Overview:

Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

A Reflection for Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

“Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.” (Mark 1:35)

Find today’s readings here.

When I began studying theology and practicing my faith more intentionally as a young adult, I encountered two distinct types of Christians: those who gravitated toward a devotional life of prayer, meditation and adoration, and those who emphasized a more active faith life through works of charity and social justice. The two weren’t always exclusive, but people definitely had preferences.

As a younger person, I was almost instinctively drawn to the latter. “What good was a life of prayer and devotion,” I thought, “if it had no concrete impact on the church and the world?” So I joined the social justice committee in graduate school, started donating money to Catholic organizations working for structural change and began reading liberation theology (which I didn’t really understand).

I did try to engage in more prayer and meditation, but I found it challenging to practice and, if I’m completely honest, a bit hollow. As I recalled in this reflection during the Synod on Synodality, I even tried reading Thomas Merton’s autobiography, “The Seven Story Mountain.” I hated it. It’s the story of a contemplative Christian in the making and I couldn’t relate. Then, 10 years later, I tried reading it again and couldn’t put it down.

What happened? The short answer is: life happened. If we’re humble enough to self-reflect during our young adult years, we’ll observe, among other things, that our life experiences teach us that the structural problems “out there” are a reflection of structural problems “in here,” so to speak. The demons in our hearts and minds: judgement, pride, greed, envy… You know the list as well as I do. And it eventually becomes apparent that the only way to “fix” the church or the world, is to fix ourselves.

It turns out that’s even more difficult than fixing the church or the world. But there is a way. Today’s Gospel paints a portrait of Jesus in action: traveling, healing, drawing crowds, making quick and dramatic decisions. But this action is grounded in a contemplative life of quiet self-reflection and prayer. “Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.”

No one can honestly accuse Jesus of being apolitical or indifferent to the social challenges of his time. He was indeed a man of action. He could credibly speak truth to power because it came from a place of deep inner freedom; an inner freedom he fostered when he was alone in quiet prayer.

Today, when I contemplate the juxtaposition of Christians who gravitate toward a devotional life of prayer and those who emphasize working for charity and social justice, I try to remind myself that neither are credible in isolation; that one necessitates the other.

Sebastian Gomes is America's executive editor of audio and video.