The Homily of the 14th Sunday of Ordinary MassFr. KimmIn 1930 Mohandas Gandhi, the Indian independence leader, organized the "salt march," a non-violent act of civil disobedience protesting a series of British laws which gave only the British the right to manufacture and sell salt in India. All over the country, people simply marched to the sea and made salt in defiance of their British rulers. In one place, Dharasana, 2500 people marching to the salt deposits encountered over 400 police armed with clubs with steel tips. In complete silence, the protesters approached the police in orderly columns. When each column reached a certain point, the police proceeded to beat the protesters over the head with their clubs. When all those in one column had been beaten, they were dragged away by supporters and replaced by those in the next column. No one offered any sign of fear or resistance as all continued to march, knowing full well that they would soon be struck down. This incident, recorded by an American journalist, caused an international outcry that gave more support to the Indian independence movement. We think that meekness is weakness that strength demands that we fight back or get even, that we must never allow anyone else to gain the upper hand. But what requires more strength: to let our emotions get the best of us or to walk away, say nothing, let go? Meekness does not have to be weakness, as we can see in Jesus, who, while so meek that he permitted others to beat him and even kill him, was still king. He defeated his enemies not through force or intimidation but through the power of love. If we imitate him, our meekness, too, will make us strong.
14th Sun. O.T. (A) July 2-3, 2005 5 & 5 see Zechariah 9:9-10; Matthew 11:25-30 <
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