Gospel MT 12:38-42
Some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,
“Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.”
He said to them in reply,
“An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign,
but no sign will be given it
except the sign of Jonah the prophet.
Just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights,
so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth
three days and three nights.
At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah;
and there is something greater than Jonah here.
At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon;
and there is something greater than Solomon here.”
Reflection:
Some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,
“Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.”
Of the five senses, touch, sight, sound, taste, smell, touch is the one that most surely convinces us that something is real.
But, there are some things like God and love that cannot be proved by touch; we have to take them on faith.
Faith is believing in something that cannot be proven.
Today’s gospel reminds me of a scene in the movie, “Contact.”
Jodi Foster plays a scientist who does not believe in God because His presence could not be proven. Matthew McConaughey, her faith-filled lover, asks Jodi a question about her deceased father.
“Did your Dad love you?”
She answered, “Yes, of course he did.”
McConaughey replied, “Prove it.”
Frustrated with the lack of faith of the Pharisees and scribes, Jesus chastises them:
“At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah;
and there is something greater than Jonah here.”
And….“At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and there is something greater than Solomon here.”
Before sending His apostle out to spread the Good News he told them,
“And if any one will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town.”
Jesus does not want us spending time trying to convince those who refuse to believe.
This does not mean that Jesus does not care for or love people who do not believe in Him. It simply means that Jesus recognizes the futility of trying to prove that which can only be accepted by faith.
“For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who don’t believe, no proof is possible.” Stuart Chase