Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Readings for Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading I: Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12
The angel brought me, Ezekiel,
back to the entrance of the temple of the LORD,
and I saw water flowing out
from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east,
for the façade of the temple was toward the east;
the water flowed down from the right side of the temple,
south of the altar.
He led me outside by the north gate,
and around to the outer gate facing the east,
where I saw water trickling from the right side.
Then when he had walked off to the east
with a measuring cord in his hand,
he measured off a thousand cubits
and had me wade through the water,
which was ankle-deep.
He measured off another thousand
and once more had me wade through the water,
which was now knee-deep.
Again he measured off a thousand and had me wade;
the water was up to my waist.
Once more he measured off a thousand,
but there was now a river through which I could not wade;
for the water had risen so high it had become a river
that could not be crossed except by swimming.
He asked me, “Have you seen this, son of man?”
Then he brought me to the bank of the river, where he had me sit.
Along the bank of the river I saw very many trees on both sides.
He said to me,
“This water flows into the eastern district down upon the Arabah,
and empties into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh.
Wherever the river flows,
every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live,
and there shall be abundant fish,
for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh.
Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow;
their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail.
Every month they shall bear fresh fruit,
for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary.
Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ez 47:1-9, 12
In this vision from Ezekiel the allusion is made to one faith – the one stream flowing from the temple into the Kedron Valley which is normally a dry wash. The imagery used has been used in other places in scripture (Amos 9 :13; Joel 4:18; Zechariah 14:8; Psalm 36:9--10; Revelation 22:1) and probably represents the water flowing from the Garden of Eden - first stopped by Original Sin then re-started with Moses striking the 12 stones in the desert during the Exodus and finally here in Jerusalem in the end times, the Eschaton. The analogy is to one faith flowing into the world bringing life and well-being to any who partake
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9
R. (8) The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
God is our refuge and our strength,
an ever-present help in distress.
Therefore we fear not, though the earth be shaken
and mountains plunge into the depths of the sea.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
There is a stream whose runlets gladden the city of God,
the holy dwelling of the Most High.
God is in its midst; it shall not be disturbed;
God will help it at the break of dawn.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
The LORD of hosts is with us;
our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
Come! behold the deeds of the LORD,
the astounding things he has wrought on earth.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9
Psalm 46 is a hymn of praise. In this passage we see the analogy presented in the reading from Ezekiel referenced as the Lord is praised for supporting the people with his strength and creation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: John 5:1-16
There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate
a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there
and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him,
“Do you want to be well?”
The sick man answered him,
“Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool
when the water is stirred up;
while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.”
Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.”
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.
Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured,
“It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.”
He answered them, “The man who made me well told me,
‘Take up your mat and walk.’“
They asked him,
“Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?”
The man who was healed did not know who it was,
for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him,
“Look, you are well; do not sin any more,
so that nothing worse may happen to you.”
The man went and told the Jews
that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus
because he did this on a sabbath.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Jn 5:1-16
The Gospel from St. John is the third sign used in the Lord’s self-revelation. Jesus cures the paralytic by his word, something that could not be accomplished by the waters of Judaism. When Jesus first approached the paralytic he complained that he could not get to the waters “when they were stirred up”. This is taken from a belief at the time that, periodically, and angle of God would come down and stir up the waters of the pool and the first person to touch them in that state was cured.
It is explicitly mentioned that Jesus does this on the Sabbath which precipitates the controversy with the Jewish leadership. It is also noteworthy that Jesus does not say to the paralytic that his sin has caused his condition – he tells him “Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you." This last reference is probably to final judgment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
As population pressure continues to strain the resources of the world one of the most important commodities seeming to be in short supply is potable water; that is water clean enough to drink without becoming sick and clean enough to cook with, not to mention bathing. In many developing countries water means the difference between life and death. Without it the human being parishes in short order. Without water crops don’t grow and livestock also die. In short, water is truly the source of physical life. It is so important that determining its presence is a singular goal of space exploration; we look for it on the moon and Mars seeing its presence as the key to establishing long term presence on those bodies.
In scripture the term is used metaphorically and symbolically but with the same emphasis, without faith, represented by water, there can be no life. The Prophet Ezekiel saw this in his vision with the metaphor of a garden flourishing along the stream that was faith in God, flowing from the Temple. Jesus later defined the temple as residing in the new Jerusalem and the faith that flows into the world springs from a wound in his side as a soldiers lance opened that source; just as surely as Moses staff brought water from the rocks, as sign of God’s live in the desert.
The interesting thing about this metaphor of the river of faith is that it has some additional lessons to teach is we examine the analogy more closely. First, the stream can be fouled if people try to throw contaminants in up stream. This could be analogized by attempting to put things in that do not belong, twisting the faith to ones own purpose as we see in some unscrupulous evangelists. Water can likewise be diverted from its course, bottled up and sold to those who can afford it. We can use our own imaginations here as to the meaning of this sort of misuse.
Perhaps one of the more interesting analogies about flowing water is that it can naturally pool when it gets to a depression, temporarily halting its progress. This happens when it reaches a person or group that is afraid to let it flow through them to others; that person or group feels it is necessary to become insulated, trying to shut out the world but at the same time, denying water its course. They don’t realize that it is the actual flow that is necessary. Without it the water can become stagnate and foul, contained too long it can actually become deadly.
When we recognize that in order for our faith to remain vibrant and alive it must flow though us, we act on that knowledge, passing on what we have been freely given. Our prayer this day is that what we have received, we can pass on faithfully in our words, our actions, and our prayers.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The picture is “River Landscape” by Adam-Wolfgang Töpffer, 1820s
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved.
Readings for Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading I: Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12
The angel brought me, Ezekiel,
back to the entrance of the temple of the LORD,
and I saw water flowing out
from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east,
for the façade of the temple was toward the east;
the water flowed down from the right side of the temple,
south of the altar.
He led me outside by the north gate,
and around to the outer gate facing the east,
where I saw water trickling from the right side.
Then when he had walked off to the east
with a measuring cord in his hand,
he measured off a thousand cubits
and had me wade through the water,
which was ankle-deep.
He measured off another thousand
and once more had me wade through the water,
which was now knee-deep.
Again he measured off a thousand and had me wade;
the water was up to my waist.
Once more he measured off a thousand,
but there was now a river through which I could not wade;
for the water had risen so high it had become a river
that could not be crossed except by swimming.
He asked me, “Have you seen this, son of man?”
Then he brought me to the bank of the river, where he had me sit.
Along the bank of the river I saw very many trees on both sides.
He said to me,
“This water flows into the eastern district down upon the Arabah,
and empties into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh.
Wherever the river flows,
every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live,
and there shall be abundant fish,
for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh.
Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow;
their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail.
Every month they shall bear fresh fruit,
for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary.
Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ez 47:1-9, 12
In this vision from Ezekiel the allusion is made to one faith – the one stream flowing from the temple into the Kedron Valley which is normally a dry wash. The imagery used has been used in other places in scripture (Amos 9 :13; Joel 4:18; Zechariah 14:8; Psalm 36:9--10; Revelation 22:1) and probably represents the water flowing from the Garden of Eden - first stopped by Original Sin then re-started with Moses striking the 12 stones in the desert during the Exodus and finally here in Jerusalem in the end times, the Eschaton. The analogy is to one faith flowing into the world bringing life and well-being to any who partake
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9
R. (8) The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
God is our refuge and our strength,
an ever-present help in distress.
Therefore we fear not, though the earth be shaken
and mountains plunge into the depths of the sea.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
There is a stream whose runlets gladden the city of God,
the holy dwelling of the Most High.
God is in its midst; it shall not be disturbed;
God will help it at the break of dawn.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
The LORD of hosts is with us;
our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
Come! behold the deeds of the LORD,
the astounding things he has wrought on earth.
R. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9
Psalm 46 is a hymn of praise. In this passage we see the analogy presented in the reading from Ezekiel referenced as the Lord is praised for supporting the people with his strength and creation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: John 5:1-16
There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate
a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there
and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him,
“Do you want to be well?”
The sick man answered him,
“Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool
when the water is stirred up;
while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.”
Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.”
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.
Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured,
“It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.”
He answered them, “The man who made me well told me,
‘Take up your mat and walk.’“
They asked him,
“Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?”
The man who was healed did not know who it was,
for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him,
“Look, you are well; do not sin any more,
so that nothing worse may happen to you.”
The man went and told the Jews
that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus
because he did this on a sabbath.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Jn 5:1-16
The Gospel from St. John is the third sign used in the Lord’s self-revelation. Jesus cures the paralytic by his word, something that could not be accomplished by the waters of Judaism. When Jesus first approached the paralytic he complained that he could not get to the waters “when they were stirred up”. This is taken from a belief at the time that, periodically, and angle of God would come down and stir up the waters of the pool and the first person to touch them in that state was cured.
It is explicitly mentioned that Jesus does this on the Sabbath which precipitates the controversy with the Jewish leadership. It is also noteworthy that Jesus does not say to the paralytic that his sin has caused his condition – he tells him “Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you." This last reference is probably to final judgment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
As population pressure continues to strain the resources of the world one of the most important commodities seeming to be in short supply is potable water; that is water clean enough to drink without becoming sick and clean enough to cook with, not to mention bathing. In many developing countries water means the difference between life and death. Without it the human being parishes in short order. Without water crops don’t grow and livestock also die. In short, water is truly the source of physical life. It is so important that determining its presence is a singular goal of space exploration; we look for it on the moon and Mars seeing its presence as the key to establishing long term presence on those bodies.
In scripture the term is used metaphorically and symbolically but with the same emphasis, without faith, represented by water, there can be no life. The Prophet Ezekiel saw this in his vision with the metaphor of a garden flourishing along the stream that was faith in God, flowing from the Temple. Jesus later defined the temple as residing in the new Jerusalem and the faith that flows into the world springs from a wound in his side as a soldiers lance opened that source; just as surely as Moses staff brought water from the rocks, as sign of God’s live in the desert.
The interesting thing about this metaphor of the river of faith is that it has some additional lessons to teach is we examine the analogy more closely. First, the stream can be fouled if people try to throw contaminants in up stream. This could be analogized by attempting to put things in that do not belong, twisting the faith to ones own purpose as we see in some unscrupulous evangelists. Water can likewise be diverted from its course, bottled up and sold to those who can afford it. We can use our own imaginations here as to the meaning of this sort of misuse.
Perhaps one of the more interesting analogies about flowing water is that it can naturally pool when it gets to a depression, temporarily halting its progress. This happens when it reaches a person or group that is afraid to let it flow through them to others; that person or group feels it is necessary to become insulated, trying to shut out the world but at the same time, denying water its course. They don’t realize that it is the actual flow that is necessary. Without it the water can become stagnate and foul, contained too long it can actually become deadly.
When we recognize that in order for our faith to remain vibrant and alive it must flow though us, we act on that knowledge, passing on what we have been freely given. Our prayer this day is that what we have received, we can pass on faithfully in our words, our actions, and our prayers.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The picture is “River Landscape” by Adam-Wolfgang Töpffer, 1820s
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved.
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