Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Reading I 1 Samuel 3:1-10, 19-20
During the time young Samuel was minister to the LORD under Eli,
a revelation of the LORD was uncommon and vision infrequent.
One day Eli was asleep in his usual place.
His eyes had lately grown so weak that he could not see.
The lamp of God was not yet extinguished,
and Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the LORD
where the ark of God was.
The LORD called to Samuel, who answered, “Here I am.”
Samuel ran to Eli and said, “Here I am. You called me.”
“I did not call you,” Eli said. “Go back to sleep.”
So he went back to sleep.
Again the LORD called Samuel, who rose and went to Eli.
“Here I am,” he said. “You called me.”
But Eli answered, “I did not call you, my son. Go back to sleep.”
At that time Samuel was not familiar with the LORD,
because the LORD had not revealed anything to him as yet.
The LORD called Samuel again, for the third time.
Getting up and going to Eli, he said, “Here I am.
You called me.”
Then Eli understood that the LORD was calling the youth.
So Eli said to Samuel, “Go to sleep, and if you are called, reply,
‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’”
When Samuel went to sleep in his place,
the LORD came and revealed his presence,
calling out as before, “Samuel, Samuel!”
Samuel answered, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
Samuel grew up, and the LORD was with him,
not permitting any word of his to be without effect.
Thus all Israel from Dan to Beersheba
came to know that Samuel was an accredited prophet of the LORD.
+++
Today’s First Reading tells the story of the call of Samuel.
Samuel is now a young boy, serving the priest Eli in the sanctuary at Shiloh. The Jewish historian Josephus places his age at 12 years; he may have been older. What follows is heightened by the statement that revelations and visions of God were at that time very infrequent. The books of Judges, which cover this period, indicate that very few prophets or messengers of God appeared.
During the entire period of the Judges, (apart from the anonymous prophet mentioned in chapter 2 not covered in the liturgical readings), we are told of only two prophets and of five revelations.
We are told that one day Eli was asleep in his usual place in the sanctuary. He had recently become blind. “The lamp of God was not yet extinguished”. The reference is to the golden lamp stand, which stood opposite the table of the bread of the Presence in the Holy Place. It was still night, but the early morning hours were approaching when the flame grew dim or went out. For the lamp to be permitted to go out before morning was a violation of the Mosaic Law.
It is at this moment when God calls Samuel. Samuel, in his sleep, hears his name being called. Still inexperienced in recognizing the presence of the Lord, he thinks that Eli is calling him. Twice he hears the call and twice Eli denies that he called. Eli’s own failure not at once to recognize God’s voice may be indicative that he was not very close to God. In fact, he was not very effective as a prophet (cf. 1 Sam 2:22-26).
At the third call, Eli begins to realize that something special is going on. He sends the boy back to bed and tells him that the next time he hears a call he is to answer, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.” And the Lord does call a third time and Samuel responds as he was told. Now the Lord reveals his presence but what the Lord said to him at that time is not recorded. However, by this first revelation Samuel is consecrated a prophet. It was not a dream: the voice awakened Samuel. Nor was it a ‘vision’ except in the wide sense, since Samuel heard but did not see Yahweh.
We are told that, from then on, the Lord was with Samuel and his words were always spoken and listened to with effect. He was a true and reliable prophet who faithfully transmitted the word of the Lord. Throughout the country from Dan to Beersheba, that is, from the very north to the south, Samuel was recognized as a prophet of the Lord.
There are two possible reflections for us in this reading. We might ask ourselves how often has the Lord called us and we have mistaken it for something else or not heard it at all? Yet, through people and experiences in our daily life, God is constantly calling us to his love and service and to come close to him. Let us be alert this day to any calls he may make.
Second, by our baptism we, too, are in a special way called to be prophets, that is, to be bearers of the Gospel message through our words and actions. How will people come to know Christ and the Gospel if not through us?
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 40
Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.
I have waited, waited for the LORD,
and he stooped toward me and heard my cry.
Blessed the man who makes the LORD his trust;
who turns not to idolatry
or to those who stray after falsehood.
Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.
Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Burnt offerings or sin-offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”
Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.
“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me.
To do your will, O my God, is my delight,
and your law is within my heart!”
Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.
I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O LORD, know.
Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Mark 1:29-39
On leaving the synagogue
Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.
Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever.
They immediately told him about her.
He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.
Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
When it was evening, after sunset,
they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons.
The whole town was gathered at the door.
He cured many who were sick with various diseases,
and he drove out many demons,
not permitting them to speak because they knew him.
Rising very early before dawn,
he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.
Simon and those who were with him pursued him
and on finding him said, “Everyone is looking for you.”
He told them, “Let us go on to the nearby villages
that I may preach there also.
For this purpose have I come.”
So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons
throughout the whole of Galilee.
+++
Today’s Gospel Reading, continues from yesterday’s, following a day in the public life of Jesus. It was still the Sabbath and, after the synagogue service, Jesus now goes to the house of his two disciples, Simon and Andrew in Capernaum. (As it was the Sabbath, people could not go very far or do anything which could be labeled “work”.)
In the house Jesus finds Peter’s mother-in-law confined to bed because of a fever. When he is told about it, he immediately goes to see her, takes her by the hand, lifts her up and heals her. Immediately, she gets up and begins to serve them. This is not simply because that is the role of a woman in the home. Rather it is a way of saying that it is the role of the whole Christian – man or woman – to serve. Healing is not just to make one well but to enable one to become again an active, serving member of the community.
In the evening, once the Sabbath was over, people were free to move around. Large numbers come seeking out Jesus to be healed of their sicknesses and to be freed from the power of evil spirits. “The whole town was gathered at the door.” That is the door of the house where Jesus was. Many times we will see a reference to the “house” where Jesus is. It seems to be a symbol of the place where Jesus is gathered with those who are close to him, a symbol of a Christian community, of the church. When the poor, the sick and the unfree no longer come to the doors of our community seeking healing and wholeness, we need to reflect on the quality of our Christian witness.
The following morning, Jesus leaves, goes to the hills to be alone and to pray. His disciples come in search of him. “Everyone is looking for you,” they tell him. Although there are many demands being made on him by the people of Capernaum, Jesus needs time for himself to renew his spiritual energy and be in contact with his Father, and has to think of the needs of other people as well.
Jesus may have been the Son of God but he could only be in one place at a time and, during those three years of public life, he really only reached a very small number of people. To reach the rest, he needed and still needs our help.
When Jesus returns from his prayer he does not go back to Capernaum, although there were certainly more people to be healed and helped there. Instead he went on to synagogues all over Galilee proclaiming his message of the Kingdom and making it a reality by healing the sick and liberating those controlled by evil forces.
This scene brings up the importance for us of availability. We do need to be available to all those who are in genuine need. At the same time, there is what we might call the ‘poverty of availability’. No matter how generous and self-giving we are we can only give so much. We need to find a balance between people’s needs and our limited resources. We do not help people by working ourselves to the point of ‘burnout’. We also need “quality time” to be with God, to pray and to reflect on our priorities. Jesus gives us an excellent example here.
Living Space
The Irish Jesuits
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
The LORD Humbles, He Also Exalts.
Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Reading I 1 Samuel 1:9-20
Hannah rose after a meal at Shiloh,
and presented herself before the LORD;
at the time, Eli the priest was sitting on a chair
near the doorpost of the LORD’s temple.
In her bitterness she prayed to the LORD, weeping copiously,
and she made a vow, promising:
“O LORD of hosts,
if you look with pity on the misery of your handmaid,
if you remember me and do not forget me,
if you give your handmaid a male child,
I will give him to the LORD
for as long as he lives;
neither wine nor liquor shall he drink,
and no razor shall ever touch his head.”
As she remained long at prayer before the LORD,
Eli watched her mouth,
for Hannah was praying silently;
though her lips were moving,
her voice could not be heard.
Eli, thinking her drunk,
said to her,
“How long will you make a drunken show of yourself?
Sober up from your wine!”
“It isn’t that, my lord,”Hannah answered.
“I am an unhappy woman.
I have had neither wine nor liquor;
I was only pouring out my troubles to the LORD.
Do not think your handmaid a ne’er-do-well;
my prayer has been prompted by my deep sorrow and misery.”
Eli said, “Go in peace,
and may the God of Israel grant you
what you have asked of him.”
She replied,
“Think kindly of your maidservant,” and left.
She went to her quarters,
ate and drank with her husband,
and no longer appeared downcast.
Early the next morning they worshiped before the LORD,
and then returned to their home in Ramah.
When Elkanah had relations with his wife Hannah,
the LORD remembered her.
She conceived,
and at the end of her term bore a son
whom she called Samuel,
since she had asked the LORD for him.
+++
In today’s First Reading, we find Hannah, the barren wife of Elkanah, still at the Lord’s central sanctuary in Shiloh. The sanctuary is also referred to in 1 Samuel as the “Lord’s temple” and as “the house of the Lord” or “the Tent of Meeting” and “my dwelling”. There references to the sanctuary as a “house” and a “temple” as well mention of “sleeping quarters” and “doors”. This suggests that at this time the sanctuary or ‘tabernacle’ was a larger, more permanent building.While Eli the priest sat near the door, Hannah prayed in tears to God begging to have her shame removed. She asks the Lord to “remember” her. This is not simply to be aware of her existence but to go into action on her behalf.
She was making a vow that, if God gave her a male child, she would dedicate him entirely to God’s service for the whole of his life. This was in contrast to the normal period of service for Levites, which was from the ages of 25 to 50. Her offer of her son to Yahweh is similar to promises made with Isaac, Samson and John the Baptist where God was seen to intervene in the birth. Hannah’s child, Samuel, born of a barren mother would – like them – be dedicated to service in the sanctuary. As with Samson, too, leaving the hair uncut would be a sign of dedication to the Lord, although there is no mention here of Samson as a ‘nazirite’. The nazirite vow was normally taken for a limited time rather than for life, as is happening here. Also, the son that Hannah seeks will, like Samson, drink neither wine nor liquor.
Hannah prayed in this way for a long time in silence though her lips moved. Since people usually prayed out loud, Eli thought she was drunk. Heavy drinking was apparently not unusual on the occasion of big feasts. He told her severely to sober up and stop making a show of herself. She asked him not to think badly of her; she was not drunk, only deeply unhappy as she begged the Lord to hear her prayer.
Eli, seeing the true situation, then sent her off with a lovely blessing: “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked him.” She only asked him in return to think more kindly of her.
After going back home, she ate with her husband and experienced a kind of peace. The next day they went once more to the sanctuary to pray and then returned to their home in Ramah. And now, when Elkanah had intercourse with Hannah, “the Lord remembered her”, as she had asked him. She conceived and gave birth to a boy, whom “she named Samuel, since she had asked the Lord for him”. A derivation from the root sha’al (to ask) would give sha’ul from which one gets the name Saul. However, biblical etymology was often, as here, content with an approximate similarity of sound. The actual derivation of ‘Samuel’ is from Shem-El, ‘the name of God’ or ‘(God’s) name is El’.
This story is one of a number in the Bible where barren women are given children by God’s intervention. In every case, the child has a calling to serve God in a very special way. Isaac, the son of Abraham and Sarah was one of these as was Samson, who helped God’s people defeat the Philistines. Much later, Elizabeth will give birth to John the Baptist although well past child-bearing age. He too will be dedicated to God in a special way.
Mary, too, under special circumstances will give birth to Jesus through God’s intervention. We will see later how Samuel will become a prophet of the Lord and be involved with the career of David as king.
Perhaps our birth has not been accompanied by such special circumstances, yet each one of us is, in a special kind of way, a gift from God to our parents and each one of us has a calling, a vocation, to serve him and our brothers and sisters in a unique way.
Let us identify with that call and, with God’s help, try to respond to it as well as we can.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 1 Samuel 2
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“My heart exults in the LORD,
my horn is exalted in my God.
I have swallowed up my enemies;
I rejoice in my victory.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“The bows of the mighty are broken,
while the tottering gird on strength.
The well-fed hire themselves out for bread,
while the hungry batten on spoil.
The barren wife bears seven sons,
while the mother of many languishes.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“The LORD puts to death and gives life;
he casts down to the nether world;
he raises up again.
The LORD makes poor and makes rich;
he humbles, he also exalts.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“He raises the needy from the dust;
from the dung heap he lifts up the poor,
To seat them with nobles
and make a glorious throne their heritage.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Mark 1:21-28
Jesus came to Capernaum with his followers,
and on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught.
The people were astonished at his teaching,
for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.
In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit;
he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us?
I know who you are–the Holy One of God!”
Jesus rebuked him and said, “Quiet! Come out of him!”
The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud cry came out of him.
All were amazed and asked one another,
“What is this?A new teaching with authority.
He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.”
His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.
+++
Today’s Gospel Reading is the first part of a day in the life of Jesus in which he carries out the main activities of his mission – teaching and healing. He goes to Capernaum, the centre of much of his work, and on a Sabbath day, like every observant Jew, goes to the synagogue. And, like any Jews who wishes to do so, he addresses the congregation.
He begins to teach the people. Much of Jesus’ work will consist of teaching, of communicating his message, his vision of life. People are deeply impressed because, unlike the Scribes, he speaks with authority. The Scribes could only interpret, give the meaning of the Scripture. Jesus spoke in his own right. Jesus speaks in the best tradition of the great prophets. But there is more. Jesus’ authority is empowering and liberating, it is not oppressive or subjugating. He will say in John’s gospel: “The truth will make you free.”
Right there in the synagogue was a man possessed by an “unclean” spirit. It was called ‘unclean’ because of its basic resistance to the holiness of God. This was a world where many unexplained symptoms in people were attributed to evil powers and were often believed to be the punishment for sinful behavior. The spirit resented the presence of Jesus. “I know who you are: the Holy One of God”. It was believed that, by giving a hostile spirit its exact name, one could have power over him. But Jesus silences the evil spirit and tells it to come out of the man, who experiences a kind of fit and cries out.
Again the people are amazed at the power and authority of this man Jesus. He has new teaching and can give orders to evil spirits. The question is being asked: “Just who is this man?” It is a question that is the underlying theme of the first half of this gospel.
It is up to us to submit ourselves to the same empowering authority of Jesus, to listen to his teaching by steeping ourselves in his Gospel message and experiencing his healing and liberation in our lives.
Living Space
The Irish Jesuits
Reading I 1 Samuel 1:9-20
Hannah rose after a meal at Shiloh,
and presented herself before the LORD;
at the time, Eli the priest was sitting on a chair
near the doorpost of the LORD’s temple.
In her bitterness she prayed to the LORD, weeping copiously,
and she made a vow, promising:
“O LORD of hosts,
if you look with pity on the misery of your handmaid,
if you remember me and do not forget me,
if you give your handmaid a male child,
I will give him to the LORD
for as long as he lives;
neither wine nor liquor shall he drink,
and no razor shall ever touch his head.”
As she remained long at prayer before the LORD,
Eli watched her mouth,
for Hannah was praying silently;
though her lips were moving,
her voice could not be heard.
Eli, thinking her drunk,
said to her,
“How long will you make a drunken show of yourself?
Sober up from your wine!”
“It isn’t that, my lord,”Hannah answered.
“I am an unhappy woman.
I have had neither wine nor liquor;
I was only pouring out my troubles to the LORD.
Do not think your handmaid a ne’er-do-well;
my prayer has been prompted by my deep sorrow and misery.”
Eli said, “Go in peace,
and may the God of Israel grant you
what you have asked of him.”
She replied,
“Think kindly of your maidservant,” and left.
She went to her quarters,
ate and drank with her husband,
and no longer appeared downcast.
Early the next morning they worshiped before the LORD,
and then returned to their home in Ramah.
When Elkanah had relations with his wife Hannah,
the LORD remembered her.
She conceived,
and at the end of her term bore a son
whom she called Samuel,
since she had asked the LORD for him.
+++
In today’s First Reading, we find Hannah, the barren wife of Elkanah, still at the Lord’s central sanctuary in Shiloh. The sanctuary is also referred to in 1 Samuel as the “Lord’s temple” and as “the house of the Lord” or “the Tent of Meeting” and “my dwelling”. There references to the sanctuary as a “house” and a “temple” as well mention of “sleeping quarters” and “doors”. This suggests that at this time the sanctuary or ‘tabernacle’ was a larger, more permanent building.While Eli the priest sat near the door, Hannah prayed in tears to God begging to have her shame removed. She asks the Lord to “remember” her. This is not simply to be aware of her existence but to go into action on her behalf.
She was making a vow that, if God gave her a male child, she would dedicate him entirely to God’s service for the whole of his life. This was in contrast to the normal period of service for Levites, which was from the ages of 25 to 50. Her offer of her son to Yahweh is similar to promises made with Isaac, Samson and John the Baptist where God was seen to intervene in the birth. Hannah’s child, Samuel, born of a barren mother would – like them – be dedicated to service in the sanctuary. As with Samson, too, leaving the hair uncut would be a sign of dedication to the Lord, although there is no mention here of Samson as a ‘nazirite’. The nazirite vow was normally taken for a limited time rather than for life, as is happening here. Also, the son that Hannah seeks will, like Samson, drink neither wine nor liquor.
Hannah prayed in this way for a long time in silence though her lips moved. Since people usually prayed out loud, Eli thought she was drunk. Heavy drinking was apparently not unusual on the occasion of big feasts. He told her severely to sober up and stop making a show of herself. She asked him not to think badly of her; she was not drunk, only deeply unhappy as she begged the Lord to hear her prayer.
Eli, seeing the true situation, then sent her off with a lovely blessing: “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked him.” She only asked him in return to think more kindly of her.
After going back home, she ate with her husband and experienced a kind of peace. The next day they went once more to the sanctuary to pray and then returned to their home in Ramah. And now, when Elkanah had intercourse with Hannah, “the Lord remembered her”, as she had asked him. She conceived and gave birth to a boy, whom “she named Samuel, since she had asked the Lord for him”. A derivation from the root sha’al (to ask) would give sha’ul from which one gets the name Saul. However, biblical etymology was often, as here, content with an approximate similarity of sound. The actual derivation of ‘Samuel’ is from Shem-El, ‘the name of God’ or ‘(God’s) name is El’.
This story is one of a number in the Bible where barren women are given children by God’s intervention. In every case, the child has a calling to serve God in a very special way. Isaac, the son of Abraham and Sarah was one of these as was Samson, who helped God’s people defeat the Philistines. Much later, Elizabeth will give birth to John the Baptist although well past child-bearing age. He too will be dedicated to God in a special way.
Mary, too, under special circumstances will give birth to Jesus through God’s intervention. We will see later how Samuel will become a prophet of the Lord and be involved with the career of David as king.
Perhaps our birth has not been accompanied by such special circumstances, yet each one of us is, in a special kind of way, a gift from God to our parents and each one of us has a calling, a vocation, to serve him and our brothers and sisters in a unique way.
Let us identify with that call and, with God’s help, try to respond to it as well as we can.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 1 Samuel 2
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“My heart exults in the LORD,
my horn is exalted in my God.
I have swallowed up my enemies;
I rejoice in my victory.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“The bows of the mighty are broken,
while the tottering gird on strength.
The well-fed hire themselves out for bread,
while the hungry batten on spoil.
The barren wife bears seven sons,
while the mother of many languishes.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“The LORD puts to death and gives life;
he casts down to the nether world;
he raises up again.
The LORD makes poor and makes rich;
he humbles, he also exalts.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
“He raises the needy from the dust;
from the dung heap he lifts up the poor,
To seat them with nobles
and make a glorious throne their heritage.”
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Mark 1:21-28
Jesus came to Capernaum with his followers,
and on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught.
The people were astonished at his teaching,
for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.
In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit;
he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us?
I know who you are–the Holy One of God!”
Jesus rebuked him and said, “Quiet! Come out of him!”
The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud cry came out of him.
All were amazed and asked one another,
“What is this?A new teaching with authority.
He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.”
His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.
+++
Today’s Gospel Reading is the first part of a day in the life of Jesus in which he carries out the main activities of his mission – teaching and healing. He goes to Capernaum, the centre of much of his work, and on a Sabbath day, like every observant Jew, goes to the synagogue. And, like any Jews who wishes to do so, he addresses the congregation.
He begins to teach the people. Much of Jesus’ work will consist of teaching, of communicating his message, his vision of life. People are deeply impressed because, unlike the Scribes, he speaks with authority. The Scribes could only interpret, give the meaning of the Scripture. Jesus spoke in his own right. Jesus speaks in the best tradition of the great prophets. But there is more. Jesus’ authority is empowering and liberating, it is not oppressive or subjugating. He will say in John’s gospel: “The truth will make you free.”
Right there in the synagogue was a man possessed by an “unclean” spirit. It was called ‘unclean’ because of its basic resistance to the holiness of God. This was a world where many unexplained symptoms in people were attributed to evil powers and were often believed to be the punishment for sinful behavior. The spirit resented the presence of Jesus. “I know who you are: the Holy One of God”. It was believed that, by giving a hostile spirit its exact name, one could have power over him. But Jesus silences the evil spirit and tells it to come out of the man, who experiences a kind of fit and cries out.
Again the people are amazed at the power and authority of this man Jesus. He has new teaching and can give orders to evil spirits. The question is being asked: “Just who is this man?” It is a question that is the underlying theme of the first half of this gospel.
It is up to us to submit ourselves to the same empowering authority of Jesus, to listen to his teaching by steeping ourselves in his Gospel message and experiencing his healing and liberation in our lives.
Living Space
The Irish Jesuits
Monday, January 11, 2010
Repent, And Believe In The Gospel!
Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Reading I 1 Samuel 1:1-8
There was a certain man from Ramathaim,
Elkanah by name,a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim.
He was the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu,
son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
He had two wives, one named Hannah, the other Peninnah;
Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless.
This man regularly went on pilgrimage from his city
to worship the LORD of hosts and to sacrifice to him at Shiloh,
where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas,
were ministering as priests of the LORD.
When the day came for Elkanah to offer sacrifice,
he used to give a portion each to his wife Peninnah
and to all her sons and daughters,
but a double portion to Hannah because he loved her,
though the LORD had made her barren.
Her rival, to upset her, turned it into a constant reproach to her
that the LORD had left her barren.
This went on year after year;
each time they made their pilgrimage
to the sanctuary of the LORD,
Peninnah would approach her
,and Hannah would weep and refuse to eat.
Her husband Elkanah used to ask her:
“Hannah, why do you weep, and why do you refuse to eat?
Why do you grieve?Am I not more to you than ten sons?”
+++
The First Book of Samuel opens by introducing us to Elkanah, who comes from Ramathaim. According to the custom of the time, he had two wives, Penninah and Hannah. Although the union of Adam and Eve (Genesis 2:23-44) seems to endorse monogamy as God’s intention, we know that many of the patriarchs were polygamous, some otherwise unfaithful, if not actually promiscuous. Recall that Sarai, the barren wife of Abram, told him to sleep with her servant Hagar, in order to have a son. Later, of course, Sarah does have a son, Isaac, who will be the patriarch of the people of Yahweh, while Ishmael, the son of Hagar, will be the patriarch of the people of Allah. But that, as they say, is another story.
Penninah had borne several children to Elkanah, but Hannah was barren, no doubt the most shameful and painful experience a married woman of those times could have. This was a culture where a woman’s worth was measured by her ability to give children, especially sons, to her husband, thus ensuring the continuance of the family line. (Of course, sometimes it is the husband who is sterile, but that is not the case here.)
Each year Elkanah made a pilgrimage with his family to Shiloh and offered sacrifice there. Three times a year every male Israelite was required to appear at the sanctuary of the Lord of Hosts (Yahweh of the armies). This ancient title was associated with the Ark of the Covenant, the sacred emblem that protected Israel whenever Yahweh waged war with his people against their enemies.
The festival referred to here was probably Succoth, the feast of Tabernacles, which commemorated God’s care for his people during their desert journey to the land of Canaan, and celebrated with joy and feasting, God’s blessing on the year’s crops. On such festive occasions, Hannah’s deep sorrow because of her barrenness was all the more poignant. On the day when he would offer sacrifice, Elkanah would give portions to Penninah and her children, but a double portion to Hannah, for “although the Lord had made her barren”, he loved her more. Penninah would mock and jeer at Hannah’s barrenness, and the situation went on year after year.
So, stricken with shame and distress, Hannah refused to eat. Elkanah, clearly a good and compassionate man, tried to console her by reminding her that she had a loving husband, and was he not worthy more to her than “ten sons”? As we will see, God is not going to forsake such good people, and so the stage is set for something quite special to happen.
It is easy for us sometimes to regret that God has not given us some gift we would dearly love to have. And perhaps we have been the target of other people’s criticism or mockery and asked, “Why did God do that to you?” Yet, God is active in our lives, and we need to trust him to help us to see where, even in our weaknesses, his love and grace are at work in us. We may be in for some wonderful surprises.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 116
To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Mark 1:14-20
After John had been arrested,
Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the Gospel of God:
“This is the time of fulfillment.
The Kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent, and believe in the Gospel.”
As he passed by the Sea of Galilee,
he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea;
they were fishermen.
Jesus said to them,
“Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Then they left their nets and followed him.
He walked along a little farther
and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John.
They too were in a boat mending their nets.
Then he called them.
So they left their father Zebedee in the boat
along with the hired men and followed him.
+++
Today we begin reading from Mark’s gospel (1:14-20) and we will be following him for the next several weeks.
Today’s reading follows immediately on the short accounts of Jesus’ baptism and temptations in the desert. It is the beginning of his public ministry. The reading consists of two main parts – a summary of Jesus’ teaching and the first response to it.
As the passage opens we are told that John has been arrested (the reason for his arrest will be given later). The word for ‘arrest’ is literally ‘handed over’, a key word which will be used later of Jesus himself, his disciples and indeed of many others down the centuries. The term is also used in our Eucharist when the celebrant at the consecration says: “This is my Body which will be given up for you.” Our translation of ‘given up’ represents the Latin word tradetur which literally means ‘handed over’. Jesus is daily handed over to us, or rather, he hands himself over to us and expects us to do the same for our brothers and sisters.
Jesus begins his ministry by proclaiming the Gospel, the Good News, of God. It is summed up in the words: “This is the time of fulfillment. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe the Good News. ” It is a deceptively simple statement which, in fact, is rich in meaning. One can say that the whole of the Gospel message is contained in those two sentences.
“This is the time of fulfillment”: the world "fulfillment" is a translation of the Greek word kairos. Kairos refers to a moment when something is ripe to happen, a serendipitous moment. This is an apt description of the appearance of Jesus, which the whole of the Old Covenant is preparing for and leading up to.
“The Kingdom of God is at hand”: The whole of Jesus’ message centers round the notion of the “Kingdom of God”. It was the coming of the Kingdom which he proclaimed; it was the core of his teaching. Because Matthew uses the term “Kingdom of heaven”, we might think of the “Kingdom” as belonging only to life after death. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The word “Kingdom” translates the Greek word basileia, an abstract noun that is better rendered as “kingship” or “reign”. It does not refer to a place, but points to the ruling power of God, a power founded on love. Love essentially involves other people, so the Kingdom of God is not a place, or an action, but an interactive complex of harmonious relationships among God’s children. “Where charity and love prevail, there God is ever found.”
“Repent…”: Now we see the basic steps needed to become fully a “Kingdom person”. First of all, we need to repent. This verb is the most common translation of the Greek verb that corresponds to the noun metanoia. It is not a very good rendering. For most people, “repent” means being sorry for something done in the past. While that is not excluded here, metanoia looks much more toward the future. Metanoia means a radical change in one’s thinking, in this case, about the meaning and purpose of life, and how life is to be lived.
“… and believe in the Gospel”: How is metanoia to be achieved? By believing in the Gospel. For many Christians, belief means acceptance of the teachings of Christ as interpreted for us by the Church. But something more is being asked of us here. We are not asked just to be believe, but to believe IN. It is one thing to believe that something is true, but it may not affect our lives very much. By calling on us to believe IN the message of the Gospel, we are being asked for a total investment of ourselves, not merely accepting doctrines as true. We are being called to live our lives and pattern them on the model of Jesus himself. We will see what that entails as we read through the Gospel in the coming weeks.
The second part of the reading gives us a dramatic example of some people who did just what Jesus was asking for. As Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother, Andrew, who were fishermen, casting their nets into the sea. They were doing their daily work. Jesus said to them: “Come after me and I will make you fishers of people.” There and then, they dropped their nets, their whole means of livelihood and went after Jesus. A little further on Jesus saw two sons of Zebedee, James and John, who were mending their nets. These two Jesus also called. They promptly left their father in the boat with his hired men and followed Jesus.
Here we have that metanoia, that radical change of life, taking place. They follow Jesus with total trust. As they go off, they have no idea where they are going or what it will entail. They believe IN Jesus, put all their trust in him. They were to meet many trials and tribulations on the way but they never regretted the step they took. Only by following their example will we too have the same experience. The only guarantee we have is that those who did take Jesus’ call seriously and lived it out to the full know that they made the right choice. Finally, we might say that this story is to be read as a kind of parable, because we know that later on the disciples will still be in contact with their families and those boats will appear several times in the Gospel story.
What is being emphasized here is the total commitment to the Way and vision of Jesus which is symbolized by the total abandoning of the boats and family members. Jesus did not tell Peter, Andrew, James and John to abandon their parents and other family members. Jesus said, “If you love your father and mother more than me, you cannot be my disciple.” If you say “I love God”, but do not love your brother (that is, everyone who is not yourself), whom you can see, how can you love God, whom you cannot see? (I John 4:20)
Living Space
The Irish Jesuits
Reading I 1 Samuel 1:1-8
There was a certain man from Ramathaim,
Elkanah by name,a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim.
He was the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu,
son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
He had two wives, one named Hannah, the other Peninnah;
Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless.
This man regularly went on pilgrimage from his city
to worship the LORD of hosts and to sacrifice to him at Shiloh,
where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas,
were ministering as priests of the LORD.
When the day came for Elkanah to offer sacrifice,
he used to give a portion each to his wife Peninnah
and to all her sons and daughters,
but a double portion to Hannah because he loved her,
though the LORD had made her barren.
Her rival, to upset her, turned it into a constant reproach to her
that the LORD had left her barren.
This went on year after year;
each time they made their pilgrimage
to the sanctuary of the LORD,
Peninnah would approach her
,and Hannah would weep and refuse to eat.
Her husband Elkanah used to ask her:
“Hannah, why do you weep, and why do you refuse to eat?
Why do you grieve?Am I not more to you than ten sons?”
+++
The First Book of Samuel opens by introducing us to Elkanah, who comes from Ramathaim. According to the custom of the time, he had two wives, Penninah and Hannah. Although the union of Adam and Eve (Genesis 2:23-44) seems to endorse monogamy as God’s intention, we know that many of the patriarchs were polygamous, some otherwise unfaithful, if not actually promiscuous. Recall that Sarai, the barren wife of Abram, told him to sleep with her servant Hagar, in order to have a son. Later, of course, Sarah does have a son, Isaac, who will be the patriarch of the people of Yahweh, while Ishmael, the son of Hagar, will be the patriarch of the people of Allah. But that, as they say, is another story.
Penninah had borne several children to Elkanah, but Hannah was barren, no doubt the most shameful and painful experience a married woman of those times could have. This was a culture where a woman’s worth was measured by her ability to give children, especially sons, to her husband, thus ensuring the continuance of the family line. (Of course, sometimes it is the husband who is sterile, but that is not the case here.)
Each year Elkanah made a pilgrimage with his family to Shiloh and offered sacrifice there. Three times a year every male Israelite was required to appear at the sanctuary of the Lord of Hosts (Yahweh of the armies). This ancient title was associated with the Ark of the Covenant, the sacred emblem that protected Israel whenever Yahweh waged war with his people against their enemies.
The festival referred to here was probably Succoth, the feast of Tabernacles, which commemorated God’s care for his people during their desert journey to the land of Canaan, and celebrated with joy and feasting, God’s blessing on the year’s crops. On such festive occasions, Hannah’s deep sorrow because of her barrenness was all the more poignant. On the day when he would offer sacrifice, Elkanah would give portions to Penninah and her children, but a double portion to Hannah, for “although the Lord had made her barren”, he loved her more. Penninah would mock and jeer at Hannah’s barrenness, and the situation went on year after year.
So, stricken with shame and distress, Hannah refused to eat. Elkanah, clearly a good and compassionate man, tried to console her by reminding her that she had a loving husband, and was he not worthy more to her than “ten sons”? As we will see, God is not going to forsake such good people, and so the stage is set for something quite special to happen.
It is easy for us sometimes to regret that God has not given us some gift we would dearly love to have. And perhaps we have been the target of other people’s criticism or mockery and asked, “Why did God do that to you?” Yet, God is active in our lives, and we need to trust him to help us to see where, even in our weaknesses, his love and grace are at work in us. We may be in for some wonderful surprises.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 116
To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
R. To you, Lord, I will offer a sacrifice of praise.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Mark 1:14-20
After John had been arrested,
Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the Gospel of God:
“This is the time of fulfillment.
The Kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent, and believe in the Gospel.”
As he passed by the Sea of Galilee,
he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea;
they were fishermen.
Jesus said to them,
“Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Then they left their nets and followed him.
He walked along a little farther
and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John.
They too were in a boat mending their nets.
Then he called them.
So they left their father Zebedee in the boat
along with the hired men and followed him.
+++
Today we begin reading from Mark’s gospel (1:14-20) and we will be following him for the next several weeks.
Today’s reading follows immediately on the short accounts of Jesus’ baptism and temptations in the desert. It is the beginning of his public ministry. The reading consists of two main parts – a summary of Jesus’ teaching and the first response to it.
As the passage opens we are told that John has been arrested (the reason for his arrest will be given later). The word for ‘arrest’ is literally ‘handed over’, a key word which will be used later of Jesus himself, his disciples and indeed of many others down the centuries. The term is also used in our Eucharist when the celebrant at the consecration says: “This is my Body which will be given up for you.” Our translation of ‘given up’ represents the Latin word tradetur which literally means ‘handed over’. Jesus is daily handed over to us, or rather, he hands himself over to us and expects us to do the same for our brothers and sisters.
Jesus begins his ministry by proclaiming the Gospel, the Good News, of God. It is summed up in the words: “This is the time of fulfillment. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe the Good News. ” It is a deceptively simple statement which, in fact, is rich in meaning. One can say that the whole of the Gospel message is contained in those two sentences.
“This is the time of fulfillment”: the world "fulfillment" is a translation of the Greek word kairos. Kairos refers to a moment when something is ripe to happen, a serendipitous moment. This is an apt description of the appearance of Jesus, which the whole of the Old Covenant is preparing for and leading up to.
“The Kingdom of God is at hand”: The whole of Jesus’ message centers round the notion of the “Kingdom of God”. It was the coming of the Kingdom which he proclaimed; it was the core of his teaching. Because Matthew uses the term “Kingdom of heaven”, we might think of the “Kingdom” as belonging only to life after death. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The word “Kingdom” translates the Greek word basileia, an abstract noun that is better rendered as “kingship” or “reign”. It does not refer to a place, but points to the ruling power of God, a power founded on love. Love essentially involves other people, so the Kingdom of God is not a place, or an action, but an interactive complex of harmonious relationships among God’s children. “Where charity and love prevail, there God is ever found.”
“Repent…”: Now we see the basic steps needed to become fully a “Kingdom person”. First of all, we need to repent. This verb is the most common translation of the Greek verb that corresponds to the noun metanoia. It is not a very good rendering. For most people, “repent” means being sorry for something done in the past. While that is not excluded here, metanoia looks much more toward the future. Metanoia means a radical change in one’s thinking, in this case, about the meaning and purpose of life, and how life is to be lived.
“… and believe in the Gospel”: How is metanoia to be achieved? By believing in the Gospel. For many Christians, belief means acceptance of the teachings of Christ as interpreted for us by the Church. But something more is being asked of us here. We are not asked just to be believe, but to believe IN. It is one thing to believe that something is true, but it may not affect our lives very much. By calling on us to believe IN the message of the Gospel, we are being asked for a total investment of ourselves, not merely accepting doctrines as true. We are being called to live our lives and pattern them on the model of Jesus himself. We will see what that entails as we read through the Gospel in the coming weeks.
The second part of the reading gives us a dramatic example of some people who did just what Jesus was asking for. As Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother, Andrew, who were fishermen, casting their nets into the sea. They were doing their daily work. Jesus said to them: “Come after me and I will make you fishers of people.” There and then, they dropped their nets, their whole means of livelihood and went after Jesus. A little further on Jesus saw two sons of Zebedee, James and John, who were mending their nets. These two Jesus also called. They promptly left their father in the boat with his hired men and followed Jesus.
Here we have that metanoia, that radical change of life, taking place. They follow Jesus with total trust. As they go off, they have no idea where they are going or what it will entail. They believe IN Jesus, put all their trust in him. They were to meet many trials and tribulations on the way but they never regretted the step they took. Only by following their example will we too have the same experience. The only guarantee we have is that those who did take Jesus’ call seriously and lived it out to the full know that they made the right choice. Finally, we might say that this story is to be read as a kind of parable, because we know that later on the disciples will still be in contact with their families and those boats will appear several times in the Gospel story.
What is being emphasized here is the total commitment to the Way and vision of Jesus which is symbolized by the total abandoning of the boats and family members. Jesus did not tell Peter, Andrew, James and John to abandon their parents and other family members. Jesus said, “If you love your father and mother more than me, you cannot be my disciple.” If you say “I love God”, but do not love your brother (that is, everyone who is not yourself), whom you can see, how can you love God, whom you cannot see? (I John 4:20)
Living Space
The Irish Jesuits
Sunday, January 10, 2010
You Are My Beloved Son, In Whom I Am Well Pleased!
The Baptism of the Lord
Reading I Isaiah 40:1-5, 9-11
Comfort, give comfort to my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her
that her service is at an end,
her guilt is expiated;
indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD
double for all her sins.
A voice cries out:
In the desert prepare the way of the LORD!
Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!
Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill shall be made low;
the rugged land shall be made a plain,
the rough country, a broad valley.
Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together;
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
Go up on to a high mountain,
Zion, herald of glad tidings;
cry out at the top of your voice,
Jerusalem, herald of good news!
Fear not to cry out
and say to the cities of Judah:
Here is your God!
Here comes with power
the Lord GOD,
who rules by a strong arm;
here is his reward with him,
his recompense before him.
Like a shepherd he feeds his flock;
in his arms he gathers the lambs,
carrying them in his bosom,
and leading the ewes with care.
+++
Today’s First Reading is taken from the latter part of the Book, recognized as the work of a writer known as “Second Isaiah”, and accepted in both Hebrew and Christian tradition as divinely inspired. The figurative language here describes the actual return of the Hebrew exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem. It is the Lord who leads them, and their journey is made easy for them, a pilgrimage of return to the place where the Lord dwells, in his Holy Temple.
The Gospels see in these verses a prophecy of John the Baptizer: a voice crying out in the desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his path. … Then, the glory of the Lord will be revealed, for the Lord has spoken.”
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 29
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
Give to the LORD, you sons of God,
give to the LORD glory and praise,
Give to the LORD the glory due his name;
adore the LORD in holy attire.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
The voice of the LORD is over the waters,
the LORD, over vast waters.
The voice of the LORD is mighty;
the voice of the LORD is majestic.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
The God of glory thunders,
and in his temple all say, “Glory!”
The LORD is enthroned above the flood;
the LORD is enthroned as king forever.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Reading II Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7
Beloved:
The grace of God has appeared, saving all
nd training us to reject godless ways and worldly desires
and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age,
as we await the blessed hope,
the appearance of the glory of our great God
and savior Jesus Christ,
who gave himself for us to deliver us from all lawlessness
and to cleanse for himself a people as his own,
eager to do what is good.
When the kindness and generous love
of God our savior appeared,
not because of any righteous deeds we had done
but because of his mercy,
He saved us through the bath of rebirth
and renewal by the Holy Spirit,
whom he richly poured out on us
through Jesus Christ our savior,
so that we might be justified by his grace
and become heirs in hope of eternal life.
+++
One of the principal themes in the Letter of Titus is the constant appeal to God’s revelation of salvation in Christ, with its insistence upon transformation of life. “The blessed hope, the appearance of the glory of our God and savior Jesus Christ” is brought about not by any righteous deeds of ours, but because of God’s mercy. Our salvation is granted “through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit”, that is, through our baptism. Through it we become justified not by our deeds, but by God’s grace, and become co-heirs with Christ in hope of eternal life.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
The people were filled with expectation,
and all were asking in their hearts
whether John might be the Christ.
John answered them all, saying,
“I am baptizing you with water,
but one mightier than I is coming.
I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”
After all the people had been baptized
and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying,
heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him
in bodily form like a dove.
And a voice came from heaven,
“You are my beloved Son;
with you I am well pleased.”
+++
The people who came to the Jordan to be baptized by John wondered whether he might be the promised Messiah. John, on the other hand, is well aware of his own mission: in contrast to John’s baptism with water, as a sign of repentance, “one mightier than I is coming” and “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” From the perspective of the early Christian community, the Spirit and fire understood in the light of the symbolism of the pouring out of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). But in the present moment, John’s preaching of the Spirit and fire should be related to their purifying and refining characteristics.
This gospel concludes after John has completed his mission: the people have been baptized and Jesus has received John’s baptism – in solidarity with his human brothers and sisters, since He has no need of repentance and forgiveness of sin. Now, while Jesus is spending some moments in prayer and meditation, the heavens are opened, the Holy Spirit descends upon Jesus in the form of a dove, and the voice of God is heard from heaven: “You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” This concluding episode focuses on the heavenly message which identifies Jesus as the Son of God, and, by its reference to Isaiah 42:1, as the Servant of the LORD. The relationship of Jesus to the Father was already announced in the infancy gospel. Here, it occurs at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee, and will appear again later in Luke’s writings: when Jesus reads in the synagogue “The spirit of the Lord has been given to me; he has anointed me”; when He is transfigured before Peter, John and James (9:35), and in Acts 10:38, when Peter describes the Baptism of Jesus to Cornelius.
+++ +++ +++ +++
From the very moment of his baptism, Jesus was revealed as the one who came to baptize humanity in the Holy Spirit. He came to give men and women life in abundance, eternal life, which brings the human being back to life, and heals him entirely, in body and spirit, restoring him to the original plan for which he was created.
The purpose of Christ’s existence was precisely to give humanity God’s life and his Spirit of love so that every person might be able to draw from this inexhaustible source of salvation.
Pope Benedict XVI.
Reading I Isaiah 40:1-5, 9-11
Comfort, give comfort to my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her
that her service is at an end,
her guilt is expiated;
indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD
double for all her sins.
A voice cries out:
In the desert prepare the way of the LORD!
Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!
Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill shall be made low;
the rugged land shall be made a plain,
the rough country, a broad valley.
Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together;
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
Go up on to a high mountain,
Zion, herald of glad tidings;
cry out at the top of your voice,
Jerusalem, herald of good news!
Fear not to cry out
and say to the cities of Judah:
Here is your God!
Here comes with power
the Lord GOD,
who rules by a strong arm;
here is his reward with him,
his recompense before him.
Like a shepherd he feeds his flock;
in his arms he gathers the lambs,
carrying them in his bosom,
and leading the ewes with care.
+++
Today’s First Reading is taken from the latter part of the Book, recognized as the work of a writer known as “Second Isaiah”, and accepted in both Hebrew and Christian tradition as divinely inspired. The figurative language here describes the actual return of the Hebrew exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem. It is the Lord who leads them, and their journey is made easy for them, a pilgrimage of return to the place where the Lord dwells, in his Holy Temple.
The Gospels see in these verses a prophecy of John the Baptizer: a voice crying out in the desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his path. … Then, the glory of the Lord will be revealed, for the Lord has spoken.”
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 29
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
Give to the LORD, you sons of God,
give to the LORD glory and praise,
Give to the LORD the glory due his name;
adore the LORD in holy attire.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
The voice of the LORD is over the waters,
the LORD, over vast waters.
The voice of the LORD is mighty;
the voice of the LORD is majestic.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
The God of glory thunders,
and in his temple all say, “Glory!”
The LORD is enthroned above the flood;
the LORD is enthroned as king forever.
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Reading II Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7
Beloved:
The grace of God has appeared, saving all
nd training us to reject godless ways and worldly desires
and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age,
as we await the blessed hope,
the appearance of the glory of our great God
and savior Jesus Christ,
who gave himself for us to deliver us from all lawlessness
and to cleanse for himself a people as his own,
eager to do what is good.
When the kindness and generous love
of God our savior appeared,
not because of any righteous deeds we had done
but because of his mercy,
He saved us through the bath of rebirth
and renewal by the Holy Spirit,
whom he richly poured out on us
through Jesus Christ our savior,
so that we might be justified by his grace
and become heirs in hope of eternal life.
+++
One of the principal themes in the Letter of Titus is the constant appeal to God’s revelation of salvation in Christ, with its insistence upon transformation of life. “The blessed hope, the appearance of the glory of our God and savior Jesus Christ” is brought about not by any righteous deeds of ours, but because of God’s mercy. Our salvation is granted “through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit”, that is, through our baptism. Through it we become justified not by our deeds, but by God’s grace, and become co-heirs with Christ in hope of eternal life.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
The people were filled with expectation,
and all were asking in their hearts
whether John might be the Christ.
John answered them all, saying,
“I am baptizing you with water,
but one mightier than I is coming.
I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”
After all the people had been baptized
and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying,
heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him
in bodily form like a dove.
And a voice came from heaven,
“You are my beloved Son;
with you I am well pleased.”
+++
The people who came to the Jordan to be baptized by John wondered whether he might be the promised Messiah. John, on the other hand, is well aware of his own mission: in contrast to John’s baptism with water, as a sign of repentance, “one mightier than I is coming” and “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” From the perspective of the early Christian community, the Spirit and fire understood in the light of the symbolism of the pouring out of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). But in the present moment, John’s preaching of the Spirit and fire should be related to their purifying and refining characteristics.
This gospel concludes after John has completed his mission: the people have been baptized and Jesus has received John’s baptism – in solidarity with his human brothers and sisters, since He has no need of repentance and forgiveness of sin. Now, while Jesus is spending some moments in prayer and meditation, the heavens are opened, the Holy Spirit descends upon Jesus in the form of a dove, and the voice of God is heard from heaven: “You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” This concluding episode focuses on the heavenly message which identifies Jesus as the Son of God, and, by its reference to Isaiah 42:1, as the Servant of the LORD. The relationship of Jesus to the Father was already announced in the infancy gospel. Here, it occurs at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee, and will appear again later in Luke’s writings: when Jesus reads in the synagogue “The spirit of the Lord has been given to me; he has anointed me”; when He is transfigured before Peter, John and James (9:35), and in Acts 10:38, when Peter describes the Baptism of Jesus to Cornelius.
+++ +++ +++ +++
From the very moment of his baptism, Jesus was revealed as the one who came to baptize humanity in the Holy Spirit. He came to give men and women life in abundance, eternal life, which brings the human being back to life, and heals him entirely, in body and spirit, restoring him to the original plan for which he was created.
The purpose of Christ’s existence was precisely to give humanity God’s life and his Spirit of love so that every person might be able to draw from this inexhaustible source of salvation.
Pope Benedict XVI.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
He Must Increase, I Must Decrease.
Christmas Weekday
Reading I 1 John 5:14-21
Beloved:
We have this confidence in him
that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
And if we know that he hears us in regard to whatever we ask,
we know that what we have asked him for is ours.
If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly,
he should pray to God and he will give him life.
This is only for those whose sin is not deadly.
There is such a thing as deadly sin,
about which I do not say that you should pray.
All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly.
We know that anyone begotten by God does not sin;
but the one begotten by God he protects,
and the Evil One cannot touch him.
We know that we belong to God,
and the whole world is under the power of the Evil One.
We also know that the Son of God has come
and has given us discernment to know the one who is true.
And we are in the one who is true,
in his Son Jesus Christ.
He is the true God and eternal life.
Children, be on your guard against idols.
+++
Today’s First Reading continues John’s teaching on what it means to be children of God. As children of the eternal Father, we have confidence in prayer because of our intimate relationship with him. We know that whatever we ask, if it is according to his will, he will grant it. We understand that, if what we ask for will be harmful to our relationship with the Father, or with our brothers and sisters, he will not grant it. On the other hand, it is not as easy to understand that God sometimes will not grant what we pray for because he has a greater gift in store for us. Whenever that question arises, I think of Saint Teresa of Avila, who once spoke to God in these words, “Why are you treating me this way?” “This is the way I treat my friends, Teresa.” She retorted, “Then, it’s no wonder you have so few!” I don’t know that any of us who read (or who compose) these reflections would dare compare our relationship with the Father to Saint Teresa’s, but we all can understand that dialogue in terms of four or five year old children who want to do what they want, and talk back when they don’t get their own way.
As children of God, we pray for those who are in sin, but not those who have “sinned unto death”, to use the original Greek phrase. This probably refers to apostasy, which is abandoning the church and forsaking the faith. But even in this case, while prayer is not encouraged, it is not forbidden.
The epistle concludes with a summary of the themes of the letter. There is a sharp contrast between the children of God, the people of the world, and those who belong to the evil one. The final verse is John’s perennial warning about idols – the word refers not only to pagan deities, but to anything that would deter the disciple of Christ from true devotion to God.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 149
The Lord takes delight in his people.
Sing to the LORD a new song
of praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in their maker,
let the children of Zion rejoice in their king.
The Lord takes delight in his people.
Let them praise his name in the festive dance,
let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp.
For the LORD loves his people,
and he adorns the lowly with victory.
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy upon their couches;
Let the high praises of God be in their throats.
This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia.
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel John 3:22-30
Jesus and his disciples went into the region of Judea,
where he spent some time with them baptizing.
John was also baptizing in Aenon near Salim,
because there was an abundance of water there,
and people came to be baptized,
for John had not yet been imprisoned.
Now a dispute arose between the disciples of John and a Jew
about ceremonial washings.
So they came to John and said to him,
“Rabbi, the one who was with you across the Jordan,
to whom you testified,
here he is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.”
John answered and said,
“No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven.
You yourselves can testify that I said that I am not the Christ,
but that I was sent before him.
The one who has the bride is the bridegroom;
the best man, who stands and listens for him,
rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice.
So this joy of mine has been made complete.
He must increase; I must decrease.”
+++
In the gospel according to John, the ministries of the Baptist and Jesus overlap, while according to Mary, it was only after John had been put in prison that Jesus began his own ministry. John’s intention may have been to put them together in order to contrast them.
The disciples of John are engaged in a dispute with a Jew, not otherwise identified, about ceremonial washing. (cf. Mark 7:2-5 : the washing of hands, cups, pitchers and kettles.). So they come to John and ask him about “the one to whom you testified”, who is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.” John’s answer, “No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven” (v.27). Or in another translation “One can lay claim only to what is given by God.”
We tend to lay claim only to what we believe we have achieved by our own effort. But the Baptist recognized that the things that are most distinctly my own are the purest of gifts from God. “No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven.” And John acknowledges that he knows his place in God’s plan. “You can testify that I am not the Christ, but that I was sent before him.” And he concludes with a favorite metaphor of John the Evangelist, that of the wedding feast. “The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens for him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine must be made complete. He must increase; I must decrease.”
This reading suggests that the things I consider most distinctively my own are the purest gifts of God; the more they are mine, the more they are God’s; the more they are God’s, the more they are mine. This is true, because God is truly our own, “more ours than anything else we call our own”, said the German Dominican mystic Johannes Tauler. Another German Dominican mystic, Meister Eckhart, wrote as follows:
“If it is true that God became man, it is also true that man became God … and so … you don’t have to borrow from God, for he is your own, and whatever you get, you get from yourself. Before God, work that does not come from your inmost self is dead. If a person’s work is to live, it must not come from sources outside himself, but from within, from the inmost depths of him.”
Donagh O’Shea, O.P
Reading I 1 John 5:14-21
Beloved:
We have this confidence in him
that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
And if we know that he hears us in regard to whatever we ask,
we know that what we have asked him for is ours.
If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly,
he should pray to God and he will give him life.
This is only for those whose sin is not deadly.
There is such a thing as deadly sin,
about which I do not say that you should pray.
All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not deadly.
We know that anyone begotten by God does not sin;
but the one begotten by God he protects,
and the Evil One cannot touch him.
We know that we belong to God,
and the whole world is under the power of the Evil One.
We also know that the Son of God has come
and has given us discernment to know the one who is true.
And we are in the one who is true,
in his Son Jesus Christ.
He is the true God and eternal life.
Children, be on your guard against idols.
+++
Today’s First Reading continues John’s teaching on what it means to be children of God. As children of the eternal Father, we have confidence in prayer because of our intimate relationship with him. We know that whatever we ask, if it is according to his will, he will grant it. We understand that, if what we ask for will be harmful to our relationship with the Father, or with our brothers and sisters, he will not grant it. On the other hand, it is not as easy to understand that God sometimes will not grant what we pray for because he has a greater gift in store for us. Whenever that question arises, I think of Saint Teresa of Avila, who once spoke to God in these words, “Why are you treating me this way?” “This is the way I treat my friends, Teresa.” She retorted, “Then, it’s no wonder you have so few!” I don’t know that any of us who read (or who compose) these reflections would dare compare our relationship with the Father to Saint Teresa’s, but we all can understand that dialogue in terms of four or five year old children who want to do what they want, and talk back when they don’t get their own way.
As children of God, we pray for those who are in sin, but not those who have “sinned unto death”, to use the original Greek phrase. This probably refers to apostasy, which is abandoning the church and forsaking the faith. But even in this case, while prayer is not encouraged, it is not forbidden.
The epistle concludes with a summary of the themes of the letter. There is a sharp contrast between the children of God, the people of the world, and those who belong to the evil one. The final verse is John’s perennial warning about idols – the word refers not only to pagan deities, but to anything that would deter the disciple of Christ from true devotion to God.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 149
The Lord takes delight in his people.
Sing to the LORD a new song
of praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in their maker,
let the children of Zion rejoice in their king.
The Lord takes delight in his people.
Let them praise his name in the festive dance,
let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp.
For the LORD loves his people,
and he adorns the lowly with victory.
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy upon their couches;
Let the high praises of God be in their throats.
This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia.
R. The Lord takes delight in his people.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel John 3:22-30
Jesus and his disciples went into the region of Judea,
where he spent some time with them baptizing.
John was also baptizing in Aenon near Salim,
because there was an abundance of water there,
and people came to be baptized,
for John had not yet been imprisoned.
Now a dispute arose between the disciples of John and a Jew
about ceremonial washings.
So they came to John and said to him,
“Rabbi, the one who was with you across the Jordan,
to whom you testified,
here he is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.”
John answered and said,
“No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven.
You yourselves can testify that I said that I am not the Christ,
but that I was sent before him.
The one who has the bride is the bridegroom;
the best man, who stands and listens for him,
rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice.
So this joy of mine has been made complete.
He must increase; I must decrease.”
+++
In the gospel according to John, the ministries of the Baptist and Jesus overlap, while according to Mary, it was only after John had been put in prison that Jesus began his own ministry. John’s intention may have been to put them together in order to contrast them.
The disciples of John are engaged in a dispute with a Jew, not otherwise identified, about ceremonial washing. (cf. Mark 7:2-5 : the washing of hands, cups, pitchers and kettles.). So they come to John and ask him about “the one to whom you testified”, who is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.” John’s answer, “No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven” (v.27). Or in another translation “One can lay claim only to what is given by God.”
We tend to lay claim only to what we believe we have achieved by our own effort. But the Baptist recognized that the things that are most distinctly my own are the purest of gifts from God. “No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven.” And John acknowledges that he knows his place in God’s plan. “You can testify that I am not the Christ, but that I was sent before him.” And he concludes with a favorite metaphor of John the Evangelist, that of the wedding feast. “The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens for him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine must be made complete. He must increase; I must decrease.”
This reading suggests that the things I consider most distinctively my own are the purest gifts of God; the more they are mine, the more they are God’s; the more they are God’s, the more they are mine. This is true, because God is truly our own, “more ours than anything else we call our own”, said the German Dominican mystic Johannes Tauler. Another German Dominican mystic, Meister Eckhart, wrote as follows:
“If it is true that God became man, it is also true that man became God … and so … you don’t have to borrow from God, for he is your own, and whatever you get, you get from yourself. Before God, work that does not come from your inmost self is dead. If a person’s work is to live, it must not come from sources outside himself, but from within, from the inmost depths of him.”
Donagh O’Shea, O.P
Friday, January 8, 2010
Lord, If You Wish, You Can Make Me Clean.
Christmas Weekday
Reading I 1 John 5:5-13
Beloved: Who indeed is the victor over the world
but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
This is the one who came through water and Blood,
Jesus Christ,
not by water alone, but by water and Blood.
The Spirit is the one who testifies,
and the Spirit is truth.
So there are three who testify,
the Spirit, the water, and the Blood,
and the three are of one accord.
If we accept human testimony,
the testimony of God is surely greater.
Now the testimony of God is this,
that he has testified on behalf of his Son.
Whoever believes in the Son of God
has this testimony within himself.
Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar
by not believing the testimony God has given about his Son.
And this is the testimony:
God gave us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son.
Whoever possesses the Son has life;
whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life.
I write these things to you so that you may know
that you have eternal life,
you who believe in the name of the Son of God.
+++
Today’s First Reading is taken from the first Epistle of Saint John. In this chapter, John speaks of what it means to be children of God. “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God, and everyone who loves the Father is begotten by him.” The children of God are known not only for their love of others and their love for God, but by their belief that Jesus Christ is the Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Faith, which implies acceptance of Jesus in his true character, as Son of God and Son of Mary, as well as obedience to God’s commands founded in love, is the source of the Christian’s power in the world, and it conquers the world of evil.
Jesus Christ came in to the world not by water alone, but by water and blood. Water and blood refers to Christ’s baptism, and to the shedding of his blood on the cross. The Spirit was present at the baptism. The testimony to Christ as the Son of God is confirmed by divine witness, a more powerful witness than the two human witnesses required by the Mosaic Law. To deny this is to deny God’s truth. The core message of divine witness or testimony is that eternal life is given in Christ and in no other way. To possess the Son is not merely acceptance of a doctrine, but faith in a person who lives who and who provides life.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 147
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He has granted peace in your borders;
with the best of wheat he fills you.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them.
Alleluia.
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Luke 5:12-16
It happened that there was a man full of leprosy
in one of the towns where Jesus was;
and when he saw Jesus,
he fell prostrate, pleaded with him, and said,
“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.”
Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said,
“I do will it. Be made clean.”
And the leprosy left him immediately.
Then he ordered him not to tell anyone, but
“Go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing
what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.”
The report about him spread all the more,
and great crowds assembled to listen to him
and to be cured of their ailments,
but he would withdraw to deserted places to pray.
+++
There is a small but significant difference in this healing story. Jesus' other miracles usually occurred through the mere speaking of a word, but here he touched the leper, thereby making himself ritually unclean according to Jewish law (Leviticus 13:42-46). The compassion is evident – and was badly needed, given the isolation that was forced on lepers.
Naturally, the word began to spread. And why not? we might ask. Every word spreads: that's the nature of words. And Jesus is the Word. So why the secrecy? He must have seen that he was in danger of becoming a celebrity. Celebrities, by definition, are famous. That by itself seems to be enough for some modern celebrities who are famous only for being famous. I doubt that Jesus would ever agree to appear on television, were he walking the earth today. But you get the uneasy feeling that many of the ‘apparitions’ of Jesus and Mary today are based only on somebody’s lifelong habit of watching television; our visionaries are televisionaries. But Jesus was substance, not appearance. He touched the leper – something he could not have done through television. And then he sent him away, telling him to say nothing, while he himself “would withdraw to deserted places and pray.”
More than the other gospel writers, Luke shows Jesus frequently at prayer. One translation says “He would always go off to some place where he could be alone and pray.” Others say often, or repeatedly. It is clear that it was his custom, not an occasional thing. This became all the more necessary as his fame increased. He also needed to get away just to rest. Our world puts a very high value on busyness, sometimes making it seem the ultimate value. But how could it be that? Some of the greatest ruffians in history have also been the busiest. “The cruelest men,” wrote Tolstoy, “your Neros and Peter the Greats, were constantly occupied.” If it was necessary for Jesus to seek solitude in first-century Palestine, how much more for us who live with the bustle of the twenty-first century!
Donagh O’Shea, O.P.
Reading I 1 John 5:5-13
Beloved: Who indeed is the victor over the world
but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
This is the one who came through water and Blood,
Jesus Christ,
not by water alone, but by water and Blood.
The Spirit is the one who testifies,
and the Spirit is truth.
So there are three who testify,
the Spirit, the water, and the Blood,
and the three are of one accord.
If we accept human testimony,
the testimony of God is surely greater.
Now the testimony of God is this,
that he has testified on behalf of his Son.
Whoever believes in the Son of God
has this testimony within himself.
Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar
by not believing the testimony God has given about his Son.
And this is the testimony:
God gave us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son.
Whoever possesses the Son has life;
whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life.
I write these things to you so that you may know
that you have eternal life,
you who believe in the name of the Son of God.
+++
Today’s First Reading is taken from the first Epistle of Saint John. In this chapter, John speaks of what it means to be children of God. “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God, and everyone who loves the Father is begotten by him.” The children of God are known not only for their love of others and their love for God, but by their belief that Jesus Christ is the Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Faith, which implies acceptance of Jesus in his true character, as Son of God and Son of Mary, as well as obedience to God’s commands founded in love, is the source of the Christian’s power in the world, and it conquers the world of evil.
Jesus Christ came in to the world not by water alone, but by water and blood. Water and blood refers to Christ’s baptism, and to the shedding of his blood on the cross. The Spirit was present at the baptism. The testimony to Christ as the Son of God is confirmed by divine witness, a more powerful witness than the two human witnesses required by the Mosaic Law. To deny this is to deny God’s truth. The core message of divine witness or testimony is that eternal life is given in Christ and in no other way. To possess the Son is not merely acceptance of a doctrine, but faith in a person who lives who and who provides life.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 147
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He has granted peace in your borders;
with the best of wheat he fills you.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them.
Alleluia.
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Luke 5:12-16
It happened that there was a man full of leprosy
in one of the towns where Jesus was;
and when he saw Jesus,
he fell prostrate, pleaded with him, and said,
“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.”
Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said,
“I do will it. Be made clean.”
And the leprosy left him immediately.
Then he ordered him not to tell anyone, but
“Go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing
what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.”
The report about him spread all the more,
and great crowds assembled to listen to him
and to be cured of their ailments,
but he would withdraw to deserted places to pray.
+++
There is a small but significant difference in this healing story. Jesus' other miracles usually occurred through the mere speaking of a word, but here he touched the leper, thereby making himself ritually unclean according to Jewish law (Leviticus 13:42-46). The compassion is evident – and was badly needed, given the isolation that was forced on lepers.
Naturally, the word began to spread. And why not? we might ask. Every word spreads: that's the nature of words. And Jesus is the Word. So why the secrecy? He must have seen that he was in danger of becoming a celebrity. Celebrities, by definition, are famous. That by itself seems to be enough for some modern celebrities who are famous only for being famous. I doubt that Jesus would ever agree to appear on television, were he walking the earth today. But you get the uneasy feeling that many of the ‘apparitions’ of Jesus and Mary today are based only on somebody’s lifelong habit of watching television; our visionaries are televisionaries. But Jesus was substance, not appearance. He touched the leper – something he could not have done through television. And then he sent him away, telling him to say nothing, while he himself “would withdraw to deserted places and pray.”
More than the other gospel writers, Luke shows Jesus frequently at prayer. One translation says “He would always go off to some place where he could be alone and pray.” Others say often, or repeatedly. It is clear that it was his custom, not an occasional thing. This became all the more necessary as his fame increased. He also needed to get away just to rest. Our world puts a very high value on busyness, sometimes making it seem the ultimate value. But how could it be that? Some of the greatest ruffians in history have also been the busiest. “The cruelest men,” wrote Tolstoy, “your Neros and Peter the Greats, were constantly occupied.” If it was necessary for Jesus to seek solitude in first-century Palestine, how much more for us who live with the bustle of the twenty-first century!
Donagh O’Shea, O.P.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Whoever Loves God Must Also Love His Brother!
Reading I 1 John 4:19–5:4
Beloved, we love God because
he first loved us.
If anyone says, “I love God,
but hates his brother, he is a liar;
for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen
cannot love God whom he has not seen.
This is the commandment we have from him:
Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God,
and everyone who loves the Father
loves also the one begotten by him.
In this way we know that we love the children of God
when we love God and obey his commandments.
For the love of God is this,
that we keep his commandments.
And his commandments are not burdensome,
for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world.
And the victory that conquers the world is our faith.
+++
In today’s First Reading, Saint John presents a very clear message about Love: If you say “I love God”, but you hate your brother, you are a liar.” But, who is my brother? In the gospels, Jesus teaches us that there are two great commandments: “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord: and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” And the second is this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:28-31). In this Epistle, John’s use of the word “brother” is equivalent to Mark’s use of the word “neighbor”. The commandment of loving one another goes beyond family relationships, beyond gender, beyond friendship, or even mere acquaintance: “My brother” is everyone in this world except myself, and I should love all of them with the same love I have for myself. The commandment is clear: Whoever loves God loves everyone else in the world.
In the second part of the reading, John expands on this principle: If we believe that Jesus is the Messiah begotten by God, then because we love the Father, we also love the Son. But if we love the eternally begotten Son of God, we must also love all of God’s children. How do we express our love for God and for His children: by loving God and keeping His commandments. For some, keeping the commandments is burdensome, often because their motivation for keeping the commandments is to avoid punishment. But, if we know that God is love, and that his commandments are intended to guide us in doing God’s will, then we recognize the commandments as guideposts on the way to the eternal kingdom, as guidance from a loving Father to his beloved children. Then the victory that conquers the world, and allays our fear, is our faith in our Father’s mercy and loving kindness.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial Psalm 72
Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
From fraud and violence he shall redeem them,
and precious shall their blood be in his sight.
May they be prayed for continually;
day by day shall they bless him.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
+++ +++ +++ +++
Gospel Luke 4:14-22
Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region.
He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.
He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
+++
Most books are about other books. If they are not referring directly to them they have them at the edge of their vision and they are quoting or half-quoting from them, agreeing or disagreeing. That's the way we are. We are a community, even when we are doing one of the loneliest things one can do: writing a book.
Jesus stood up in the synagogue and read from the book of Isaiah. The rabbis and scribes loved to quote commentary after commentary, but here there is silence as Jesus finishes. “The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.” Into that dramatic moment he spoke the words, “Today these words come true even as you listen.” Not some time in the future, not in eternity, but today. It is awkward when a book spills over into reality – into the present moment. It’s as if a picture on the wall was to expand beyond its frame and its figures were to come down the wall and speak to you.
A Zen master had spoken for an hour on the power of the present moment, the Now. At the end, someone said, “I like your concept of the Now!” The Zen master reacted almost as if he had been struck. “It is not a concept!” he roared! ‘Now’ is reality, ‘Today’ is reality. Good news to the poor is to be a reality; freedom to the oppressed is to be a reality. This is real community, unlike the fictional community of books.
Donagh O’Shea, O.P
Beloved, we love God because
he first loved us.
If anyone says, “I love God,
but hates his brother, he is a liar;
for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen
cannot love God whom he has not seen.
This is the commandment we have from him:
Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God,
and everyone who loves the Father
loves also the one begotten by him.
In this way we know that we love the children of God
when we love God and obey his commandments.
For the love of God is this,
that we keep his commandments.
And his commandments are not burdensome,
for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world.
And the victory that conquers the world is our faith.
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In today’s First Reading, Saint John presents a very clear message about Love: If you say “I love God”, but you hate your brother, you are a liar.” But, who is my brother? In the gospels, Jesus teaches us that there are two great commandments: “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord: and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” And the second is this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:28-31). In this Epistle, John’s use of the word “brother” is equivalent to Mark’s use of the word “neighbor”. The commandment of loving one another goes beyond family relationships, beyond gender, beyond friendship, or even mere acquaintance: “My brother” is everyone in this world except myself, and I should love all of them with the same love I have for myself. The commandment is clear: Whoever loves God loves everyone else in the world.
In the second part of the reading, John expands on this principle: If we believe that Jesus is the Messiah begotten by God, then because we love the Father, we also love the Son. But if we love the eternally begotten Son of God, we must also love all of God’s children. How do we express our love for God and for His children: by loving God and keeping His commandments. For some, keeping the commandments is burdensome, often because their motivation for keeping the commandments is to avoid punishment. But, if we know that God is love, and that his commandments are intended to guide us in doing God’s will, then we recognize the commandments as guideposts on the way to the eternal kingdom, as guidance from a loving Father to his beloved children. Then the victory that conquers the world, and allays our fear, is our faith in our Father’s mercy and loving kindness.
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Responsorial Psalm 72
Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
From fraud and violence he shall redeem them,
and precious shall their blood be in his sight.
May they be prayed for continually;
day by day shall they bless him.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
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Gospel Luke 4:14-22
Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region.
He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.
He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
+++
Most books are about other books. If they are not referring directly to them they have them at the edge of their vision and they are quoting or half-quoting from them, agreeing or disagreeing. That's the way we are. We are a community, even when we are doing one of the loneliest things one can do: writing a book.
Jesus stood up in the synagogue and read from the book of Isaiah. The rabbis and scribes loved to quote commentary after commentary, but here there is silence as Jesus finishes. “The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.” Into that dramatic moment he spoke the words, “Today these words come true even as you listen.” Not some time in the future, not in eternity, but today. It is awkward when a book spills over into reality – into the present moment. It’s as if a picture on the wall was to expand beyond its frame and its figures were to come down the wall and speak to you.
A Zen master had spoken for an hour on the power of the present moment, the Now. At the end, someone said, “I like your concept of the Now!” The Zen master reacted almost as if he had been struck. “It is not a concept!” he roared! ‘Now’ is reality, ‘Today’ is reality. Good news to the poor is to be a reality; freedom to the oppressed is to be a reality. This is real community, unlike the fictional community of books.
Donagh O’Shea, O.P
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