jason1

August 1

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Saturday, August 1

MATTHEW 14:1-12

The story of the martyrdom of my friend John.

Prayerthoughts
a. Herodias and Herod were evil people. There are many evil people in the world, although I should not judge them. Perhaps I should take the time to pray for those that I consider to be evil.

b. Herod enjoyed the dance. There is nothing wrong with legitimate pleasure. Pleasure becomes immoral when people are hurt because of it. What pleasures do I enjoy in life, and are they good in the sense that no one is hurt?

c. There are many people who are hurt because of the evil. What people are most hurting in my own little world? Can I do anything about it?

d. Herodias “used” her daughter for her own evil desires. Do I “use” anyone in my acquaintances to get what I want?

e. Generalizing from the fact that Herodias was a young person, do I treat the young people in my immediate circle with the respect they deserve?

f. John’s disciples buried him. Do I show sorrow for my friends’ families who have died, like go to the funerals and help the families if they need it?

g. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will read Jeremiah 26:11-16 and write an important thought from it.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

OUR CONSCIENCES

+ As Matthew saw it in the Gospel, Herod killed John the Baptist because of ill-founded human respect

- although he knew that he should not have done it, he did it anyway

- it may have been Herod’s conscience that bothered him with regard to keeping John alive,

- but it wasn’t strong enough to keep him from giving into what others wanted

- as we look at our own consciences, we see the importance of having a strong foundation

- almost like a law set up to form it

- as God had to set up laws for the Israelites to make them be the type of people he wanted them to be

- and as we look at our own consciences, we see the importance of knowing and understanding the Lord’s words, making him the pattern and measure of everything that we do

+ The prophet Jeremiah had to be a brave man

- he had to speak very difficult things, saying to the Israelites:

- “reform your ways and your deeds, listen to the Lord, so that the Lord will repent of the evil which he threatens you”

- and saying to them that is in the name of the Lord that he speaks

+ We take the thoughts of Jeremiah with the idea of conscience and a couple of things stand out:

- our consciences should be formed by realizing the principles that Jesus gave us by his life and teachings

- we are New Testament people, of course, and Jesus is our guide,

- but thinking back to Jeremiah, a couple of things that we should especially be interested in:

- one, that we are all sinners, and need to reform our lives

- two, we are all speakers for faith in God: it is in the name of the Lord that we speak and live

+ The Hebrew Scriptures wanted to legislate conscience

- law was so important

- too often we got all hung up on law as well

- our law must only be what Jesus wanted

- and we form our consciences accordingly.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Movie: "Jason Bourne" -- beginning session

THE SANCTITY OF TRUTH

The Gospel

JOHN 9:13-17

They brought the one who was once blind to the Pharisees. Now Jesus had made clay and opened his eyes on a sabbath. So then the Pharisees also asked him how he was able to see. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see.” So some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, because he does not keep the sabbath.” But others said, “How can a sinful man do such signs?” And there was a division among them. So they said to the blind man again, “What do you have to say about him, since he opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”

Gospelthink: The blind man told the truth about me. Am I truthful in my approach to life?

David Webb who assumed the identity of Jason Bourne in the movie named after him was always a problem for the CIA. The organization had "created" him in the first place in order to carry out the different "black ops" programs that they wanted. The organization had been keeping tabs on him ever since he went into self-exile. A co-worker of David's, Nicky Parsons, discovered some unknown facts about David's father, and wanted David to know exactly what their organization, the CIA, did in order to convince David to be Jason Bourne. In the process of accomplishing it, she also became a target.

Because Jesus said and did controversial things in the eyes of the religious leaders of his time, he no doubt caused people to be very outspoken. John the evangelist gives us such a story in his Gospel. It is a rather long story that deals with the fact that Jesus healed a man who became the center of attention for a number of people. The religious leaders were very interested because they did not believe that Jesus was anything special and all he did was break the law. They also had the right to condemn their fellow Israelites, and place them in an adversarial position with their religion.

Consequently when one of their religious subjects went against their position, he/she was taking a chance on being cast outside of their religious circle. It is in such a position that the healed blind man found himself. But he made his belief known even at the risk of being ridiculed or threatened by those in charge. He boldly proclaimed to the religious leaders that "he is a prophet."

There are similar instances throughout history in which seeking and proclaiming the truth may carry with it consequences that could jeopardize well-being. In the movie "Jason Bourne," Nicky Parsons, Jason's fellow worker wanted her friend Jason to have the truth as Jason tried to determine his complicated background. She risked even death to bring the truth to light.

We probably will never risk our lives in order to make a truth known, but it is a truly Christian thought that we should honor the truth in such a way that we will defend it with our lives. Unfortunately in our day and age, the sanctity of truth is not as paramount as it should be. Lying or not speaking the truth when it should be spoken is too often the usual fare. Perhaps our reading of the Gospels ought to lead us to proclaim the truth, no matter what the cost.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, Your Son led people to truly accept the truth and allow it to direct their lives. Give us the grace to understand the importance of the truth as we see it, and the courage to make it known if we should. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDELINES FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: Sometimes helping others who are searching for the truth may hurt us, and we must be prepared for it.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(session: approximately 61 minutes)
1. What scene during this session of the movie is most striking? Why?
2. What are some signs that a person in today's world is "from God"?
3. In general, why do you think the religious leaders had such strict rules for the Sabbath?
4. In our Christian world today, do you think that we should show more respect for our Sabbath which is on Sunday? Yes or no and why?
5. In our world today, do you believe that Christians are threatened because of their faith? Yes or no and why?
6. In general, do most people have respect for the truth?
7. As you study our world, where do you see the most dishonesty?
8. Besides the obvious fact of killing someone else, why is the occupation of "assassin" wrong in a Christian way of understanding things?
9. There are obviously secrets in the various organizations of any country? In your opinion, are some of the secrets that are kept against the moral law of a Christian? Yes or no and why?
10. Scene analysis: Nicky dies trying to help Bourne. In your opinion, is "dying for the other" a principle of every adult friendship? Yes or no and why?