Rabbi: Jesus, please explain why you stopped the reading before Isiah spoke of the day of vengeance of our God, especially during a time of such oppression?
Jesus: The day of vengeance is in the future. I’m not here for vengeance, I’m here for salvation.
The Chosen Physician, Heal Yourself 2022
Yesterday my family and I were at the minor league ball park in Worcester thanks to a 4 pack of tickets my youngest won at work. There was according to weather.com a 20% chance of rain and those numbers came up so we waited 45 minutes for the game to start and very much enjoyed the heat lamps that were all around the covered to warm ourselves up.
By the bottom of the 7th it wasn’t looking well for the home team who couldn’t manage to get the key hit to drive in the tying runs when the chance presented itself so I moved up to where the heat lamps where. Most of them were still had groups of people but one of them near home plate was empty so I parked myself there as I urged the home team to throw strikes while on the mound and have a good eye at the plate.
Within a minute or two I was joined by a tall gentleman about my own age and we started talking about the game, the various players and the online league which I run (posting to come soon) etc which is the type of thing that the pace of baseball allows and is one of the joys of going to any ballpark. His son-in-law had season tickets so he often was able to catch a game and spoke highly of the various season ticket combos offered.
At one point my wife decided to refill her water bottle at the water bottle refill station. Seeing me with the fellow she walked by and made a flirty remark about me and my hat. The fellow grinned as guys do when that happens to a fellow and I explained that the flirting lady was my wife of 35 years. At that point the reason for my presence there became clear.
One of the things I talk about on my “Your Prayer Intentions” radio show and have as part of my regular prayer rotation is an offering to notice the works of God all around us and one of those works is to put people where they need to be.
At this point the man’s face became more serious and a change came over him. He told me two years ago that his wife of 38 years had in his own words “died suddenly”. I didn’t press him on what had happened but as it was near the end of the month I asked if he was catholic to offer his wife a place on our monthly indulgence calendar for me. It turned out he was and eagerly jumped at my offer and so I took her name and will be remembering her there and in next week’s radio show along with him family. When my oldest walked by he too took the name to ad it to his prayer list.
The fellow was very grateful. It was very clear that he misses her terribly and that there is a giant hole in his life from her loss, which his son in law has helped fill with the season tickets and as we were leaving found us again to thank us for our kind words and prayers which he needed desperately and that God had seen fit to put us there at that rainy game so I could be under that sun lamp to be there and offer consolation and prayer. Daily baseball is an excellent tonic and distraction for a soul in pain but sharing that pain when one might not normally do so is even better.
But that’s not all that went through my mind when this was happening.
The age of the gentleman, about my own or maybe a year or two older or younger and the “sudden death” of his longtime spouse immediately suggested the COVID shot to me. It’s a story I’ve read about and seen time and time again online and while I did have a vaccinated in-law die of COVID his many other complications before the outbreak didn’t make his death all that “unexpected”, this was the first person I had met who had experienced such an unexpected loss.
Now in fairness I don’t know if in this case the culprit was the shot as I wasn’t about to interrogate him on the matter but it hits me that there are thousands of people who like him have suddenly lost spouses, children and loved ones “unexpectedly” who CAN trace the problem to the shot and have to live every day with that loss that shouldn’t have happened and frankly didn’t have to.
When I ponder that I think of Biden and Fauci and Trudeau and every petty tyrant in government and in corporate America who made people choose between the jab and their livelihood and/or education and think of how much pain and suffering they have to answer for.
It’s in those moments that a good Catholic has to remember that Christ died for ALL sinners without exception and pray that all those involved in those events take advantage of the mercy that Christ offers while they have the chance because the alternative to Christ mercy for our sins is his justice according to our deeds.
And the clock is ticking.
