Thirteen Sunday in Ordinary Time
Fr. Ben Riley
Last weekend, we heard Jesus give one of the most startling commands in all of Scripture:
“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.”
We reflected on how most of our fears are connected to the things of this world. We fear losing our health, our security, our reputation, our comfort, our possessions, even our lives. Jesus was inviting us to a spiritual conversion, Metanoia. A movement from living primarily for the body to living for the soul, from living for temporary things to living for eternal things.
This weekend, Jesus continues that same lesson, but He approaches it from a different angle.
Last week He asked us, “What are you afraid of losing?”
This week He asks us, “What do you love most?”
And, His words are just as shocking.
“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.”
At first glance, these words seem harsh. Is Jesus telling us not to love our families?
Well, of course not.
After all, the Fourth Commandment tells us to honor our father and mother. Husbands are commanded to love their wives as Christ loved the Church. Parents are entrusted with the sacred responsibility of raising their children in the faith.
Family is one of God’s greatest gifts.
And that’s why Jesus chooses it.
He doesn’t compare Himself to money or possessions or popularity. He compares Himself to the greatest earthly love we know—the love between parents and children.
Why?
Because Jesus is asking a question that Christian must answer:
Who occupies the first place in your heart? Is it your spouse, is it your child, is it yourself, or is it God.
St. Augustine once said:
“When I mistake a creature for the Creator, trouble follows”
That one sentence explains so much about the human condition.
Whenever I love one of God’s gifts more than I love God Himself, trouble follows.
Notice that Augustine doesn’t say creatures are bad.
Quite the opposite.
Everything God created is good.
Marriage is good.
Family is good.
Friendship is good.
Success is good.
The beauty of creation.
Our health.
Our hobbies.
These are all gifts from God.
The problem begins when we confuse the gift with the Giver.
When something created takes the place that belongs to God alone, trouble always follows.
Think about it.
When money becomes our highest good, we never feel like we have enough.
When success becomes our highest good, failure crushes us.
When popularity becomes our highest good, we begin living for the approval of others.
Even family, as beautiful as it is, cannot bear the weight of being our highest good. We begin expecting our spouse, our children, or our parents to give us what only God can give.
St. Augustine was right.
When we mistake a creature for the Creator, trouble always follows.
The first reading gives us a beautiful example of getting this right.
The woman of Shunem recognizes Elisha as a holy man of God. She literally makes room for God by preparing a place for His prophet.
I have always found that image beautiful.
She builds a room.
Not because she expects something in return.
She does not expect the miracle of her son’s birth.
She simply recognizes that God deserves a place in her home and in her life.
Ironically, because she puts God first, every other blessing follows.
The gift comes after the Giver has been welcomed.
That’s often how God works?
We spend so much of our lives chasing His gifts while neglecting Him.
But when we seek Him first, everything else begins to find its proper place.
To ask ourselves:
Who or what is at the center of my life?
If someone looked at my calendar, what would they say is most important to me?
If they looked at my bank statement, what would they say I value most?
If they looked at what I think about, worry about, and spend my time pursuing, would they conclude that Christ truly comes first?
These are uncomfortable questions.
But they are exactly the questions Jesus asks us today.
Because here is the beautiful paradox of the Gospel.
Jesus never asks us to love our families less.
He asks us to love Him first.
And when Christ is first, everyone else is loved better.
A husband who loves Christ first becomes a better husband.
A wife who loves Christ first becomes a better wife.
Parents who love Christ first become better parents.
Children who love Christ first become better sons and daughters.
A priest who loves Christ first becomes a better priest.
Why?
Because it’s Christ who teaches us how to love.
That is why today’s Gospel follows so naturally after last week’s.
Last week Jesus said,
“Do not be afraid.”
This week He tells us why.
Because if Christ truly is our highest good, then nothing this world can take away can ultimately destroy us.
If Christ is first, we can lose money and still have hope.
We can lose success and still have joy.
We can lose our reputation and still have peace.
Even death itself no longer has the final word because we belong to the One who has conquered death.
Fear loses its power because our treasure is no longer something the world can take away.
So perhaps this week each of us should spend a few moments asking one simple question:
What occupies first place in my heart?
For whatever occupies that place will shape every decision we make, every fear we carry, every hope we have, and every relationship we build.
May we never mistake a creature for the Creator.
May Christ alone occupy the throne of our hearts.
And when He does, everything else—even the greatest gifts of this world—will finally find their proper place.