“Why are my people, my town, so angry with me to try throwing me down the cliff as though I were a criminal? Mother dear, why? What’s wrong with them? What wrong have I done to them? Did I offend anyone? Early in the morning in our synagogue they were all praising me, but, when I could not do any miracle for them, they were mad at me, really mad. Why killing me for not doing here what I was doing there? There I could find faith, but in Nazareth, practically none, only selfishness and pride. Mum, evidently, you are not one of them, and some of our relatives too. But why so many showed this hate for me, in my own town, when I am offering to them only good news? Mother, I admit that I, who know well the human hearts, I do find it very hard to understand our town people. Yes, why?”

This could have been a likely dialogue between Jesus and his Mother that very sabbath evening or days after the violent reaction of Nazareth’s people to the words of Jesus in their synagogue.

We readers of today’s Gospel passage can easily imagine that encounter of Jesus with Mama Mary and feel angry and upset too at those Nazarenes, for their behavior did not make any sense, then and now.  

But that story of Nazareth, no matter its non-sense, is still continuing today in the world at large and even among the so-called followers of Jesus, even among us, even in my heart.

For at times I do want Jesus to be so much for me that I am making myself more important than Him or all the other human beings, who belong to Him too. Or I am so much concerned for my immediate needs, that the true and all-valuable Gospel does not make any permanent dent in my life? I also recognize that too often I live just like anybody else … as unredeemed by the word and blood of Jesus.  

In today’s Gospel Jesus is implicitly calling himself a prophet, a faithful speaker of God’s word, for us to listen to and to live by his message. A message that is always there for us, full of life, and goodness, and peace. A message that comes to us with the very Messenger himself, to be always by our side, enabling and empowering us to put it into practice.

All we need is to believe that Jesus has been sent us by God to be for us and to give us eternal life, fully, faithfully, prayerfully.

The best proof that we have really welcomed Him in our life and live by His message is our unconditional love for others, especially for the last and least humanly lovable people around. Love that means our unconditional mercy for all and everyone, excluding nobody. This is what makes us Christian, Christ-like, always and everywhere and with everyone. That’s why we Christians are not taking anyone on the cliffs of our towns for a kill. No, never!

And so, my dear fellow-Christians, let’s go back for a moment also to the most famous passage of Saint Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, that is part of the Word of God in today’s liturgy. “Love is always patient and kind … love does not come to an end.” Can we change that word love with our personal name? Something like Mary, Peter, Clare, John, each one of us saying … “I am always patient and kind, I am never jealous, … I never take offence … I am always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes. I do not come to an end!” By saying this we will realize that our spiritual standards of love need to improve. And if we are humble enough to admit it, we are certainly on the way of the Lord!

Let us remain with this blessed possibility, to be love ourselves as is Jesus to Nazareth, at all times, even when people laugh at us or want to kill us. Nothing will be more life-giving than this, nothing.