31st Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year A - The Humble Shall Be Exalted & “Hallelujah”
There is a story among the Indigenous Peoples of a twelve-year old boy who was bitten by a poisonous snake and died. His grieving parents carried the boy to the holy man in the village. The parents and the holy man sat around the dead boy for hours in silence. Finally the father got up and he placed his hands on the feet of his son. He said, “In all my life, I have not been as attentive to my family as I needed to be.” With those words, the poison left the boy’s feet. The mother then got up and placed her hands on the boy’s heart. She said, “In all my life, I have not loved my family as deeply as they needed me to love them.” The poison left the boy’s heart. Then the holy man got up and placed his hands on the boy’s head. He said, “In all my life, I have not truly believed the words that I have preached to others.” The poison left the boy’s head and he sat up alive again.
This story proclaims the truth that admitting who we are has the power to heal. Admitting our own faults and shortcomings can bring something that is dead back to life. That is why Jesus calls us to humility and honesty; why he says that those who humble themselves will be exalted. Because in humbling ourselves with the truth of our own imperfections, we release power and life into our world.
What power there could be in marriages and friendships if we could more easily say, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I hurt you. I’m sorry that I did not meet your expectations or needs.” How much easier it could be to forgive someone, to heal a broken relationship, if we could say, “I am not perfect. I too am a sinner. I have in my own way contributed to the estrangement that exists between us.” How much more freedom could we have if we could admit our shortcomings and work to correct them; but at the same time continue to believe that people love us not because we are perfect, but because we can be genuine and honest in admitting our faults and our need to grow.
We do have value, coming from the fact that God has made us and loves us. Not from the illusion that we are without fault. This is why we can be honest, why we can humbly admit that we are not perfect. This is why those who are humbled can be exalted. Because admitting the truth about ourselves releases power, the power to take the poison out, the power to bring something that was dead back to life, Hallelujah!
In honour of this Gospel, we present our latest video, “Hallelujah”, a beautiful song written by Leonard Cohen and covered by many musicians over the years. While the word Hallelujah (which means “praise Yah”/ YHWH) does mean to praise God, the overall song is secular in nature. We're sharing our version of this song to hopefully move people to learn more about the Lord and to also bring comfort to those who would like to listen to this song during times of pain and suffering.
Video can be watched by clicking here or on the picture below:
