Thursday, 7 November 2024

THE KING OF SPAIN

 

THE KING OF SPAIN

One image that stays with me all this week is not the American election but the sight of the King of Spain, Philip VI, walking through the crowds in Valencia in Spain where there were devastating floods, composed but unprotected - because the crowds had broken through the security cordon – and being pelted with insults, including ‘murderer’, and mud. People were furious that the government had not warned them of the impending storm that destroyed their homes and killed their relatives and fellow citizens.

It was not the king’s fault but his calmness, composure and understanding of their anger, was very moving. He was unconcerned about his own safety and focussed only on hearing their anguish. It was a remarkable demonstration of compassion. I know nothing of the man himself but this one glimpse was, I think, revealing. I could not help thinking of Jesus walking through the crowds on Palm Sunday as he entered Jerusalem hearing the cries of Hosannah which were a prelude to later cries of ‘Crucify him.’

As we hear, this Sunday, of the poor widow who ‘gave all she had’ in the temple treasury, we sense the attentiveness of Jesus to people. He notices everything. And he rejoices in the wild ‘impractical’ gesture of the woman who gives away all she had. He does not rejoice in her material poverty but in the poverty of her heart. She risks everything in order to do what she believes she is called to do and the heart of Jesus goes out to her.

What must strike us today when we walk, in our imagination, through the shattered streets of Gaza, the pulverized cities of Ukraine or the deserted villages of Sudan, is the seeming total absence of compassion our world so often shows to those whose lives are being destroyed. What possible political gain can outweigh the misery the people suffer? They must be hard people without pity who treat their fellow human beings in such a way.   

As Christians, and people of good will, we are called to be compassionate and attentive to the suffering of people around us and to pray that our world will turn away from indifference, hatred and violence and embrace the attractive and joyful message of the gospel. It is a message where pain is a prelude to revelation, healing and joy, just as the passion of Jesus was a prelude to his resurrection.

10 November 2024       Sunday 32B     1 Kings 17:10-16          Heb 9:24-28        Mk 12:38-44 

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