26th Friday in Ordinary time, Yr 2, Feast of St. Jerome, September 30, 2022
Jb 38:1, 12-2, 40:3-5; Ps 139:1-3, 7-10, 13-14; Lk 10:13-16
If it wasn’t for the Doctors of the Church, I wonder where we would be? Would we really understand what God was telling us? It is through the Doctors and their impeccable insight that God’s Word becomes real, present, and relevant to us today. On this day, we celebrate the feast of St. Jerome, one of the earliest doctors the Church has. He lived from about 341 to 420 A.D., and like many of us, living a Christian life, but not taking it seriously, that is, until he had a vision in the year 374 from Christ who admonished him for putting more emphasis on Roman literature than Christian writings. This vision changed his life. He began studying Christianity and was ordained a priest.
St. Jerome then devoted his life to scholarly pursuits and began translating the scriptures, revising the Latin version of the New Testament, the vulgate, which we base our version of the Bible on. It was through his efforts that we have the Bible as we know it today. He also wrote countless commentaries and combated many heresies of the time. He died on September 30, 420, after a long illness. St. Jerome is a lesson of listening to God’s messages and allowing God to work through him for the good of all.
Our readings today also speak of that message, of listening to God and allowing God to do His work. The messages may seem harsh at times; Job, being pressured to answer unanswerable questions, and Jesus condemning several cities. But the message is clear, listen to God and let Him do the heavy lifting. In addition, if we refuse to listen, the consequences are forever, “whoever rejects me, rejects the one who sent me.” The psalmist has it right, no matter where we look or go, God is there, and He knows us intimately. Let us be now like St. Jerome and listen when God calls, allowing God to guide us along the everlasting way.
Saint James Catholic Church 