The Gift Job Never Lost

Homily for Wednesday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time

Frequently, when we speak of the character of Job from the Hebrew Scriptures, we might make the passing comment that Job has lost everything. However, that is not quite true, and it quickly becomes obvious in today’s passage that Job realizes that he has not lost everything.

Yes, Job has lost his wealth, his herds, his tents, his servants, and, in what seems to be the cruelest blow yet, his children. His so-called friends and his wife urged him to admit his wrongdoing which, in their eyes, is the reason that God has stripped him of everything. His wife and his neighbors fail to understand that Job has retained the most important gift he had been given; namely, he still had his relationship with God. Consequently, when his wife and his friends urge him to give that up, Job stands before them and us and comments on the futility of such thinking.

Job begins by saying, “Should one wish to contend with God, one could not answer God once in a thousand times. God is wise in heart and mighty in strength; who has withstood God and remained unscathed?” From that premise, Job goes on to remind us all that God controls the powers of nature, that God has fashioned the wonders of the stars and constellations by which human beings navigate, and that, even if we found ourselves standing before God, God is so immense that we would not even fathom God’s presence. For these reasons, Job chooses to retain the one gift that God has given him – his faith. Throughout this testing, throughout all of his loss, Job remembers that he still has the greatest gift; namely, the presence of God in his life.

The Gospel passage for today backs up Job’s contention. Jesus maintains that following him is far more important than family relationships, than a secure home, or even the good fortune we might inherit in life.

When we are asked how we know that we have this great gift, we need only point to the Eucharist – God among us, living with us, speaking to us, answering our prayers, and showering us with love.