Homily: Fourteenth Wednesday of Ordinary Time
Homily: Fourteenth Wednesday of Ordinary Time (Genesis 41 +42) “From Arrogance to Humility”
Not many Biblical figures have a musical written about their life. Many of us have probably seen the musical Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat. When we see this stage production, it paints a sympathetic portrait of Joseph. But he was man who had a conversion in his life.
Joseph was one of 12 sons. Jacob loved him best of all though. He gave him a special tunic to wear. His brothers saw all of this, and they were jealous. Joseph did not seem to make things easier.
He told his brothers once of a dream he had. He and his brothers were out in a field, and they were harvesting wheat and gathering the wheat into sheeves. When they laid the sheeves down, Joseph’s sheeve stood straight up and the other sheeves bowed down to Joseph's sheeve. It did not take a genius to interpret his dream.
One day when Joseph was alone with his brothers, their anger boiled over. They threw Joseph into a cistern, then they sold him to slave traders that were traveling by. Joseph ended up in Egypt where he was imprisoned. We can imagine his brokenness, but he was resourceful.
He grabbed Pharoah’s attention by interpreting a dream and then became one of Pharoah’s chief advisors. He was the chief administrator when a famine came about. He controlled the food for the whole area. When his brothers came to him trying to avoid starvation, instead of holding a grudge, he helped them.
Joseph was able to see that his time as a slave led to his family being saved. Joseph, in the end, acted with benevolence and not with arrogance. He had changed. He used his power to help others rather than to selfishly look out for his own needs.
Reflection Questions:
- Have I ever had a dream that changed how I looked at life? Should we put stock in dreams?
- Are there bad events that have led to good consequences? What might I point to as an example of this?
Dear Parishioners,
We begin having adoration and Benediction in the St. Francis Chapel that is in the Lee Parish Center today. We will begin adoration after the 6:30 Mass on Wednesday and we will close with benediction at 11:30 a.m. This is the pattern we will follow, and we will see how this works.
We have many dedicated people who have prayed in our chapel through the years. I would encourage people to get involved. The pandemic is easing so hopefully we can renew some of the spiritual practices we had before the crisis we have been through the last year and a half.
Sometimes people talk about being prayer warriors. I hope that praying is not like going to war, but prayer is a way of bringing peace. Hopefully, that is what we can pray for. We need healing in our divided church and nation.
Remember to pray for the recovery of Pope Francis who had major surgery this week.
May Our Lady and all the Angels and Saints watch over you today.
Fr. Mark