Bad weather, road damage does not stop feast day celebration
July 29, 2022
Sunday July 31st: The fool’s way
July 31, 2022
“The King was distressed but, thinking of the oaths he had sworn and of his guests,”…
Matthew 14:1-12
John, a prophet, faithfully proclaimed the Word, calling people to repentance. He therefore condemned Herod and Herodias’ adulterous relationship. They were not pleased but Herodias was overcome with anger and bitterness.
Herod was seduced by Herodias’ daughter’s dance at his birthday celebrations and in his stupor, he foolishly makes an oath that Herodias revengefully manipulated by her request for John’s head. Herod was distressed and, in a quandary, as he knew what was right but he had to appease his wife and was unable to renege on the oath made in the presence of his influential guests.
Familiar? Perhaps not so deliberate but, in essence, a moral dilemma. In our hearts we know what is right, but allow the seductive powers of a person, job, desire, an emotion, addiction, experience to confuse us and pull us away from what is right. The Holy Spirit’s help is necessary in differentiating the attractions that lead us closer to God and those that are distractions, that we must separate ourselves from, as they subtly move us away.
Photo by Alex Green
