to blow a gale. The waves spilled over into the boat, so that it was soon filled with water. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion.
They woke him up, and said, “Master, don’t you care if we drown?” And rising up, Jesus rebuked the wind, and ordered the sea, “Quiet
now! Be still!” The wind dropped, and there was a great calm. Then Jesus said to them, “Why are you so frightened? Do you still have no
faith?” But they were terrified, and they said to one another, “Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”
Reflection:
Nathan is a prophet much needed for our times—one
who can nonchalantly speak truth to the powers that
are, within and outside the Church, be it about statesponsored
terrorism, rejection of immigrants, climate change,
gender violence, sexual abuse, or clericalism. When nationwide
peaceful protests arose in a country when its government
ventured to pass a law that was clearly discriminatory, a citizenreligious
I know felt troubled by the silence of the Church in that
country and wrote to a church official about it. But the official’s
reply was an appeal to prudence as the Church was an easy
target for the government that had already initiated financial
investigations and income tax notices against ecclesial
institutions… Sadly, we would rather risk the sheep to preserve
our institutions and finances! We need Nathans who speak truth
to power.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2022