Corinth was located in south-central Greece; it was a coastal town and that helped make it wealthy and that wealth helped it become one of the most immoral places of Paul’s time. Add to that the fact that the Greeks believed that the body is irrelevant and the soul is what made a man. They had a saying that the “body is a tomb”. The Greek philosopher Epictetus said “I am a poor soul shackled to a corpse.” Not a pretty image but that’s what St. Paul was up against in his first letter to the Corinthians. He was trying to help them realize that the body and the soul are both sacred and they needed to see God in both as he wrote:
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.
This attitude in Corinth was what was keeping them from fully realizing Christ, fully understanding God. Fulfilling their physical bodily pleasures with food, drinking, and...well “other” things were outside noise getting in the way of their prayer and devotion to the one true God.
Sometimes even with no noise, we might still miss God’s call if we are not alert to it. Poor Samuel, in today's first reading, hadn't had his coffee yet when God decided to call upon him and he would have missed it if not for a good spiritual guide. Of course, it might also have been that Samuel was very young. It was Eli who realized what was going on, perhaps Eli had a cup of coffee already when we read:
Then Eli understood that the LORD was calling the youth. So he said to Samuel, “Go to sleep, and if you are called, reply, Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.” When Samuel went to sleep in his place, the LORD came and revealed his presence, calling out as before, “Samuel, Samuel!” Samuel answered, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
There was no noise in the world that could have disturbed John the Baptist from knowing Jesus. John got it, he followed Christ and not the whims of men. When John saw Jesus walking past, John boldly proclaimed in front of his own disciples:
“Behold, the Lamb of God.” The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus.
John didn’t care that he lost two disciples that day, his job was to proclaim and point to Christ and that day he did just that, and away went his disciples to follow Jesus instead.
What is interesting is that the disciples literally started following Jesus and apparently from a bit of a distance.
Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, “What are you looking for?”
Did they know what they were looking for at that moment? Did they know they had found Jesus the Messiah or just another prophet? Did they want a prayer life or power? Were they just curious? They were following Jesus but at a “safe” distance perhaps because of apprehension of what they thought the “lamb of God” would be. Whatever the reason, Jesus turns and meets them. They sought, they followed and Jesus met them.
They stayed with Jesus that day and it’s clear that was enough as Andrew went to his brother Simon and declared
“We have found the Messiah”
Have we found the Messiah? Do we ever spend any time in silence, real silence, looking? When we find him, what do we want from him? Are we willing to let go of things to get closer to him?
If we have found the Messiah do we say speak Lord, your servant is listening?
Your homework for this week will be to spend some time, at Church, at home, or in Adoration looking for the Messiah and listening. Turn off your TV, radio, phone, google home, Alexa, and any other outside noise. Listen for the Messiah and say “speak Lord, your servant is listening”.
Mother Teresa has told us:
We need to find God, and He cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. We need silence to be able to touch souls.
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