Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
1 Kings 19:9a, 11-13a
Romans 9:1-5
Matthew 14:22-33
Early in my teaching career, I discovered a wonderful little song that the children loved. They were enamored of the tune and I loved the words. The song related many of the Hebrew Bible stories that the children were just learning, but it was the refrain that captured my attention: “Surprise! Surprise! God is a surprise right before your eyes.” Surely, this has always been true. God is found in the unexpected.
The early Jews saw wind, earthquakes and fire as manifestations of God. Even though Elijah wanted to free the Jews from naturalism so that they would more easily embrace monotheism, he himself was surprised not to find God in natural phenomena. Elijah discovered God not in the breeze but in the silence. Only the believer hears God’s voice. And so it is with us. God seems silent in our secular world and yet we hear him.
The Gospel tells a similar tale. The triumph of God over the waters was an important theme for the Jews, who described creation as God’s victory over the sea and the evils within it. Peter and the apostles have power over the forces of evil, as long as they have faith and confidence in Christ.
Believers search for God in different places, but they still seek him. Some, like Elijah, try to find God in nature. Others look for him in human accomplishment.
St. Paul anguished with the thought that even his talents and persuasive powers could not ensure faith. Poor St. Peter--believing Peter--was frightened by faith, so frightened that he temporarily put it out of his life. Nonetheless, it is difficult to tell 21st century Americans that faith is the one miracle clearly beyond their powers.
The most miraculous thing about miracles is that they do not happen just once. They are occasions that are always happening if they occur at all. Unless we are confronted with the miracle of our existence, we will never see the “miracle of the moment.” For each of us, there is a “burning bush,” a “bringing to life.” For each of us, there is an encounter with the Almighty—a wonderful surprise.
The little miracle of an outstretched hand is part of the miracle of brotherhood and sisterhood. The little miracle of one person believing in another is the beginning of the miracle of faith in God. The miracle of a single breath is the foundation for the great miracle of life. Those who believe in these little miracles can believe in the great miracle of the Father’s love. We have seen our “burning bush” and have been brought to life as surely as Lazarus.
At Eucharist, we gather to say we believe in little miracles and that we are open to the great miracle of Jesus and the gift of faith. We gather to promise to bring these little miracles to the world, to non-believers. We promise to be the signs by which the world will realize the presence of God in their lives.
