarkable to see. If you have ever seen an innocent video clip played with different background music, you can see how much music influences what is going on and how you feel. And the scenes in the readings today certainly call for dramatic, suspenseful music.

In some ways, Jeremiah should have been ready for what occurs, since this reaction has been the story of his entire life. Called to be a prophet at a time when he was concerned about being too young, and throughout his life, Jeremiah has struggled.

How much? Well, there is the time that he describes trying not to be a prophet, only to have the words of God well up in him like a spring. Yet despite his fidelity, Jeremiah never sees to convince many people of God’s message.

But does this mean he is not successful? Perhaps. But the goal of the spiritual life is not success. It is fidelity. Fidelity to God and his message. Fidelity to acting from that relationship with God to love God more and to love our neighbor more. And if success is defined by what the world expects, Jeremiah was not successful.

But if success is measured by God’s standards, he was quite successful. Because by all accounts he did what God wanted until the very end. And he remained loyal to the people who rejected him because of God’s will.

In the gospel, Jesus faces an angry crowd with rocks. They were going to kill them. As an aside, this gospel, with Jewish leaders with rocks, demonstrates something quite important to keep in mind. The Romans played a heavy part in the killing of Jesus, since Jesus was executed by crucifixion and not stoned with rocks.

The charge against Jesus was blasphemy. But it is based upon a faulty understanding of blasphemy. The Jewish people were not told they could never say the name of Yahweh. They were told they could not blaspheme the name of Yahweh.

We see and hear many today who do in fact blaspheme. The name of Jesus is often used in a way that is not respectful to the power of the Holy Name. Even by Christians! But of course if we speak the truth about God, use God’s name in prayer, appreciate its saving and holy power, that is not blasphemy.

But Jesus always speaks the truth. About himself. About his Father. About the Holy Spirit. And about us. It is Jesus who is speaking the truth about things. And perhaps most importantly, Jesus speaks the truth about us too.

We are loved. We are loved more than we can ever understand. But we have to accept this relationship with Jesus. We have to agree to love Jesus and to love our neighbor. We have to agree to acknowledge our sinfulness, and to turn away from this sinfulness.

What is interesting about the whole thing is that Jesus is raising our dignity. When we turn away from sin, we become who we are. Jesus is making us more human. Jesus is making us better. Infinitely better if we accept his salvation.

“If I do not perform my Father’s works, do not believe me; but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may realize and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”

Jesus provides for us, in the works he does, the proof for his testimony. We can be sure of Jesus’ love for us. We can be certain his invitation is true. We can be sure, that despite all of the brokenness in the world, we can, by his grace, be saved.

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