A Homily on Luke 9:43b-45 : It was hidden from them ( 27-9-25)

 A homily on Luke 9:43b-45  speaks about how God hides His mysteries until the right time, just as music lies hidden in a violin until it is tuned. (27-9-25)

Praise be to Jesus Christ 

An interesting story is about a violin that had not been touched or played for a long time. It was discarded, and its strings were loose. One day, a musician happened to see the violin and picked it up. As he touched the bow to the string, it produced a rough and broken sound, almost irritating. Then the musician stopped and began to tighten the strings carefully, one by one. At first, it seemed the strings were being stretched too much. If the violin had a voice, perhaps it would have cried out, “Why are you tightening me so hard?” It could not see the plan of the musician. The secret was hidden. But when the tuning was complete, “the violin began to sing”.  The music had always been hidden inside the instrument, waiting for the right moment and hands to draw it out.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about His suffering and death, but the disciples could not understand. The Word of God tells us, “it was hidden from them” (Luke 9:45). What was hidden from them was the true meaning of the Cross, the secret that through death, life would come. In His wisdom, God kept it hidden until their hearts were ready.

This is not the first time that God has hidden something. In the Old Testament, Joseph’s brothers did not see the hidden plan when they sold him into slavery. They only later understood that God had worked it to save their family. Moses was hidden in a basket by the river, and from that hidden child, God raised a liberator. Job experienced the mystery of hiddenness. He could not see the reason for his pain, for it was hidden from him. Yet, when the veil was lifted, Job could say, “I had heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You” (Job 42:5).

The saints also walked this path. Saint Therese of Child Jesus embraced the hidden way of small acts of love, which people of the time did not understand.  Saint Teresa of Avila spent years in secret prayer, unseen by the world but powerful before God. Their hidden lives were like silent strings that filled the Church with music.

Why does God hide things from us? Sometimes, the truth is too heavy for us to carry at once. Like the disciples, we are not ready, so it is hidden. At other times, God hides His work so that we may walk in faith and not by sight. Hiddenness is not absence. Hiddenness is God’s gentle preparation.

Could you think again of the violin? If the strings remain loose, the music stays hidden. The violin may feel pain when the strings are tightened, but the musician knows what He is doing. In the same way, God tunes our hearts through waiting, silence, trials, and trust. What is hidden today will be revealed tomorrow in His time.

So, when we face unanswered questions in our families, vocations, and struggles, let us remember: it was hidden from them. And sometimes, it is hidden from us. But one day, God will reveal His melody, and we will understand that nothing was wasted.

Lord Jesus Christ, I believe in you even if everything is hidden from me. Amen

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