November 17, 2019: Unreasonable Hope

On the thirtieth anniversary of the martydom of six Jesuits, their cook, and her 15-year-old daughter in El Salvador, Katie Lacz preaches for the Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, offering a reflection on unreasonable hope: "The deaths of martyrs can feel like total loss. Like victories for the powers that be. A reminder of our insignificance in the face of the wars, insurrection, earthquakes, famine, and plagues that Jesus names in the Gospel today. But we are a people of unreasonable hope. Hope that in the final say, the evildoers will be stubble and God’s love will heal like the rays of the sun, as the prophet Malachi writes. Hope that, as the second reading reminds us, how we are in community matters and reflects who we are as Christians. Hope that beyond the violence and chaos in this world – even peeking through it, if you look hard enough – is the reign of God, the upside-down reign where the last are first, the lowly are lifted up, the hungry are fed, and all people are revealed in their fullness as beloved children of God." Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/11172019 to learn more about Katie, to read her preaching text or see her video, and for more preaching from Catholic women.