The first reading at Mass today [Job 38:12-21; 40:3-5] is God’s answers to Job’s questions about suffering and more importantly the suffering and bad things that seem to happen to good people. The suffering of the innocent, after all, has been a question that humanity has grappled with since the beginning of time.

God’s answer to Job does not seem to be an answer at all. God answers Job’s complaints with questions about Job’s understanding of the mysteries of the world. For instance:
Tell me, if you know all: Which is the way to the dwelling place of light, and where is the abode of darkness, That you may take them to their boundaries and set them on their homeward paths? You know, because you were born before them, and the number of your years is great!

Job humbly responds to God’s questions of him by submitting himself to God’s will:
Then Job answered the LORD and said: Behold, I am of little account; what can I answer you? I put my hand over my mouth. Though I have spoken once, I will not do so again; though twice, I will do so no more.

In other words, the answer to suffering, whether justified or unjustified, seems to be that we need to let God be God. As the prophet, Isaiah, said in Isaiah 55:
as high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are God’s ways above our ways.

What does it mean to let God be God? One way that we do this is by fear of the Lord. Proverbs 9 states that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The word “fear” conjures up all sorts of images. But the fear of the Lord speaks about our awareness of God’s love for us. To fear the Lord is to recognize that God’s nature is love. Everything that God does speaks of God’s love for us. Jesus’ words in John 3 need to always “ring” in our ears, and most especially when we are dealing with our trials and suffering:
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. [John 3:16]

In the middle to our trials, with the noise of our suffering and difficulties filling our minds, it is hard to hear these words about God’s love. At those times, I encourage people to use the words of Psalm 46:
Be still and know that I am God.
What is required is to sit quietly with Jesus. Sit in a chair; move to one side; and invite Jesus to be present on the other side. During the time together, to resist the temptation to speak and share the struggles that one is having. Rather to just sit quietly with one another. As my seminary spiritual director would say, to sit together and let Jesus love on you.

To let God be God also requires us to know God. We celebrate Saint Jerome at Mass today, one of the early scripture scholars of the church. He is credited with the Vulgate (Latin) translation of scripture. He stated that ignorance of scripture is ignorance of God. If we need to allow God to lead us, especially during difficult times when we have to trust in God’s love, we need to know him. Scripture is an essential way of knowing God. Saint Jerome considered scripture to be like the Eucharist, the body and blood of Jesus:
For me, the Gospel is the Body of Christ; for me, the holy Scriptures are his teaching. And when he says: whoever does not eat my flesh and drink my blood (Jn 6:53), even though these words can also be understood of the [Eucharistic] Mystery, Christ’s body and blood are really the word of Scripture, God’s teaching. When we approach the [Eucharistic] Mystery, if a crumb falls to the ground we are troubled. Yet when we are listening to the word of God, and God’s Word and Christ’s flesh and blood are being poured into our ears yet we pay no heed, what great peril should we not feel?”
Scripture can nourish us like the Eucharist, especially in times of trial.

In the gospel at Mass today [Luke 10:13-16], Jesus reminds us to listen to him speaking through the authorities of the church:
Whoever listens to you listens to me. Whoever rejects you rejects me. And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me." [v.16]
How much suffering is created in our world by human sin and not listening to God? Time and time again scripture reminds us that disobeying God’s commands and God’s will do not lead to prosperity. The Book of Deuteronomy speaks about a way of life and a way of death; the two ways are obedience or disobedience. Saint John Paul II reminded the youth at a world youth day of this fact:
The twentieth century often tried to do without that cornerstone [Jesus}, and attempted to build the city of man without reference to Him. It ended by actually building that city against man! Christians know that it is not possible to reject or ignore God without demeaning man.

If we believe the pope’s words, we are reminded of the importance of living our faith.

• Living our faith means sharing the good news intended to build in the kingdom of God where peace and harmony can reign.
• Living our faith means walking with those who are suffering so that they can experience the compassion and mercy of God.
• Living our faith means reminding young people who are abandoning the faith that the road that they are following does not lead to abundant life. Only Jesus, the Good Shepherd, can lead us to that destiny as he reminds us in John 10:10:

A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.
 

We celebrate the archangels today. While we acknowledge the 3 archangels mentioned in scripture – Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael – an ancient Irish prayer mentions other archangels. As spiritual creatures created with free wills, they had the choice of obedience or disobedience to God’s will. Saint John Paul II mentioned this fact in a 1986 general audience:
In the perfection of their spiritual nature, angels are called from the beginning, by virtue of their intelligence, to know the truth and love the good, which is known to them in a far fuller and more perfect way than is possible to humans. This love is the act of a will that is free..., which means having the possibility to make a choice for or against the Good, namely God Himself.

Regarding the angelic creatures who chose against God’s will, Saint John Paul II stated in his audience:
The Fathers of the Church and theologians do not hesitate to speak of a “blindness” produced by over-evaluating the perfection of their own being so far as to conceal the supremacy of God who, to the contrary, demands acts of docile, obedient submission. All this would seem to be concisely expressed in the words: “I will not serve!” (Jer 2,20)… Satan, the rebellious spirit, wants his own reign not that of God, and sets himself up as the Creator's chief adversary by opposing Providence and as an antagonist of God's loving wisdom. Out of Satan's rebellion and sin, as also from that of man, we must draw our conclusion, accepting the wise experience of Scripture when it affirms: “Arrogance is the cause of ruin

In the gospel at Mass today [John 1:47-51], Nathaniel encounters Jesus at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. Jesus remarks how Nathaniel has used his will like the archangels in obedience to God’s will:
Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, "Here is a true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him [v.47]

Being without duplicity means that Nathaniel – and hopefully US! – are people of integrity. We say “yes” when we mean “yes” and “no” when we mean “no.” Out of love for God, like the archangels, we say “yes” to God’s will. As people of integrity and disciples of Jesus, we let our light shine before others; we do not hide our light under a bushel basket at times. We live and act as Jesus instructed us in Matthew 5:
You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.[v. 14-16]

When I celebrate infant baptisms, I often share the story of Henry Sanders the actor who played the part of a blacksmith in the television show Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. Henry, like Nathaniel, acted as a man of integrity:
Henry Sanders was an actor working in a small theater in Alabama when he received a call offering him a part as the blacksmith in the TV show, Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. Many actors would have immediately left the small theater for the brighter lights of Hollywood. But as Henry thought about the offer, he realized that he had accepted the part in the small theater in good faith and he should honor his commitment. The other actors were counting on him. As he sat in his motel room reflecting on the offer, he thought about who he was and what he believed in. He remembered how his mother had always stressed Jesus’ words about our “yes” meaning “yes” and our “no” meaning “no.” So with a heavy heart he called the TV producer the next day and told him that he could not accept the part. Eventually the producer called Henry back and offered him the part. The producer was so impressed with Henry’s sense of honor and fidelity that he was willing to wait until Henry had finished his commitment to the small theater in Alabama.

Integrity. Being people of integrity, we act in an opposite way to Satan and the fallen angels. They used their free wills to say, “I will not serve.” We use our free wills to say, “I will serve.” It is interesting to see what people of integrity can do with their lives in service of the Lord. The saints are wonderful role models of this. They accomplished incredible things during their lifetimes. For instance, Mother Teresa made a vow during her religious life that she would not refuse anything that God would ask of her. Her vow was made with an understanding to refuse God would have been a mortal sin for her. Of course there were occasions where she struggled to say “yes” to God’s will. But she did. Consider what she has done. The number of vocations in men and women, the number of facilities to care for the needy, the number of needy and abandoned that have been helped by her.

Saint Francis Cabrini was another saint who accomplished many things in her ministry to the immigrants in the United States. As one article said about her:
She welcomed delinquent youths into safe homes and taught them to live upright and holy lives. She consoled those who were in prison and recalled to them the hope of eternal life. She encouraged prisoners to reform themselves and to live honest lives.
She comforted the sick and the infirm in the hospitals and diligently cared for them. She extended a friendly and helping hand especially to immigrants and offered them necessary shelter and relief, for having left their homeland behind, they were wandering about in a foreign land with no place to turn for help. Because of their condition she saw that they were in danger of deserting the practice of Christian virtues and their Catholic faith.
She accomplished all this through the faith which as always so vibrant and alive in her heart; through the divine love which burned within her; and, finally, through constant prayer by which she was closely united with God form whom she humbly asked and obtained whatever her human weakness could not obtain.

After daily Mass, we recite the prayer to Saint Michael, the Archangel. He is the defender of the faithful and of our faith. God gives us the archangels and angels to help us on journey to sainthood. Saint Michael is a great archangel to call upon when we are tempted to act in a way contrary to Nathaniel in today’s gospel.
 Saint Michael Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil; may God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.