Today we begin reading from the book of Jonah. In today’s first reading God commands Jonah: “Set out for the great city of Nineveh and preach against it.” Instead of heading east toward Nineveh, Jonah flees west to Tarshish. God sends a storm and a large fish to swallow Jonah to give him time to rethink his refusal to preach to Nineveh. In chapter 3 Jonah is given a chance to begin again: “The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: Set out for the great city of Nineveh and announce to it the message that I will tell you.” (Jonah 3:1-2). He preaches God’s message, and all the people of Nineveh repent, and God forgives them.
Why did Jonah flee at first and refuse to go and preach against Nineveh? He tells God after God fails to destroy the great enemy city of Nineveh:
“O LORD, is this not what I said while I was still in my own country? This is why I fled at first toward Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, abounding in kindness, repenting of punishment.” (Jonah 4:1-2)
Jonah is upset because God is “gracious and merciful” to the enemy. The book of Jonah is not a “fish story” but a parable about God’s love and God’s mercy. God loves all people, the good and the bad, because he has created all people. He wants Jonah to learn to “love your enemy.”
Jesus teaches this same challenging message in his Sermon on the Mount:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.” (Matthew 5:43-45).
God the Father shines his sun on all people and provides nourishing rain on all people. As children of our heavenly Father, we are called upon to be godlike and love not only our neighbor but also our enemy.
Jesus challenges all of us who make “enemies” of people of different religions, political parties, language and nationality to show love not hate. Pope Leo just last week challenged us with these words: “I don’t know if anyone has all the truth on them, but I ask that first and foremost there be greater respect for one another…”
Image: “Jonah and the Whale” by Lawrence OP is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.