Thursday, Third Week in Ordinary Time

In the time of Jesus an oil lamp in people’s small houses would be lit at night to give some light in the house. It would never be hidden away but placed on a stand where it was likely to give the most light. Jesus brought the light of God’s love into the world. He did not hide that light away but allowed it to shine brightly through him. He came to shine the light of God’s love on all. Even as he hung from the cross in the darkness of Calvary, that light was shining through him. Indeed at that dark moment it was shining ever more brightly. In giving his life for all he was showing that the light of God’s love could shine even in the darkest of hours, when the powers of darkness seemed to be prevailing. That light which Jesus brought into the world continues to shine upon us today, even in our own valleys of darkness. As followers of the risen Lord who is the light of the world, we never walk in total darkness. We are called to open ourselves to this divine light, to keep turning towards it. One of the ways we do this is by listening to the Lord’s word, as it comes to us in the Scriptures and from deep within our own hearts. In the gospel reading, Jesus says, ‘Take notice of what you are hearing. The amount the measure out is the amount you will be given’. In other words, the more attentively we listen to the Lord, the more we will receive. The more we turn towards the light, towards the Lord present in his word, the more the Lord will fill our lives with his light, and the more we will be carriers of that light, the light of the Lord’s love, to others.