Homily: Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 4:35-41
23 June 2024
Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez
For the past two months, the discomfort I have been feeling in my stomach has been giving me sleepless nights. I was so scared as we have a family history of colon cancer. Regular colonoscopies would have ensured early detection of any growths but my last colonoscopy was ten (10) years ago and I feared the worst. I had two procedures yesterday. I was moved to the recovery room at exactly three (3) PM — the Hour of Great Mercy! I feel it was providential. The results of my colonoscopy and EGD revealed I had no serious health issues. You cannot imagine the relief I felt after! At the same time, I was ashamed to have considered that God may have fallen asleep and did not have His eye on me while I had been busy serving Him.
In the Gospel from Mark, we are told that Jesus and His disciples were at sea. At some point Jesus has fallen asleep so he was unaware when their boat suddenly encountered a violent storm. Imagine the waves tossing and turning their ship, crashing against it and filling it with water! While the others around Him were losing their heads from fear that their boat may not be strong enough and they would all drown, Jesus was sleeping peacefully. The disciples wake Him in their distress “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? (Mark 4:38) Jesus is roused from slumber and responds to his disciples’ desperate cries, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?” (Mark 4:40)
Jesus remained sound asleep despite the mounting chaos of the storm. It is almost unbelievable, right? Human instinct would be to panic! And that is precisely what the apostles did. They were so overwhelmed by the threat to their lives that they forgot that the Son of God was with them! The Lord is not upset though that they woke Him up from sleep. He is more concerned by their obvious lack of faith and trust in God. To accuse Jesus that He does not care about His men when they are in a difficult situation is quite the insult, but He does not even scold them. The image of Jesus asleep amidst a storm is rather paradoxical but it successfully exemplifies what is trust, what is faith!
Honestly, can we sleep well if our hearts and minds are filled with worry and doubt? How can we be reassured if we are filled with so much fear and problems? How can we have peace of mind in the midst of the storms of life? I am sure everyone here has had his/her share of seemingly insurmountable problems. What is a problem for Pedro, may not necessarily be a problem for Juan. But Juan has his own problems that are also weighing him down. We all have problems because that’s just how life is, only the dead have no problems. Sometimes we are tempted to think that God doesn’t care about us anymore, right?
There are some of us who are admittedly fast sleepers — they just lean back, and then they sleep right away. That amazes me. Someone will take the bus and then sleep without worrying that he might get robbed or he may miss his stop. He is still sound asleep even though someone is preaching in the bus, or there seems to be a concert of the blowing of horns of cars outside. (May ilan sa atin na aminadong “masa” — masandal lang, tulog na. That amazes me. May sasakay ng bus tapos matutulog. Walang alinlangan na madukutan o malampasan ang bababaan. Mahimbing pa rin ang tulog kahit may nangangaral ng Bibliya sa bus, o nagkokonsiyerto na ng busina sa labas.)
To sleep is to manifest faith. It is an acknowledgment that we don’t have to be in control of everything. It is letting God take care of us and every concern we may have while we close our eyes to rest for a moment. Jesus sleeps soundly in a storm because His soft pillow is His steadfast faith in His Father. In the quiet of His sleep, Jesus shows us how we can stay calm, composed and most trusting especially in the trying moments of our lives. Last May, Fr. Mike Schmitz gave a very inspiring commencement address for the graduating class of 2024 at the Ave Maria University concerning faith. He said: “Your faith doesn’t grow if you feel good,” Father Mike repeats. “Your faith doesn’t grow when you’re in your living room. Your faith doesn’t grow when you’re in a place where there’s no opposition. Your faith grows when you’re in the wilderness. Your faith actually has the opportunity to grow when you’re stumbling.”
Our strong faith in God is our refuge. This is where we draw confidence from when we have great challenges in life. We just have to believe that the Lord will never leave us.
He’s always got our backs. No matter how violent our storms may be. In our First Reading God reminds Job of this. God is the Creator and Lord of the universe. Nothing can be greater or more powerful. In Biblical terms, the wind and sea represent the forces of evil deemed at work in creation. The fact that Jesus calms the storm is an exercise of divine power. When God commands, nature has no choice but to obey.
Brothers and sisters, we are reminded through today’s mass readings that we need to persevere in faith and trust that God is in control. Our faith assures us that Jesus is ever-present and ever-living. We need to trust Him more. We must walk toward Him at all times. We must allow Jesus to take us to safer shores.
Sunday Gospel Reflections 