(Optional Memorial for Saint Elizabeth of Portugal) – in the United States transferred from July 4
(Optional Memorial for Saint Anthony Zaccaria, Priest)
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| “Le Christ Guerissant un Malade” [Christ Healing the Sick] by Mathieu Ignace van Bree (1773-1839) |
Commentary:
Reading 1: Hosea 8:4-7, 11-13
Commentary on Hos 8:4-7, 11-13
The Prophet Hosea, speaking with the voice of God, condemns the people of Israel, Samaria, and Ephraim for falling away from the Law of Moses, and taking up the worship of Baal and other false practices (probably those of the local majority population). The prophet is eloquent in describing how these practices not only displease God, but will not bring the result hoped for. (“When they sow the wind, they shall reap the whirlwind.”) He beckons them back to “innocence” in the precepts of the Lord.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 115:3-4, 5-6, 7ab-8, 9-10
R. (9a) The house of Israel
or:
R. Alleluia.
Commentary on Ps 115:3-4, 5-6, 7ab-8, 9-10
Psalm 115 is a hymn of praise to our God who is above all things and creator of all. While he is not seen, all creation is evidence of his power and salvation. The singer attacks those who worship false gods and idols, promoting the first of the Ten Commandments: "You shall not have other gods beside me. You shall not make for yourself an idol or a likeness of anything in the heavens above or on the earth below or in the waters beneath the earth; you shall not bow down before them or serve them." (Exodus 20:4-5)
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Gospel: Matthew 9:32-38
Commentary on Mt 9:32-38
In this selection Jesus continues his healing practice as he travels from town to town. We see growing opposition from the Pharisees as he does so. Almost ironically, Jesus looks with compassion upon the people ("...his heart was moved with pity for them") as he sees that the religious leaders, the Scribes and Pharisees, have not led them to God but abandoned them, seeking instead their own selfish ends. The Lord recalls the prophecy of Ezekiel, predicting one from the line of David as a new shepherd. This prophetic statement was fulfilled in himself (Ezekiel 34:23). And, using the same language we heard in Luke 10:1-9, Jesus prepares to send out the disciples to proclaim the Good News.
CCC: Mt 9:38 2611
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Reflection:
Do you recall having your parents tell you that, before you could go out and play, you had to clean your room (or some other equally difficult chore)? If it was something that you should have been doing right along, and now it had become a huge task, you might get an idea of what Jesus must have been feeling as he went from town to town trying to get people to understand what he meant by “The kingdom of God is at hand.”
Just as when we were children, and wanted to do something important, like go and play with our friends, and Saturday had only so many hours, Jesus was anxious to get his task accomplished, but there was so much to do. He says (and we can almost hear the exasperation in him) “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few.” In other words, there is much good to be gained in announcing the Kingdom of God, but too few will take up the call, and too many are resisting.
While the call has been taken up by others over the two thousand years since Christ walked among us, there is still much to be done and too few to do it. Each of us is enlisted in the battle, and it is a battle. In Jesus’ day, the Gospel tells us that there were many who resisted his message, and many denied his identity. Today the resistance is, if anything, stronger, and the message of the enemy more seductive.
Everyone is called, baptized into this mighty work. So how do we serve? God has given each of us gifts. Those gifts vary from person to person, and each is valuable. Some have the gift of persuasion, others the gift of a pious spirit. St. Augustine put it well when he said at his consecration as Bishop:
“The turbulent have to be corrected, the faint-hearted cheered up, the weak supported; the Gospel's opponents need to be refuted, its insidious enemies guarded against; the unlearned need to be taught, the indolent stirred up, the argumentative checked; the proud must be put in their place, the desperate set on their feet, those engaged in quarrels reconciled; the needy have to be helped, the oppressed to be liberated, the good to be encouraged, the bad to be tolerated; all must be loved.
“The Gospel terrifies me.” –St. Augustine
“The Gospel terrifies me.” –
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few.” Today we are called again to pick up the standard of Christ and carry it into the world. Today we pray for the strength of character to labor in God’s harvest.
Pax
[2] The picture used today is “Le Christ Guerissant un Malade” [Christ Healing the Sick] by Mathieu Ignace van Bree (1773-1839)
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