Homily for 19^th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2008

In terms of sheer spectacle, Jesus walking on water does not compare these days with an Olympic Opening Ceremony. Technology has made commonplace what years ago would be regarded as miraculous or the work of devils or angels.

Jesus power over the watery chaos is not about spectacle, of course. It is about who we put our trust in. Can we put our trust in our selves alone to make the passage through life? The wonders of human achievement in all areas of life are on show at the Olympics and we rightly take joy in what we have been able to achieve. It is only when we lose sight of the source and origin of all we do that like Peter we quickly sink into chaos once again.

Even though Peter was called by Jesus to come to him across the water, Peter was still the vulnerable human being he always was. To forget that simple fact is to lose faith. When you live in a family or a close community we are reminded of our limitations every day. So you would think we would not make the same mistake as Peter. But we do. We are no different. We can still lose heart and sink.

The Olympics put before the world a dream of peace and harmony through sport. Daily, however, we are reminded of how big the gulf is between that dream and the reality of our own lives and of nations. While we can easily put people in space we still have difficulty in living and sharing the gifts of our world together in our families and communities. That remains our challenge now as it was in Elijah's day, as it was in Jesus day, and as it was in Paul's day as he anguished over his own people of Israel who did not seem to accept Jesus.

Elijah had fled for his life from Queen Jezabel and was told to go to the mountain of God, Horeb, often identified as Mt Sinai, the place where Moses encountered God. Again one could expect a display of power like Moses did before the burning bush or in the cloud and thunder and light when he was given the Commandments. But here the display of power was empty. God passed by as a gentle breeze, or a sheer silence as some translations put it.

Jesus too, went up a mountain. He wanted to be by himself. This is his second attempt to have some quiet time since he heard of John the Baptist's execution. Last week we heard how the crowds followed him and he responded with compassion in spite of his own need to be alone and pray. Presumably, he was grieving and praying about John and his death and what it would mean for him. In this passage of Matthew he sends the disciples away in the boat and goes up the mountain to pray.

He in prayer is at one with the Father. The disciples are struggling with the wind and waves. He goes to them. As the Father is always with him, he is always with his disciples. When we are troubled or failing we are tempted to move away feeling we are not good enough. Rather, we should not abandon ship but stay close together in the boat. No matter how great the difficulty, even death itself, we can still trust God to be with us. Let us stay with God. God will walk on water to be with us! God is love. Before such awesome love we tremble in fear. Like the disciples in the boat we can do nothing else but worship the risen Lord. The God who sees into our most secret hearts still loves us. This is the pledge of the Eucharist.

Fr Graham