Memorial of Saint Cyril, monk, and Saint Methodius, bishop

Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go out in the field.”

When they were in the field,

Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

With my particular lifestyle I rarely come in direct physical contact with other people. A handshake is generally as far as it goes. And there are rare occasions when I might find myself in a crowded elevator standing very close to another person. At one time, of course, I played football and basketball and racquetball and occasionally was pushed around a bit. But that’s a long time ago. For the most part my body leads an isolated existence. I don’t remember when I was last shoved by anyone. I don’t know how I might respond to it now.

When I hear of murder – either the murder of Abel or the latest incident in the local news – I shudder at such violence.  It is so remote from my everyday experience. And yet it is not uncommon in some neighborhoods and some families.

Certain kinds of killing have become a way of life in these United States. We use it to punish criminals and to rid ourselves of unwanted babies. It’s become a bizarre ritual as some people murder first their own families and then themselves. Occasionally a madman exercises his constitutional right to arm himself to the teeth and then goes on a killing spree. Finally, thousands of troubled Americans kill themselves every year. The American Catholic bishops have rightly denounced this “culture of death” as they sound alarms about euthanasia and “assisted suicide.”

It is shocking to read this second episode in the life of Adam and Eve. How could a simple act of disobedience in the Garden of Eden lead immediately to murder? Does the failure to heed God’s commandments always and inevitably lead to this?

Once again we hear that prophetic voice speaking to us, this time as God himself speaks to Cain:

“Why are you so resentful and crestfallen?
If you do well, you can hold up your head;
but if not, sin is a demon lurking at the door:
his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master.”

These words to Cain echo the words we heard yesterday, from Ecclesiasticus:

If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you;

if you trust in God, you too shall live;

In today’s gospel Jesus wearies of the Pharisees’ demand for a sign. Is not murder enough for you? How many more signs do you need before you turn back to God?