Reading and meditation on the Word of God on Wednesday of the second week in ordinary time, January 21st, 2026, Memorial of Saint Agnes, Virgin and Martyr

Delivered by Kezia from the Parish of Sacred Heart of Jesus Cathedral in the Archdiocese of Makassar, Indonesia. 1 Samuel 17: 32-33.37.40-51; Rs psalm 144: 1.2.9-10; Mark 3: 1-6.EVIL AGAINST GOOD The title for our meditation today is: Evil Against Good. Inhuman history, we have seen many times a great clash between evil versus good.The story of David versus Goliath in the Old Testament is a very powerfulpicture: a small young man, without armor and without "proper"weapons of war, standing before a well-armed giant. Humanly speaking, it waslike an impossible fight. But David did not advance in his own strength; headvanced with faith, with the courage born of the conviction that this life isin the hands of God. Here we see that evil often appears intimidating, great,violent, and threatening, but good has a deeper power: the truth that comesfrom God. In the New Testament, the clash appears to be darker. ThePharisees, Herodians, and religious leaders united against Jesus not becauseJesus did evil, but because He brought a light that exposed falsehood. Evil isoften afraid of the truth, because the truth unmasks it. So Jesus wasconfronted in various ways: slander, traps, manipulation of the masses, and thedeath penalty. Outwardly, goodness seems to be defeated—the Son of God wascrucified. But kindness is not according to the size of the world. Goodnesstriumphs because Jesus does not repay hatred with hatred; He conquers violencewith love, and death with resurrection. Why does in this "war" good always win? First,because good is rooted in the eternal God, while evil is a fragile aberration.Second, because good unites, while evil ultimately destroys itself: it growsthrough lies, but lies always require new lies, until they finally collapse bycontradictions. Third, good has a creative vitality—it builds, restores, andgives hope—whereas evil is only capable of destroying and emptying. So whengoodness seems to be losing temporarily, it is actually planting the seed of greaterand purer victory. Why does evil lose, but never give up? Because evil has notrue "life"; It lives by sticking to the good and twisting it. Itcannot create, it can only falsify. Therefore it continues to fight againstGod, man, and even the order of the universe, because it is in that resistancethat it tries to survive. Evil also grows because of pride: it wants to be thecenter, it wants to dominate, it wants to be recognized. So it did not stop,because to stop means to admit that it was not God. This is where the tragedylies: evil continues to fight, but each struggle shows that it has no finalvictory. But we must also be honest: evil is not only "outthere", in a great enemy or an evil system, but also lurking in the humanheart: envy, resentment, manipulation, selfishness, petty injustices that areconsidered ordinary. Evil often loses on a large scale because God is faithful,but it persists on a small scale because man can be caught off guard.Therefore, the triumph of good is not just the heroic story of David or Jesus;It became a daily spiritual calling: choosing to be honest when it is easy tolie, choosing to forgive when the heart wants to retaliate, choosing to carewhen the world is used to destroying. Letus pray. In the name of the Father ... O God of truth and goodness, in You wetake refuge and in You we rely to always be blessed with Your gifts of goodnessand truth. Our Father who art in heaven... In the name of the Father ...