Homily given by Bishop Nicholas Hudson in Jerusalem for the feast of St Agnes
'God has chosen what is foolish in the world to shame the wise,' says Saint Paul. Saint Agnes must have been considered very foolish – in the sense used by Paul. She must have been considered foolish to let herself be put to death.
Why?
Because she refused to renounce her virginity. Yet we still talk about her seventeen centuries later. We admire her for her courage and her virtue.
I heard just this week of a much more contemporary example. It was an example of what people would consider foolish. An Israeli hostage was released.And she was seen on TV saying to her captors, 'Shalom'. 'Peace,' she told them. Her action caused outrage. People thought she was deeply foolish.
Yet we Christians should not be outraged. Because Our Lord and Master did the same. He said of those who were crucifying him, 'Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.' The first thing he said to those who had abandoned him to die was, 'Peace.'
In the Middle East, we need Christians who say, 'Peace.' This is not just my idea. It is Cardinal Pizzaballa’s. He will tell you: Christians in the Middle East have a vocation to be peacemakers.
We met a Christian last week who lives in an enclave surrounded by illegal settlements. He said, 'I refuse to be a victim.' 'I refuse to be an enemy.'
To say, 'Peace', to your enemy is to show you still hope in him. I like what the Patriarch says about hope and faith.
'Hope is a daughter of faith,' he says. 'If you have faith, you need to express it.' 'The expression of faith is hope, because hope then becomes active.' What action does the Patriarch mean?
He means action for peace.
The French have a very striking phrase. It captures all of this. The phrase is: Pardonner, c’est porter la faiblesse de l’autre. It means: 'To forgive is to bear the weakness of the other.' It implies seeking to understand the weakness of the other; yet still to hope in him. It means you continue to believe in the other; hope in him.
The world may consider you foolish. But, in due course, they will see your virtue. They will see the virtue of your forgiveness. Jesus says to us, 'Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall inherit the earth.' But the words he speaks to us today remind us there can be a cost.
For peace is hidden treasure. Peace is a pearl of great price. Peace is the treasure which waits to be unearthed from the soil of this Holy Land.
The Christians of the Holy Land have a particular vocation. Their vocation is to bring this treasure, this pearl, to the surface – and to let it shine for generations to come!
Photo: Manzur/cbcew.org.uk