Commentary on the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time—and Suffering

I rejoice in my sufferings!

While a Deacon Candidate, I gave a homily for the class on readings for the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time back in May 2022. So, I thought I would turn this into an article. Here it is with the readings for that day being Genesis 18:10, Colossians 1:24-28 and Luke 10:38-42.

St. Ignatius Loyola said:  If God sends you many sufferings, it is a sign that He has great plans for you and certainly wants to make you a saint.

In the first readings we hear of Abraham and Sarah. The focus is more on Abraham but we can see Sarah appearing in the final verses of our first reading with the announcement and statement by one of the three mysterious visitors " I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah will then have a son."

Let's contemplate this.  Sarah at the age of 90 had not bore a child.  Think of the suffering she must have endured at that time and place not being able to conceive. We can now think of a young couple today desperate for a young child praying to have that baby and then we think wow what about the time she actually did conceive, but three months later a miscarriage. I’ve read that 1 of 8 couples suffers with conceiving.

In the gospel Martha is very anxious. She has anxiety -"Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things” says Jesus.

You know we can think of being anxious as having an anxiety disorder, that is suffering in our own lives, how many of us at times are anxious or suffer from anxiety, it's not too uncommon, in fact in this day and time there is much anxiety—just do a simple google search and you can see how prevalent it is in our times.

Anxiety. That gnawing feeling of worry, unease and nervousness that lurks in the corner of our minds waiting to pounce when we are at our most vulnerable.  Whether it is stress over something imminent or anxiety about the future, we all experience it even when our lives look pretty held together on the outside.   

Today we worry about inflation, covid, the war in Ukraine, the possibility of it spreading. Closer to home we worry about children, grandchildren, aging parents, our own aging and health.

So, what do we do. Can I suggest rejoice in our sufferings? That is what Paul tells us in our second reading.

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake,
and in my flesh I am filling up
what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ
on behalf of his body, which is the church,

Elsewhere, in Romans, he tells us we are heirs with Christ, provided that we suffer with him.

Now let’s tie this to Christ (the same Christ by the way whom we receive in the Eucharist)

"Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing”. What is that one thing?

It might be a stretch, but perhaps to rejoice, rejoice when we are happy, rejoice when things are not going so well-rejoice when we are suffering. Let’s recognize that in all that we do, we do in participation with Christ’s salvific mission. Christ is not jealous, he allows us to participate. Think Matthew 16 he hands the keys to Peter, In John he gives the authority to forgive to the apostles. We can think of many instances in scripture where mere men participate with God.

How about for the rest of us, not in the ministerial priest hood? Let’s further consider Paul’s words:

I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2)

By presenting (“offering up”) our own bodies “as a living sacrifice”, in suffering we partake of the sacrifice of Jesus. We complete in some mysterious way the afflictions of Christ.

Saint Paul himself, suffered himself. He said “And to keep me from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn as given me in the flesh”. It tormented him, so much so he asked God to remove it, not once but three time. But God said “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” i.e. in suffering.

We can do the same thing for the body of Christ, in our moments of suffering. It is inevitable we will have to suffer at times. Some of you are suffering right now. In our communities, we have lost, friends, parents. Some have been afflicted with illness. When we recognize the value of suffering for others, for those we love, for those we don’t know then we can rejoice. I REJOICE IN MY SUFFERINGS!