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“Christ as Savior” by El Greco, 1810-14
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Commentary:
Reading 1: Romans 13:8-10
Commentary on Rom 13:8-10
St. Paul, in this reading from his Letter to the Romans, restates the second half of the great commandment. The apostle says that following Christ’s commandment to love one another automatically fulfills any other commandment of the law governing Christian interaction. St. Paul essentially paraphrases Jesus' own teaching from St. Matthew’s Gospel as the Lord debated the Sadducees and Pharisees in Matthew 22:34ff.
CCC: Rom 12-15 1454, 1971; Rom 13:8-10 1824, 2196; Rom 13:8 2845; Rom 13:9-10 2055
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Responsorial Psalm: Ps 112:1b-2, 4-5, 9
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 112:1b-2, 4-5, 9
R. ( 5a) Blessed the man who is gracious and lends to those in need.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Commentary on Ps 112:1b-2, 4-5, 9
This hymn of David exalts the person who follows the Law of God. A number of actions associated with this faithfulness are presented including acts of generosity, mercy, charity, and honesty. That person, we are told, will be held up by God.
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Gospel: Luke 14:25-33
Commentary on Lk 14:25-33
The Lord, perhaps in an action intended to identify those who had the zeal to be true disciples, tells the crowd of the necessity of total dedication to the call to discipleship. They had seen his recent miracles of healing and were, no doubt, hoping to learn wisdom from him.
He tells them that they must place their love of God first, in front of family and even their own lives. He tells them, through two examples – the construction of the tower and the evaluation of the battle – that they must measure the sacrifice needed to be his follower. He punctuates his statement by telling them they must “renounce” all their possessions to follow him.
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Reflection:
There is within the call to discipleship a natural growth that takes place. We see clearly that God gives faith in different amounts at different times. Some of us are ready to take the call to holiness completely and let it dominate our lives, others of us grow toward that ideal gradually, growing in faith and understanding.
In St. Luke’s Gospel we hear the Lord explaining that full discipleship requires that singleness of purpose evident in his closest friends, the twelve. As he walked through Galilee, great crowds followed him. Some were just curious, others malicious, and still others truly wished for the truth. Cognizant of this, the Lord explains to all of them what it will take to follow him. We can almost see the crowds melting away.
But even in that day some would have tried to follow the Lord, working toward the complete submission necessary for discipleship. It is what we do today. Few of us are free to commit completely to the literal ideal expressed in scripture today. Most of us have worldly obligations that require us to work at a secular job and support ourselves and families.
This secular encumbrance, however, does not excuse us from the basic instruction given by Jesus, dedication to God and His Son must be first in our lives. Our love for the Lord must color everything we do. St. Paul has it absolutely correct in his Letter to the Romans. The filter through which all our actions must pass is the filter of love.
Love is more than an emotion, more than a feeling (excuse me Kansas), it is an attitude, a decision. Love directs us to do what is right for others and to others. It places a balance in our lives. If we love others and ourselves, we can find the balance between how much to give and what we need to keep. If love for one another drives our interaction with others, it must also be the source of our relationship with God. Indeed, the first part of the Lord’s Great Commandment tells us to Love the Lord our God.
This is one of those topics that cannot be done justice in the short space we have here. Let us pledge today that we will really try, with God’s help, to so completely love those we meet that they will instantly know we are disciples of the one who was love personified, Jesus Christ.
Pax
Reflection:
There is within the call to discipleship a natural growth that takes place. We see clearly that God gives faith in different amounts at different times. Some of us are ready to take the call to holiness completely and let it dominate our lives, others of us grow toward that ideal gradually, growing in faith and understanding.
In St. Luke’s Gospel we hear the Lord explaining that full discipleship requires that singleness of purpose evident in his closest friends, the twelve. As he walked through Galilee, great crowds followed him. Some were just curious, others malicious, and still others truly wished for the truth. Cognizant of this, the Lord explains to all of them what it will take to follow him. We can almost see the crowds melting away.
But even in that day some would have tried to follow the Lord, working toward the complete submission necessary for discipleship. It is what we do today. Few of us are free to commit completely to the literal ideal expressed in scripture today. Most of us have worldly obligations that require us to work at a secular job and support ourselves and families.
This secular encumbrance, however, does not excuse us from the basic instruction given by Jesus, dedication to God and His Son must be first in our lives. Our love for the Lord must color everything we do. St. Paul has it absolutely correct in his Letter to the Romans. The filter through which all our actions must pass is the filter of love.
Love is more than an emotion, more than a feeling (excuse me Kansas), it is an attitude, a decision. Love directs us to do what is right for others and to others. It places a balance in our lives. If we love others and ourselves, we can find the balance between how much to give and what we need to keep. If love for one another drives our interaction with others, it must also be the source of our relationship with God. Indeed, the first part of the Lord’s Great Commandment tells us to Love the Lord our God.
This is one of those topics that cannot be done justice in the short space we have here. Let us pledge today that we will really try, with God’s help, to so completely love those we meet that they will instantly know we are disciples of the one who was love personified, Jesus Christ.
Pax
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