When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong. But he passed through the midst of them and went away. (Lk 4:16-30)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/090125.cfm
Today we begin the continuous reading of the public ministry of Jesus in the Lucan gospel. The hometown crowd want to kill Jesus for preaching about God intervening on behalf of “foreigners.” This scene is repeated in many parishes whenever the priest preaches about justice for immigrants or other marginalized groups. As the Scripture tells us about little Nazareth: Jesus passed through the midst of them and went away. Sadly, people never seem to learn how politicians love to demonize marginalized groups in order to maintain their own power and control.
These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.
Monday XXII, Ordinary Time
