Treasurely Heaven in the Mouth of the Wolf

©2010, Randall A. Beeler

16 Behold I send you as sheep in the midst of wolves … For they will deliver you up in councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues … 21 The brother also shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the son; and the children shall rise up against their parents, and shall put them to death. 22 And you shall be hated by all men for my name's sake … 24 The disciple is not above the master, nor the servant above his lord … 26 Therefore fear them not. (Matt 10, DRE)

An old Italian saying for "Good luck!" goes, In boca di lupo!—that is, may you be in the mouth of the wolf—which means to say, "May you be so fortunate to be in the very mouth of the wolf and not be harmed."

If you have ever been in the presence of an individual wolf or watched a wolfpack hunt, you realize that the Italians are wishing us a lot of good fortune. Maybe they do so in the Spirit of Jesus, Who sends us into the midst of the wolves.

The times are making Catholics who are faithful to the Magisterium feel the breath of wolves on our necks. We live in an amazing age of miracles and wonders, with Marian apparitions in greater frequency than ever in history, vigorous Popes who are not afraid to confront the culture and to exorcise the demonic influences in our own Church, and inspiring battles against a culture of death bent on enslaving us to demonic lies.

Jesus foretells all of this in Matthew 10. Before we get fearful, then, of this current pack of death that hunts us down, let us remember what Jesus admonishes us to really fear:

28 And fear not them that kill the body, and are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him that can destroy both soul and body in hell … 38 And he that takes not up his cross, and follows me, is not worthy of me. 39 He that finds his life, shall lose it: and he that shall lose his life for me, shall find it. (Matt 10, DRE)

We are right to be fearful of wolves—just as much as Jesus Himself sweat blood out of fear of the Cross.

But He embraces it nonetheless.

He asks that the Cup of Suffering be passed, but if the Father willed that not, the Christ will drink it to the dregs. And He does …

… Which explains why we are here today, in the mouth of the Wolf. The worst things that demons can plot for Christ's Church are really a treasure. For, the work of the demons, harrowing as it seems, paradoxically makes those very demons unwitting partners in God's ripping away the deceptions of this present darkness:

For nothing is covered that shall not be revealed: nor hid, that shall not be known. 27 That which I tell you in the dark, speak in the light: and that which you hear in the ear, preach upon the housetops. (Matt 10, DRE)

These wolves teeth tear away the deception and delusion, making the calling of the Church that much clearer. The more that time marches on, the more we see the prophecies fulfilled, the more that Good reveals itself as truly Good and evil rips the sheep's wool from our eyes to see it for what it is.

And our mission is clear:

40 He that receives you, receives me: and he that receives me, receives him that sent me. 41 He that receives a prophet in the name of a prophet, shall receive the reward of a prophet: and he that receives a just man in the name of a just man, shall receive the reward of a just man. 42 And whosoever shall give to drink to one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, amen I say to you he shall not lose his reward. (Matt 10, DRE)

We are to bear cups of water to these wolves, to be the very water of life that will give them the true taste of the Good, the Holy One, the Son of Man. Those who spit Him out will reveal themselves for who they are. Those who drink will find honey in the rock.

We are that honey for them right now.

Recently, in a Daily Mass homily, our parish priest made a turn-of-phrase as he alluded to Jesus' admonition that we store up treasures in heaven. Our priest wisely told us to store up "treasurely heaven."

Our being in the mouth of the wolf is a heaven to treasure, for by it, we show the world how to treasure the heavenly. Amen.