Sunday, June 01, 2008

Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time


Readings for the Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible

Commentary:

Reading 1 Deuteronomy 11:18, 26-28, 32

Moses second address to the people of Israel concludes in this passage with the traditional covenant offer of “blessings and curses”. Blessings are afforded to those who keep the covenant, the heart of which is contained in the Law. The curses are laid upon those who violate the terns of the covenant and “…follow other gods, whom you have not known.” Following these verses the book of Deuteronomy continues with the promulgation of the Law they are to follow.

It is note worthy that in the first verse of this passage (v. 18) the reference “…let them be a pendant on your forehead” coupled with Dt 6:8ff was the source of the Hebrew tradition prominent especially among the Pharisees of wearing Phylacteries.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 31:2-3, 3-4, 17, 25
R. Lord, be my rock of safety.

Psalm 31 is an individual lament (also heard on Good Friday). The psalmist writes of placing trust in the Lord as the source of salvation for the faithful. The reference in the first strophe, “In your justice rescue me, incline your ear to me, make haste to deliver me” links the psalm nicely to the covenant Moses proposes in Deuteronomy (above).

Reading II Romans 3:21-25, 28

St. Paul begins this section with a statement that indicates Jesus as the “new covenant”. As Moses lay his covenant embodied in the Law at the feet of the people, now Jesus comes to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (“Now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, though testified to by the law and the prophets”).

The passage concludes with a statement that is at odds with St. James letter as St. Paul seems to indicate that we are justified (that is made just, without sin) by faith alone (See also
James 2:14-24, 26 and the commentary on that reading from Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time). These two statements are reconciled by the final verse in this selection as St. Paul points out that his reference is to popular piety (“…we consider that a person is justified by faith apart from works of the law (emphasis added)) as proposed by Pharisaic traditions that have not bearing on the love of God and others which constitutes actions of faith.

Gospel Matthew 7:21-27

Jesus is concluding his warning about listening to false prophets in this reading. He tells his followers that just because a person claims affiliation with Jesus and has done public acts that testify to their allegiance to him, does not mean they will be given the promise of the faithful. They will be judged based upon their lived expression of the values of Christ – foundational values.

To emphasize this point the allegory of the person building a house on sand or rock is used. Those who follow Jesus law of love (“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them”) will be like the wise person who builds upon rock (referring back to Psalm 31). Those who hear his words and do not act on them (faith without actions) are the foolish who build upon saind.

Reflection:

Sacred Scripture always helps us to get to know God better. It helps us to understand the relationship he has had with those who have gone before us in faith and it reminds us of what he calls us to be. Today we have a full plate.

In the first reading from Deuteronomy we find Moses concluding a lengthy address to the people of Israel as he introduces the Law. The precepts of the Law of Moses, as we hear today, are the expectations of God for behavior by the people he has chosen. The people are enjoined to follow the Law but it is clear, they have a choice. They can choose to follow the Law or they can choose to go a different way; the latter choice takes with it serious consequences. For our Jewish forbearers, this covenant was foundational. To use a metaphor that will be alluded to in both the Psalm and the Gospel, it was their rock upon which they built the temple.

Seeing this early understanding we next encounter St. Paul, a learned scholar of the Law of Moses and the prophets who followed. He sees the traditions that have grown up around the Law as practiced by the scribes, the Pharisees, and leaders of the Jewish people to be perverting the spirit of the Law and Prophets which predicted the coming of the Messiah and was fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Just a Jesus railed against pompous piety, St. Paul says “For we consider that a person is justified by faith apart from works of the law.

Finally we get to the Gospel and find St. Matthew has provided a sort of reconciliation between God’s will for us and the practice of our faith. Speaking of false teachers (and false testifiers to the faith), he tells us that just because a person claims to have be “saved” because they have done a work in the name of the Lord does not mean they are living the spirit of the Lord.

We have come full circle and are asked to look at the foundation of our beliefs and how they are expressed in what we do each day. If our foundation, our understanding of God’s will is based upon what we have heard from his Son and expressed in our actions, we are likened to the wise person who builds upon the rock. That strong foundation will withstand any buffeting. While the person who gives lip-service to the faith, whose actions outside the faith community identify his true beliefs, will be blown away by challenges to our foundational beliefs.

Our challenge and our prayer today is that we can constantly strengthen our own foundation of faith; that we can stand solidly and firmly on that rock as we face the buffeting of the world in the days ahead. We pay also not to be seduced by teachings that seem fair but violate Christ’s most important Law – love one another as I have loved you.

Pax

[1] After Links to Readings Expire
[2] The picture today is “The House Upon the Rock and The House Upon the Sand” by William James Webb, c. 1860

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