March 8, 2021
St. John of God
Truth-Telling
There were many widows in Israel… It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.
Luke 4:25-27

A prophet, or a spokesperson for God, is sometimes tasked to relate a hard truth. In his first act of public ministry, Jesus tells the people something they don’t want to hear: God may favor a member of another tribe over them—that where humans draw a line between “us” and “them,” God sees no barrier—maybe he even favors the outcast. It’s a lesson throughout Jesus’ ministry: spending time with women, tax collectors, Roman soldiers and those deemed unclean for one reason or another. Jesus condemns the status quo. The crowd cannot dispute what Jesus says—they become enraged and want to eliminate the truth-teller. Again and again in Scripture and human history, telling people hard truths is not appreciated. In fact, it can get you killed.

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2 Kings 5:1-15ab • Psalms 42:2-3; 43:3-4 Luke 4:24-30
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