My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord. You are whom I seek. My soul clings to you, your right hand upholds me. These sentiments that the psalmist expresses today are probably what most of us want to proclaim in our lives as followers of Christ. We want to find joy in our relationship with the Lord. We want our faith to express a joy that surpasses all else in life. We want to feel God’s love and mercy in our hearts. However, there are times in life when these sentiments feel distant, when we wonder where God is. When we struggle, when we don’t know the questions to ask any more, when we are searching without any resolution, then we have to trust in our faith, to trust the call we’ve received from God.
One of my favorite saints is Jean de Brebeuf, a Jesuit priest from France who was one of the first Catholic missionaries to the native people of Canada in the 17th century. I don’t think we can fully understand the hardship and struggle that so many of the missionaries experienced on their journeys. Brebeuf accepted the hardships and sacrifices he encountered as a missionary; he was even grateful for them. He wished only that God would allow him to bring the Gospel to others, to bring them the message of salvation that comes we have in Christ. For 25 years, Brebeuf lived with the people of the Huron tribe in Canada, embracing their customs and learning their language, even writing a catechism for them. But for most of his ministry, he met with very few results. In the midst of his struggles, Brebeuf persevered and even kept a sense of humor. He wrote this in a letter inviting other Jesuits to the missions in Canada: “When you reach the Hurons, you will find us with hearts full of love. We shall receive you in a hut, (a hut) so mean that I have scarcely found in France one wretched enough to compare it with. Fatigued as you will be, we shall be able to give you nothing but a poor mat for a bed. Besides, …the fleas will keep you awake most of the night.” I don't know about you, but that description would entice me to want to come to Canada as a missionary. Brebeuf found joy in his missionary calling, even in the midst of very difficult circumstances. He eventually found success in converting the Hurons to Christianity. However, his life ended when he was tortured to death by an enemy tribe of the Hurons. When I was a missionary, and now as a priest, Brebeuf’s faith and courage inspired me greatly. He is one of my favorite saints. God cried out to Jean de Brebeuf – just as he cried out to the prophet Jeremiah in our first reading today. Jeremiah was called to be a prophet at a time when Israel was straying from its covenant with God and getting into troublesome alliances with other nations, leading to the destruction of Temple in Jerusalem and exile in Babylon. From the beginning of his call, Jeremiah did not want to be a prophet, but he agreed to go where God called him. Yet, in the blunt, honest prophecies Jeremiah delivered to the people, their opposition to him grew even stronger. The people did not want to hear the truth. Jeremiah cried out to God in the midst of his pain and anger: You tricked me, Lord, you seduced me! You lured me into a situation where I’m now despised by everyone, even my family and friends! Jeremiah blamed God for his misery, even wishing that he had not been born. No matter who we are, we’re going to have ups and downs, joys and struggles, on our journey. Even though Jeremiah lashed out at God, later on, just a few verses after today’s reading ends, Jeremiah is able to say to God: "You know, God, you are at my side like a mighty hero. With you beside me, my opponents will stumble and be vanquished and be confounded with their failure." Jeremiah is able to say: "Lord, I sing praises to you, for you have delivered the soul of one in need from the clutches of the evil doers." Our human spirit is resilient if we put our trust in the Lord, if we let the Lord lead us in our words and actions.
Recently, I saw on the internet a photo that was taken by a Sister of St Joseph when she was visiting South Africa in 1987. It was in the middle of the Apartheid era; Nelson Mandela was still in prison; the South African government had declared a state of emergency and military troops patrolled the street. The photo showed large black printing scrawled on a cement wall. It said: HANG MANDELA. But in different handwriting, you could see another word, a smaller word, inserted between the other two words. It now read – HANG ON, MANDELA. The original message of hatred and intolerance was turned into a message of love and courage – the original message was completely subverted. In the context of our faith, we can turn a curse into a blessing, we can turn an insult into an act of encouragement. Like Jeremiah, let us hear God calling out to us: Encouraging us, comforting us, calling us to be his servant.
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