Relax: You are Accepted
The prophet Isaiah had drafted a manifesto for divine action in the world. Jesus of Nazareth is divine action in the world, and no doubt his fellow villagers in Nazara would have been thrilled that one of theirs would ‘set the downtrodden free’.
But, in proclaiming ‘the Lord’s Year of Acceptance’, Jesus inaugurated a revolutionary phase within the Jewish tradition. He invited people to relax!! Holiness is not a matter of our striving, but of accepting that we are accepted by the All Merciful God. Good works should follow in response, but good works don’t gain our acceptance by God.
How does one best show acceptance of someone, forgiveness of someone, friendship with someone? One relaxes over a meal together. This was Jesus’ characteristic way of embodying Divine Acceptance in our world. It still is.
We might pause for a moment to relax into the saving fact that we exist in ‘the Lord’s Year of Acceptance’, that this acceptance is signified and effected by our sharing in the Bread of Life and the Spiritual Drink of Holy Communion which gives us the energy to help make Divine Acceptance a reality for others.
© Fr Michael Tate; mtate@bigpond.com - https://www.liturgyhelp.com/calendar/date/2025Jan26/0/RefMiTa