MATTHEW 12:15b-21

Many people followed Jesus and he cured them all, though he sternly ordered them not to make public what he had done. This was to fulfill what had been said through Isaiah the prophet: "Here is my servant whom I have chosen, my loved one in whom I delight. I will endow him with my spirit and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not contend or cry out, nor will his voice be heard in the streets. The bruised reed he will not crush; the smoldering wick he will not quench until judgment is made victorious. In his name, the Gentiles will find hope." 

Gospelthink: I fulfilled the words of the Hebrew Scriptures. Do I make the Lord's presence known by my life?

In their fight to discover the plans her father left for the eventual destruction of the Death Star that the Empire was building, Jyn and her group including Cassian and K-2SO, a droid that has been programmed to work with the rebel forces, set out alone to find the information. When the rebel fleet finally discovered that they might be able to help Jyn and her friends, they began to help them in their quest. Although Jyn and many rebels were killed by Darth Vader and the Empire forces, a small ship managed to escape with the captured plans. They were given to Princess Leia who declared that the plans will provide hope for the Rebellion.

Matthew the evangelist often quoted the Old Testament showing how Jesus fulfilled the promises spoken by Old Testament prophets. He wanted his Jewish readers to know that Jesus was the chosen one that was spoken of by the prophets like Isaiah, and that therefore there was hope for the people who would believe in His name. Such a hope was what the people of Jesus's time needed. They knew only too well that life was not as good as it could have been, and they discovered how Jesus was the hope that they were expecting.

The rebel forces in the movie "Rogue One" understood that the destruction of the Death Star was the only hope they had. If they could not destroy it, the whole world would be governed by evil. Jyn and her fellow rebels gave up their lives, but were finally able to deliver the means by which the hope could be realized. All "Star Wars" fans know that Princess Leia was able to take what was delivered to her at the end of the movie and destroy the Death Star and free the world from evil domination. The last word spoken in the movie is the word "hope" and the message is that there is always hope for people who believe.

Of course, our hope is not in a plan to destroy death as portrayed in a fantasy movie. Our hope is in the True Force in a Christian's life, the same hope that Isaiah spoke of as quoted in Matthew's Gospel. Our hope is with the Lord Jesus who leads his believers to victory, both in this world and in the next.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, Your Son is the hope that we will always be Your sons and daughters. Give us the grace to accept His message completely so that we will be able to live that hope forever. Be with us, we pray.

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GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: Sometimes the only motivation we have is hope in God.
 
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(session: approximately 63 minutes)
1. What scene during this session of the movie is most striking? Why?
2. What is your definition of hope?
3. What is most hopeful about what is happening in our world? Why?
4. Why is Christianity a hopeful religion?
5. Analysis: Why did Cassian not kill Galen like he was told to?
6. Analysis: Can there be "peace" without warfare? Yes or no and why?
7. What does the movie "Rogue One" teach young people?

©2007 Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America