26 Jun Wednesday

The thematic thread woven in the readings this Sunday could be taken from the responsorial Psalm 16, “O Lord, my allotted portion nd my cup, you it is who hold fast my lot.”

Elijah and Elisha received their lot from God, Paul boasts of his life’s lot in the Holy Spirit, and Jesus accepts his Father’s will in freely going up to Jerusalem.

Many think to choose and create their own life (finding one’s self) while finding it obscure or hard to ask God, “Why did you make me?” Connected to this issue of one’s lot in life, is acceptance and also at once a freedom. The human person has a higher calling than the mere making of money, and we are more than we realize.

This is a theme running through all of Tolkien’s stories: acceptance of one’s destiny, that never comes from within one’s self, but always from some higher source. These stories are compelling for that reason as we watch and see the character accept the lot given to them, whether they like it or not, and their reluctance. Just start with Frodo for example, and any of the Hobbits.

The one who rejected his lot and choose himself, of course, is Sauron, the epitome of evil.