Thursday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Optional Memorial for Saint Sixtus II, Pope and Martyr, and His Companions, Martyrs
Proper readings for St. Sixtus II, and Companions
Biographical information about St. Sixtus II, and Companions
 
Or
 
Optional Memorial for Saint Cajetan, Priest
Proper readings for the Memorial of St. Cajetan
Biographical information about St. Cajetan
 

"The Punishment of Korah
and the Stoning of Moses and Aaron" (detail)
by Sandro Botticelli, 1481-82

Readings for Thursday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading I: Numbers 20:1-13
 
The whole congregation of the children of Israel
arrived in the desert of Zin in the first month,
and the people settled at Kadesh.
It was here that Miriam died, and here that she was buried.
 
As the community had no water,
they held a council against Moses and Aaron.
The people contended with Moses, exclaiming,
“Would that we too had perished with our kinsmen in the Lord’s presence!
Why have you brought the Lord’s assembly into this desert
where we and our livestock are dying?
Why did you lead us out of Egypt,
only to bring us to this wretched place
which has neither grain nor figs nor vines nor pomegranates?
Here there is not even water to drink!”
But Moses and Aaron went away from the assembly
to the entrance of the meeting tent, where they fell prostrate.
 
Then the glory of the Lord appeared to them,
and the Lord said to Moses,
“Take your staff and assemble the community,
you and your brother Aaron,
and in their presence order the rock to yield its waters.
From the rock you shall bring forth water for the congregation
and their livestock to drink.”
So Moses took his staff from its place before the Lord, as he was ordered.
He and Aaron assembled the community in front of the rock,
where he said to them, “Listen to me, you rebels!
Are we to bring water for you out of this rock?”
Then, raising his hand, Moses struck the rock twice with his staff,
and water gushed out in abundance for the people
and their livestock to drink.
But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron,
“Because you were not faithful to me
in showing forth my sanctity before the children of Israel,
you shall not lead this community into the land I will give them.”
 
These are the waters of Meribah,
where the children of Israel contended against the Lord,
and where the Lord revealed his sanctity among them.
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Commentary on Nm 20:1-13
 
We continue to follow the journey of Moses and the children of Israel in the desert.  Here at Meribah (the name means “contention”), without water, the people again challenge Moses and Aaron. The reading comments that Miriam, Aaron’s sister, has died.  Earlier we had heard she was stricken with “white leprosy” when she and her brother challenged Moses Numbers 12:10. There is some confusion about when this event took place during the forty years in the desert.  Some accounts say it happened at the end of the wanderings, others say it was after only two years. [4]
 
At Meribah, Moses is commanded to speak to the rock so water will come forth and God’s mercy may be shown. (Note this is the second account of this event.  In Exodus 17:1-7 Moses is commanded to strike the rock with his staff.)  Perhaps because of Moses' own failing faith he strikes it twice before the promise is fulfilled.
 
"This rock prefigured Christ, according to 1 Corinthians 10:4-5. The Fathers gave an allegorical interpretation: the rock is Jesus, and the water the grace which flows from the open side of our Lord; the double strike stands for the two beams of the cross. Moses stands for the Jews, because just as Moses doubted and struck the rock, the Jewish people crucified Christ, not believing that he was the Son of God (cf. St Augustine, ‘Contra Faustum’, 16, 15; ‘Questiones In Heptateuchurn’, 35)." [5]
 
As a consequence of his failure, Moses is told that he will not see the land God promised the children of Israel.
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9
 
R. (8) If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
 
Come, let us sing joyfully to the Lord;
let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyfully sing psalms to him.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
 
Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the Lord who made us.
For he is our God,
and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
 
Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert,
Where your fathers tested me;
they tested me though they had seen my works.”
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
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Commentary on Ps 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9
 
This part of Psalm 95, commonly used as the invitatory psalm for the Liturgy of the Hours, is a song of thanksgiving. In these strophes the incident at Meribah is remembered (Exodus 17:3-7), and God’s undeserved mercy proclaimed. The community is rejoicing that the Lord is God and that he has brought us salvation in spite of our forebears' obstinacy. We are encouraged to listen to the Lord, even if what we are asked to do is difficult.
 
CCC: Ps 95:1-6 2628; Ps 95:7-8 2659; Ps 95:7 1165; Ps 95:9 2119
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Gospel: Matthew 16:13-23
 
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi
and he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.
For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my Church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
 
Then he strictly ordered his disciples
to tell no one that he was the Christ.
 
From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples
that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly
from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised.
Then Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him,
“God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.”
He turned and said to Peter,
“Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”
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Commentary on Mt 16:13-23
 
St. Matthew’s story of how Jesus asked about what people were saying about him has a profound impact on the Church. Here, when challenged by Jesus with the question: “But who do you say that I am?” Simon answers: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” The second title is not present in St. Mark’s version of this encounter. It adds an understanding that Jesus is not just the Messiah, but also the Son of God.

Given this response, Jesus confers upon Simon a new name, Kephas, which comes from the root Aramaic word kepa or “rock.” When translated into Greek it came out Petros and from there to Peter. The name, however, becomes the foundation for the Church, and Peter, as a consequence of this exchange, is given Christ’s authority that is passed down through papal succession to our pontiff today.

The passage continues with Jesus’ explanation of his coming passion. Jesus, using the title “Son of Man” (see Daniel 7:13-14), foresees his trials and passion. This frightens the disciples and probably confuses many of the entourage (remember, there were more than just the twelve following Jesus around), and Peter confronts him, asking him to take a different approach to what he tells his students. Seeing this request as an invitation to take an easier, less dangerous path, Jesus rebukes Peter.
 
CCC: Mt 16-18 1969; Mt 16:16-23 440; Mt 16:16 424, 442; Mt 16:17 153, 442; Mt 16:18-19 881; Mt 16:18 424, 442, 552, 586, 869; Mt 16:19 553, 1444; Mt 16:21-23 540, 607; Mt 16:21 554; Mt 16:22-23 554
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Reflection:
 
Contrasting themes of faith have, for a third day this week, been hurled at us through the Holy Scripture. We are driven to examine our own fidelity in the light of what we hear today.
 
The Old Testament reading about the great confrontation at Meribah leads us to wonder how the children of Israel could again challenge the Lord’s will.   Here, for the first time, we see Moses’ faith weaken.  He must strike the rock twice to release the life giving water God promised.  His punishment was swift and extreme.  He will not lead the people into the land God promised to this stiff-necked people.
 
In an almost black and white contrast, the Gospel story tells us of St. Peter’s great confession.  When Christ asks the disciples, after performing many miraculous works, who the people believe he is, it is Peter who answers correctly, making the leap of faith.  “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.”  As with Moses, the response is swift.  Without hesitating Jesus names him the rock (in Greek – petros) upon which his Church will be established and gives him the authority, passed down through all of his successors, to be the moral compass of Christians.  He goes further saying that this authority to define right and wrong will be confirmed in God’s Heavenly Kingdom.
 
Given the examples of two holy men, Moses and Peter, we must ask ourselves where does our faith fall on that awesome scale?  Are we a “stiff-necked people” who challenge God’s will in our lives or do we instantly profess the Lord?  As we go about our lives today, let us be guided by Peter’s words and follow the Lord in all things.
 
Pax

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[1] S.S. Commemoratio
[2] The picture is "The Punishment of Korah and the Stoning of Moses and Aaron" (detail) by Sandro Botticelli, 1481-82.
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4] The Jewish Study Bible, © 2004 Oxford University Press, New York, NY, p. 323.
[5] The Navarre Bible: “Pentateuch,” (Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003) p. 603.