Daily Reflections- August 4, 2012

DELIGHT, DEATH and DELIVERANCE   The twists and turns of Herodias’s daughter evidently caught the attention of the chief. Her gyrations surely delighted the drooling figure on the throne. The entertainment proved to be too delightful a treat that it eventually derailed the sense of values of an already corrupt leader. Like Herod, we find delight in things not necessarily honorable, like taking advantage of the ignorance of others, their poverty, their youth, or their lack of education. Two years ago, when the whole convoluted issue of corruption from among the ranks of the Armed Forces of the Philippines erupted, the underlying bigger issue of the abuse of power came to the fore. The cat is out of the bag! Powerful Herods still prey on hapless and helpless Simons and Salomes, taking advantage of the power differential to draw more than just delight from simple dance routines. We saw this in certain lunch time shows on TV — how the teeming masses of the poor are manipulated, their emotions toyed with, and their ignorance taken full advantage of, all in the name of helping them. Sadly, we saw this, too, in the dastardly acts of wolves in sheep’s clothing, who prey on the young through sexual abuse in certain quarters in the Church that we love. The damsel’s dance that brought sinful delight to a drooling despot was what led to the death of a dedicated prophet, John the Baptist. He was not one to draw delight from others. No, he was one who gave, and gave his all whatever the cost. Sent to deliver an advanced message about someone bigger and more important than him, he ruffled not just a few feathers, and drew, not delight, but derision and scorn and a lot of destructive anger. The manipulative and scheming mother of the dancing damsel was able to channel all that anger and insecurity to assure the prophet’s death. But God writes straight with crooked lines. His death paved the way for our own deliverance! Fr. Chito Dimaranan, SDB   REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Have you been a victim of abusive power? Or are you one of those who abuse your power to prey on helpless victims?   Lord Jesus, You showed us how a person with real power should act and use that power. May we learn from You.